Tokyo City Research Articles

Changing Characteristics of Residents in Public Housing: A Case Study of Osaka City

Housing supply systems have a close relationship to the characteristics of residents, especially in the sub-market of public housing. This is because there are strict regulations for applicants for public housing, and local governments mainly select tenants in regard to their income conditions. Public housing is mainly supplied by local government in order to assist lower income households. Their construction is aided by the national government in order to resolve serious housing shortages and to perform a welfare service. Recently a serious problem has occurred in public housing. This is the aging of buildings and of residents.In this study, the author tries to clarify the characteristics of residents in public housing. The characteristics of residents in public housing were analyzed by using the National Census. Is it true that housing policy gives rise to social segregation in the city? The study area is Osaka city because the ratio of public housing in Osaka city is the highest in any Japanese metropolis. And the city has large stock of public housing. Because Osaka city is famous as an early industrialized city, local government provided for a lot of migcrant people in order to resolve the lack of workers' houses. The results are summarized as follows;The residents in public housing consisted of younger households in 1970. But in 1990, the compositions of residents' age and family size were completely different. Terrible aging occurred in some old public housing. The rates of elderly families and single or 2 person (almost all elderly couples) households increased in public housing in the inner built-up area. The same phenomenon has been observed in the cases of built-up areas of Hiroshima city and Koto ward in Tokyo. The causes of aging in public housing may be summarized as follows. Firstly, many residents in public housing were long stayers. When their children grew up, many of them moved out of their parents' homes because the public houses were too small to live together in. Therefore only the aged parents were left behind, since public housing is large enough for a couple or individual to live in, and is cheap to rent.Secondly, for welfare purposes, the Public Housing Act gives priority to lower income households. In accordance with the Act, the public housing department offers accommodation to lower income households, which contain younger households, elderly and handicapped people. Consequently serious and rapid aging occurred in some public housing. Thus the Public Housing Act induced the aging of residents. This mechanism is called “the housing trap”. An extraordinary aging of residents appeared in some public housing. In the near future, aging in public housing will become more serious because there are a lot of upper-middle aged people. One solution is the reconstruction of old public housing stock, since there is some evidence that there are many younger households in reconstructed public housing in inner city.

Analysis of landuse change in periphery of Tokyo during last twenty years using the same seasonal landsat data

Urbanized areas are growing rapidly with the concentration of city functions and the increment of population, and the natural environment has been deteriorating. This paper reports the increasing urbanization occurring through changes in landuse, population, and land price in Japan's national capital city, Tokyo, during the past twenty years. Selecting the capital city and the periphery of Tokyo as the test region, the areas within this region were classified according to the distance from the center of Tokyo and the access to the capital city by train. The landuse change for each area can be characterized according to the classification of artificially developed areas, areas of vegetation cover and others. The process of urbanization in the capital city of Tokyo is further discussed.

The Circumstances and Conclusion of Bridge-Foot Plaza Planning in Kanto Earthquake Reconstruction Program

This paper describes the circumstances and conclusion of Bridge-Foot Plaza in Kanto Earthquake Reconstruction Program in the case of Old Tokyo City area at “Nihonbashi-ku”and“Kyobashi-ku”. Especially, we attend the laws for circumstances and conclusion ofbridge-foot plaza, facilities in bridge-foot plaza such as Police Box and Public Toilet.

A Historical study on the Establishment of Parkway in Modern City Planning

The purpose of paper is to analyze the history of open space system in city plan Tokyo. The open space system of the Fukuoka plan was planned open space which had from the streets-space to the suburbs. The parkway of the planning was influenced to the city planning of the after time. The skech plan was limited to the streets-space which was separated the clearly on the parkway and trunk line-way. Tokyo city plan was added to the parkways of the newly the park method of trunk line-way. The Tokyo open space planning was concluded "the Parkway in Open space System" for the formation of the open space.

Edo's endgame: real or virtual?

This paper considers a series of alternatives that have been put forward for the future of the city of Tokyo since the beginning of the period which historian Alexandre Kojeve identifies as Japan's 'post-history'. In particular, it traces the development towards the city's virtualization by examining the visions of four leading Japanese architects, namely Kenzo Tange, Kisho Kurokawa, Arata Isozaki and Toyo Ito. It will consider how their different proposals respond to the issue of computer-mediated communication, how they relate to shifts taking place within contemporary cultural theory, and how far they anticipate or accommodate the increasingly virtual nature of today's urban existence. Finally, it will examine the current status of virtual technology in Japan and discuss the ways in which the Japanese are predisposed towards integrating its possibilities, thereby addressing the question, Edo's endgame: real or virtual?

