日曜日, 1月 01, 2012
Where to go for good materials?
I find that watching films and TV are not good for learning Japanese - they don't suit my mindset. I like to understand what I am looking at and can't really learn "by ear". To that end I am in need of something in particular - a daily reading of a level would be good, and a good source of videos would also be good. I am going to have to explore the Internet.
My goal over the coming couple of weeks then is to find a couple such resources. I'll post anything useful here.
Oh, and thanks for stopping by. This place is looking pretty sad now - let's try to dust it off.
水曜日, 10月 05, 2011
Dusting myself off
久しぶり、ね。
It's been too long, eh?
I want to pick things up here and start learning again, in the peace and quiet of a semi-abandoned blog. ちょっと廃墟見たい。ね？
It's been too long, eh?
I want to pick things up here and start learning again, in the peace and quiet of a semi-abandoned blog. ちょっと廃墟見たい。ね？
月曜日, 10月 18, 2010
Fear Japan
Great article in the NYT regarding the lessons Japan offers the world - kinda like the basket case local who parents use as a bogeyman - "don't mess up your economy and going in to an economic downward spiral - or you might end up like Japan."
My experience of Japan has always been extraordinarily positive, but there are strange things that point to this kind of decay that you simply don't see around the UK (as I found when I tried to find parallel examples of this for my talk at Ignite London). Seeing photos of Tomo and Kazue's trip this summer, while much of it was as bright and exciting as ever, other parts, like the photos of the water park showed a rot that is there, in the edges. Hard to pinpoint, but a bit too rusty there, or the paint is a little more faded than you expect.
The problem is that the narrative is one that is set to the framework of the endless expansion that capitalism requires. The idea that a country could downshift en-mass is not given any credibility. But if a country that once fucked itself utter by living beyond reason (the property price bubble was truly stupendous - I mean, really) then decides to behave economically sensibly for a while, no bad thing, surely.
In fact, many of the indicators that people point to in Japan are simply the same as we are seeing elsewhere, only in sharper relief - young people are more reluctant to leave the nest in Japan than anywhere else, but it's a common problem globally. Dwellings in Japan, due to the population concentration, have always been small, but I'd say that a country with good internet connectivity and excellent public transport is probably better placed to disperse and equalise this than some others.
What I'm interested to know is if the 20 year spiral of decay could ever really be a threat if it shared across other countries. When it was just Japan, a fairly insular country at the best of times, it was not much for the rest of the world to take action on, but nor was it a genuinely large problem. When you have several countries running the same risk, then as an economic block the results could be quite different - trade within those countries is more of an option and the dynamic interplay of several nations could have quite a different effect than that of deflation in a single, isolated economic block, particularly when members of that block have considerably greater clout and stronger brands internationally.
Good article.
My experience of Japan has always been extraordinarily positive, but there are strange things that point to this kind of decay that you simply don't see around the UK (as I found when I tried to find parallel examples of this for my talk at Ignite London). Seeing photos of Tomo and Kazue's trip this summer, while much of it was as bright and exciting as ever, other parts, like the photos of the water park showed a rot that is there, in the edges. Hard to pinpoint, but a bit too rusty there, or the paint is a little more faded than you expect.
The problem is that the narrative is one that is set to the framework of the endless expansion that capitalism requires. The idea that a country could downshift en-mass is not given any credibility. But if a country that once fucked itself utter by living beyond reason (the property price bubble was truly stupendous - I mean, really) then decides to behave economically sensibly for a while, no bad thing, surely.
In fact, many of the indicators that people point to in Japan are simply the same as we are seeing elsewhere, only in sharper relief - young people are more reluctant to leave the nest in Japan than anywhere else, but it's a common problem globally. Dwellings in Japan, due to the population concentration, have always been small, but I'd say that a country with good internet connectivity and excellent public transport is probably better placed to disperse and equalise this than some others.
What I'm interested to know is if the 20 year spiral of decay could ever really be a threat if it shared across other countries. When it was just Japan, a fairly insular country at the best of times, it was not much for the rest of the world to take action on, but nor was it a genuinely large problem. When you have several countries running the same risk, then as an economic block the results could be quite different - trade within those countries is more of an option and the dynamic interplay of several nations could have quite a different effect than that of deflation in a single, isolated economic block, particularly when members of that block have considerably greater clout and stronger brands internationally.
