Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.
technology (Page 41)
Needless to say, Japan has had their fill of Tsunamis. After the devastation of the 11 March Tohoku earth quake, the nation would like to give a huge FU to any future tsunami coming our way.
And so, three huge Japanese contractors are working on a special surprise for the next tsunami that tries to hit the shores of Wakayama prefecture in the form of a gigantic steel column. If successful it would be so poetically beautiful… if the Japanese only knew the beauty of the middle finger.
Tired of stuffing rice balls in your bag only to have them get squished and smear sticky rice all over your important work documents?
Takara Tomy Arts is here to answer your plea with SmartHan (han means “rice”), a revolutionary new way to enjoy your favorite rice dish from home while on the go!
We’ve introduced some unique smartphone apps in one of our previous posts, but here’s one more unique app that’s caught our attention and may even be useful, if you believe what the developers say. If you’ve ever been annoyed by mosquitoes in the outdoors, and I believe most of us have at one time or another, then the Mosquito Buster app may be the solution to your pest problem. Yes, those small, buzzing blood-suckers can really be a pain, can’t they? But can a smartphone app really help you avoid mosquitoes? Well, the people at TABROID, a Japanese site that focuses on Android-related news and information, have apparently tested the app out in the field to see if it actually works. Read More
For expecting couples, visiting the gynecologist for an ultrasound scan can be a memorable experience as it is often their first look at the precious life waiting to be born in the world. Many soon-to-be parents even ask for a black-and-white printout of the scan to commemorate the occasion and then later to embarrass their child in front of his or her friends.
Now, Japanese engineering firm Fasotec has taken prenatal memorabilia to literally the next dimension with “Shape of an Angel,” a miniature 3D replica of the fetus as it lay in the womb.
Ah, Japanese bakeries. Rows and rows of delicious, fresh-baked treats ready for you to harvest—if you can decide among all the variety. And if you think choosing which bread to place on your tray is hard (I usually spend at least 5 minutes walking in circles with hungry tongs in hand), imagine how stressful it must be for part-time bakery staff who need to remember the names of every baked good in the store.
Luckily, Japanese web development company Brain Corporation has teamed up with the University of Hyogo to develop a POS system that uses a camera to instantly identify the kind of baked good customers have on their tray.
Check out the video below, it looks a lot more impressive than it sounds.
The hottest toy of 2012, Roachbot, was released earlier this year amid great fanfare with its eerie resemblance everyone’s favorite kitchen guest, the cockroach. But as Japan enters the middle of cockroach season, we find ourselves casting aside our robotic roaches to play with the real ones.
Sensing this, Japan Trust Technologies have given it a severe amping up, including support for the iPhone and iPad.
Rock-Paper-Scissors, the longstanding arbitrator of riding shotgun or eating the last slice of pizza has been celebrated for hundreds of years for its simple yet elegant balance of psychology and chance.
It’s such a part of the human experience that a robot could never out match the human mind in the RPS arena. Until now that is, as Engineers from the University of Tokyo decided to stick their noses in and build a robot that never ever loses at Rock-Paper-Scissors – ever! So how does it do it?
Maybe, along with the drive to to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before, we also want to explore our minds and consciousness. And maybe inevitably that sometimes comes out to be inventing new ways to mess with our own heads. And so, the eggheads at Riken Research have developed the “Substitutional Reality System“. Read More
At a recent auto show Toyota had unveiled its latest concept car, the Camatte (pronounced like latte), which they boast as the first ever true family car. Not only can mom and dad use it for their daily transportation needs, but little Susie can get a kick out of playing dress-up with it and little Johnny can practice driving it himself in the back yard.
Since its release on April 28th people have been flocking to toy stores across Japan to get their hands on toymaker Takara Tomy’s Kuru Kuuuuru Eco-Fan (Round and Rooooouuund Eco-Fan), so much so that their original 60,000 units had to be upped to an additional shipment of 120,000 to meet the demand.
