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Continual development necessitates innovation. One must discover seeds of innovation and then concentrate resources on these seeds. To do so, one must recognize technology trends and then adopt and execute appropriate innovation strategies. This study used advanced change point detection method to investigate leading indicators that represent changes in technology trends. We examine patents, papers, and newspaper articles in Japan and US for 55 technologies. Results suggest that patents can be more appropriate as leading indicators than either papers or newspapers. This result can contribute to appropriate innovation strategies for planning and updating, and can provide tools that are useful to decision-makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Japan's new defence white paper offers an overview of the security environment surrounding Japan and the numerous issues concerning Tokyo's defence and security policy. It highlights North Korea's increasing missile-related technologies, China's growing military power and assertive activities, and the impact of the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) infection on security issues. Japan will likely remain a cautious security policy player while emerging as a robust military power with growing deterrence and defence capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates the distribution of papers published by Asian authors in Operations Research and Management Science (OR/MS) journals from 1968 to 2006. The impact of OR/MS research in Asia is compared with that of the United States and the World, and research trends are highlighted through an analysis of keywords. From 1968 to 2006, 89,293 papers were published in 60 OR/MS journals. Of these, 41.4% came from USA and 16.6% came from seven Asian countries/regions. The contribution of different countries/regions is as follows: Japan 3.7%, Taiwan 3.2%, India 2.3%, Hong Kong 2.2%, South Korea 2.1%, People's Republic of China (PRC) 1.9%, and Singapore 1.2%. Among all the articles analyzed, 20% have a single author, and 9% have more than three authors; additionally, 22 papers have been cited more than 100 times and 29% have never been cited. Most articles originating in Japan, Taiwan, India, South Korea, PRC, and Singapore are produced in collaboration with local scholars, followed by authors from the United States. Hong Kong is a notable exception, 73% of articles from Hong Kong are produced in cooperation with the PRC, followed by local scholars. The five most productive institutions are as follows: The Indian Institute of Technology, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, the National University of Singapore, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and the National Chiao-Tung University (Taiwan). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses the bootstrap rolling window approach to analyze the dynamic causal relationship between the fiscal deficit and the trade deficit in the US from 1901 to 2018. We find the origination and termination of each causality period by considering the structural breaks. The results show that the fiscal deficit had a positive impact on the trade deficit from 1946 to 1956, from 1982 to 1998, in 2000 and from 2002 to 2008, which is in accord with the results of the Mundell–Fleming model, while it had a negative impact from 1937 to 1945. The trade deficit had a positive impact on the fiscal deficit from 1940 to 1942, from 1959 to 1975 and from 1981 to 1994, mainly due to the World War II, oil crisis and trade friction with Japan. It means that the fiscal policy of American federal government can affect the external imbalance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United Kingdom's Indo-Pacific "tilt" has been warmly encouraged by Japan, its closest security partner in Asia. As UK-Japan strategic alignment evolves, the security and defence documents of both partners appear to also converge around a desire to "create" or "shape" a desirable regional environment. This paper illustrates how states may do so, using Japan and the UK as case studies. It investigates the theoretical premise and policy instruments available, before assessing opportunities and constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the macroeconomic effects of unconventional monetary policies by estimating a time-varying parameter structural vector auto-regression (TVP-VAR) using Japanese monthly data beginning with the implementation of quantitative easing in 2001. The results of the empirical study can be summarized in four points. First, the impulse responses of output to a positive monetary policy shock rose during the period of quantitative easing (March 2001–July 2006) but declined after the comprehensive monetary easing began (October 2010–July 2015). Second, the impulse responses of inflation to a positive monetary policy shock became stably positive after the introduction of inflation targeting in January 2013. Third, the impulse responses of stock prices to positive monetary policy shocks rose each time an unconventional monetary policy was adopted. Finally, the recovery of the credit transmission channel might be attributed to the level of non-performing loans remaining low. The third result implies that increased stock prices from a monetary policy shock are primarily affected by foreign capital because foreign capital responds more strongly than domestic capital to unconventional monetary policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we describe the optical alignment method for the Prime-focus-Infrared Microlensing Experiment (PRIME) telescope which is a prime-focus near-infrared (NIR) telescope with a wide field of view for the