Aging problem in Japan?

 The birthrate in Japan is declining and its population is ageing.

Japan’s population is ageing fast and shrinking. According to the statistics, Japan’s 127m people are aging faster than any others on earth.

The number of births per woman during her lifetime has declined since it fell below 2.00 in 1975. Increase in the percentage of unmarried persons is thought to be one of the reasons behind the decline in Japan’s total fertility rate.

The proportion of the total population aged 65 years or older has also risen rapidly.  The average life expectancy of women was 84.62 years in 2000 and that of men was 77.64 years.

Recently  many of Japan’s older people go to pray not only for the long life, but also for a quick and painless death at the end of it. Their visits have revived the fortunes of old-established temples, notably in the ancient capitals of Kyoto and Nara.
Now, many small temples are also inviting old people to their places expecting some financial support . If Japanese government allows foreigners to run a temple in Japan, my next venture attempt can be related to this issue .

By 2015 the proportion of elderly will have risen to one in four of the population, or more than 30m. This is thanks mainly to an unusually large baby-boom generation passing into the ranks of the old. Between 1947 and 1949, 2.7m children a year on average were born to surviving Japanese soldiers who returned from war, married and settled down—about a third more than in previous years. These days the baby-boom generation began to retire.

A shrinking population already has implications for the workforce. Currently, some 16m Japanese are in their 20s. This number will shrink by 3m over just the next decade. This spring, during the annual job-recruitment round, new university graduates found themselves in record demand, and not just because of the recovering economy: over the coming years, companies will have fewer young graduates to choose from. That is nice for young job-seekers, except for one thing: as Japan ages and shrinks, workers must support an ever larger proportion of retirees. By 2030, demographers say, Japan will have just two working-age people for each retired one. Personally I wouldn’t want to be a young working person in Japan in those days.

Here are some graphs explaining the situation:

I think now we have enough statistical background. It is time to see some old people pictures from Japan.

 

 

NOTE:  I am writing artice on Japan in my following blog (SNS in Japan)

http://english.youshare.jp/blogs.php?action=show_member_blog&ownerID=1&blogID=3

Religion in Japan

The primary religions in Japan are Buddhism and Shinto.
Most Japanese people do not identify as exclusively belonging to just one religion, but incorporate features of both religions into their daily lives (or sometimes 3 religions including Christianity).

Shinto and Buddhist teachings are deeply entangled in Japanese everyday life, though the Japanese people themselves may not be aware of it. Generally speaking, it can be difficult for outsiders to disentangle “real” Japanese religion from everyday superstition and rituals.

One of the main characteristics of Japanese religion is its tendency towards mixing all religions. The same person may have a wedding at a Christian church and have a funeral at a Buddhist temple. Japanese streets are decorated on Tanabata, Obon and Christmas.

Buddhism first came to Japan in the 6th century and for the next 10 centuries exerted profound influence on its intellectual, artistic, social, and political life; 96% of Japan’s population is Buddhist. Most funerals are conducted by Buddhist priests, and burial grounds attached to temples are used by Buddhism, Shinto, and other faiths such as Christianity.

Confucianism, although not practiced as a religion, has deeply influenced Japanese thought.

Shintoism is one of Japan’s largest religions and is the native religion. It originated in and is almost exclusive to Japan. Shinto has no holy book, no founder, and no canon.

Shinto began to fall out of fashion after the arrival of Buddhism, but soon, Shinto and Buddhism began to be practiced as one religion. On sites of Shinto shrines, Buddhist temples were built, and people began to adhere to both.

Christianity is a minor religion in Japan, today according to the recent surveys, there are 1 million Christians in Japan.

Islam has a small community of practicing Muslims in Japan, around 60,000.

NOTE:  The following link is an english SNS in Japan (Youshare Japan). I am writing articles there on Japan/Japanese Culture/Business in Japan/Education in Japan etc, you can find many other blogs.

http://english.youshare.jp/blogs.php?action=show_member_blog&ownerID=1&blogID=3

 

Japanese site:

http://japanese.youshare.jp

Small local Temples, Shrines etc in Japan

 I am sure most of you have seen huge gorgeous temple or shrine pictures in Japan. In this post, I will show you a few local temples, shrines etc which are difficult to find about if you have not been in Japan.