It seems since abandoning much of the nuclear power in Japan, people’s minds are set on alternative means of keeping cool while saving electric costs or during potential black outs. The reason everyone wants this particular toy fan is because of the sheer wind power it has. For every one turn of the hand, the fan blade spins 100 times.
Anyone who’s played one of those music based games, be it Guitar Hero, Rock Band, or even Donkey Konga, surely enjoyed it but also felt that mild pang of guilt. The reality that if we spend the same time and effort learning a real instrument we could actually have a skill we would be proud of.
But learning a musical instrument is a long hard practice that often lacks the pizzazz and gratification the games offer. Perhaps, karaoke company Xing’s new Joysound f1 can help in that area, as their new karaoke system offers support for guitars and bass guitars.
Toyota announced this month that it will be a releasing a system for using your Prius plug-in hybrid as a big ol’ battery. The key feature is an inverter which will allow you to plug household electronics directly into the car through a water-proof cable. Read More
Have you ever watched a movie where a group of unbelievably attractive looking hackers broke into some government organization by constantly typing on their keyboard like they were typing an essay? Yet according to the display they were opening and closing executable files.
Sadly when alleged cyber-attacks occured during the South Ossetia War there were probably no fancy CGI effects showing neon blue wires interacting with each other while Scarlet Johansson with a poor Slavic accent convinces a Putin-looking Sean Penn to move all the nuclear data to a back-up server – constantly typing all the while.
No, the reality is probably just a bunch of sweaty Russians crowded around a blinking DOS prompt. That is, until now, as Japan’s National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) have developed a new cyber-attack alert system called Daedalus. And let me tell you, cyber warfare has never been sexier!
I can’t recall how many times mobile phones and mp3 players have slipped out of the front pocket of my shirt. Always ending with that cringe inducing thud as my precious device hits the cold hard ground. There was even one incident involving a turtle pond and now-gone iPod Classic that I can’t bear to go into.
If someone was videotaping all these moments in my life it would have made an excellent opening to a commercial for K-Pocke (pronounced like pokemon), a pocket designed so that nothing slips out.
At first glance, this tech news report seems to be telling us of an intriguing augmented reality app that’s scary good. When you point your camera at an object, it can automatically read your mind about what you’ll want to do next on the internet with respect to that object, like get a coupon for it or research about it on Wikipedia. Which would bring to mind various questions, such as, is it like auto-fill/auto-complete, remembering what you or others have done before, taken a few steps further? Is it selectively taking you to a website that’s ultimately aiming to get your money? Is it inviting you to give up your free will and just be satisfied with the website it saw fit to jump you to? How does it know what you want to do? Read More
Good news for users of smartphones and other portable devices constantly frustrated by batteries that don’t seem to last the day. A new type of energy saving memory has been successfully developed that can extend your battery life from 5 to 10 times.
While attending Wireless Japan 2012 this year, we were able to see some offerings by the best companies of the mobile industry. But many times, it’s the small to mid-sized businesses that really aim to make a name for themselves.
Enter Sun Crest Ltd., who shocked many with their line of shockproof screen film protectors. Although it’s not officially released, we got ahold of a sample and put it to the test with some whacks from a wine bottle.
Conservation and efficient use of energy is a huge issue these days, particularly in Japan where the nuclear power plants have been shut down and people are seriously concerned about whether we will have enough electric power in the coming summer months when electricity use will be at the highest. Well, if you’re worried about running out of electric power, here’s the perfect gadget for you – your very own portable solar panel kit! Read More
Now you can capture random moments of craziness or novelty happening while you’re driving with this new in-car camera / rearview mirror from Hamwha. It looks more or less like a normal rearview mirror but has an internal camera pointing forward to record what’s happening in front of your vehicle. Read More
How to make a secret rice bowl at Ichiran ramen
This is Japan’s, and the world’s, first capsule hotel, and you can still stay there
Japan has nearly 4 million abandoned homes, but where and why?