microlensing planet survey toward the Galactic center that is the major task for the PRIME project. There are three steps for the optical alignment: preliminary alignment by a laser tracker, fine alignment by intra- and extra-focal (IFEF) image analysis technique, and complementary and fine alignment by the Hartmann test. We demonstrated that the first two steps work well by the test conducted in the laboratory in Japan. The telescope was installed at the Sutherland Observatory of South African Astronomical Observatory in August, 2022. At the final stage of the installation, we demonstrated that the third method works well and the optical system satisfies the operational requirement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, I investigate the effects of changes in demand structure caused by population aging on the Japanese economy using a multi-sector new Keynesian model with job creation/destruction analysis. I consider upward revisions in forecast for the speed of Japanese population aging as unexpected shocks to its demand structure. I find that the shocks caused around 0.3% point deflationary pressure on year-to-year inflation, 0.3% to 0.4% point increase in unemployment rates, and 1.8% point decrease in real GDP from the early 1990s to the 2000s in Japan. I also find that the repetition of such upward revisions made those effects look more persistent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academic landscape of innovation research was analyzed by citation network analysis, which was divided into three main clusters; with "technological innovation" as the central core together with "innovation fundamentals" and "innovation management". Historically, research on innovation started from innovation management, such as innovational organization research, but research in the other two cluster areas is currently more active. With this background, we prepared a historical overview of national innovation system policy in Japan and the United States. Finally, we compared the trend of global innovation research with that of the national innovation systems in Japan and the United States. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the dynamics of supply chain diversification in a contested East Asia and their implications for India–South Korea cooperation in the post-COVID-19 era. Major powers have sought to restructure supply chain by designing a strategy to reduce their reliance on China-controlled supply chain. The United States–China trade and technological war, Asian regional powers' escalating conflicts with a rising China, and pandemic-induced supply chain disruptions have played key roles in driving the restructuring process. India and South Korea, Asia's two major economies, have also re-evaluated their supply chain strategies. As this paper explains, on the one hand, India has been striving to emerge as a supply chain hub for key industries by ending China's control. On the other hand, South Korea has also been aiming to diversify its supply chain beyond China under the New Southern Policy. Against that backdrop, critical developments concerning supply chain cooperation have occurred between the two countries amid the COVID-19 crisis. The pandemic has not only facilitated the opening of high-level political exchanges on supply chain but also brought tangible outcomes, as Korean companies have become active participants in India's quest to build an India-centric supply chain. I conclude this study by contending that the two countries are "natural partners" in reshaping the supply chain dynamics in East Asia in the post-COVID-19 era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Japan has emerged as a critical strategic actor in East Asia amidst intensifying US-China structural competition since 2010. Southeast Asia/ASEAN is an important dimension of Japan's foreign policy expansion. This paper argues that Japan's foreign policy is driven by the aim of becoming an alternative source of strategic stability in Southeast Asia/ASEAN as opposed to the United States and China. This is explained by analysing Japan's foreign policy in regional balance of power and ASEAN-led multilateralism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) research have been performed in a wide range of topics over 40 years in Japan. The study underlying this paper reviewed the achievement of Japanese EIA research through the academic database survey and identified which areas would be required for future EIA research. As a result, whilst there are only 30-50 EIAs conducted per year under EIA Act and genuine SEA is currently not practiced, there is a noticeable research interest with over 30 associated research papers published in the professional Japanese literature every year on average. Most of EIA articles could be classified into five groups; (a) systems and laws, (b) methods, (c) Theme-oriented Studies, (d) Sector-oriented Studies and (e) Case Studies. The following three main areas were identified for future EIA research; (1) studies on pro-active sound decision making for sustainability; (2) effectiveness of EIA from a proponent's viewpoint, leading to enhance public acceptance, for example; and (3) substantive and methodological aspects, including the use of both quantitative and qualitative evaluation methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper produces the first cross-country evidence on the relationship between the size of foreign exchange reserves and local currency internationalization using a sample of Switzerland, Japan and the UK. It finds that a high ratio of foreign exchange reserves to international reserves has a significant, but negative, impact on local currency internationalization during the period 1976-2009. After controlling