Category Archives: fun links

Free online course: Japanese Culture Through Rare Books

Posted on May 11, 2016 by Paula

A free online course on Japanese rare books will soon be available through Keio University! Click the link below to sign up and read more about it! Some information from the website is reproduced below. === https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/japanese-rare-books-culture This is an … Continue reading →

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Fun Link Friday: Japan’s Invisible Trains

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Paula

As always, Japan leads the way in its railway technology and inventive designs. It was recently announced that the Seibu Railway company intends to build a train with an ultra-reflective design that will be (almost) invisible to onlookers. Science Alert … Continue reading →

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Fun Link Friday: Osaka River kaitenzushi

Posted on April 15, 2016 by Paula

A group called The Osaka Cavas put on a delicious-looking art show recently in Osaka that featured giant plates of sushi floating on down Osaka’s Dōtonbori Canal like it was any old conveyor-belt sushi restaurant. Is your stomach rumbling yet? … Continue reading →

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Fun Link Friday: Vintage Japanese Magazine Covers

Posted on April 8, 2016 by LM

If you enjoy Taisho and early Showa era design as much as I do, there’s a treasure trove of images on 50 Watts, a book design blog. The images are curated from Bookcover Design in Japan 1910s-40s (ISBN 4-89444-426-7), edited by … Continue reading →

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Fun Link Friday: The Chemistry of Cherry Blossoms

Posted on April 1, 2016 by LM

If you’ve ever wondered how the weather affects the timing and length of the cherry blossom season, check out Live Science’s post on the science behind sakura.   How long the cherry flowers bloom depends on how long they have been … Continue reading →

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Fun Link Friday: A See-Through Home

Posted on March 25, 2016 by LM

If you’ve studied Japanese architecture or watched Japanese period dramas (jidai geki 時代劇), you’ve probably noticed how sliding doors in manors could be opened to reveal an atrium to allow the occupants to be close to nature. The “Hiroshima Hut” modernizes that concept … Continue reading →

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Fun Link Friday: Anatomical illustrations of Japanese Folk Monsters

Posted on March 18, 2016 by Paula

Japan loves its ghost stories, and it especially loves the huge variety of supernatural creatures that feature in them. From handscrolls to ukiyo-e prints, artists have been bringing the spooky to life for centuries. This week’s Fun Link Friday is … Continue reading →

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Fun Link Friday: New plant species discovered on Yakushima

Posted on February 26, 2016 by LM

For our science and nature lovers, a new species of parasitic plant was discovered in the lowland forests of Yakushima (Kagoshima pref.). Professor Suetsugu Kenji of Kobe University discovered the plant in October 2015. From the Kobe University Graduate School of Science: … Continue reading →

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Fun Link Friday: Download ukiyo-e collections

Posted on February 19, 2016 by Paula

For the art lovers out there, the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam has recently made it possible to download their entire collection of ukiyo-e woodblock prints! This is something they’ve taken great pains to make possible for all of their … Continue reading →

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Fun Link Friday: magnetic air bonsai

Posted on February 12, 2016 by Paula

This week we have a pretty rad invention you may have seen on Spoon & Tamago: magnetic floating bonsai trees! A small company in Kyushu called Hoshinchu has developed bonsai tree bases with magnets and ceramics that create little floating gardens that … Continue reading →

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