Good article.
土曜日, 9月 25, 2010
Cool clothing
Featuring punny word-play, mixed with cool graphics and playing on expectations, T-Shitsu products are crafted in Japan from superior materials. But as undeniably cool as the shirts are, they are as nothing to the sublime beauty of the website - Tony's other skills lie in brilliant web design!
Check out the range and when you inevitably buy something, let him know Dan sent ya!
水曜日, 5月 26, 2010
Photo Tokyo
Incredible visualisation of Tokyo based on the numbers of photos taken at a point. I suspect that it this is massively underestimating the number of photos because the websites providing the data (Flickr, Picasa) are American, with an Anglo-Saxon bias.
金曜日, 5月 21, 2010
At last a pep pill?
I read in The Economist that Japan's big Pharma have been on a buying spree, snatching up some juicy drug and biotech companies in the US and India. This can only be a good sign.
Today Google announced GoogleTV. This incredible manifestation of all of the crazy predictions about IPTV is built with Google's own Android OS and Chrome browser technology, making the most of Flash. At the heart of the system lurks Intel, but who have they partnered with to make the TV? SONY! The definitive example of NIH syndrome have partnered up with this upstart web company to create the most awesome looking bit of kit.*
There at last appears to be some kind of acceptance in Japan that their companies need to be looking abroad, and hopefully this will bring with it a renewed energy. It's just a shame that it's happening now, when the rest of the world will be in less of a mood to take them up on their offer, but I guess it will simply make the acquisitions cheaper, certainly if they come looking in Europe...
UPDATE: Yeah, the Indy said it better.
*I literally just saw this on a live broadcast from GoogleIO, so I haven't found any images or links to any of this just yet. Wait a day then just Google it all to see more.
Today Google announced GoogleTV. This incredible manifestation of all of the crazy predictions about IPTV is built with Google's own Android OS and Chrome browser technology, making the most of Flash. At the heart of the system lurks Intel, but who have they partnered with to make the TV? SONY! The definitive example of NIH syndrome have partnered up with this upstart web company to create the most awesome looking bit of kit.*
There at last appears to be some kind of acceptance in Japan that their companies need to be looking abroad, and hopefully this will bring with it a renewed energy. It's just a shame that it's happening now, when the rest of the world will be in less of a mood to take them up on their offer, but I guess it will simply make the acquisitions cheaper, certainly if they come looking in Europe...
UPDATE: Yeah, the Indy said it better.
*I literally just saw this on a live broadcast from GoogleIO, so I haven't found any images or links to any of this just yet. Wait a day then just Google it all to see more.
火曜日, 3月 16, 2010
Who has more phones?
Well now, here's something I don't have any strong feelings about:
The UK has more phones per capita than Japan - 84 phones per 100 people versus about 62. I guess that's the risk you face when a good percentage of your domestic market were born before regular phones were widespread...
Thanks to the enraged folks at JunkCharts for bringing it to my attention.
The UK has more phones per capita than Japan - 84 phones per 100 people versus about 62. I guess that's the risk you face when a good percentage of your domestic market were born before regular phones were widespread...
Thanks to the enraged folks at JunkCharts for bringing it to my attention.
月曜日, 3月 01, 2010
Japan - frequently shaken, but not as often stirred.
Following up the colossal and tragic earthquake in Chile this week, the Guardian Datablog have an article that summarises the deadliest earthquakes since 1970.
Japan, a place that in my head is singularly linked with earthquakes, only appears once - for the 1995 Kobe earthquake that claimed 5,502 lives. I was surprised by this initially, but then I thought about it some more. Japan is a rich country, with effective building standards and (mostly) honest construction companies. It may well have been struck by many worse earthquakes than some of those here, but it deals with it with less trauma than those affected by the seismic events recorded in the article.