for interest rate differential, different indicators for long-run depreciation and volatility of exchange rates, as well as the once-in-a-century global financial crisis of 2007-2009, the above conclusion still holds. Additionally, these results are robust to different methods (Pooled OLS and Pooled IV/2SLS) and measures of the scale of foreign exchange reserves. This study is informative for any policy decisions and will provide a strategic reference for the Chinese government as it optimizes the composition of its international reserves, promotes the process of renminbi (RMB) internationalization and becomes a major power through financial development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study tries to find new insights of implementations of carbon tax policy as a suitable way to reach the long-term zero-carbon plan. This paper explores how carbon tax can affect the macroeconomy in Japan through the structural vector autoregression (S-VAR) technique conducted for the quarterly data throughout 2005–2020. A theoretical general equilibrium model backs the empirical analysis. The major findings reveal that any increase in energy price from the carbon tax will lead to an increase in interest rate, exchange rate, and consumer price index while there is a negative relationship between energy price increase from carbon tax and real gross domestic product (GDP) in Japan. Carbon Policy Refolution (Reform + Evolution), refunding carbon tax revenues, and adaptation of long-term policy of net zero GHG emissions by 2050 with the current situation of Japan's power sectors are the major practical policies of this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we introduce a mathematical programming model for solving a staff scheduling problem based on one-day duties (task patterns) of individual staff members. The model can accommodate various service types, management policies, and staff preferences. We first enumerate all feasible one-day duties and propose an iterated local search approach that incorporates various methodologies, including a size-reduction method and a very large-scale neighborhood search. For the very large-scale neighborhood search, we design a dynamic programming method that aims to find the most improved schedule and can be used in the rescheduling stage. Computational results show that the model and the proposed algorithm perform well for real-world instances in Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the asymmetric impact of business confidence index (BCI), real effective exchange rate, inflation, the value of trade index and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on inbound business tourism in Japan using the methodology of asymmetric cointegration. The paper uses the nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag (NARDL) bounds test procedure to obtain the long-run cointegrating relationship. The estimated NARDL results show that in the long-run, the negative asymmetric impact of the BCI is stronger than the positive impact. Finally, the study confirms that for the long-run, asymmetric relation exists between tourism, BCI, real effective exchange rate, inflation, GDP and value of trade index. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we compare and analyze the differences in the effects of fiscal and monetary policy using time-varying parameter structural vector auto-regression (TVP-VAR). Specifically, we estimate a 5-variable TVP-VAR model using monthly data from March 2001 to August 2017. The estimation results indicated the following four points. First, expansionary fiscal policy can impact GDP faster than an expansionary monetary policy. Second, expansionary fiscal policy has lowered prices. Third, an expansionary monetary policy can increase GDP more persistently than an expansionary fiscal policy during unconventional monetary policy periods. Finally, expansionary monetary policy has raised prices. These estimation results reveal that if the Japanese government wants to strongly boost GDP alone, it should use fiscal policy alongside monetary policy because fiscal policy can immediately raise GDP. If the Japanese government seeks moderate increases in both GDP and prices, it is more effective to use monetary policy alone without increasing fiscal expenditure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the major business environment changes, there is a growing need for management innovation to strengthen the organisation. Large enterprises such as GE, which promoted Six Sigma, and Toyota, which installed innovative production systems using the Kanban method, have rooted management innovation in their corporate cultures. However, although there are precedent cases limited to some high-tech ventures, the actual state of management innovation in low-tech small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is not well understood. Therefore, we investigated the SMEs in Japan's relatively low-tech industrial areas using structural equation modelling. This study found that collaboration with customers is an important antecedent factor for management innovation. Moreover, management innovation mediates the relationship between the collaboration with customers and technological innovation activities and between the former and firm performance. The explanatory power of management innovation on firm performance is weak. This paper provides deep insights into the role of management innovation in SMEs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New atypical pneumonia caused by a virus called Coronavirus (COVID-19) appeared in Wuhan, China in December 2019. Unlike previous epidemics due to the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), COVID-19 has the particularity that it is