 

Here is some water to drink, I believe it is regarded as “sacred”.

 

 

 

I found a chance to enter into a small temple and took some picture from inside.
There was a big drum there (temple drum), I don’t know what it is for.
I hope they are not using it to wake poor monks up in the morning .

This was a very small place. The small human statues in the following picture are, I guess, some of the Japanese Gods (kami-sama).
Some of them are dressed, some not. I don’t know how Japanese people are classifying them.
I guess it is not to protect Kami-sma from the cold whether, who knows maybe there is another meaning of these clothes.
I hope a Japanese explains us about them.

But this one is the cutest one, I liked it more than others.

NOTE:  The following link is an english SNS in Japan (Youshare Japan). I am writing articles there on Japan/Japanese Culture/Business in Japan/Education in Japan etc, you can find many other blogs.

http://english.youshare.jp/blogs.php?action=show_member_blog&ownerID=1&blogID=3

Groping (CHIKAN) in Japan?

 Chikan  is a Japanese term which is frequently used to describe men who take advantage of the crowded conditions on the public transit systems to touch people sexually. Women on crowded trains in Japan are the most frequent targets of chikan. Chikan is very common in Japan and a serious problem.
As part of the effort to combat chikan, some railway companies have designated women-only passenger cars.

It is not something committed by jobless people etc, but mostly by salarymen who commute on the trains everyday. One high-profile instance is that of economist and former professor at the graduate school of Waseda University Kazuhide Uekusa who has a string of arrests for sex-related offences, the most recent of which came when he was arrested for molesting a schoolgirl on a train.

When you look around in the morning trains you can easily see 3-4 instances just around you.
Most of the Japanese woman which has been oppressed by man-dominant society for hundrads of years can not oppose to the crime and just accepts it as a part of the life in Japan.
With a very simple calculation, average ten cars in each train in the mornings, there are more than 100 incidents in each train. This shows a big contradiction with the public behaviour and ideas of Japanese people who look very polite and courteous in personal relations.

Honne and Tatemae (true feelings and public behaviour) are very different in Japanese people. I don’t think there is anywhere else in the world which is comparable to Japan in Honne & Tatemae gap. 

I had a friend who came to Japan from Turkey long time ago with his family.
I helped him to rent the house. It was a station on Saikyo Line. After a few months, he moved somewhere else. He just said his wife did not like the house but I felt very guilty. After a while I learned that the real reason was CHIKAN. It was impossible for a Turkish woman to bear it.

NOTE:  The following link is an english SNS in Japan (Youshare Japan). I am writing articles there on Japan/Japanese Culture/Business in Japan/Education in Japan etc, you can find many other blogs.

http://english.youshare.jp/blogs.php?action=show_member_blog&ownerID=1&blogID=3

Japanese Lunch Box: Bento

Bento is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables as a side dish. 

Bentos are easily available in many places throughout Japan, including convenience stores, bento shops, train stations, and department stores. However, it is still considered an essential skill of a Japanese housewife to prepare an appealing lunch box.

Bento can be very elaborately arranged. Often contests are held where people compete for the most aesthetically pleasing arrangements. The food is often decorated to look like people, animals, or characters and items such as flowers and plants.

Here are pictures from a bento shop:

NOTE:  The following link is an english SNS in Japan (Youshare Japan). I am writing articles there on Japan/Japanese Culture/Business in Japan/Education in Japan etc, you can find many other blogs.

http://english.youshare.jp/blogs.php?action=show_member_blog&ownerID=1&blogID=3

Japanese Festivals: Matsuri

Matsuri is the Japanese word for a festival or holiday. In Japan, festivals are usually sponsored by a local shrine or temples.

There is no specific matsuri days for all of Japan; dates vary from area to area, and even within a specific area, but festival days do tend to cluster around traditional holidays such as Setsubun or Obon. Almost every locale has at least one matsuri in late summer/early autumn, usually related to the rice harvest.

Some of the most popular matsuri, such as the Nada Kenka Matsuri of Himeji, are often broadcast on television for the entire nation to enjoy.

Here are a few pictures of matsuri in Japan:

Note: You can find many other pictures from a local matsuri in Japan in my other post.