As one of the comments says, "God must hate poor people." My heart goes out to those in Chile, but looking at the list it's easy to see that people in Indonesia, China and Iran have been terribly affected by earthquakes too in the same period. These are countries that are hard pressed to cope with social problems at the best of times - the misery of a natural disaster is too much.
Reading the article about the Kobe, or Great Hanshin Quake was an eye-opener: the slump in the market caused by the quake, in the Guiness Book of Records for the costliest natural disaster, has been attributed as a contributing factor in the figurative collapse of Barings Bank and, valued at 2.5% of GDP, a fairly major contribution to the recession that Japan was in the midst of at the time.
At least this fate is one that is unlikely to affect the UK when we stagger the same path shuffled along by Japan's post-bust zombie economy...
Japan, a place that in my head is singularly linked with earthquakes, only appears once - for the 1995 Kobe earthquake that claimed 5,502 lives. I was surprised by this initially, but then I thought about it some more. Japan is a rich country, with effective building standards and (mostly) honest construction companies. It may well have been struck by many worse earthquakes than some of those here, but it deals with it with less trauma than those affected by the seismic events recorded in the article.
As one of the comments says, "God must hate poor people." My heart goes out to those in Chile, but looking at the list it's easy to see that people in Indonesia, China and Iran have been terribly affected by earthquakes too in the same period. These are countries that are hard pressed to cope with social problems at the best of times - the misery of a natural disaster is too much.
Reading the article about the Kobe, or Great Hanshin Quake was an eye-opener: the slump in the market caused by the quake, in the Guiness Book of Records for the costliest natural disaster, has been attributed as a contributing factor in the figurative collapse of Barings Bank and, valued at 2.5% of GDP, a fairly major contribution to the recession that Japan was in the midst of at the time.
At least this fate is one that is unlikely to affect the UK when we stagger the same path shuffled along by Japan's post-bust zombie economy...
火曜日, 2月 09, 2010
Wanna start a brewery? In Japan you can't.
That said, it's the only magazine I actually buy each month and I take great delight in savouring the experience of reading it, mostly because it is the primary source of "here-is-something-interesting-about-Japan-that-is-good-and-not-technology" stories. Yes, this spout rag for metrosexual internationalists with platinum frequent flyer accounts is about the best place to find out about positive stories about Japan available anywhere on UK news-stands.
I was surprised by the cost that they mention. A million dollars sounds like a lot to me - that's what? About £640k? I seem to remember watching the first steps of some little brewery in a garage in Nottingham that I used to pass on the way home from town and from the look of the place that must have been started on what they had left after 2 pints o' mild and packet of salted. Judging from the quality of the pull badges you get from some UK breweries*2 they clearly don't spend anything like that here. OK, someone like BrewDog may have done - check out their spanky metal thingies - but others like Shotover don't sound like they have.
I think that's it's a real shame that there aren't more opportunities for craft brewing in Japan, because I am absolutely confident that if there were, they would be stellar. This kind of small, dedicated artisan business is the sort of thing that I know Japan does very well - all the kind of attention-to-detail service and craft coffee experiences I have had in Japan would be expressed perfectly in beer. I can imagine that it would be exactly the sort of thing to draw folks out in to the countryside. Damn, if I didn't know nothing about beer myself, I'd be tempted to head off to a quite valley in Nagano and give it a go myself.
Right then, other reasons I find Monocle interesting are: because they have, or at least had, a monthly manga called Kita-Koga (utter rubbish); the Editor-at-large is Hidetoshi Nakata (yes, that one); their illustrator is Japanese; they feature stacks of Japanese artists on their weekly podcast*3; and when I suggested that they change the naming convention of their files for said podcast, they *4 listened and did it - brilliant! Basically it's a fun and remarkably varied read, totally devoid of celebrity*5 and I'm simply jealous that I don't have the kind of income to burn on their lifestyle.
*1 or an eye watering 2,310yen if you are in Japan.
*2 go on, I dare ya, tell me that's not a legitimate method of rating a breweries quality {ahem}
*3 now that I come to think of it, they never call it that.
*4 I wrote to tb himself - I can't imagine that it was he who actually picked it up on his Blackberry, but I like to imagine that it was - perhaps in a quite moment in a Lufthansa First Class lounge en route to Narita. It was to Japanese style YYMMDD format btw - so it appears in numerical order, instead of the other way round.
