is this about american football or is this about what americans called soccer? should this thread be here or in the JP ent? so many questions, so little time...
Japan - News/General Discussion
Started by kanae · 23 Sep 2005 · 3,296 replies
General Discussion
I only know one japanese footbalplayer: Shinji ono.
he plays for a dutch club called feyenoord and a friend of mine teaches english to a japanese man, and he lives in the same building as shinji.
he plays for a dutch club called feyenoord and a friend of mine teaches english to a japanese man, and he lives in the same building as shinji.
Shinji has been great, not counting last season.
hopefully he can find back his form and get a nice transfer. Feyenoord is hopeless.
@kyouki: judging by your "love" for players I assume you're a girl? :hehe: Don't know too much about Japanese players who aren't playing in Europe.
Always thought Nakata was the most popular one.
hopefully he can find back his form and get a nice transfer. Feyenoord is hopeless.
@kyouki: judging by your "love" for players I assume you're a girl? :hehe: Don't know too much about Japanese players who aren't playing in Europe.
Always thought Nakata was the most popular one.
I saw only one picture of him at his profile page at the official site of his football club, Gamba Osaka - that's his profile picture given along with his data.
Other than that, pictures of him are rare. I think there were some in the last World Cup when Japan made a splash but I believe most are gone now...
Other than that, pictures of him are rare. I think there were some in the last World Cup when Japan made a splash but I believe most are gone now...
The only Japan footballplayer I know is Nakata...
He used to be very good...
He used to be very good...
Xavio wrote:The only Japan footballplayer I know is Nakata...
He used to be very good...
that's the price you pay for playing in Italy, good players get to sit on the bench.
![[image]](http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y19/defender12/jlh2.jpg){kind=link}
From The Scotsman:
What a goofy thing to say!
His words must be lost in the translation.
I can't imagine :sweat:
Sacre bleu! Teachers sue over French slur
MARGARET NEIGHBOUR
FRENCH teachers in Japan yesterday launched a legal action against the governor of Tokyo after he called French a "failed language".
In a suit filed at the Tokyo District Court, the 21 complainants, many of whom run language schools or teach French, said Shintaro Ishihara's remarks had disgraced them.
According to the suit, Mr Ishihara said last October: "It is no surprise that French is disqualified as an international language because French is a language which cannot count numbers."
What a goofy thing to say!
His words must be lost in the translation.
I can't imagine :sweat:
Hahahaa, that's classic. I've heard some pretty stupid things but that takes the cake.
You would think it was a translation mistake, but you've gotta wonder HOW it could go so badly wrong.
You would think it was a translation mistake, but you've gotta wonder HOW it could go so badly wrong.
Hmmmm...interesting very very interesting indeed.
NTV to deliver video-on-demand through Internet
The Yomiuri Shimbun
Nippon Television Network Corp. will begin distributing television programs on the Internet for a fee starting in autumn, it was learned Tuesday.
The company plans to distribute more than 10,000 programs within a year using a video-on-demand method in which viewers can choose what they want to view anytime.
Fuji Television Network, Inc. also plans Net distribution for a fee, but Nippon Television's plan is the largest in scale for a key commercial television station, and it is expected to be closely watched as an effort toward fusing of broadcasting and other communication methods.
The price per program will start at 100 yen, but the company plans in time to reduce the price through revenue from promotions related to programs.
(Jul. 13, 2005)
loris wrote:
What a goofy thing to say!
His words must be lost in the translation.
I can't imagine :sweat:
This is not the first time Ishihara has sparked controversy with his comments.
Link to article: http://search.japantimes.co.jp/print/news/nn10-2004/nn20041006f1.htm
Tu_triky wrote:The price per program will start at 100 yen,
Wow, that seems like a very reasonable price for a full TV program. I wonder if you can save it and re-watch it? Or if it is loaded with CMs?
loris wrote:
Wow, that seems like a very reasonable price for a full TV program. I wonder if you can save it and re-watch it? Or if it is loaded with CMs?
good question but it does sound pretty cheap to me as well...perhaps the price will vary depending on the content that one downloads...hmmm...don't know though!
loris wrote:
Wow, that seems like a very reasonable price for a full TV program. I wonder if you can save it and re-watch it? Or if it is loaded with CMs?