more contagious than the other previous ones. In this paper, we try to predict the COVID-19 epidemic peak in Japan with the help of real-time data from January 15 to February 29, 2020 with the uses of fractional derivatives, namely, Caputo derivatives, the Caputo–Fabrizio derivatives, and Atangana–Baleanu derivatives in the Caputo sense. The fixed point theory and Picard–Lindel of approach used in this study provide the proof for the existence and uniqueness analysis of the solutions to the noninteger-order models under the investigations. For each fractional model, we propose a numerical scheme as well as prove its stability. Using parameter values estimated from the Japan COVID-19 epidemic real data, we perform numerical simulations to confirm the effectiveness of used approximation methods by numerical simulations for different values of the fractional-order γ , and to give the predictions of COVID-19 epidemic peaks in Japan in a specific range of time intervals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 1970s, due to the combination of the declining birthrate and rising longevity, the speed of population aging in Japan has been more dramatic than in any other developed country. Consequently, the growth of the working population, which had been faster than the growth of the total population, has gradually become slower in recent years than the latter in Japan. Moreover, similar rapid demographic changes are taking place at various speeds in all prefectures. By introducing demographic variables into empirical models of regional economic growth, which is based on prefecture-level panel data for the period 1980–2010, this paper shows that the recent demographic changes in Japan have had significant effects on its regional economic growth: the contribution of the growth rate difference between the working population and the total population to per capita Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) growth rate, i.e., the demographic bonus, has disappeared. In addition, the growth rate of the aged population (65 years old and over) has had a very significant negative effect on per capita GRDP growth rate, while the growth rate of the young population aged 0–14 has had a significant positive effect. The findings of this study imply that Japan's population aging and other ongoing demographic changes will continue to depress economic growth in all prefectures. Given the low probability of a significant rise in the birth rate and the rapid increase in the local labor supply, it is important for all prefectures in Japan to raise the quality of their labor-force and improve productivity. Meanwhile, effectively attracting young skilled workers to migrate from other regions/countries should be a key policy issue for both local and central governments in Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a literature review discussing empirical as well as conceptual papers concerning the CTO — the Chief Technology Officer — his tasks, responsibilities and authority and his relations with other corporate functions. It further presents first results of a CTO survey conducted in the Japanese electrical engineering industry in the fall of 2006. Based on both, a set of propositions is presented which the authors test via a large forthcoming empirical study in the same industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper a method for calculating the socially optimal level of aggregate investment is developed. That method is then applied to Japan. It is found that in the 1990's the level of investment in Japan was excessive, in the sense that it exceeded the socially optimal level. The degree of over-investment in Japan in the 1990's has averaged about 5.5 per cent of GDP per year according to the calculations in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The issue of order is the core of international relations. Both the dimensions of history and reality should be explored in order that the relationship between Japan and the world should be acknowledged in a scientific way. This paper analyzes Japan's cognition and practice from such three aspects as the evolution of Japan's view of international orders from a historical perspective, the post-war international order and "the crisis of liberal international order" and Japan's responses to the international order under the ongoing unprecedented changes in the world. Based on principles of pragmatism, Japan strove to maintain its independence while expressing its respect with the order within the framework of the Hua-Yi Order. In face of the impact of rising Western civilization, Japan attempted to extricate itself from and overthrew the Hua-Yi Order and achieve the objective of "leaving Asia and embracing Europe," and then turned from a follower of the Western dominant order into a challenger. After being defeated in WWII, the US occupation and the democratic transformation, Japan chose to accept and integrate into the liberal international order dominated by the US and gradually formed a unique view of international order through constantly sizing up the international situation, maintaining dynamic adjustment and making efforts to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages. Faced with the changing international relations nowadays, Japan has been committed to enhancing the "comprehensive strategic activity" and repairing the liberal international order in crisis. The relationship between Japan and the international order not only reflects historical continuity but also presents newly emerging characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the creation and the development of biotechnology start-ups in Japan known as "bioventures". In the early 1990s, the Japanese government began to