Seismic Fault Line Map of Japan

This latest link is an incredibly detailed (because it comes from the Japan Seismic Hazard Information Station) map of the true "Danger Zones" in Japan.

On Tuesday we published a map which indicated the strength of vibration of different parts of Japan based on the surface type. However, it was misinterpreted by some as an indication of where quakes were most likely to occur.

In response, this is exactly that.

This map allows you to view, in terrifying detail, the varieties or seismic faults in any region of Japan. You can also see details of all local landslides, large or small. The amount of detail available probably requires a doctorate to interpret properly, but you can get a pretty good idea of the lay of the land with the various options.

With everything switched on, it looks more like a psychologically damaged child has attacked a map of Japan with their felt-tip collection that anything scientific. Anyway, hope it's useful. Here's the link:

J-SHIS Japan Seismic Hazard information Station.

Japanese Fruit Picking Seasons

Japan is famous for all kinds of delicious fruits. Different areas boast some great local varieties. For example, some cities of Nagano prefecture have world-famous apples (Iida city, especially, where local school-children groom the trees which line a beautiful street in town).

Picking seasons for 18 popular fruits below:


So proud are such places that there will be many signs for picking times, where you can pay a flat fee for a set amount of time in which to manically pick as much fruit as possible.

Here are the peak dates for all the fruits I could find information on. They're approximate, and will vary somewhat up and down the country. Happy picking.


Spring/Summer
Cherries (cherii): June
Peaches (momo): June-August
Melon (meron): June-September
Nectarine (nekutarin): July-August
Plums (ume): July-August
Watermelon (suica): July-August
Prunes (sumomo): August-September
Grapes (budou): August-September
Apples (ringo): September-December
Pears (nashi): September-October

Figs (Ichijiku): September-October

Autumn/Winter
Persimmons (kaki): October-November
Satsuma (Mikan): October-December
Yuzu: November-February
Sudachi: November-February
Kumquat (kinkan): November-February
Strawberries (ichigo): January-May
Kiwi (kiui): January-March

More

• There seems to be a "fruit line" in virtually every prefecture - a region or road along which you can see and pick a huge variety of fruits. There one in Ibaraki (which may never be popular again thanks to the nuclear incident), and various websites like rurubu, Sunnypages and pickyourown which will list some farms for you.
• Also, a place in Kazu will let you volunteer to work on the farm. All you need to do is bear the music on their homepage!

Earthquake "Danger Zones" Map of Japan

The map embedded below shows the areas of Japan most prone to certain degrees of shaking.

A translation and detailed prefectural links lie beneath.

View Earthquake Danger Zones fullscreen

This link breaks down the above image into detailed views of each prefecture (all in Japanese).

the above is not a map of where most earthquakes happen, rather a description of the structure of the land and how that will modify the intensity for people in those areas. The text below the image briefly talks about soil types and how that affects the seismic intensity. The key shows how much more severe an earthquake would be in each of the coloured areas.

Q&A: Introduction

I admit it. I have a guilty pleasure: I like reading the Japanese version of Yahoo! Answers, or Yahoo! Chiebukuro. Judging from the content quality of its English counterpart, I'm afraid this admission speaks volumes about the level I operate on when using Japanese. It's probably akin to an ESL learner proudly indicating reruns of the Jerry Springer show as her favorite leisure activity.

At least Chiebukuro members write in full-formed, polite sentences and tend to thank other users for their responses. I'd say that's two full steps up on the social competency staircase from "How can do u drift with an automated car?" But, again, content-wise, it's not like the Japanese site has any lack of step-by-step drifting lessons.

So, yes, I need to tell the world about my love of Chiebukuro about as much as I need to punch myself in the stomach. But that's OK, because I'll get over both the humiliation and the aching gut thanks to a healing combination of schadenfreude and an endless stream of absurdities people ask about from behind the protective curtain of Internet anonymity. (Which curtain is, as the recent university entrance exam cheating scandal and subsequent arrest showed us, a gauze one at best.)

Starting this month, I'll be rolling out on AccessJ a new series of Q&A posts which examine useful (or terrible) questions posed on Yahoo! Chiebukuro, Oshiete Goo, and similar sites, as well as the answers provided for those questions. Some of the questions may actually help you learn how to do something yourself in Japan. Others will be chosen for entertainment value only.