Edo's endgame: real or virtual?

This paper considers a series of alternatives that have been put forward for the future of the city of Tokyo since the beginning of the period which historian Alexandre Kojeve identifies as Japan's ‘post-history’. In particular, it traces the development towards the city's virtualization by examining the visions of four leading Japanese architects, namely Kenzo Tange, Kisho Kurokawa, Arata Isozaki and Toyo Ito. It will consider how their different proposals respond to the issue of computer-mediated communication, how they relate to shifts taking place within contemporary cultural theory, and how far they anticipate or accommodate the increasingly virtual nature of today's urban existence. Finally, it will examine the current status of virtual technology in Japan and discuss the ways in which the Japanese are predisposed towards integrating its possibilities, thereby addressing the question, Edo's endgame: real or virtual?

Space Traders: Reregulation, Property Companies and Auckland's Office Market, 1975–94

The global property boom of the 1980s and its aftermath has prompted considerable debate among academics. For the most part research has been directed toward the global cities of London, New York and Tokyo. Notwithstanding the significance of property processes within these global cities, metropolitan areas outside of the core financial centres have also experienced major transformations in their property markets. This paper examines the character of Auckland's speculative office property boom of the 1980s which resulted in a level of output comparable to global cities such as Paris and Frankfurt. We argue that the wholesale reregulation of the New Zealand economy in the 1980s, and in particular the liberalization of financial markets and the share market, provided a context in which the structure of agents associated with the provision of office space was radically altered. The rise of property companies, and their dominance of the development process throughout the boom and subsequent crash, is detailed. Whilst Auckland's property boom conforms to the global experience, we argue that the specific character and intensity of the development process in Auckland highlights the need to appreciate the ‘particularity of place’.

Inhabitants' Attitudes toward Agricultural Activities and Urban Development in an Urbanizing Konjuka Area in the Rural-Urban Fringe of Tokyo

As cities grow and urbanites invade adjacent rural settlements, community values and attitudes become much more heterogeneous. As this invasion takes place, the landscape is also transformed and agricultural activities are threatened. In Japan, these rural-urban communities are known as konjuka settlements. Previous research has examined the friction between newcomers and farmers (old-timers) over agricultural activities; however, there has been almost no examination of how attitudes vary toward urban development in these konjuka settlements. The objective of this study therefore is to examine conflicting attitudes toward both agricultural activities and urban development. A questionnaire returned by 211 households was distributed within the boundaries of Ushiku City-a satellite city of Tokyo. There were conflicting attitudes toward both agricultural activities and urban development. Specifically, there were major attitude differences toward burning garbage and toward new single detached housing. Responses differed according to the newcomer and old-timer dichotomy. However, responses also varied according to whether one was a farmer, was raised locally and whether one was from the more urbanized or less urbanized hamlet. This study re-affirms that conflicts occur between newcomers and old-timers over agriculture. But the resulted also indicate that conflicts can occur over urban development. Moreover, the findings confirm the results of other community studies which demonstrate that newcomer values conflict with those of rural old-timers. What is more important, however, is to point out that these conflicts occur between groups other than newcomers and old-timers.

The Japanese Clothing Industry after World War Two and the Emergence of the Gifu Prefecture as a Main Production Centre

