Japanese Cabinet Research Articles

Appropriate measures to prevent the liquefaction-induced inclination of existing houses

Many wooden houses settled and tilted due to liquefaction during many past earthquakes. In greatly tilted houses, inhabitants felt giddy, sick and nauseous, and found it difficult to live in their houses after the earthquakes. According to a new standard announced by the Japanese Cabinet after the Great East Japan Earthquake, houses tilted at angles of more than 50/1000, of 50/1000 to 16.7/1000, and of 16.7/1000 to 10/1000 were judged to be totally collapsed, large-scale half collapsed and half collapsed houses, respectively. According to the authors’ previous study on the inclination of houses, several factors affect inclination. Among them, the effect of adjacent houses was dominant during past earthquakes in residential areas. If two houses are close to each other, they tilt inward toward each other, and if four houses are close, they tilt toward their common center. The authors conducted several analyses to develop appropriate measures to prevent the liquefaction-induced inclination of existing houses. The liquefaction-induced deformation of structures can be estimated by empirical methods, static analyses (residual deformation method), and dynamic analyses. In this study, a static method called ALID was used because this method is simpler than dynamic analyses. Analyses were conducted for two possible countermeasures. One countermeasure is to lower the ground water table by placing drain pipes or shallow wells under roads. ALID analysis results showed that inclination decreases when the ground water table is lowered

Society 5.0: For Human Security and Well-Being

The Japanese Cabinet’s “Society 5.0” initiative seeks to create a sustainable society for human security and well-being through a cyber-physical system. Keidanren (Japan Business Federation) is well aligned to proactively deliver on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure prosperity for all through the creation of Society 5.0. Typical collaborative ecosystem activities for Society 5.0 in Japan are outlined in this column.

A Proper Prime Minister: Appointive Responsibility in Japanese Cabinet Scandals

Cabinet scandals and minister resignations happen frequently in Japan. In recent years, political opponents and the mass media have approached such cases as occasions for pursuit of the prime minister’s ‘appointive responsibility’. Based on comprehensive source material since 1989 but focusing particularly on 2006–2012, this paper introduces appointive responsibility as an object of critical analysis. Emphasizing that the notion has distinct ideological implications, I pinpoint the rhetorical techniques and strategic rationale underlying appointive responsibility and show that the phenomenon operates in two logically opposed forms. The first form follows a causality principle and presents the prime minister as inappropriately ignorant. The second one operates according to a representative logic and revolves around inappropriate knowledge. Outlining and problematizing both forms, the paper analytically unravels key aspects of a new paradigm of executive leadership and responsibility in Japanese political discourse. The paper contributes to a better qualitative understanding of responsibility constructs in recent Japanese politics and delivers a focused critical examination of appointive responsibility as a key rhetorical vehicle for tapping into frustrated public expectations of political leadership.

Disaster Warning Map using Premonitory Symptom Keywords Gathered from Twitter in Real Time

In this research project, the premonitory symptom keywords and location information relating to landslides, tsunamis, river flooding and sudden downpours of rain were gathered from Twitter (SNS Data) in real time. The data was analyzed, a hazard coefficient was calculated, and this coefficient was then visualized on a heat map so that a disaster warning map could be developed. In 2016, at the time of the occurrence of Typhoon No. 16 in Japan, about 4000 Tweets were acquired and an experiment was carried out for the evaluation of river flooding. Specifically, based on the results verified by the summarized damage reports from Typhoon 16 announced by the Japanese Cabinet Office (report) and on the relevant news reports, it was clearly possible to predict these events more quickly by using the disaster warning map than by relying on the news reporting services for about 57% of the actual occurrences (21 instances) where the water surfaces of rivers went over the danger level.

Background on Establishing a Working Group to Create Home Clinical Cases for Education.

In Japan there are concerns that there will be a surge in social insurance costs such as medical and nursing care expenses as a result of the baby boom generation reaching the late stages of old age (75 years old and beyond) around 2025 ("The 2025 Problem"). In 2012, the "Outline on Social Insurance and Tax Reform" was approved by the Japanese cabinet and government, including "construction of regional comprehensive care". To promote participation in home medical care by pharmacists, this article presents the roles demanded of pharmacists in regional comprehensive care from the standpoint of physicians, and the discussion of case studies bridging the gap from knowledge learned in lectures to practical applications. In the field of medical education, "The 2023 Problem", regarding standards of education on a global level, caused medical schools across Japan to scramble for curriculum reform, specifically in the demand for increased time spent in clinical training and the expansion of community-based medical education. The current state of community-based medical education will be reviewed. In light of these developments, "the working group to create home clinical cases for education" was developed by clinical pharmacists in the field and university faculty members at Daiichi University of Pharmacy.

