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Things that I cannot do for now

2020.04.20

Random thoughts


Echizen pottery artist, Naoki Izumi

 


Panoramic view of Toseisha (Izumi's pottery studio). There is a cave kiln in a building in the foreground.

 

The Echizen pottery artist, who has a studio named Toseisha in Echizen Town, Fukui Prefecture, is firing in his cave kiln for the first time in a while. I have heard that he could hardly fire in the kiln recently, but he decided to do that because he had some spare time as his workshops were canceled due to the new coronavirus. He made 200 works for the firing in the past month.

 

Now, I think that many people will try to do things that they cannot normally do because they have free time, aside from things that they cannot do alone or travels. But if I don't do it now when I spend more time at home, I never will. So I have no excuse that I don't have time to do it.
T.S

Helpful TV program and website about coronavirus

2020.03.24

Random thoughts

The new coronavirus suddenly appeared in this world and has plunged the world into chaos in just a few months. Meanwhile, I was able to get two very useful information sources in recent days.

 

The first was NHK Special “The fight against pandemic: Can we contain the outbreak? “, which was broadcasted on March 22nd. Watching the program, I understood current Japan’s situation and a sense of crisis that experts had very well. That is, we don’t have to be scared needlessly but unless we take measures properly according to the type of virus, we expect to overshoot at any time now.

 

The second was:
“Information about new coronavirus by Shinya Yamanaka” (available only in Japanese) , which was created personally by a Nobel Prize-winning Professor Yamanaka, who works on iPS cells.

 

He shows clearly “What is known and what is unknown” on the website. I was impressed that the facts like data and his opinions based on the data were provided separately.

 

Through such information by scientists, I think that perspectives faced the unknown, not existing knowledge systems, that is science. Now, there is a tendency to spur speculations without evidence, wild rumors, and fringe science. But at least, I try to have perspectives like scientists.
T.S

Fukui's local product exhibition at KITTE, commemorating the 400th anniversary of receiving the Edo kami-yashiki (upper residence) of the Fukui Domain

2020.02.04

Random thoughts

 

An event named "Fukui's local product exhibition at KITTE, commemorating the 400th anniversary of receiving the Edo kami-yashiki (upper residence) of the Fukui Domain" was held last week.

 

KITTE is a six-story commercial facility just outside Tokyo Station's Marunouchi South Exit. With a retro appearance that partially preserves the former Tokyo Central Post Office, the contrast with the brand-new skyscraper JP Tower that rises above it stands out. The event was held in a tourism and business information center called "Tokyo City i" on the KITTE's basement floor.

 

I attended a technical seminar in Tokyo on January 30th, so I went to the event on that occasion. At first, I had a question why such an event was held around the Tokyo Station. But I knew why it was held here. Because the Fukui Domain's Edo kami-yashiki was located at the current Otemachi Place, where is very near the venue.

 

By the way, the foundation of the townscape of Ginza was made by the then-governor of Tokyo, Kimimasa Yuri, a feudal retainer of the Fukui Domain. The graves of Sanai Hashiomoto, who was executed in Ansei Purge, and Unpin Umeda, who died in prison during the Ansei Purge, are located in Arakawa Ward, Tokyo. And in Taito Ward, there used to be "Fukui-cho (town)", which was formed at the site of the Fukui Domain's residence.

 

I realized that there are many things related to Fukui in the center of Tokyo.
T.S

Joy of manufacturing at the exhibition "Japan Drone 2019"

2019.03.28

Random thoughts

 

I visited the exhibition "Japan Drone 2019", which was held at Makuhari Messe near Tokyo a few weeks ago. There was an idea sketch (photo above) that was made of cardboard, and it impressed me the most of all the things I saw at the exhibition.

 

I saw this amusing model at a booth of a company that develops their own original drones and robots. The model reminded me of the times when I made a model with carboard like this in my junior high school. In an art craft class, I had to make a wooden moving toy and I thought a lot about how to make it.

 

Drone business is already in a phase of industry, and various systems have been developed for transportation, construction, agriculture, disaster prevention, and so on. These are surely developed for practical use, but I think that the developers also enjoy working on developing them.
T.S

 


A smaller version of a mock-up made based on the idea sketch (in the first photo). This is not a drone (UAV) but it's a kind of flying bike that people can ride on.

 


There were a lot of aircrafts full of handmade looking.

 


The main venue of "Japan Drone 2019"

 

Ninja Shovel

2019.02.19

Random thoughts

 

Last Friday, I was surprised to see that there was a heavy machinery moving on a landslide-like steep slope. The photograph was taken from a distance, so it's hard to see that there's a heavy machinery, though.

 

The heavy machinery was a power shovel. It was probably hung with a wire from the top of the slope. The slope might be as steep as 45 degrees, so even just sitting in the driver's seat must be scared.

 

I don't know if it's a kind of their usual work, but I was impressed by the skills and courage of those construction workers.
T.S

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