The Japanese clothing industry developed very quickly after the end of the Second World War. Before the war the industry was predominantly concentrated in the two main industrial cities of Tokyo and Osaka, and, while western-style clothing first became popular after the Russo-Japanese war of 19°4 -05, most clothing purchased in Japan before 1945 was in the traditional kimono style and often hand-made.2 The years immediately following the war saw quite dramatic changes in consumer tastes for clothing. Both Japanese men and women (who were enjoying a hitherto unknown degree of emancipation) began buying American-style garments. This facilitated the rapid development of a mechanised, ready-made clothing industry and a move away from the traditional methods of production. As rapid economic expansion followed, so rising Japanese wages fuelled a boom in domestic consumption of these new style garments.3 Ready-made clothing firms grew quickly in Tokyo and Osaka, tending to focus either on womenswear or menswear, and increasingly responsive to fashion-sensitive demand in these two great consumer centres. Nagoya, Japan's third industrial city and located in between Osaka and Tokyo, had before the war developed as one of the leading textiles producing centres. The long history of textiles production in the Nagoya region had prompted the development of ancillary and related industries, such as the textiles machinery industry (where Sakichi Toyota had managed the family spinning and weaving machinery business before diversifying into motor vehicles in 1936, beginning the Toyota Motor Corporation) and the clothing industry. Nagoya was the third centre of the pre-war clothing industry.4 In the industrial transformation of the 1950S and 1960s the coastal belt, with these three industrial regions of Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka, changed its appearance from an earlier mixture of heavy and light industries, including textiles and many craft-based industries, to a concentration of heavy industries: steel and shipbuilding in Osaka; chemicals and machinery in Tokyo; and, as the Toyota kingdom grew, transportation equipment in Nagoya.5 The older industries became less important and began to migrate into the agricultural hinterlands. The clothing industry also found that the increasing competition for labour from heavy industries prompted the migration of activity to the hinterlands, even though the value added from the apparel segment of the value chain of the entire fibre industry was relatively high. 6 Gifu, the capital city of Gifu Prefecture, was attracting increasing investments by fibre producers wanting to relocate away from nearby Nagoya already before the war; yet it was not until after the war that any clothing manufacturers were established in the city. Nonetheless, ready-made clothing has become the largest industry in Gifu, with the Gifu

東京都心部 (千代田区) における共同住宅の現状と行政の対応方策に関する研究

東京都心部 (千代田区) における共同住宅の現状と行政の対応方策に関する研究

Two surveys for taking measures to cope with the coming earthquake to the Tokyo Metropolis

Although Tokyo City has frequently suffered from earthquake disasters, more than 70 years have passed since the last catastrophe of 1923. Because Tokyo has a greater probability now than ever of being hit by another major earthquake, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government has carried out two surveys for taking measures to cope with it; earthquake vulnerability assessment and earthquake damage prediction. The former assesses earthquake vulnerability regionally and is used for disaster-proof city planning. Damage due to the expected earthquake is quantitatively estimated in the latter. The results are used for making a regional disaster prevention plan in an emergency. Both physical and human geographers participate in these interdisciplinary surveys effectively.

Study on hydraulic characteristics of a riffle by field observation

From the view points of ecology and landscape, it is very important for hydraulic engineers to understand hydraulic characteristics of riffles. We performed a field observation at a riffle of the Alci-river in Akiruno city in Tokyo on 25th August 1995. In the observation, flow velocity, fluctuations of velocity and water surface, temperature of water and dissolved oxygen were measured. It is found that an interaction between flow and channel-bed gravels is dominant in determining the texture of free surface in riffles.

Identification of the candidate ALS2 gene at chromosome 2q33 as a human aldehyde oxidase gene.

Denver, Tokyo, and Salt Lake City investigators recently published different complimentary deoxyribonucleic acid (cDNA) sequences for human liver xanthine dehydrogenase/xanthine oxidase (XD/XO). The gene encoding the Denver cDNA was subsequently linked to juvenile familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (JFALS) at chromosome 2q33 and has been proposed as the ALS2 locus. The present investigation was undertaken to elucidate the differences between the three cDNA sequences, and we provide evidence that the Denver cDNA encodes aldehyde oxidase (AO): first, the Denver cDNA sequence diverged significantly from the Tokyo and Salt Lake City cDNA sequences which were very similar; second, the deduced protein sequence from the Denver cDNA was very similar to the amino acid sequence of purified rabbit liver AO protein; third, the deduced Denver protein sequence was 76% identical to the encoded 101 amino acid long peptides from partial cDNAs for rabbit and rat AO and 81.7% identical to 300 amino acids from an incomplete cDNA encoding bovine AO; fourth, the Denver gene was expressed in liver, kidney, lung, pancreas, prostate, testes, and ovary while the Tokyo XD gene was expressed predominantly in liver and small intestine; fifth, the Denver gene was previously mapped to chromosome 2q33 which is syntenic to the mouse AO locus on chromosome 1. Our results have revealed dramatic similarities in protein and DNA sequence in the human molybdenum hydroxylases, have uncovered unanticipated complexity in the human molybdenum hydroxylase genes, and advance the potential for AO derived oxygen radicals in JFALS and other human diseases.

A Databese System of Bridges in Edo City

A database system is constructed on the bridges in Edo City (old name of City of Tokyo). The data of bridges during early Edo Era (approx. 17th Century) are included in this database.In the early Edo Era, after the Tokugawa Shogunate is established in the City of Edo, the City of Edo grew and brisked up rapidly. In the city, there are many rivers and canals, and thus many new bridges were built in the city with its growth. It is interesting to survey such bridges in the historical study on the bridge engineering.“The history of Tokyo City, Bridge Edition”, edited by Tokyo City Office in 1939, and old maps printed in the Edo Era are used as the sources of data.The database constructed in this paper shall be a powerful tool which supports the historical study on such bridges.