introduce new policies to promote the development of bioventures. Within the span of a decade, the number of bioventures grew five times. However, majority of them continued to operate at the seed or start-up stage. This paper seeks to explore the underdeveloped state of bioventures in Japan, based on the case study method which includes the use of interviews and reviews of several policies and regulations. This paper also compares the development of Japanese biotechnology industry with the biotechnology industry in the US and Europe. This paper concludes that the lack of a sustainable system of funding is the real issue hindering the development of bioventures in Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to clarify the potential benefits and challenges of integrating environmental assessment (EA) and disaster management considerations, and current research gaps. In this context, the discussion is provided from three perspectives: (1) the consideration of disaster risk in EA; (2) the development of accelerated EA for post-disaster situations; and (3) the integration of EA into pre-disaster response and recovery planning. For this, a Japanese JSPS (Japan Society for the Promotion of Science)/UK ESRC (Economic and Social Research Council) financed UK-Japan project on the integration of environmental assessment (EA) and disaster management was conducted in 2012. It was concluded that whilst EA can be beneficial for disaster management, there are a number of potential pitfalls and an evident lack of research in the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzed how South Korea’s intra-industry trade (IIT) with her major trading countries (i.e., China, the USA, and Japan (CUJ)) in the manufacturing sector changed over time for the period of 1994–2011. It was found that South Korea’s IIT with China mainly increased through economies of scale (ES), the ratio of inward and outward foreign direct investment to total investment (FDI), the ratio of intermediate cost to total cost (II), and R&D intensity (RD). On the other hand, South Korea’s IIT with the USA was found to mainly increase through ES, FDI, and RD. Finally, RD, FDI, and II variables are found to be the most important determinants for South Korea’s IIT with Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study whether the implementation of unconventional monetary policy (UMP) in Japan is relevant to its economy fluctuations. We conducted a Bayesian estimation of a DSGE model with an endogenous financial intermediary, and the central bank in the model is allowed to conduct a credit policy. Our findings can be summarized in the following three points: first, we find that the estimated posterior distribution of model parameters and the impulse response provide a plausible interpretation of the data. Second, by shock decomposition, we find that the credit supply shock of the bank sector played a crucial role in the GDP and investment fluctuations in the sample period. Third, the estimated risk spread reveals a high degree of correlation to the actual credit spread in Japan. Our estimation results suggest that UMP in Japan is effective in the sense of narrowing credit spreads, which leads to subsequent increase in investment and, in turn, positively affects the economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The decades of 1990s and 2000s in Japan are periods of economic stagnation and price deflation or the 'lost 20'. Stock market has been anemic while the bond market has underperformed most developed markets. Hedge Funds (HFs) have played an extremely important role over the last two decades in Japan by forcing firms to increase distributions and making changes required to increase firm value. This paper looks at the performance of HFs in Japan using survivor bias free Eurkeahedge HF Index from January 2000 to September 2018 and compares them to Japanese stocks, bonds, and real estate. We find that HFs have significantly outperformed stocks and bonds but underperformed real estate. However, risk-adjusted performance (Sharpe, Sortino, and Omega Ratios) of HFs was much better compared to all other asset classes. HFs also had the smallest maximum drawdown, the shortest recovery period and have created the most wealth. HFs also had significantly positive alpha. Overall, results indicate that HFs in Japan have created lot of value compared to Japanese stocks and bonds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent conflict between South Korea and Japan has been one of the worst since 1965. Although most experts believe that the downward spiral in bilateral relations is impossible to reverse, this paper explores the possibility of South Korea forgiving Japan and of Japan following in the footsteps of Germany. A key roadblock lies in the lack of a deep understanding of the past. The politicians, media and scholars could do much to enhance that understanding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the author aims to examine the differences in perception concerning the anxiety toward the risk among three countries — Japan, the United States of America and China. The anxiety, in this case, is triggered by uncertainty. This paper also intends to clarify the effect of information to improve people's risk management targeted on the respondents of the Chinese population focusing on earthquake disasters. The social survey using questionnaire has been carried out in order to obtain the needed quantitative data for my research project. It is interesting to conclude that both respondents in China and in the United States tend to accept the impact of uncertainty better. They have shown somewhat lower level of anxiety toward nineteen items of the risks as compared with that of the Japanese respondents. The significant effects on information designed as a part of the risk management action plan as well as the living sufficiency safeguard are clearly observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose interactive and visual discovery method of hidden factors for accidents or incidents. Accidents or incidents tend to occur because of very small differences from an ideal situation. From the above viewpoint, we introduce scenario violation model and regard scenario violation as a gap from the proper scenario. Previously, we proposed abduction-based scenario violation determination strategy, but in this paper, we adopt the Kamishibai-KeyGraph to analyze multiple patterns at the same time. Then, we show a gap discovery procedure by using the Kamishibai-KeyGraph. