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This study examines how origami has been implemented, practised, and developed in the early childhood education of Japan over the past 140 years. Historically speaking, paper-folding has been part of Japanese symbolic art, craft culture, and religious ceremonial artefacts since paper and paper-folding techniques were first imported from China during the seventh century. By the eighteenth century, paper-folding provided a form of mass entertainment in Japanese society. During the 1870s, paper-folding was dramatically transformed into a pedagogical tool within Japanese kindergartens after Friedrich Froebel's (1782–1852) kindergarten system and its curriculum was transferred to Japan from the West. "Papier-Falten" (paper-folding) comprised an element of Froebel's Occupations – which was a series of handiwork activities – in his kindergarten curriculum, whereby various folding techniques and models were derived from European traditional paper-folding and introduced into a Japanese kindergarten curriculum that was associated with the concept of Froebel's kindergarten. Particularly seen in early childhood education in Japan, what we now call origami developed as a new form of paper-folding. This gradually emerged through the marriage of Western (German) and Eastern (Japanese) paper-folding cultures. The study highlights the benefits and uniqueness of cultural transmission and transformation when developing origami in early childhood education in Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, Japan is at a major point to reevaluate its policies on the public communication of science. However, the government's self-reflection on their measures and policies of science communication has been inadequate. This study reviewed and analyzed descriptions of science-related public communication in the successive Japanese white papers on science and technology (S&T) from 1958 to 2015 with quantitative-qualitative hybrid approaches. Traditional enlightenment activities have always been given higher priority, even after the S&T Basic Plan aimed at two-way science communication, and have used such justifications as "the shying-away of young people from S&T," "accountability for research investment," and "problem-solving on issues related to S&T and society," without considering the reality of science communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The physicochemical properties of domestic and natural water samples from 34 stations in 11 cities in the eastern Shizuoka paper-industrial area in Japan were examined. The concentrations of major ions in distributed water and surface water (river, pond, and spring) were measured by ion chromatography. The concentrations of major ions, including , were higher in Fuji city and the surrounding areas. Trace metals were determined by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry. Notably, 1,4-dioxane, an IARC classified human carcinogen, was detected. 1,4-Dioxane, trihalomethanes, and other volatile organic carbons were also quantified by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS). 1,4-Dioxane concentrations ranged from 1.8 to 66.6 µg L−1. The concentrations of 1,4-dioxane and major ions, in particular Ca2+, Mg2+, , and , were higher in areas near paper mill release sites. The results of this study indicate that pulp and paper mill effluents may be the source of major pollutants that threaten the surface and domestic water supplies in eastern Shizuoka. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the determinants of profitability expressed as return on capital among Japanese pulp and paper companies. Return on capital is measured as income before tax related to stockholders’ equity. Return on capital has been divided into profit margin and asset utilization rate. The hypothesis is that return on capital can be explained by mill size, productivity, product line, financial situation, and use of wood resources. The dataset consists of 13 larger Japanese pulp and paper companies listed in Pulp & Paper Statistics. Data on financial performance, production, and use of wood fibers were collected for the period 1991–2001. The average return on equity for the studied companies is 4.2%. Labor productivity has increased quite significantly, from about 600 to 1,000 kg/employee and year. An econometric analysis indicates that the best model fit is found when the asset utilization rate is used as the dependent variable. Significant variables are, among others, asset utilization rate lagged one time period (−), labor productivity (+), capital productivity (−), paper production as a share of total paper and board production (−), total value of assets on the books (−) and solidity (+). This may indicate that the total value of assets on the books is large in relation to the total production of paper, paperboard and pulp. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the author's insights on the spread of Japanese paper and conservation techniques. The author reflects on the spread of knowledge of Japanese traditional mounting techniques and materials to the West and developments in conservation/preservation in Japan. The author provides a brief description of three projects, an adhesion method based on micro-dots of paste; a rolled storage method; and a method to reproduce a decorated paper from the eleventh century called ramonshi.

Highlights the papers presented at the 18th Symposium of the International Association for Vehicle System Dynamics held in Kanagawa, Japan on August 24-30, 2003. Vehicle body movement analysis with kinematical properties of suspension; Influence of roll on vehicle dynamics; Energy flow method for the analysis of effects of structural flexibility on motorcycle stability; Development of higher capacity freight bogies with low track forces.

This introduction to the special issue celebrates the 30th anniversary of the publication of Sugimori et al. (Sugimori, Y., Kusunoki, K., Cho, F. and Uchikawa, S., Toyota production system and Kanban system: materialisation of just-in-time and respect-for-human system. Int. J. Prod. Res., 1977, 15(6), 553-564), the first extensive description of the Toyota Production System (TPS) to be published in English. After some initial discussion of the TPS, this article reviews three important issues regarding the context of the original paper: the West's growing interest in Japanese manufacturing; the preoccupation with information technology as the future of production; and, concerns with job design and motivation. The Sugimori paper is then analysed in these terms, focusing on the technical and human elements of the TPS. The article closes with an introduction to the other papers in the special issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article highlights a technique developed by scientists at the Yokohama City Sewage Bureau in Japan in June 1991, which turns sewage into paper. The technique entails heating the sewage to 1,450 degrees Fahrenheit and spinning it. Thus far, the weak, speckled paper has been used to make business cards for the bureau's officials. But, because the average Yokohaman produces enough sewage to make four sheets of paper each day, city officials are examining other potential uses for this unlikely resource.

This article assesses the impact of environmental regulation (ER) in host countries on Japanese foreign direct investment (FDI) decision-making. It tests the pollution haven hypothesis using data on national (ER) standards and Japanese inward FDI in five dirty industries (iron and steel industry, nonferrous metals industry, chemicals industry, paper and pulp industry, nonmetallic products industry). The results do not support the pollution hypothesis. On the contrary, inward Japanese FDI appears to be attracted to countries which have committed themselves to a transparent and stable environment regulatory environment, suggesting that the quality of the regulatory framework in terms of its certainty and transparency has a greater influence on foreign investors' choice of location than the level of environmental regulatory measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]