It does sound interesting. I'll wait to see more information about it, though it reminds me of the internet-based streaming box. The name of the service escapes me, but it allowed you to see Japanese programming over the internet for a monthly fee.
Edit: I remember reading something on ccwf's forum, and I found the name: Rokuraku
Yikes. :sweat:
Fault May Be More Dangerous Than Thought
By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID, Associated Press Writer
The fault that has twice caused major earthquakes in the Tokyo area may be shallower and more hazardous than previously thought.
The Philippine Sea plate dives beneath the Eurasian plate in this area. Newly developed seismic profiles indicate that the top surface of that plate ranges from 2.4 miles to 15.6 miles below the surface of the land. That is much shallower than earlier estimates that placed the top of the plate as much as 24 miles deep.
"In general, the amount of shaking is a function of distance from the source. Thus, it is expected that shallower geometry (would) produce more intense shaking," Hiroshi Sato of the University of Tokyo's Earthquake Research Institute said.
Sato's findings, based on seismic reflections, are being published in Friday's issue of the journal Science.
This fault has been blamed for major quakes that struck the Tokyo area in 1703 and 1923.
Today, 33 million people live in the Tokyo metropolitan area, which is home to business and financial institutions that reach worldwide.
Sato's report is based on high-resolution images of the area where the giant plates meet and move against one another.
He likened it to using a flashlight to see beneath the land surface. Such a precise survey has never been attempted around the Tokyo metropolitan area, he said in an e-mail interview.
Thus, the new images provide important and very basic data on the plate interface, he said.
How much more dangerous the shallower fault is remains to be seen.
He said many factors affect ground motion, such as the arrangement of a site, sediment deposits and direction of the quake movement. Sato said his team is working to simulate earthquake ground motion using computer models
Using the images to develop more precise estimates of ground motion in an earthquake can provide the basis for countermeasures, Sato said.
The research was funded by the Special Project for Earthquake Disaster Mitigation in Urban Areas of the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.
Fault May Be More Dangerous Than Thought
By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID, Associated Press Writer
The fault that has twice caused major earthquakes in the Tokyo area may be shallower and more hazardous than previously thought.
The Philippine Sea plate dives beneath the Eurasian plate in this area. Newly developed seismic profiles indicate that the top surface of that plate ranges from 2.4 miles to 15.6 miles below the surface of the land. That is much shallower than earlier estimates that placed the top of the plate as much as 24 miles deep.
"In general, the amount of shaking is a function of distance from the source. Thus, it is expected that shallower geometry (would) produce more intense shaking," Hiroshi Sato of the University of Tokyo's Earthquake Research Institute said.
Sato's findings, based on seismic reflections, are being published in Friday's issue of the journal Science.
This fault has been blamed for major quakes that struck the Tokyo area in 1703 and 1923.
Today, 33 million people live in the Tokyo metropolitan area, which is home to business and financial institutions that reach worldwide.
Sato's report is based on high-resolution images of the area where the giant plates meet and move against one another.
He likened it to using a flashlight to see beneath the land surface. Such a precise survey has never been attempted around the Tokyo metropolitan area, he said in an e-mail interview.
Thus, the new images provide important and very basic data on the plate interface, he said.
How much more dangerous the shallower fault is remains to be seen.
He said many factors affect ground motion, such as the arrangement of a site, sediment deposits and direction of the quake movement. Sato said his team is working to simulate earthquake ground motion using computer models
Using the images to develop more precise estimates of ground motion in an earthquake can provide the basis for countermeasures, Sato said.
The research was funded by the Special Project for Earthquake Disaster Mitigation in Urban Areas of the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.
I tend to agree with the governor of Tokyo on the French issue. Then again, I hated learning French in school.