If you have any such Question & Answer type pages that you're dying to see translated into English, please contact the AccessJ Team! Comment here, or check us out on Facebook or Twitter.

In the meantime, stay tuned for the next post in and official start of our new Q&A series!

WS: Do You Have...? 1st Grade JHS

This is another sheet in the vein of my "Would You Like" 3rd grade handout. It involves cutting and sticking and is great for elementary or 1st graders at JHS.

Here it is.

It's pretty straight-forward.

• Write on any words you don't think they'll know,
• One sheet each,
• Students decide what are the most important things to take on holiday, and walk around class (or in pairs if you prefer) playing janken, with the winner asking "Do you have (what I want)?"
• The respondent replies with "Yes I do. Here you are." or "No, I don't. Byebye."
• If they have it, they cut it out and hand it over.
• The recipient sticks in on their bag.

Will last up to 25 minutes-ish depending on how long you want it to, and how easily amused your kids are.

You can use our writing sheets to get them to practice more.

Remote Engine Starter on Manual Car

Back in about 2003 and a few years following, a string of accidents leading to death or injury caused by cars with remote control engine starters incited panic in Japan. The starters, which allow you to turn on your car and allow the engine to warm up from a distance, had been improperly installed on manual transmission cars: Nothing prevented these cars from being started remotely while in gear, causing them to lurch forward suddenly then continue rolling along unmanned.


Although legislation banning the devices on manual cars never appeared, manufacturers started labeling their products "for AT (automatic transmission) only" in Japan and mechanic shops started shying away from installing the items on manual cars--even cars in which a starter could be safely installed--for fear of future legal entanglement.

If you want a remote engine starter on a manual car in Japan today, you're basically limited to DIY options or a few very selective car shops. (Being friends with a mechanic might also offer some options.)

One such shop that specializes in such installations (and, coincidentally, engine starter installations on cars with immobilizers as well) is AQUA in Matsumoto, Nagano. They offer a wide variety of starters suitable for most cars but specifically advertise to patrons whose cars were turned away for installation at other shops.
(It's the kind of shop that also specializes in gull-wing doors and undercarriage lighting.)

Their prices aren't cheap, but the competition is few and far apart, and many of their patrons are used to sinking a lot of money into car modifications. For sporty cars, expect prices to start at 50,000 yen and up for the unit and installation, and for cars equipped with immobilizers, usually 60,000 yen and up.

In manual cars, the ideal solution is to run a wire from the starter unit that checks electronically whether the car is in gear before attempting a start. In manual cars where this wiring is not possible, another safety mechanism is necessary. This could be a sensor on the emergency brake, a requirement for the car to be in neutral with doors closed and locked to be shut off (then disengagement of the remote start system if the car is entered without a remote start after that point), or even mirrors that send a reflection to a sensor when the gear shift is in the proper place. There are a lot of ingenious ways to "check" that a manual car is safe to remote start, and some of them are better than others.

Remote starting a manual car also requires bypassing the "clutch start system," a safety measure on place in all manual cars in Japan (and elsewhere) since 1999 that requires the clutch to be disengaged (pedal pushed in) in order for the engine to start. Bypassing this vehicle safety system is a warranty issue and another reason dealers and many car shops won't perform this installation.

The models of remote starter AQUA uses (as of this article) are the Yupiteru DCL81ES on Mazdas and Subarus, and the Vortex 3200-J or Viper 5501 on all other makes. Regarding the Yupiteru, a brand I'd never heard of, other models have been reviewed positively online, but I was unable to find reviews of this specific model. AQUA claims the Yupiteru setup is an elegant one, with no visible antennae and a wire running from the unit to make the necessary safety check electronically. Their website does not specify what safety mechanism is used with the Vortex or Viper.

By the way, apparently starters are rated for certain temperatures; if you live in an area where winters often get below -10°C, you might find your unit doesn't respond on the coldest days. If this is an issue for you, be sure to check before installation.

And, while we're already breaking manufacturer recommendations left and right with this topic, remember this one, too: Yupiteru advertises on their own page that their starters are for automatic cars only. So, your warranty on the unit itself is going to be void out of the box.

So, that's a snapshot of the major issues regarding starters on manual cars in Japan, and one option for having such a thing installed. If you have any comments or experience with this, we welcome your contributions below!