Developing a Web-Based Supporting Application for Individual Evacuation Plans Through Hazard Risk and Geographical Analyses

After the 2011 East Japan Earthquake, the Japanese Cabinet Office has promoted local governments and communities to develop a “Community Disaster Management Plan.” Local governments started to hold workshops to develop the said plan for residents in local communities. However, only a few residents (i.e., those who are interested in disaster prevention) participate in these workshops; thus, most residents do not have opportunities to survey disaster prevention. Considering this issue, we decided to develop a supporting application for individual disaster management plans by analyzing hazard risks and land features. In this research, we focused on evacuation planning for residents. Furthermore, we developed it as web-based application as any resident connected to the internet may be struggling with their evacuation. In our proposed application, users have to take seven steps: (1) learn features of tsunami attack and countermeasures during a tsunami disaster, (2) set start point for evacuation, (3) set first and second goal for evacuation based on lessons learned from the “Miracle of Kamaishi,” (4) search the shortest evacuation route from start point through the first goal to the second goal, (5) review change of elevation on the evacuation route, (6) review hazard risks and land feature on the evacuation route and to reroute if necessary, and (7) download their settled evacuation route to their own devices as a GPX file. After developing a prototype of the application, we published it as a web service. While the publishing was in process, we gathered logs on how users took actions based on our proposed application. Approximately 10 days after publishing the prototype, we analyzed the path of users’ action flow, and we detected issues that need to be resolved to improve esidents’ disaster management capacity during tsunami disasters. Generally, our application helped prepared users for tsunami disaster prevention.

The Treaty of Shimonoseki, the Diaoyu Islands and the Ryukyu Issue

ABSTRACTThis paper refutes the view of the Japanese government that the Diaoyu Islands have nothing to do with the Treaty of Shimonoseki, and points out that “stealing” the Diaoyu Islands was one step in the Japanese strategy of the invasion of China in the Sino-Japanese War in 1894. Only because the Japanese cabinet was fully assured of winning the war did it “steal” the Diaoyu Islands before the Treaty of Shimonoseki, and the treaty was nothing but a means of legitimating this theft. Large numbers of historical documents are cited in this paper to prove that the Diaoyu Islands are affiliated islands of Chinese Taiwan. Although Japan annexed Ryukyu in 1879, these documents show that the Qing government protested immediately, and later on negotiated with Japan concerning Ryukyu. According to the Sino-Japanese negotiations over Ryukyu in 1880, the Japanese government agreed to give the Miyako and Yaeyama islands back to China. Until 1887, Zeng Jize, an official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Qing Dynasty, continued to declare that the Ryukyu issue had not been resolved. It was only because China lost the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 that the Ryukyu issue fell into abeyance amid the cloud of failure. Because the Chinese government subsequently repudiated the Treaty of Shimonoseki, and under the terms of the Cairo Declaration, the Ryukyu issue should again be back on the table.

Physical modelling of tsunami onshore propagation, peak pressures, and shielding effects in an urban building array

Wave experiments were conducted on a 1:20 length scale to measure water surface elevations and extreme pressures on and around idealized structural elements and arrays of structures. Experiments varied offshore wave characteristics and onshore structural configurations. Conditions in which waves broke on or just before the specimen caused maximum impulsive pressures. Pressures measured under nonbreaking wave conditions agreed with predicted values using design equations suggested by the Japanese Cabinet Office; however bare-earth water surface elevation inputs produced nonconservative estimates in breaking wave trials. Shielded structures experienced pressure reductions of 40–70% under breaking wave conditions. Results indicate that shielding elements constructed nearshore may reduce wave-induced damage. This dataset may be used to validate numerical models of tsunami propagation through urban environments.

Fusion Studies in Japan

A new strategic energy plan decided by the Japanese Cabinet in 2014 strongly supports the steady promotion of nuclear fusion development activities, including the ITER project and the Broader Approach activities from the long-term viewpoint. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) in Japan formulated the Third Phase Basic Program so as to promote an experimental fusion reactor project. In 2005 AEC has reviewed this Program, and discussed on selection and concentration among many projects of fusion reactor development. In addition to the promotion of ITER project, advanced tokamak research by JT-60SA, helical plasma experiment by LHD, FIREX project in laser fusion research and fusion engineering by IFMIF were highly prioritized. Although the basic concept is quite different between tokamak, helical and laser fusion researches, there exist a lot of common features such as plasma physics on 3-D magnetic geometry, high power heat load on plasma facing component and so on. Therefore, a synergetic scenario on fusion reactor development among various plasma confinement concepts would be important.

