Matsue City Research Articles

Impact of Traffic Noise and Apartment Building Features on the Quality of Life in Matsue City

Traffic noise has a significant impact on the health and quality of life of urban residents. Despite this, there has been limited research on the effects of vehicle-generated noise from roads and parking lots near buildings. This study aimed to examine the impact of traffic and parking noise on residents living in apartments along 11 roads in Matsue City, Japan. To achieve this, the residents' reactions to noise were investigated in relation to the distance of their apartments from main roads and parking lots, as well as the building design. Noise exposures were measured on the road shoulders in front of the properties for 24 hours, and short-term recordings were taken at various reference locations within the buildings. A questionnaire was distributed to 60 households residing in the targeted properties. The results showed that the residents living in apartments along the main roads, which exceeded the noise level limit recommended by the latest World Health Organization (WHO) environmental noise guidelines, expressed annoyance with the traffic noise. The study highlights that the noise issue cannot be solely determined by comparing it to the environmental standards recommended by prefectural standards. The findings suggest the need to review whether the current environmental standards are appropriate for each region.

Supply process and levels of schoolchild care facilities on a basis of elementary school district in provincial cities: Case studies on Ube and Matsue Cities

AbstractThis study aims to clarify the supply process in the status of each elementary school district with schoolchild care facilities, in the Ube and Matsue Cities. Since the latter half of the 1970s, Ube city has been advancing the facility supply, and Matsue city has been doing so since the early 1990s, reaching a facility establishment rate of 200% per elementary school district by around 2010. The facilities of the two cities satisfy the criteria for the number of people and area as a city‐wide average; however, the improvement of some overcrowded facilities is an issue.

Usefulness of Practitioner-Led Pancreatic Cancer Screening.

The 5-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer has improved (10%) but remains worse than that for other cancers. Early pancreatic cancer diagnosis is challenging, and delayed diagnosis can delay treatment, which impairs survival. Practitioners do not promptly refer cases to a general hospital, causing delayed discovery. Herein, we aimed to examine the usefulness of the Pancreatic Cancer Project in Matsue, whose objective is to detect pancreatic cancer in patients presenting at any medical institution in Matsue City. Clinical data were extracted from medical records, and abdominal ultrasonography and tumor marker blood level assessments were performed (n = 234; median age, 71 [range, 41–94] years; 51% male). Cases with abnormal abdominal ultrasonography or blood test findings were referred for specialist imaging and followed up. The pancreatic cancer detection rate was 6.0% (n = 14); all cases were referred to a general hospital by practitioners within 1 month. Patients had stage IA (n = 1), IIA (n = 6), IIB (n = 2), III (n = 1), and IV (n = 4) disease. Overall, pancreatic cancer could be detected at an earlier stage (I–II), but referral to a general hospital by visiting practitioners should be prompt. The Pancreatic Cancer Project in Matsue may help improve the detection and prognosis of pancreatic cancer.

CONSTRUCTION PROCESS AND SERVICE LEVEL OF SCHOOLCHILD CARE FACILITIES BY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL UNIT IN LOCAL CITIES

This study aims to clarify the supply process in the status of each elementary school district with schoolchild care facilities, in the Ube and Matsue Cities. Since the latter half of the 1970s, Ube City has been advancing the facility supply, and Matsue City has been doing so since the early 1990s, reaching a facility establishment rate of 200% per elementary school district by around 2010. The facilities of the two cities satisfy the criteria for the number of people and area as a city-wide average, however, the improvement of some overcrowded facilities is an issue.

A Study on the Comparison of Impressions of Tourist Information Signs Focusing on the Differences between National Languages in Japanese Regional Cities

From the perspective of universal design, signs should be easy to understand for all users. In Japan, tourist information signs have become increasingly multilingual in recent years as the number of tourists from other countries has increased. However, it is not clear whether the current signs are comprehensible to both Japanese and non-Japanese speakers. In this study, field and questionnaire surveys on signs were conducted in Matsue City, a regional city in Japan, and the evaluations of Japanese and non-Japanese speakers were compared. In the field survey, a caption evaluation method was used to evaluate the visual environment, and in the questionnaire survey, the SD method was used to evaluate the signs obtained in the field survey. The results indicated that non-Japanese speakers were more likely to focus on signs, and signs with diagrams and maps were evaluated more positively. In addition, the evaluation structure of signs was found to consist of four elements: “Harmonicity”, “Clarity”, “Visibility”, and “Comprehensibility”. “Harmonicity” was indicated to be as important as “Clarity” and “Visibility”. These results suggest that the replacement of text with diagrams on signs contributes to the improvement of impressions and is particularly effective for non-Japanese speakers.

