He's supposed to come out with another album soon where he covers a bunch of enka classics sung by famous enka singers.
My friend's mother who is an avid enka listener says Jero sings so well. She even stated that his voice ranks up there with other legendary enka singers. I watch music countdown shows on telebi and I never see any enka singers break into the top 10 until Jero.
Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 46182 Location: Los Skandolous, California Country:
Posted: Fri Jun 13, 2008 10:40 pm Post subject:
New York Times
Japan, Seeking Trim Waists, Measures Millions
By NORIMITSU ONISHI
AMAGASAKI, Japan — Japan, a country not known for its overweight people, has undertaken one of the most ambitious campaigns ever by a nation to slim down its citizenry.
Summoned by the city of Amagasaki one recent morning, Minoru Nogiri, 45, a flower shop owner, found himself lining up to have his waistline measured. With no visible paunch, he seemed to run little risk of being classified as overweight, or metabo, the preferred word in Japan these days.
But because the new state-prescribed limit for male waistlines is a strict 33.5 inches, he had anxiously measured himself at home a couple of days earlier. �gI�fm on the border,�h he said.
Under a national law that came into effect two months ago, companies and local governments must now measure the waistlines of Japanese people between the ages of 40 and 74 as part of their annual checkups. That represents more than 56 million waistlines, or about 44 percent of the entire population.
Strong quake shakes northern Japan, at least 2 dead
By MARI YAMAGUCHI, Associated Press Writer
A powerful 7.0-magnitude earthquake rocked a rural area of northern Japan on Saturday, killing at least two people, triggering landslides and reportedly knocking down a bridge. News reports said dozens of people were injured.
Two nuclear power plants in the area were undergoing inspections but there were no immediate reports of damage, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura. Electricity had been cut to about 29,000 households in the quake zone, he said. There was no danger of tsunami.
The 8:43 a.m. quake was centered in the northern prefecture (state) of Iwate about 280 miles north of Tokyo. It was felt as far away as the capital.
One of the deaths was a man who ran out of a building in fear and was hit by a passing truck, and the other confirmed death was a man who was buried in a landslide while he was fishing, Machimura said.
The government said 13 people had been injured, but reports gathered from local authorities showed dozens of people had been hurt.
Footage shot from media helicopters showed numerous landslides onto rural roads running along knots of mountains separated by long stretches of rice fields. The footage aired on national broadcaster NHK also showed a bridge that had collapsed.
National broadcaster NHK said four people were seriously injured while riding on a bus over a bridge when the quake hit.
"We must assess the situation as quickly possible and do utmost in our relief activities," said Machimura.
The meteorological agency issued a warning of a second quake, and a 5.6-magnitude aftershock hit the same area, but it was unclear whether the warning preceded the aftershock. Japan is experimenting with an earthquake warning system.
"A few items fell off the shelves, such as cosmetics and pottery tea cups," Minoru Takada, 41, manager of Seven-Eleven in Oshu, in Iwate prefecture, told The Associated Press. "There wasn't any panic."
Footage from the closest large city, Sendai, showed the force of the quake shook surveillance cameras for 30 seconds. NHK interviewed an official from Miyagi prefecture, where Sendai is located, who said he saw tiles coming off the roofs of some homes.
"It was scary. It was difficult to stand up," said Sachiko Sugihara, a convenience store worker in Oshu in a separate interview with NHK. "The TV fell over and the refrigerator shook."
Windows broke at a nursery school in the area and NHK said some teachers and children were injured, though it was unclear how seriously.
Sendai appeared largely unscathed.
"So far we have not received any reports of damage or injuries. Everything is normal," Hideki Hara, a police official in Sendai, told the AP. "Phone lines, water and electricity are all working right now."
Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone areas in the world. The most recent major quake in Japan killed more than 6,400 people in the city of Kobe in January 1995.
Joined: 13 Apr 2007 Posts: 12121 Location: It was fun while it lasted. Country:
Posted: Sat Jun 14, 2008 2:11 pm Post subject:
A 7.0 followed by a 5.6 aftershock and only 2 people died! Either thats a very sparsely populated area or the building codes have improved considerably.