And don't even remind me of the expected Tokai quake... *shudder* Everyone I know in Japan lives in Tokyo... *shudder*
ELITE GEEKS ONLY
Interest now obsessive for first 'otaku' test
By YOSHINO MATSUI (Japan Times)
Thousands of young Japanese men are expected to take a nationwide exam next month that would, if they pass, grant them recognition as experts in the field of "otaku," or geeks.
Since word of the first-ever Otaku Certificate exam broke in late June, publisher Biblos has been flooded with inquiries, including one from the United States.
The Tokyo-based publisher has been busy making preparations to administer the exam, which is intended to give people who think they have extensive knowledge of comics, animated cartoons and video games "an opportunity to engage in a test of strength" with like-minded others. But the response has been overwhelming.
"We initially estimated that about 1,000 people would apply, but it seems the actual number will be much bigger," said Ryota Ishizuka, the 26-year-old Biblos editor who came up with the otaku exam idea.
In fact, the company and its 70 employees expect the number of applicants to hit five digits.
A Web site ( www.otaken.jp ), set up by the company on June 27 to publicize the event has received an estimated 400,000 to 500,000 hits in just two weeks, briefly causing its counter to malfunction.
The computer-scored test, which will be in a multiple-choice format, will be conducted by mail so anyone can apply, even from overseas. But the applicants must be able to get the question and answer forms and comprehend the "postgraduate"-level questions, which will be written in Japanese.
Applicants can obtain the question and answer sheets for free by buying the next issue of elfics on Aug. 5. Elfics is a bimonthly publication that specializes in information about the "dojin" (amateur club) subculture, which includes self-published comic books by avid fans.
Biblos plans to award the otaku certificate to the top 100 scorers. This means ordinary "anime" (animation) and "manga" (comic) fans -- a category that encompasses most Japanese born in the '60s and later -- don't stand a chance.
One of the mock exams produced by the company basically looks like a compilation of brainteasers.
Here is a sample question:
Which two statements about the Comic Market confabs held between 1996 and 2002 are false? (Two points each)
1. All the events were held at Tokyo Big Sight.
2. There was an incident in which a timed incendiary device was planted at the venue.
3. Visitors to the event surpassed 200,000 for the first time during the period.
4. The event was held for three consecutive days for the first time during the period.
5. One event held during the period was on Christmas Eve.
Now you would likely be lost if you didn't know what Comic Market was, but the event -- popularly known as "Comiket" -- has grown into the world's largest comic convention, as any self-proclaimed otaku would know.
This year marks Comiket's 30th anniversary in Tokyo, so the major otaku festivity can now be a two-generation event.
In fact, the image of the Tokyo Big Sight convention center near Odaiba -- a peculiar structure resembling inverted pyramids -- is so famous, even among dojin fans overseas, that they would never mistake it for anything else, according to people familiar with the otaku industry.
Biblos' Ishizuka said he knows a lot about old Japanese comics. But he doesn't think he would get any more than 10 out of the 100 questions right if he tried to take the exam, he added.
The trial test also features questions that cover the types of "cosplay" (costume play) usually allowed for Comiket participants, and the development history of the home-use game console. The real exam could be even more challenging.
While recognition for having an astonishingly deep knowledge of animation, comics and games would certainly be satisfying for geeks, the exam's real-life goal is to boost their status, Ishizuka said.
"The word otaku has become so common -- it's even used in English -- but little is known about what it really is," said Ishizuka, who blames the misunderstanding on biased media coverage about the phenomenon and the people, a majority of whom are men in their early 20s.
The history of otaku is generally believed to date back to 1983, when columnist Akio Nakamori used the word to describe teenage boys who thronged to Comiket, noticing that many of them called each other otaku even though the word -- an honorific way of saying "you" -- is usually used by adults.
In the early days of otaku history, the word was used as a rough equivalent for "geeks" or "nerds," people so obsessed with their two-dimensional worlds that they had zero interest in girls.
While such usage is still in place, however, the word seems to be losing its negative connotations. Some adults now humorously describe themselves as otaku in relation to a particular hobby or lifestyle.