What does the disclosure of school quality information bring? The effect through the housing market

AbstractThis study investigates how disclosure of school quality information influences the behavior of students and parents. Using the event in which school‐level test scores were first disclosed in October 2014 in Matsue City, Japan, I estimate the change in the effect of test scores on housing rent and population in a school district between pre‐ and post‐disclosure. Following the disclosure of scores, the school catchment areas with higher scores witnessed a significant increase in the rents of apartments for families and the population of school‐age children. These results provide novel evidence that disclosure of school quality information significantly impacts people's school and residential choice behavior.

Assignment of PM2.5 sources in western Japan by non-negative matrix factorization of concentration-weighted trajectories of GED-ICP-MS/MS element concentrations.

Rapid economic growth in Asian countries has raised concerns about the influence of air pollutants transported to Japan by westerly winds. We coupled a gas exchange device (GED) with a tandem inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS/MS) to enable direct introduction of PM2.5 to ICP and thus provide better data than could be obtained from samples collected by conventional filter methods. We used the GED-ICP-MS/MS system in Matsue City in western Japan to monitor in real time 29 elements in PM2.5 at 10-min intervals and to estimate the pollutant sources by non-negative matrix factorization (NMF) of concentration-weighted air-mass trajectories. The trajectory analysis identified high V, As, Sn, and Sb concentrations over the ocean from Taiwan to Tsushima Strait. NMF analysis revealed that these elements could be decomposed to multiple factors that indicated a large contribution from oceanic areas. The elemental contributions of these factors were high for metals/metalloids with low melting points as oxides, strongly suggesting that they were sourced from combustion of ship fuel. Our results demonstrate that both emissions from ships at sea and land-based emissions from Japan and continental Asia contribute to PM2.5 in Matsue City.

일제강점기 일본어 자료에 나타난 ‘울릉도의 屬島로서의 독도’ 인식

Until now, through the results of several previous studies, it is thought that it was fully revealed that Japan did not recognize Dokdo as a territory of Japan before it was forced to annex it to its territory in 1905. However, during the Japanese colonial period, it was difficult to prove that Dokdo was Korean territory because all of the Korean territory became Japanese territory. Nevertheless, history is not cut off from time to time, but still exists under continuity. Even if Japan, by law, made Dokdo one-sided as its territory, the perception that Dokdo is an island attached to Ulleungdo will not suddenly disappear. This study aims to examine how Dokdo's perception appeared in Japanese materials related to Ulleungdo and Dokdo during the Japanese occupation. The data for this study were donated by Nam Hoon Kim, donated to the Independence Hall of Korea in 2017, research papers related to Ulleungdo and Dokdo written by Japanese scholars during the Japanese colonial period, Matsue City, Shimane Prefecture It is a document called "About the Incorporation of Takeshima" that I directly collected at the Takeshima Research Institute. The research results are as follows. First, Shiba Kazumori's Japanese History Map (1922) wrote Takeshima(=Dokdo) as the territory of Korea, revealing that it recognized Dokdo as an island attached to Ulleungdo. This was largely influenced by Yoshida Togo's "The Great Japanese geographic dictionary", which was called the Giant of Japanese Geography. This coincides with the perception of Japanese territorial maps before and after the Korean annexation introduced in the "New Japanese history map" published by Yoshida Togo. Furthermore, since Shiba Kazumori's perspective was reflected in the writings of research colleague Akira Fujita. Shiba Kazumori's perception was not limited to him. An example of recognizing Dokdo as an affiliated island of Ulleungdo can also be found in research papers written by Japanese scholars during the Japanese colonial period. In other words, studies by Tabohashi Kiyoshi and Imamura Tomo revealed the perception of Dokdo as a sub-island of Ulleungdo by declaring Ulleungdo as Takeshima(竹島) and Dokdo as Matsushima(松島). Setko Hibata directly determined Dokdo as an island of Ulleungdo. On the other hand, Japanese residents who lived in Ulleungdo during the Japanese colonial period testified that Dokdo was clearly visible on Ulleungdo on a clear day. Despite the fact that Dokdo was incorporated as a Japanese territory in Shimane Prefecture under the name of Takeshima(竹島), Japanese were known as Ryangkodo and Koreans were Dokdo(獨島). The fact that it is called is a part where it can be confirmed that the previous methods and habits continue in life regardless of changes in the system. Also, it is recorded as Dokdo(獨島) in 『島根縣誌』 (1923) and the head of the State Treasury Department of Matsue, Japan (1945), indicating that Japan also recognized Dokdo as an attached island of Ulleungdo. Furthermore, after the administrative district was changed from Oki island governor (島司) to the Oki branch office in 1926, it was left until 1953 without administrative measures for changing the region governing Dokdo. Japan is hiding this fact, but this is an indicator that Japan can guess how Dokdo was perceived during the Japanese occupation. During the Japanese colonial rule, Korea was recognized as the “territory of Japan Empire” by the Korean Merge Treaty, so the Japanese side did not have to separate Dokdo and emphasize it as Japanese territory. In such a situation, regardless of its name, the geographical recognition of Dokdo as a sub-island of Ulleungdo was naturally expressed in Japanese records related to geography. Even Japanese officials have indicated that the island was called “Dokdo(獨島)” by Koreans.

