Officials at Awashima Marine Park, located in the coastal city of Numazu, have obtained rare video footage of a frilled shark (Chlamydoselachus anguineus) near the sea surface after it was captured in nearby waters.
On the afternoon of January 21, a fisherman spotted the large fish in the shallow water near the park. He immediately […]

Here’s a groovy display for people looking to add that extra dimension to their viewing material…
Gemotion is a soft, ‘living’ display that bulges and collapses in sync with the graphics on the screen, creating visuals that literally pop out at the viewer.
Yoichiro Kawaguchi, a well-known computer graphics artist and University of Tokyo professor, created […]

On January 18, researchers from Japan’s Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN) and the University of Michigan announced the development of a technique for engineering “mini-plants” that are 1/10th their ordinary size.
The researchers claim it is possible to tailor the size of plants by manipulating the genes that regulate the activity of growth […]

For interesting photos of scenes unique to Japan, do a search for “only in Japan” on Google Image Search. Here’s a sampling of what you’ll find on the top few pages…
A relaxing day at the swimming pool
Hello Kitty in the snow
Manhole cover
Nipplescarf
Honda WOW: Dog-friendly concept car
Extreme casemod
=========================
It’s also fun to see what comes up […]

Bio Ethanol Japan Kansai, a company established by Taisei, Daiei Inter Nature System, Marubeni, Sapporo Beer and Tokyo Board Industries, is set to begin commercial production of bioethanol made from wood waste. Opening ceremonies for the Osaka plant, which the company claims is the world’s first of its kind, are scheduled for January 16.
With […]

Asia’s first confirmed case of chytridiomycosis, a fatal infectious disease that affects amphibians, has been discovered in the Tokyo area. The disease has resulted in dramatic population declines and extinctions in the Americas and Australia and is a primary cause of shrinking frog populations in many areas around the world.
Although chytridiomycosis poses no danger […]

Here are a few places that will be interesting to visit once they are complete…
Osaka IRT Research Center (Osaka)
With the completion of the Umeda Kita Yard Redevelopment Project in 2011, the robot takeover of central Osaka will have begun. This 7-hectare area on the north side of JR Osaka station will be home to the […]

Yume-Neko Smile — still dreaming, still smiling, and still a cat (sort of). Meow.

(See also: Yume-Neko Smile, Part I)

Endoscopic capsules, ingestible pill-shaped devices designed to capture images from inside the digestive tract, have been around for quite a while. But Sayaka, an endoscopic capsule developed by RF System Lab in December 2005, has dramatically increased the overall image quality by changing the camera position and enabling the camera to rotate.
While conventional capsules — […]