Japanese Hangover Preventatives/Cures

As anecdotal as it seems, there are some hangover preventative drinks which you can buy in Japan which do actually work to limit your hangover the day after drinking too much. I recommend (though I can't stand the taste of it) ウコンの力 (ukon no chikara):

This is a combination of turmeric and many of the vitamins you lose during a drinking session.

200yen. One before drinking, one at the end, happy next day (within reason).

There are loads of other drinks you may want to try, each advertised as miracle injections of your body's vital elements, usually containing maca, turmeric or some other witch's torture root.

Of course, hangovers are mainly caused by the level of poison in your blood... but there are some common-sense things you can do to limit the pain caused by a lack of something rather than an excess.

1. First of all, the headache is usually caused by a dehydrated and shrunken brain wrenching on the membranes which attach it to your skull. Solution: drink loads of water during and after drinking, duh. Sounds obvious, but it's still something I can't be bothered to do when it's necessary.
   
2. Next, you lose a lot of vitamins and minerals in dealing with alcohol, so make sure you (as gross as it sounds) eat some salt before bed (wash it down with the water). Alternatively a healthy dose of an electrolyte drink (like Aquarius or Pocari Sweat) will do the trick, just as long as you have the confidence to control your bladder during the night.
   
3. If you're in a smoke-filled bar you'll be losing vitamin-C at a stupendous rate. This will make you feel like a bag of nails in the morning. Buy some supplements and take several when you get home. Persimmons are also good for replacing those lost vitals. Convenience stores even sell a special vitamin C tablet for smokers. I'm not sure how it differs from regular vitamin C, however.
   
4. Eat something. A good dose of ramen will either help absorb the bad stuff, or eject it out of you the fastest way known to man.

Not averse to taking things to another level, the Japanese doc may recommend an injection of B1 and C. If you feel like your hangover is bad enough to go to the doctor about, then maybe that's the option for you. Good luck getting there.

Right as rain.

Anyway, happy drinking. And anyway, if you don't wake up on the street with sick on your head, using your wallet as a pillow, that's a successful night out.

Author Spotlight: Kazuo Ishiguro

A beautiful writer, albeit more British than Japanese, is Kazuo Ishiguro.

His masterful character-studies are completely involving. Whether the story is seen through the eyes of a butler (Remains of the Day), or a human Guinea pig (Never Let Me Go), the proceedings are flawlessly executed.

Ishiguro isn't called a modern master for nothing. These books read like Dickensian classics set in recent times, and deserve every award they've won.

The outlook and style is very mature and often heavy-going, but the vividness of the characters is second to none, and totally inescapable.

Over the years Ishiguro has written disappointingly few books, but I urge you to read them all asap. There are also a couple of movie adaptations. Results have been mixed, but Anthony Hopkins' performance in Remains of the Day (also one of the best books) is still a classic.

I'd also recommend An Artist of the Floating World; something of a retrospective on Japan during WWII.

If you're thinking of buying any of Ishiguro's books, then please help us out by doing so through Amazon (all earnings go to Tohoku victim support):

Contemporary Writers page about Ishiguro.

WS: Early 1st Grade JHS Activities

Here are two ideas to get you started in making activities for your new 1st grade students in Junior High.

You may find you don't even get asked for any games in your first year teaching, but if you do it can be hard at first to come up with anything original, especially when it's not completely clear at what level you should pitch your activities.

These two sheets are examples of the kind of thing teachers want from you.


The first is a sheet where students answer multiple choice questions to pick the right spelling of a word. As 1st graders usually don't have good reading and writing skills, this is potentially difficult. My version is very simple, but if you think they can handle it (or have started learning to read and write in elementary) then make it harder.

Here's the sheet for download.

The next is a fun and simple game testing the order of letters in the alphabet. Students have to uncover the hidden message by working out the letters before the ones on the sheet.

And here's this sheet.

Taspo Cards - How to Get ID for Buying Cigarettes

Back in 2008, the Tobacco Industry of Japan discovered, via a shock report, that having cigarette vending machines in the street meant that under-age people could buy them.

Anyway, since that revelation they have introduced the ID-check system of Taspo cards.

In order to buy cigarettes (from Taspo-enabled machines) you must swipe your card over the sensor (or press your wallet against it), and in order to have that card you need to have applied and been approved for one.

Here are the details of how to do that.

Any idiot can get a Taspo; you just need to be 20 or over.