Growing Democracy in Japan: The Parliamentary Cabinet System since 1868 by Brian Woodall

Reviewed by: Growing Democracy in Japan: The Parliamentary Cabinet System since 1868 by Brian Woodall Marie Söderberg (bio) A number of books have tried to explain how Japan, a non-Western democracy, is governed. Karel van Wolferen’s path-breaking work, The Enigma of Japanese Power, made it clear as many as 25 years ago that decision making in Japan was not working in a way that might be expected for a democratic [End Page 462] country.1 In fact, the decision-making process was very blurred and no cabinet, prime minister, or group of ministers seemed to be in charge. Van Wolferen’s book, which sought to analyze the political-corporate relationship, was published in 1989 when the Japanese economy was booming. Other scholars have pointed instead to the strong power of the bureaucracy, party government, or government by individual ministers in Japanese policymaking. In this book, Brian Woodall tries to answer the question of why cabinet government has failed to take root in Japan although Japan has a Westminster-style parliamentary system. Why is Japanese governance different in practice and how did it get its characteristics? The author addresses these issues through an institutional approach, emphasizing the historical development of institutions but still using the approach of eclecticism in the analyses. According to Woodall, the Japanese cabinet system underwent a transformation at each of eight historical junctures. In prewar times, these were the Meiji Restoration of 1868, the advent of party-led cabinets in 1898, and their demise in 1932. In the postwar period, the Allied occupation, the emergence of the party system in 1955, the shocks of the early 1970s, the advent of coalition cabinets in 1993, and the emergence of “twisted Diets” (different majority in the two houses) in 2007 were decisive. We need to understand what happened at each of these historical junctures to be able to understand how Japanese democracy works today. Other books have tried to explain democracy in Japan. One of the most recent is Mary Alice Haddad’s Building Democracy in Japan (Cambridge University Press, 2012), which takes a state-society approach showing how local voices can effect change. Brian Woodall’s book is quite different. There are not many local voices here, but the multidisciplinary approach he uses is very effective in understanding the complexity of the question of democracy in Japan. He clearly shows that we need a historical account as well as different theories to be able to understand the way it has developed. There are no simple answers and no easy patterns for achieving democracy—that is the take-away the reader gets. The book gives a detailed account of the historical development of the Japanese parliamentary system. It is so detailed that the reader at times almost loses track of the main threads. We get information about numerous different councils and movements and their formal decision-making structure as well as about key persons who might not all have been of equal importance. Sometimes the text almost reads like an encyclopedia that covers everything. What saves the text is that the author himself seems to have realized this and ends each of his chapters with a section labeled “Findings” in which he summarizes the main points. [End Page 463] The first chapter, “The Anti-Westminsterian Roots of Japan’s Parliamentary Cabinet,” covers all the prewar historical junctures and takes us up to the arrival of General Douglas MacArthur and the occupation. There is almost no account of the war or of the way in which the government was structured at that time. Personally, I would have considered the war another historical juncture that had an effect on the postwar parliamentary system. The fact that the Japanese cabinet did not have a minister of defense until 2007 is just one of those effects. The second chapter deals with the Allied occupation which, under strong U.S. leadership, imposed a constitution that laid the basis for the present parliamentary system in Japan. Forced onto the country as the new constitution was, it might not be so strange that democracy in practice failed to take root. The fact that the Americans, not formally but in practice, were running...

Low-dose radiation exposure should not be feared

Low-dose radiation exposure should not be feared

Recent and future situation of Japan’s T&D system

AbstractJapan suffered from the Great East Japan Earthquake followed by the nuclear disaster. As a result, we experienced rolling outages for a few months in the Tokyo and Tohoku area. Japan’s power transmission system consists of 50 Hz AC and 60 Hz AC in eastern and western Japan respectively. When the nuclear disaster occurred in Fukushima, enough electricity hasn’t been supplied in eastern area. Power interchange capacity between east and west was small because of small redundant T&D system design. Based on this rolling outage and some present electricity supplying issues in Japan, METI (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) has set the electricity system reform committee to improve this situation and make a good T&D system for the future. This committee reported the discussed issue to the Japanese METI and METI proposed policy on Electricity System Reform to the Japanese Cabinet. As a result, the Japanese Electricity System Reform policy was adopted. This future T&D system deals with redundant T&D ...