NOTE:  The following link is an english SNS in Japan (Youshare Japan). I am writing articles there on Japan/Japanese Culture/Business in Japan/Education in Japan etc, you can find many other blogs.

http://english.youshare.jp/blogs.php?action=show_member_blog&ownerID=1&blogID=3

Stamps & Inkan & Hanko in Japan

There is a detailed article about the Stamps & Inkan & Hanko in Japan.
You can find information about their registration, legal issues in the following link:

 http://english.youshare.jp/articles.php?articleID=10&action=viewarticle

If you’re looking for an inkan & hanko shop, you can easily find them around train stations. They are usually small shops with a lot of inkan samples in the front.

Here are a few pictures:

NOTE:  The following link is an english SNS in Japan (Youshare Japan). I am writing articles there on Japan/Japanese Culture/Business in Japan/Education in Japan etc, you can find many other blogs.

http://english.youshare.jp/blogs.php?action=show_member_blog&ownerID=1&blogID=3

A local matsuri in Japan

 Today I had a chance to attend a local Matsuri in Japan and took a lot of pictures for you.
Please refer to this link for my other post about Matsuries in Japan.

NOTE:  The following link is an english SNS in Japan (Youshare Japan). I am writing articles there on Japan/Japanese Culture/Business in Japan/Education in Japan etc, you can find many other blogs.

http://english.youshare.jp/blogs.php?action=show_member_blog&ownerID=1&blogID=3

Is it difficult to get Ph.D. in Japan?

Research facilities in Japan are very advanced. You can have almost all devices you need for your research.

Most of the Japanese professors are very friendly nice people. The only problem for foreigners is language. If your professor can speak English fluently then basically no problem. However, most of the Japanese professors can not speak English fluently. They can communicate at the minimum level, but this is not usually enough for guiding a Ph.D. student.

If you are very good at research and don’t need any guidance, then a basic level of communication is enough. Otherwise you should learn Japanese. This is what I did when I came to Japan about 15 years ago.

Most of the professors think that they are good at english and try to communicate in English. If you feel that that is not actually the case, then start to study Japanese as soon as possible. If you can’t speak Japanese, life is really difficult in Japan, not only in the laboratory.

If you are not ready to study Japanese, than either choose another country for your research, or try to find a professor who can communicate in English. They can usually write e-mails in English almost perfect and it may mislead students who apply from abroad. It may be very useful if you can confirm the english level of your professor from another resource.

Anybody who has average skills can get Ph.D. from Japan. Conditions are much easier compared to top US universities. Many foreigners around me got Ph.D. in Japan just going to the school a few days a week. I myself satisfied Ph.D. requirements in 2 years, and started to work full time in the 3rd year.
Even if you satisfy all the requirements in the first year, it may be difficult to graduate earlier than 2 years. Japan is very strict in these kind of things. Most of the time they will require you to go to the university for 3 years even if you just go there and sleep on your desk (which is what I did in the second year).

Here is top 10 universities in Japan (overall rating).

1 University of Tokyo
2 Kyoto University
3 Osaka University
4 Tokyo Institute of Technology
5 Tohoku University
6 Keio University
7 Kyushu University
8 Nagoya University
9 Hokkaido University
10 Tsukuba University

NOTE:  The following link is an english SNS in Japan (Youshare Japan). I am writing articles there on Japan/Japanese Culture/Business in Japan/Education in Japan etc, you can find many other blogs.

http://english.youshare.jp/blogs.php?action=show_member_blog&ownerID=1&blogID=3

Japan, probably the safest place in the world.

As you all might know, Japan is one of the safest counties in the world. I will not give you a lot statistics here, just a few examples from real life.

Now I am writing this post from a family restaurant in Yokohama, it is 12:30 at night. There are still a lot of people around me, mostly single man and woman, some couples. It is raining outside. This restaurant closes around 4am just before the sunrise. Most of the people in the restaurant are living somewhere around here, and they will leave the restaurant and walk to their home soon.

Japan is a counry where a young woman can walk alone in a narrow dark street at night very safely.

Some scenes from the restaurant, blurred a little bit for privacy.

NOTE:  The following link is an english SNS in Japan (Youshare Japan). I am writing articles there on Japan/Japanese Culture/Business in Japan/Education in Japan etc, you can find many other blogs.

http://english.youshare.jp/blogs.php?action=show_member_blog&ownerID=1&blogID=3