*5 unless you know fashion designers on obscure brands - and that's a fairly legit form of minor-celebdom I guess. Actually, the biggest celebs they ever mention are Japanese popstars (mega, if only in Japan) and Alain de Botton. Oh, and foreign politicians.
日曜日, 1月 17, 2010
Holiday in Japan and don't get ripped off
Sure, it's extremely easy to blow a fortune travelling around Japan. But it doesn't have to be that bad. My own experiences were of reasonably priced venues, cheaper transport options and a lot of free pavement pounding. I've always had a great time doing it and really think you get a better view of what the country is really like (I used a similar approach in the States and enjoyed that too).
However, when friends ask me about what they should do on a trip to JApan, I'm instinctively wary about what I recommend as I know that, no matter what I can suggest, all the evidence is that, for the holidaying visitor, it's going to cost them a LOT.
So it's a relief to see someone taking a holiday in Japan, and on a reasonable budget too. Really 10,000 yen is not a great amount when you stack it up against other holidays you might take. Nice one Guardian writer.
However, when friends ask me about what they should do on a trip to JApan, I'm instinctively wary about what I recommend as I know that, no matter what I can suggest, all the evidence is that, for the holidaying visitor, it's going to cost them a LOT.
So it's a relief to see someone taking a holiday in Japan, and on a reasonable budget too. Really 10,000 yen is not a great amount when you stack it up against other holidays you might take. Nice one Guardian writer.
金曜日, 1月 15, 2010
Ways in which UK and Japan are similiar (part 73,284)
That Denmark, the UK and Japan are all so similar in their GDP doesn't surprise me - I'm sure France, Germany, Italy, Canada and Australia would be too. I'm a little amazed by just how far America is out in front.
I'm sure that certain people I know might be a little surprised that UK actually beats Japan - and we do it with considerably shorter hours in the office - is there a stat on average working hours in the two countries? I'm sure that it would make the difference more extreme if it the GDP value was compensated for the time spent in earning it.
月曜日, 1月 04, 2010
Words you need to know in Japanese
Well, according to STA Travel that is:
Curious that of all the words they suggest you might need to know, "chikan" is in there with "hai" and "delicious". In fairness, they do offer these in the spirit of "useless info", however it's hard to see how any of these, with the exception of word number three, are actually useless, unless you do indeed take their advice and use these at home.
Perhaps I'm having a sense of humour bypass, but this gets my goat. It is all part of a cumulative effect that undermines the respect that one is likely to accord to the country you are visiting.
土曜日, 1月 02, 2010
On "rekijo" - Roland Buerk lives up to his name
This piece by the BBC's Tokyo correspondent demonstrates what for me are the typical lazy approaches to Japan articles in UK press.
What is it that this shows about Japan that is actually all that unusual? Not much, I reckon.
The idea that Japan is mired in the past? You only have to look at the Tokyo skyline to realise this isn't really true, and have a brief look around the UK to see other places that are just as stymied by history. A history theme park? Isn't that what somewhere like Ironbridge is all about, only less involving and interesting? I've visited O-Edo Onsen* in O-Daiba and it offers something similar - a fun diversion that is well worth the games it plays with historical accuracy.
How about the assertion that these girls are "escaping the present" in their interest in the past? Well, surely an interest in the past as a displacement activity is an improvement on the broad disengagement with reality around one that obsessions with Strictly Come Dancing and X Factor engender?
I think the unmentioned aspect here is the cosplay that is alluded to in the final part of the clip, and we all know that if you want to have a laugh at Japan, cosplay is a safe trope for which one does not really need to work too hard. And as a final note, how likely is it that this is, as is so often the case, actually a very minor activity with a handful of exponents that is looked upon as much as a novelty by J-media, but which is presented to the world here as a mainstream development? Perhaps I'm cynical in trying to find stories to blog about.
* Wow, do you see on that link that it is open 11am to 9am? Not a misprint, it's open 22 hours, so you can head there overnight if you wish. Cool.