Apply
The application is free. Here's the application form (Japanese only, but not complicated).
You must complete and return that form, along with

• A copy of one of your forms of Japan-issued photo ID: your driver's licence, health insurance card, gaijin card, pension book, welfare cetificate or residency certificate,
• One photobooth photo.

Send to the address printed on the application.

Two weeks later, your card should have arrived. YAY!


Credit
Of course you can pay by cash in vending machines, but you can also credit money to your Taspo card (for some reason referred to as "pidel"). You can charge the card and use your pidel at machines where you see the icon to the right.


Alternatives:

• Convenience stores/supermarkets/tobacconists.
• You may well find some machines without the Taspo sensor (apparently 2%). Go nuts.

Happy smoking.

Recent Blog Roundup

It's been a long time since we did a roundup of our recent blogs, and as our readership has taken something of a jump since new year, here's a rundown of some of what you may have missed.

Our big hitters this year were: our expose of Compensated Dating, examination of Japan's Face Mask Culture, Cherry Blossom viewing calendar and 10 Types of Cherry Blossom trees; we showed you how to most easily transfer money home, check train times and buy a bargain train pass, as well as a long-distance bus pass. We also filled you in on how to recycle in Japan.

Our Being an ALT series was a big hit: an 8-part look at what life will be like for you starting work as an English teacher in Japan. We followed that with several articles of tips on passing your driving test in Japan. Then we broke new ground with buying a foreclosed house in Japan.

We later showed you how to send flowers and gifts in Japan, exposed Matsumoto castle's Ice Festival and produced some very detailed maps on things to see and do in both Nagano prefecture, and Shiga prefecture. Nagano's awesome Dinosaur Park even got an article of it's own.

We taught you how to calculate the highway tolls in Japan, and then gave some exciting news about the drop in highway toll charges.

Earthquake
AccessJ published many articles on the earthquake. We told you how to help with the cleanup, how to offer your house for survivors to stay in, and provided a way you can give money without actually paying anything. We also offered important information on radiation levels, rolling blackouts and explained the Shindo method of measuring earthquakes.

Employment
Our Job Spotlight series has covered several openings, including High School ALT jobs still available in Nagano prefecture. We also offered guides on how to best use job-finding websites such as Gaijinpot jobs and TOP-US.

TEFL
Our weekly Worksheet Sunday series has relentlessly provided great teaching ideas, including some fun Gambling games, ideas for introducing your new students to JHS, and one of my favourite original games: Snake-eyes.

I also got very, very angry about the JHS textbook characters.

And that's not all. In fact, that barely scrapes the surface. We publish an average of five days a week, so check the links at the top of this page to browse our posts by category.

Thanks for supporting AccessJ!

Japanese Earthquake Levels (Shindo) Explained

As you may have noticed, the Japanese don't generally use the same scale as you may be used to to measure earthquake intensity. Instead of the level of magnitude which we use in the West, they have a system called 震度 "shindo". The main difference is that this scale measures the physical shaking of the surface of the earth at numerous points. This is why the earthquake report maps look like the one to the right (incidentally taken from yesterday's quake), where there is a strength gradient across affected areas.

For a visual representation of what this means, the Japanese Meteorological Agency has this useful graphic (click to enlarge):

And here it is in text:

JMA Seismic Intensity Scale
0	Nobody feels the tremor.
1	Some people indoors may feel a slight tremor.
2	Many people indoors feel the tremor. Hanging fixtures, such as lights, may slightly shake.
3	Most people indoors feel the tremor. Electrical wires may slightly shake.
4	Hanging fixtures shake considerably and dishes in the cupboard may rattle.
Lower 5	Many people feel the need to plan for safety. Dishes in the cupboard and books in the shelves may fall. Items that are not supported well may fall.
Upper 5	There is a sense of extreme danger. Heavy furniture, such as bureaus, may fall over. Many brick walls that are not supported well may topple.
Lower 6	People cannot maintain a standing position. Furniture that is not secured may move or topple over. Many doors will not open. Window glass of buildings will break and fall down.
Upper 6	Impossible to move without crawling. Furniture that is not secured may move or topple over. Most brick walls that are not supported well ill fall.
7	Unable to move or act by will. Most furniture will move, and some may seem to fly.

More detailed information about the effect on buildings etc can be found on the JMA site.