Study on Relation with Renewal Action and Inheritance of Dwelling at Inner City of Tokyo "Shitamachi"

Study on Relation with Renewal Action and Inheritance of Dwelling at Inner City of Tokyo "Shitamachi"

The Evolution of the Modern City Park in the Period of Tokyo City Planning

IN THE BEGINNING OF TOKYO CITY PLANNING AT MEIJI ERA, THE PLAN OF MODERN CITY PARK WAS PROPOSED TO REALIZE THE SPACE FOR SANITARY ENVIRONMENT. IT WAS EPOCH-MAKING FOR JAPANESE PARK HISTORY. HOWEVER,IT WAS NOT CLEARLY UNDERSTOOD IN THE SECOND STEP OF THIS PROCESS, IT HAD AN ESSENTIAL DEFECT. THE PRACTICAL METHODS WEREN'T INCLUDED IN THIS PLAN. THEREFORE ,THE NEW PLAN DEPENDED ON THE LOCATION OF AMUSING SPOTS. THOUGH THE POLICY ADOPTED BY THE COMMITTEE WAS SIMILAR TO OLD ONE,IT CONTAINED NEW CONCEPT BASED ON DAILY ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT OF PARKS AND WAS INFLUENCED BY POLICE CONTROL OF PUBLIC OPEN SPACE. IN THIS SENSE CITY PARK WAS MODERNISED.

Ubiquitous presence of mutagenic and antimutagenic components in air-borne particulates of two Japanese cities

Previous studies on several samples of urban air-borne particulates showed that the long-chain fatty acids present in these samples can interfere with the measurement of mutagenicity of the particulates with the Salmonella assay. To explore whether this phenomenon is a general, fatty acid contents and the mutagenicity (with Salmonella typhimurium TA98 without S9) were measured for 34 particulate samples collected in the cities of Okayama and Tokyo over a period of 1 year. Palmitic, stearic, oleic and linoleic acids were found in all these samples in this order of amount, and their interference on mutagenicity measurement was eminent, particularly at high doses of the sample. With the use of blue cotton extraction, the mutagenic components can be freed from most of these antimutagenic factors. Significant correlation was found between the number of particulates and the mutagenicity per unit volume of the air. Eight polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon compounds, including benzo[ a]pyrene were quantified for these 34 particulate samples. Their contents were too small to account for the observed mutagenicity, suggesting that other polycyclic compounds, possibly involving nitro aromatics, were responsible for the mutagenicity observed. No remarkable differences were noted between Okayama and Tokyo in fatty acid contents, mutagenicity or polycyclic aromatic-hydrocarbon contents of the samples.

Indoloditerpenes related to tremorgenic mycotoxins, penitrems, from Penicillium crustosum

Recently the minor metabolises, PC-M5′and PC-M6, were isolated along with the tremorgenic mycotoxins, penitrems A–F, from the mycelium of Pencillium crustosum, which was found contaminating bread intended for school lunches in Tokyo city. Two new indoloditerpenes, PC-M4 and PC-M5, were also isolated from the above fungus. The structures of these two compounds were determined on the basis of spectroscopic investigations. PC-M4 has the same carbon number as the penitrems but a different cyclic ring system. PC-M5 might be a biosynthetic precursor of penitrems and PC-M4 as may also PC-M5′ and PC-M6.

市街地建築物法に至る規定の変遷とその根拠 : 積載荷重の評価に関する研究 その1

We investigate the historical changes of live load provisions to the building acts in force, and study the bases that the value for design live load established. This paper reports those changes previous to the Urban Building Law taking note of the value and decrease in load. The live load provisions first appeared in the Drafts of Tokyo City Building Ordinance planned by Dr. Tsumaki. The values of live load, in the Drafts of Tokyo City Building Ordinance planned by members of A. I. J. , were similar to ones in the New York Building Code. They are also referred to in the AIJ Standard for Structural Calculation of Reinforced Concrete Structures. And the provision on decrease in live load was influenced by the foreign Building Codes or books.

A study on social research of the bureau of social welfare in Tokyo city government 1920-1938

A study on social research of the bureau of social welfare in Tokyo city government 1920-1938