What is it that this shows about Japan that is actually all that unusual? Not much, I reckon.
The idea that Japan is mired in the past? You only have to look at the Tokyo skyline to realise this isn't really true, and have a brief look around the UK to see other places that are just as stymied by history. A history theme park? Isn't that what somewhere like Ironbridge is all about, only less involving and interesting? I've visited O-Edo Onsen* in O-Daiba and it offers something similar - a fun diversion that is well worth the games it plays with historical accuracy.
How about the assertion that these girls are "escaping the present" in their interest in the past? Well, surely an interest in the past as a displacement activity is an improvement on the broad disengagement with reality around one that obsessions with Strictly Come Dancing and X Factor engender?
I think the unmentioned aspect here is the cosplay that is alluded to in the final part of the clip, and we all know that if you want to have a laugh at Japan, cosplay is a safe trope for which one does not really need to work too hard. And as a final note, how likely is it that this is, as is so often the case, actually a very minor activity with a handful of exponents that is looked upon as much as a novelty by J-media, but which is presented to the world here as a mainstream development? Perhaps I'm cynical in trying to find stories to blog about.
* Wow, do you see on that link that it is open 11am to 9am? Not a misprint, it's open 22 hours, so you can head there overnight if you wish. Cool.
MSNBC Japanese law bollocks
the Japanese government has imposed a waistline limit for anyone over the age of 40.
Yes, that's right, it's actually illegal to be overweight. For men, the limit is 33.5 inches and for women, 35.4.
This has to be bollocks, right? I did a cursory scan to see mention of this elsewhere, but couldn't. Please someone tell me I'm not mad.
水曜日, 12月 30, 2009
China - the next Japan?
Seems an unlikely comparison to make, but there are similarities - fast growing economy, export focus, in the Far East, er, black hair and foxy chicks? Hmm, Still, the Economist wonder if the rapid growth of China might follow a similarly spectacular path as Japan. I doubt it.
Far more likely is the stagnation of the UK economy in a Japanese fashion. Fashionable zombieism infects the UK banking sector. Hmmm.
(Click on the picture to see how it pans out)
Far more likely is the stagnation of the UK economy in a Japanese fashion. Fashionable zombieism infects the UK banking sector. Hmmm.
火曜日, 8月 18, 2009
日記帳１番
今日、昼ごはん時に急がしすぎましたが日記帳を書きませんでした。 今から１２月６日まで、毎日日本語を勉強したい。
Hmm, it's kinda a late and I want to go to sleep, so that will have to do.
One new word mind you, or at least one new version of a word I thought I knew. 日記帳（にっきちょう） means 'diary'. No new grammar point as I have not had a chance to look at one today.
Hmm, it's kinda a late and I want to go to sleep, so that will have to do.
One new word mind you, or at least one new version of a word I thought I knew. 日記帳（にっきちょう） means 'diary'. No new grammar point as I have not had a chance to look at one today.
土曜日, 8月 15, 2009
Does anyone know anything about オードリー?
I mean, what are these guys about? What is their humour based on? Weird.
Here's a typically inane clip.
Here's a typically inane clip.
木曜日, 3月 05, 2009
Anki updates
Exciting news from Anki, the excellent Leitner-derived spaced repetition system.
It creeps ever closer to the magic v1.0, now at v0.9.9.6, but along the way it has been seeing ports across to an ever increasing number of platforms, beyond the usual desktop varieties of Windows, Mac, Ubuntu and Fedora. You can now run Anki on:
It creeps ever closer to the magic v1.0, now at v0.9.9.6, but along the way it has been seeing ports across to an ever increasing number of platforms, beyond the usual desktop varieties of Windows, Mac, Ubuntu and Fedora. You can now run Anki on:
- vanilla iPod/iPhone
- hacked Maemo iPhone
- Maemo N770
- Windows Mobile
- Android
水曜日, 1月 28, 2009
DS Language learning
Not sure there's anyone out there any more, but worth mentioning this to see the response...
Just seen that there are two Japanese learning games on the DS here in the UK
Not sure how good these are, but one reviewer rated the first of these (MYL isn't out until next month)...