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates whether the upturns and downturns of the US market exert asymmetric influence on the conditional mean and volatility of the Japanese market using the daily returns on stock price indices. Using both the EGARCH and SV models, which simultaneously allow two kinds of asymmetric international transmissions across the markets, the result reconfirms the symmetric transmission in the conditional mean obtained by Bahng and Shin (2003) and the asymmetric transmission in the conditional volatility obtained by Koutmos and Booth (1995) although each of them analyzed only one spillover effect separately. Although the EGARCH and SV models lead to similar results for the spillover effects, the SV model is preferred to the EGARCH model based on Lagrange Multiplier test for the hypothesis of the EGARCH against the SV. The shock to volatility in the US market with the SV model is asymmetrically transmitted to the volatility in the Japanese market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cancer incidence rates are significantly different all over the world. Breast cancer is affected by many factors, the most important being genetics and lifestyle. The aim of this paper is to study the mutation mechanisms of breast cancer for Japanese women by fitting the incidence data of three high-quality population areas in Japan from 1985 to 2010. To achieve this goal, we have set up multi-stage models within the mathematical model of Moolgavkar, Venzon, and Knudson. Such models take both mutation rates and clonal expansion rates as parameters in each compartment into consideration. Based on our simulation outcomes, two to twelve driver mutations are sufficient in the pathway to female breast cancer in Japan. On the other hand, a previous study demonstrated that breast cancer in American women requires two to fourteen gene mutations to get a cancerous cell. Moreover, the 3-stage mathematical model is the optimal model as it fits clinical data very nicely for all affected cases of females in Japan and the US. The genetic instability has a prominent effect on the tumorigenesis of Japanese females caused by the first four driver mutations. The calculated results for Japanese women are compared with previous works for American women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vector error-correction models (VECM) are increasingly being used to capture dynamic relationships between financial variables. Estimation and interpretation of such models can be enhanced if zero restrictions are allowed in the coefficient matrices. Conventional use of full-order models may weaken the power of statistical inferences due to over-parameterization. The paper demonstrates the usefulness of this approach for the analysis of exchange rate relationships. Specifically, the paper examines the relationship between the money supply and the Euro and provides a test of purchasing power parity (PPP) in Japan. The latter test results shed light on the adjustment mechanisms through which PPP is achieved. In addition, it is clear that the proposed ZNZ patterned VECM modeling provides better insights from this kind of financial time-series analysis. The paper also shows that causality detection in an I(d) system can be revealed identically from the ZNZ patterned VECMs or the equivalent VAR models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the stylized facts for Japan's policy of cooperation between industry and the academic sector with experiential data. The results of the analysis make it apparent that the importance of intellectual property as a medium of knowledge flow is limited by nature in Japan. Furthermore, the results indicate that one future issue for the policy in Japan is to support the informal information exchange between industry and the academic sector and to convert "invisible" cooperation arising from such exchange into a more "visible" cooperation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper empirically investigates the effects of the 1995 and 1996 tax cuts in Japan. Both tax cuts were introduced to compensate consumers for an impending consumption tax rate increase from 3% to 5% in 1997. We use micro-level data of the Family Income and Expenditure Survey to evaluate effects of these tax cuts on household consumption, focusing on the differences between the two episodes. Our estimates indicate that the Ricardian equivalence largely holds. Only the 1995 tax cut distinctly stimulated consumption on its impact, while the 1996 tax cut had almost no effect on the consumption, presumably because it was implemented much closer to the coming tax increase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although knowledge spillover is considered as an important characteristic in a nations' technology infrastructure building process, studies on the necessary mechanisms to incorporate and induce them into the advanced technology infrastructure building process is still in