"Anything can be the subject of otaku. Music, movies, mountain climbing, anything," Ishizuka said.
But because the movement is so powerful, it is continuing to produce derivative terms -- including "akiba-kei" and "moe" -- which are just creating more confusion and misunderstanding, he said.
According to an industry source who declined to be named, akiba-kei refers to "people who have the need to go to Akihabara" to buy products there in enormous quantities and varieties, including comic books and DVD software featuring "cute girls."
Moe, on the other hand, describes something that can make your heart "twinge" in a pleasant way. This could be something as simple as girls wearing glasses, and varies from person to person.
Moe distinguishes itself from sexual fetishism because it does not necessarily involve sexual desire, as some people simply enjoy having the feeling, "just as a working girl often decorates her office computer with tiny cartoon figures and feels happy," the source said.
According to recent estimates by major Japanese think tanks, Japan's otaku market is worth 290 billion, yen one-third of which stems from the moe market at 88.8 billion yen.
"Otaku are not just people who are passive and only watch videos and read comics, but they can be active, trying to thoroughly master something they like," Ishizuka said.
"Even think tanks are saying otaku is no longer a niche market. It's huge, and it makes money, and that's why some travel agencies are selling tours to Comiket," he said.
Cranking up the self-esteem of otaku, the upcoming exam is also being dubbed by organizers as the "gateway to becoming the otaku elite." Ishizuka said if the exam takes root, it might be used by businesses to recruit people in the future.
And don't even remind me of the expected Tokai quake... *shudder* Everyone I know in Japan lives in Tokyo... *shudder*
ELITE GEEKS ONLY
Interest now obsessive for first 'otaku' test
By YOSHINO MATSUI (Japan Times)
Thousands of young Japanese men are expected to take a nationwide exam next month that would, if they pass, grant them recognition as experts in the field of "otaku," or geeks.
Since word of the first-ever Otaku Certificate exam broke in late June, publisher Biblos has been flooded with inquiries, including one from the United States.
The Tokyo-based publisher has been busy making preparations to administer the exam, which is intended to give people who think they have extensive knowledge of comics, animated cartoons and video games "an opportunity to engage in a test of strength" with like-minded others. But the response has been overwhelming.
"We initially estimated that about 1,000 people would apply, but it seems the actual number will be much bigger," said Ryota Ishizuka, the 26-year-old Biblos editor who came up with the otaku exam idea.
In fact, the company and its 70 employees expect the number of applicants to hit five digits.
A Web site ( www.otaken.jp ), set up by the company on June 27 to publicize the event has received an estimated 400,000 to 500,000 hits in just two weeks, briefly causing its counter to malfunction.
The computer-scored test, which will be in a multiple-choice format, will be conducted by mail so anyone can apply, even from overseas. But the applicants must be able to get the question and answer forms and comprehend the "postgraduate"-level questions, which will be written in Japanese.
Applicants can obtain the question and answer sheets for free by buying the next issue of elfics on Aug. 5. Elfics is a bimonthly publication that specializes in information about the "dojin" (amateur club) subculture, which includes self-published comic books by avid fans.
Biblos plans to award the otaku certificate to the top 100 scorers. This means ordinary "anime" (animation) and "manga" (comic) fans -- a category that encompasses most Japanese born in the '60s and later -- don't stand a chance.
One of the mock exams produced by the company basically looks like a compilation of brainteasers.
Here is a sample question:
Which two statements about the Comic Market confabs held between 1996 and 2002 are false? (Two points each)
1. All the events were held at Tokyo Big Sight.
2. There was an incident in which a timed incendiary device was planted at the venue.
3. Visitors to the event surpassed 200,000 for the first time during the period.
4. The event was held for three consecutive days for the first time during the period.
5. One event held during the period was on Christmas Eve.
Now you would likely be lost if you didn't know what Comic Market was, but the event -- popularly known as "Comiket" -- has grown into the world's largest comic convention, as any self-proclaimed otaku would know.