How Is the Death Penalty System Seen by Young People in Japan?<br/>—An Analysis of a Survey of University Students

We conducted a survey of 318 Japanese university students with the aim of examining two issues: how strongly Japanese people support or oppose the death penalty, and the reasons and beliefs underlying their positions. Those in favor of the death penalty (66%) outnumbered those against (17%) almost four to one, but this gap was considerably lower than that observed in previous research, including a public opinion poll commissioned by the Japanese Cabinet Office (80% vs. 10%). Furthermore, in terms of the degree to which people either support or oppose, the proportion of death penalty supporters who were “strongly in favor” was relatively low compared to the proportion of opponents with a similar strength of conviction. This finding suggests that death penalty supporters, after considering the arguments on both sides, may be more likely to change their position in the future. Looking at the relationship between position and beliefs, based on this survey, the international trend toward abolition and the introduction of life imprisonment as an alternative to the death penalty (as introduced in the United States) seem to have little influence on Japanese people’s position on the death penalty.

A Technological Approach to Reforming Japan's Consumption Tax

Significant change has been forecast for the Japanese Consumption Tax. Revenue needs are pressing, and the Consumption Tax appears to be underutilized. Should the rate be doubled from 5% to 10%, or more? If so, will rate increases necessitate further structural changes – recasting this annual credit-subtraction levy into a European style credit-invoice VAT? These options have not proven to be politically palatable, but they are directions that have been under active consideration.On October 1, 2013 the Japanese Cabinet Office announced that the Consumption Tax would rise from 5% to 8% effective April 1, 2014. The rate will increase again to 10% on October 1, 2015. Details will be incorporated into the 2014 budget, and the expectation is that the tax increase will be offset by investment incentives. The reforms should be based on the Tax Reform Proposal to Stimulate Non-governmental Investment drafted by the Liberal Democratic Party Tax Commission. If this proposal goes forward Japan’s Consumption Tax would remain largely unchanged. The suggestions to move toward a European VAT will be rejected. Although the tax rate increase to 8% may not be difficult to implement, the further increase to 10% may necessitate some exemptions for the elderly and handicapped. This paper proposes technology-based solutions.

Effective suicide prevention measures for teenagers in Japan

The editorial by Butler & Malone[1][1] focused on non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), proposed as a new category in DSM-5, and described the criteria of this item. The authors also provided information about NSSI among young people. In Japan in August 2012, the Japanese Cabinet decided to enhance

New energy policy and low-carbon society in Japan after the Great East Japan Earthquake

The Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011 devastated the eastern region of Japan. Due to the resulting nuclear accident, Japanese Cabinet decided to revise its energy policies. The Energy and Environment Council in National Policy Unit published options on the nation's scenarios for energy and economy in 2030. We estimated the economic impacts of the options to national economy and households in 2030. Finally, we clarified significant factors to establish a secure, affluent and low-carbon society based on the energy scenarios.

New Challenges in Cancer Control in Japan

On June 8, 2012 the Japanese Cabinet decided to launch the second term of the “Basic Plan for Promotion of Cancer Measures”.1 The first term was established in 2007 and was scheduled to be revised every 5 years under the terms of the Cancer Control Basic Act. During the first term of the basic plan (2007–2012), the essential infrastructure for cancer control was successfully improved. The number of designated cancer hospitals increased from 286 to 397, and now 68% of medical districts have such a hospital. All designated cancer hospitals have radiotherapy equipment, an outpatient chemotherapy center, and a center for cancer-related consultation and support. In addition, the number of prefectures with a regional cancer registry increased from 35 to 47 (ie, to all prefectures). Moreover, 30 000 medical doctors engaged in cancer treatment received training in palliative therapy. In an attempt to add to these improvements, the second term of the basic plan will further improve the quality of cancer control, in both the medical and social contexts, by setting overall goals, namely, decreasing the age-standardized cancer mortality rate, reducing pain and improving the lives of all cancer patients and their relatives, and creating a society in which people with cancer can live comfortably. To reach these goals, the new basic plan addresses the rapid decrease in the number of surgeons, so as to improve surgical treatment of cancer, and calls for continued improvements in radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The plan also promotes alleviation of pain immediately after a cancer diagnosis and cancer control among infants and people of working age. Cancer survivors often have difficulty finding work and supporting themselves financially after successful cancer treatment: 34% of Japanese workers living with cancer had lost their jobs or had retired. Furthermore, the new basic plan calls for further development of an accurate cancer registry and numerical targets for active and passive smoking and the percentage of the population receiving cancer screening. After the launch of the second term, discussions are already underway regarding enactment of new legislation and the development of more-ambitious cancer control. By focusing on the social and medical context of cancer, the new basic plan launched by the Japanese government will address challenges in global cancer control amongst cancer patients and cancer survivors. Figure.