A 7.0 followed by a 5.6 aftershock and only 2 people died! Either thats a very sparsely populated area or the building codes have improved considerably.
Probably a lot of good earthquake preparedness, too.
A 7.0 followed by a 5.6 aftershock and only 2 people died! Either thats a very sparsely populated area or the building codes have improved considerably.
They have excellent earthquake disaster prevention methods.. They give training to all their citizens on what to do in case an earthquake occurs.. The buildings can tolerate decent quakes which could destroy many cities..
Have experienced 3 tremors in 3 months when I was in Tokyo.. First one was scary but the people over there were really cool. Told not to worry.. It felt as though it was just like a passing shower for them..
Also went to quake simulation center where they provide u information with what to do in case earthquake happens.. The simulation started mildly and went up to 8.1 scale reading and it was crazy.. I had never experienced anything of that sort before.
The only worry is that now the population of Tokyo is at an all time high. If in case a big quake occurs, people might be crushed to death while evacuating!
Joined: 24 Jun 2005 Posts: 12316 Location: burunto o suimasu ka? Country:
Posted: Wed Jun 18, 2008 10:20 am Post subject:
Quote:
Japan makes robot girlfriend for lonely men
She is big-busted, petite, very friendly, and she runs on batteries
Kim Kyung-hoon / Reuters
Sega Toy's female humanoid robot, Eternal Maiden Actualisation (E.M.A), kisses a man at its demonstration in Tokyo.
By Chika Osaka
updated 8:13 a.m. PT, Tues., June. 17, 2008
TOKYO - She is big-busted, petite, very friendly, and she runs on batteries.
A Japanese firm has produced a 15-inch tall robotic girlfriend that kisses on command, to go on sale in September for around $175, with a target market of lonely adult men.
Using her infrared sensors and battery power, the diminutive damsel named "EMA" puckers up for nearby human heads, entering what designers call its "love mode.
"Strong, tough and battle-ready are some of the words often associated with robots, but we wanted to break that stereotype and provide a robot that's sweet and interactive," said Minako Sakanoue, a spokeswoman for the maker, Sega Toys.
"She's very lovable and though she's not a human, she can act like a real girlfriend."
EMA, which stands for Eternal Maiden Actualization, can also hand out business cards, sing and dance, with Sega hoping to sell 10,000 in the first year.
Japan, home to almost half the world's 800,000 industrial robots, envisions a $10-billion market for artificial intelligence in a decade.
Joined: 13 Oct 2004 Posts: 8550 Location: California Country:
Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 2:29 am Post subject:
gaijinmark wrote:
A 7.0 followed by a 5.6 aftershock and only 2 people died! Either thats a very sparsely populated area or the building codes have improved considerably.
I saw on NHK news last night that the area suffered landslides. So there may be many more still unaccounted for.
Joined: 07 Oct 2005 Posts: 9573 Location: �o�J�i�_ Country:
Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 2:44 am Post subject:
Possibly.
Ok, so one of the person that died was killed by a truck. I don't think he should be added to the list, but it shows that good construction and building code helps save lives. _________________
Joined: 13 Apr 2007 Posts: 12121 Location: It was fun while it lasted. Country:
Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2008 4:40 am Post subject:
From Fujitv News:
According to authorities investigating the murder of a ramen shop owner in Tokyo, the victim was stabbed over 30 times and three day's worth of earnings placed in the restaurant's safe was left untouched.
When the customer says the noodles are too soggy, damnit, they're too soggy!!!
Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 46182 Location: Los Skandolous, California Country:
Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2008 4:41 am Post subject:
gaijinmark wrote:
From Fujitv News:
According to authorities investigating the murder of a ramen shop owner in Tokyo, the victim was stabbed over 30 times and three day's worth of earnings placed in the restaurant's safe was left untouched.
When the customer says the noodles are too soggy, damnit, they're too soggy!!!
He probably used a chopstick to inflict the wounds.
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