Two things to do, and two things not to do, when leaving a traditional Japanese inn
Bad tourist manners at Mt Fuji Lawson photo spot prompts Japanese town to block view with screens
Should married couples in Japan be allowed to have different family names? Survey investigates
Studio Ghibli unveils new goods that tip the hat to The Cat Returns
Japanese government to make first change to romanization spelling rules since the 1950s
W.T.F. Japan: Top 5 reasons sleeping on the floor Japanese-style is awesome 【Weird Top Five】
FUK COFFEE?!? Japanese cafe has a perfectly innocent reason for its startling-looking nameBad tourist manners at Mt Fuji Lawson photo spot prompts Japanese town to block view with screens
McDonald’s Japan’s new pancake pie is a taste sensation
Foreigner’s request for help in Tokyo makes us sad for the state of societyTwo things to do, and two things not to do, when leaving a traditional Japanese inn
One of Japan’s oldest castles now lets travelers spend night on the grounds, drink in its keepFUK COFFEE?!? Japanese cafe has a perfectly innocent reason for its startling-looking nameStudio Ghibli unveils new goods that tip the hat to The Cat Returns
Studio Ghibli unveils massive T-shirt collection featuring top anime movie characters
Starbucks at Shibuya Scramble Crossing reopens, but is it really bigger and better than before?Japan has nearly 4 million abandoned homes, but where and why?
McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goodsForeigner’s request for help in Tokyo makes us sad for the state of society
New definition of “Japanese whiskey” goes into effect to prevent fakes from fooling overseas buyers
Our Japanese reporter visits Costco in the U.S., finds super American and very Japanese things
Japanese ramen restaurants under pressure from new yen banknotes
All-you-can-drink Starbucks and amazing views part of Tokyo’s new 170 meter-high sky loungeBad tourist manners at Mt Fuji Lawson photo spot prompts Japanese town to block view with screensMcDonald’s Japan’s new pancake pie is a taste sensation
More foreign tourists than ever before in history visited Japan last month
Disney princesses get official manga makeovers for Manga Princess Cafe opening in TokyoMcDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
Sales of Japan’s most convenient train ticket/shopping payment cards suspended indefinitely
Sold-out Studio Ghibli desktop humidifiers are back so Totoro can help you through the dry seasonJapanese government to make first change to romanization spelling rules since the 1950sForeigner’s request for help in Tokyo makes us sad for the state of society
Ghibli founders Toshio Suzuki and Hayao Miyazaki contribute to Japanese whisky Totoro label design
Doraemon found buried at sea as scene from 1993 anime becomes real life【Photos】
Tokyo’s most famous Starbucks is closed
One Piece characters’ nationalities revealed, but fans have mixed opinions
We asked a Uniqlo employee what four things we should buy and their suggestions didn’t disappoint
Should married couples in Japan be allowed to have different family names? Survey investigates
Studio Ghibli unveils new goods that tip the hat to The Cat Returns
Japanese government to make first change to romanization spelling rules since the 1950s
W.T.F. Japan: Top 5 reasons sleeping on the floor Japanese-style is awesome 【Weird Top Five】
FUK COFFEE?!? Japanese cafe has a perfectly innocent reason for its startling-looking name
Anime Love Live! makes good on April Fools’ promise by actually creating giant panty-clad figure
Abe Monjuin: An ancient temple with a connection to stars and astrology…and National Treasures
One of Japan’s oldest castles now lets travelers spend night on the grounds, drink in its keep
Fun’s over—Japanese city removes anime girl manhole covers after repeated vandalism
Nara Park’s first baby deer of the year has been born, is totally adorable【Video】
We found an underground Kyoto vending machine that sells multi-course French meals
Studio Ghibli unveils massive T-shirt collection featuring top anime movie characters
Doraemon found buried at sea as scene from 1993 anime becomes real life【Photos】