The same reviewer also mentions a couple of Japanese titles:
Just seen that there are two Japanese learning games on the DS here in the UK
Not sure how good these are, but one reviewer rated the first of these (MYL isn't out until next month)...
If you already have a DS and are serious about learning Japanese, you should get this game to help along your study, particularly if you are not fortunate enough to have a Japanese speaker giving you regular lessons.So this may not be much use for me and the boy, but I'm interested as it would help my visual learning bias. There is one pretty major grip about kanji stroke order, which could be really annoying, but as a tool for learning - imagine having a DS version of fb's KanjiBox app (v2 in beta now!). How cool would that be?
The same reviewer also mentions a couple of Japanese titles:
I've purchased some Japanese games for the DS recently, which have been useful for Kanji and Kana learning (Kanji Sonomama DS Rakubikjiten and Tadashii Kanji Kakitori kun - both available from Amazon Japan).Anyone used any of these? Let me know and I may try getting hold of them.
木曜日, 11月 06, 2008
JLPT RIP?
It appears that the venerable Japanese Language Proficiency Test is to be no more!
Well, actually it has another year of life left (2009 will be the last one) before it is rippped up, burnt and replaced with... the revised JLPT.
Big deal I hear you cry. Well, there is a significant change afoot - the revised JLPT, which will still only test receptive skills but will get a funky new prefix to distinguish it from the old one, will be available in 5, count 'em (five) levels; again numbered from hardest to easiest; N1 (the hardest) will come in slightly tougher than the current JLPT 1-kyuu. At the easier end of the spectrum, N5 will be a direct, like-for-like replacement of the current 4-kyuu.
Well, plus ca change - the difference comes in the middle. Right in the middle actually. The new N3 will be an intermediate level, bridging the gulf between the current 2-kyuu and 3-kyuu.
For many students this leap is quite a challenge - the step up requires a three-fold expansion of kanji knowledge and requires an awareness of four times as much vocabulary. After the fairly moderate increase from 4-kyuu to 3-kyuu (ha! get me, I haven't managed yet have I?) this can present quite a daunting challenge unless you are in country (I know a few people who have tried and failed 2-kyuu here in the UK) though that's not to lessen the achievement of those who do manage it in Japan - it's still the same exam, after all.
Which brings us to the other change that will occur at the same time: biannual testing. Yes, for those who do fluff either of the harder level (N1, N2) exams, the opportunity will be there for a retest in July, though only for those in Japan, or its neighbours Korea, China and Taiwan.
Thrilling stuff. Let's just hope that I'm in a position to apply for N3 by 2010, the inaugral year...
Well, actually it has another year of life left (2009 will be the last one) before it is rippped up, burnt and replaced with... the revised JLPT.
Big deal I hear you cry. Well, there is a significant change afoot - the revised JLPT, which will still only test receptive skills but will get a funky new prefix to distinguish it from the old one, will be available in 5, count 'em (five) levels; again numbered from hardest to easiest; N1 (the hardest) will come in slightly tougher than the current JLPT 1-kyuu. At the easier end of the spectrum, N5 will be a direct, like-for-like replacement of the current 4-kyuu.
Well, plus ca change - the difference comes in the middle. Right in the middle actually. The new N3 will be an intermediate level, bridging the gulf between the current 2-kyuu and 3-kyuu.
For many students this leap is quite a challenge - the step up requires a three-fold expansion of kanji knowledge and requires an awareness of four times as much vocabulary. After the fairly moderate increase from 4-kyuu to 3-kyuu (ha! get me, I haven't managed yet have I?) this can present quite a daunting challenge unless you are in country (I know a few people who have tried and failed 2-kyuu here in the UK) though that's not to lessen the achievement of those who do manage it in Japan - it's still the same exam, after all.
Which brings us to the other change that will occur at the same time: biannual testing. Yes, for those who do fluff either of the harder level (N1, N2) exams, the opportunity will be there for a retest in July, though only for those in Japan, or its neighbours Korea, China and Taiwan.
Thrilling stuff. Let's just hope that I'm in a position to apply for N3 by 2010, the inaugral year...
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