This year marks Comiket's 30th anniversary in Tokyo, so the major otaku festivity can now be a two-generation event.
In fact, the image of the Tokyo Big Sight convention center near Odaiba -- a peculiar structure resembling inverted pyramids -- is so famous, even among dojin fans overseas, that they would never mistake it for anything else, according to people familiar with the otaku industry.
Biblos' Ishizuka said he knows a lot about old Japanese comics. But he doesn't think he would get any more than 10 out of the 100 questions right if he tried to take the exam, he added.
The trial test also features questions that cover the types of "cosplay" (costume play) usually allowed for Comiket participants, and the development history of the home-use game console. The real exam could be even more challenging.
While recognition for having an astonishingly deep knowledge of animation, comics and games would certainly be satisfying for geeks, the exam's real-life goal is to boost their status, Ishizuka said.
"The word otaku has become so common -- it's even used in English -- but little is known about what it really is," said Ishizuka, who blames the misunderstanding on biased media coverage about the phenomenon and the people, a majority of whom are men in their early 20s.
The history of otaku is generally believed to date back to 1983, when columnist Akio Nakamori used the word to describe teenage boys who thronged to Comiket, noticing that many of them called each other otaku even though the word -- an honorific way of saying "you" -- is usually used by adults.
In the early days of otaku history, the word was used as a rough equivalent for "geeks" or "nerds," people so obsessed with their two-dimensional worlds that they had zero interest in girls.
While such usage is still in place, however, the word seems to be losing its negative connotations. Some adults now humorously describe themselves as otaku in relation to a particular hobby or lifestyle.
"Anything can be the subject of otaku. Music, movies, mountain climbing, anything," Ishizuka said.
But because the movement is so powerful, it is continuing to produce derivative terms -- including "akiba-kei" and "moe" -- which are just creating more confusion and misunderstanding, he said.
According to an industry source who declined to be named, akiba-kei refers to "people who have the need to go to Akihabara" to buy products there in enormous quantities and varieties, including comic books and DVD software featuring "cute girls."
Moe, on the other hand, describes something that can make your heart "twinge" in a pleasant way. This could be something as simple as girls wearing glasses, and varies from person to person.
Moe distinguishes itself from sexual fetishism because it does not necessarily involve sexual desire, as some people simply enjoy having the feeling, "just as a working girl often decorates her office computer with tiny cartoon figures and feels happy," the source said.
According to recent estimates by major Japanese think tanks, Japan's otaku market is worth 290 billion, yen one-third of which stems from the moe market at 88.8 billion yen.
"Otaku are not just people who are passive and only watch videos and read comics, but they can be active, trying to thoroughly master something they like," Ishizuka said.
"Even think tanks are saying otaku is no longer a niche market. It's huge, and it makes money, and that's why some travel agencies are selling tours to Comiket," he said.
Cranking up the self-esteem of otaku, the upcoming exam is also being dubbed by organizers as the "gateway to becoming the otaku elite." Ishizuka said if the exam takes root, it might be used by businesses to recruit people in the future.
Toranaga wrote:I tend to agree with the governor of Tokyo on the French issue. Then again, I hated learning French in school.
as long as you don't agree on his stance marginalizing the Rape of Nanking and other Japanese atrocities commited throughout Asia....that fuckin' moron. i'm sure that bitch won't be paying any goodwill tours to any Asian nations on the continent any time soon.
Tu_triky wrote:
as long as you don't agree on his stance marginalizing the Rape of Nanking and other Japanese atrocities commited throughout Asia....that fuckin' moron. i'm sure that bitch won't be paying any goodwill tours to any Asian nations on the continent any time soon.
Well, I'd like to beat him over his historival "views" 24/7. I hate such people.
Toranaga wrote:
Well, I'd like to beat him over his historival "views" 24/7. I hate such people.
i think a good punch and a kick would do....don't worry, you'd have ppl in a long ass line behind you waiting to get their licks in...they'd finish the job you started...haha.
Replying needs an account. Registration opens soon.