its early stage. This paper discusses the role of integrated technologies and their knowledge carrying capacity to function as a spillover infrastructure. Knowledge carrying capacity of technologies identifies the ability of those technologies to function as a spillover infrastructure. Taking the case of robotics in Japan, this paper argues the important role of integrated technologies in creating a medium for knowledge distribution in an innovation system by providing comprehensive empirical evidences. We conclude that as intangible factors become important for building technological infrastructures, identifying the characteristics of integrated technologies in national systems will become an important strategic and policy issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the issue of developing innovative software with a case study of the emerging prototyping methods used in an innovative game in the Japanese game software industry. Software has traditionally been seen as an efficiency-driven process. But in innovative software, there are other important issues, such as the need to allow for radical redesign in development cycles, and the need to resolve tensions between creative and controlling processes. The paper addresses the broader design issue by documenting the emerging prototyping practices in design-driven and originality-oriented product development. We term this an “outward spiral” software development model, in which the completion of an initial prototyping cycle may lead to significant revisions in design and code, and the possible scrapping of large chunks of code. This model is compared with the development processes used for other types of software and in creative industries like the music industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1995, the Kobe earthquake occurred in the second largest economic region of Japan, and its economic damages were accounted around 10 trillion yen. This paper presents an empirical investigation of long-run economic effects of the event based on a time-series data. The results indicate that the event had created statistically significant deviations from the pre-earthquake growth path of Kobe. In addition, the comparison with the projected pre-event growth path revealed that the long-run effects have resulted in a steady decline of per capita GRP, while the short-run impacts led to some positive impacts from recovery and reconstruction during the first several years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the impact of the Great Hanshin-Awaji earthquake on plant input, output, total factor productivity (TFP) and exit using Japanese plant-level manufacturing data. We employ the difference-in-differences (DID) estimation method to identify the effects of the quake and find that the quake had an impact on manufacturing. The results suggest that production was influenced by the quake, particularly in the first year after the quake. Furthermore, the quake did not influence manufacturing industries uniformly. The effects are different based on specifications, variables, and industries. However, the quake had little impact on the exit of plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Japan, electric vehicle (EV) is spreading, because EV has several advantages compared with gasoline car. However, EV has two main disadvantages, shorter cruising range and longer charging time. These disadvantages may cause a serious problem on an expressway, because the queue of EV waiting for charge may be long, if enough chargers are not placed at charging places. It is important to estimate the number of chargers in a charging place to avoid the long queue. This paper proposes a model to estimate the number of chargers used by EV. In this model, it is assumed that the driver knows the charge level of EV and decides to charge at charging places according to the type of charging place and charge level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The tsunami which devastated Japan in 2011 highlighted the consequences of natural disasters on an area considered to be "best prepared" for such an event. Learning from the direct environmental, social and economic impacts and temporally and spatially displaced indirect global impacts, is important. When seeking to identify and mitigate the impact of proposed developments the process is carried out from two distinct perspectives: "before" and "after" implementation with environmental impact assessment and environmental management the main "instruments" on either side. Drawing on examples from financial institutions and disaster response agencies, this paper explores the theory that coupling the two "instruments" can aid disaster risk reduction and management. It concludes that there is no simple answer and that further research is needed to inform practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sanguisorba officinalis Linne ( S. officinalis, Rosaceae) has been used as a medicinal plant for the treatment of burns, hematemesis, melena, intestinal infections, and dermatitis for a long time in China, Korea, and Japan. The therapeutic efficacy of this herb is intimately associated with its anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antifungal, hemostatic, and anticancer activities. Its root contains triterpenoid saponins (zigyuglycoside I: CHO and ziyuglycoside II: CHO8) and tannins (sanguiin H-6: CHO). It has been recently revealed that these active constituents of S. officinalis possess antiwrinkle properties without cytotoxicity. They also have anticancer effects by inducing apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. Moreover, they can inhibit proliferative tumorigenesis. The underlying mechanism involved in the pharmacological actions of