Instrumentalized History and the Motif of Repetition in News Coverage of Japan-Taiwan Relations

Examining the coverage in seven major Japanese and Taiwanese daily newspapers of a selection of events involving both societies in the first decade of the twenty-first century, this paper investigates the phenomenon of rhetorical instrumentalization of the past for present ideological purposes. The concerns of this study are the processes of dehistorization in Japanese and Taiwanese news and public debate, and through a critical thematic reading of the sources I argue that a motif of Taiwanese repetition and imitation of Japan runs through all the studied cases as a basic narrative formula. Analyzed cases include news presentations of Taiwanese politicians visiting Japan, controversial statements on Taiwan by a Japanese cabinet minister, infrastructure developments in present-day Taiwan and the controversy surrounding a Japanese guidebook to Taiwanese prostitution. Throughout the material, Taiwan is pictured as ideally progressing along a trajectory marked out by Japan and the two are cast in fixed roles that recall their relative positions in the half-century of Japanese colonization of Taiwan: Japan teaches Taiwan order, unity and modern development and Taiwan studies Japan’s past to overcome the challenges of its own present. Or Taiwan spontaneously imitates Japanese precedence as a consequence of its own development. This paper fundamentally challenges the rationale underlying strategic instrumentalization of the past and draws critical attention to the paradoxical fact that the use of the repetition formula positions the covered news events in a thematic field of time-lag and retrospection. (Less)

Formation Characteristics of High-density and High-hardness New Briquette Based on Herby Biomass

The aim of the Japanese cabinet council's 'Biomass Nippon Strategy' is to increase the utilization of biomass as one of the ways to reduce the dependence on fossil resources. However, there are various problems associated with the use biomass, one of which is the cost associated with the collection and transportation of biomass. Biomass has high moisture content and low bulk density. The biomass solidification technology developed by Ida et al. partly aims to solve the transportability problem. This study shows physical properties of high density and hardness of the new briquette produced from herby biomass. The relationship between apparent density and maximum compressive strength and an effect on the maximum compressive strength by black colorization are considered. Also, an attempt is made to explain the effect on properties of the briquette by hemi-cellulose and lignin in the region before semi-carbonized region. As a result, the relation between the apparent density and the compressive strength shows that maximum value exists as characteristics of the herby briquette. The maximum apparent density for all processing conditions is 1.38 g/cm3 at the initial moisture 0.10 kg/kg-wet - processing temperature 473 K. The maximum compressive strength for all processing conditions is 127 MPa at the initial moisture 0.05 kg/kg-wet - processing temperature 453 K. Furthermore, the effect of black colorization indicates that when the area of black colorization is increased for the surface of herby biomass briquette by increased in the processing temperature, the maximum compressive strength is decreased due to reduction in the adhesion of lignin. Consequently, high-density and high-hardness of the new briquette can be controlled by the initial moisture and the processing temperature.

Japan's new basic energy plan

In June 2010, the Japanese cabinet adopted a new Basic Energy Plan (BEP). This was the third such plan that the government has approved since the passage of the Basic Act on Energy Policy in 2002, and it represents the most significant statement of Japanese energy policy in more than four years, since the publication of the New National Energy Strategy (NNES) in 2006. Perhaps more than its predecessors, moreover, the new plan establishes a number of ambitious targets as well as more detailed measures for achieving those targets. Among the targets are a doubling of Japan's “energy independence ratio,” a doubling of the percentage of electricity generated by renewable sources and nuclear power, and a 30 percent reduction in energy-related CO 2 emissions, all by 2030. This paper explains the origins of the 2010 BEP and why it was adopted. It then describes the content of the plan and how it differs from the NNES. A third section analyzes the appropriateness of the new goals and targets contained in the BEP and their feasibility, finding that achievement of many of the targets was likely to be quite challenging even before the March 2011 earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear crisis.