these active constituents is mainly related to p38 MAPK signaling. Although various studies have reported its therapeutic activities and major chemical components, review articles that extensively organize various properties of S. officinalis and its major constituents are still scarce. Taken together, the objective of this paper is to provide overall pharmacological and phytochemical profiles of S. officinalis and its constituents (including ziyuglycoside I, ziyuglycoside II, and sanguiin H-6), and their potential roles in clinical applications for the treatment of inflammatory diseases, bleeding disorders, and cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study empirically examined unemployment dynamics in 12 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, namely, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Australia and New Zealand. It used quarterly data on the unemployment rates from the first quarter of 1980 to the first quarter of 2013. This paper employed three different econometric methods, including the recently-developed powerful unit root test with structural break (Lee and Strazicich, 2003, 2004) and the nonlinear unit root test (Enders and Lee, 2012). The findings indicated that the unemployment rates in five countries of the region, namely, China, Taiwan, South Korea, the Philippines and Thailand, had highly dynamic labor markets in which higher-than-normal unemployment rates would revert to the normal level. The other seven Asia-Pacific countries had less dynamic labor markets. The findings of this study have some important policy implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper applies Bayesian estimation to an open-economy Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium (DSGE) model of Japan, to assess the effects of expanding government debt on interest rates, real exchange rate dynamics, and real sector performance. We find that the emergence of even a small risk premium on government debt will trigger considerable instability in the real and nominal variables. We show that a switch to an exchange-rate rule for monetary policy would considerably moderate the instability induced by a rising risk premium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates the production activities of Japanese airports by using a finite mixture model that allows controlling for unobserved heterogeneity. In doing so, a stochastic frontier latent class model, which allows the existence of different technologies, is adopted to estimate production frontiers. This procedure not only enables the identification of different groups of Japanese airports but also permits the analysis of their production efficiency. The main result is that there are two groups of Japanese airports, both following completely different "technologies" to obtain passengers and cargo, suggesting that business strategies need to be adapted to the characteristics of the airports. Some managerial implications are developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, I examine the role of patent stock, citation stock and objection stock in the analysis of R&D productivity and the exact interrelationships between those stocks by using new data on 100 large Japanese companies. I find, first, that citation and objection stock represent the knowledge stock of the company well, whereas patent stock itself is an ineffective proxy for the knowledge stock. Objection stock seems to be the best proxy for the knowledge stock. Second, citation and objection stocks are effective in playing the role of control factors for successful R&D stock, whereas patent stock is only effective if lags in R&D stock are incorporated. Third, citation and objection stocks are good proxies for controlling for the quality of patent stock. Citation stock seems to be the best variable for controlling for R&D stock and patent stock. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The causes of risks are hard to identify if events occur temporarily and disappear before the occurrence of their observable effects. In the face of this hurdle, transient causal events of significant effects are desired to be explained, for the safety of human life. In this paper, Kamishibai KeyGraph, a variation of KeyGraph developed to deal with sequential data, is presented as a tool to explain the causality involving transient causes. This method is applied here for two data sets: (1) newspaper text on social events, and (2) data on earthquakes in Japan. The performance of this method is hard to evaluate quantitatively due to the nature of transient events, so we partially evaluate the qualitative scenarios interpreted subjectively from the visualized maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the association between institutional ownership and income smoothing through bank loan loss provisions for a sample of Japanese banks during the period 1991–1999. We find that as the percentage of institutional ownership of banks increases, income smoothing via loan loss provisions increases. Additional tests show that there is a significant positive relationship between the extent of income smoothing and the percentage ownership of banks by domestic financial institutions and affiliated (keiretsu) institutions. Consistent with the idea that foreign institutional holders do not play an important role in the corporate governance of Japanese banks, we do not find a significant association between foreign institutional ownership and the extent of income smoothing. Our results imply that institutional owners may play a different role in monitoring income smoothing during the recessionary period in Japan from the normal economic periods studied in most prior studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]