Mental health care of healthcare workers in response to novel coronavirus infections: Efforts of the Department of Psychiatry at Matsue City Hospital

新型コロナウイルス感染症は2020年における医療界最大の関心事であり,世界規模での大きな社会経済問題でもあった.松江市で山陰地方初の感染者が確認され当院に入院となってから,感染症対応の現場では緊張と不安を感じる日々が続いた.我々はdebriefing的手法を中心としたグループワークを定期的に開催し,現場の医療従事者のメンタルヘルスケアに関わった.その際心理検査も実施しており,初期対応の時期と患者が退院する時期との比較では,緊張-不安,怒り-敵意,活気について有意な変化を認めた.(著者抄録)

Wildlife information in Matsue City, Shimane prefecture

Wildlife information in Matsue City, Shimane prefecture

Association Between Mothers' Problematic Internet Use and the Thinness of Their Children.

This study aimed to clarify the association between mothers' problematic Internet use (PIU) and the thinness of their children. We analyzed data collected from health examinations of young children aged 4 months, 1.5 years, and 3 years of age performed in Matsue city, Japan, between April 2016 and March 2017. The subjects comprised 1,685 (866 boys, 819 girls) children aged 4 months, 1,728 (898 boys, 830 girls) aged 1.5 years, and 1,672 (802 boys, 870 girls) aged 3 years. Logistic regression analysis was used to clarify the association between mothers' PIU (Young's Diagnostic Questionnaire for Internet Addiction score: ≥4) and the thinness (body mass index: <15) of their children after adjusting for covariates such as birth weight, nutritional form, parental smoking status, maternal age, skipping breakfast, eating snacks, sleeping late, outdoor play, and daytime caregiver. Analysis after stratification by sex and age revealed that the mothers' PIU was significantly associated with their children's thinness only in boys aged 4 months or 1.5 years (odds ratio [OR] = 3.16, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.00–9.96 and OR = 2.68, 95% CI = 1.04–6.89, respectively). Mothers' PIU may promote thinness among boys aged <3 years. As the nutritional status of children aged <3 years is affected by maternal feeding attitudes, our findings suggested that mothers who exhibit PIU do not provide adequate care for their children, particularly regarding feeding. In contrast, no association between mothers' PIU and their children's thinness was observed in girls.

Association between mothers’ problematic Internet use and maternal recognition of child abuse

BackgroundThere are few studies about mothers’ problematic Internet use (PIU). Mothers’ PIU may lead to inadequate parenting and child abuse. ObjectiveThis cross-sectional study aimed to clarify the association between mothers’ PIU and their recognition of child abuse. Participants and settingWe analyzed data collected of health examinations of children aged 4 months, 1.5 years, and 3 years which were carried out in Matsue City, Shimane Prefecture, Japan between April 2016 and March 2017. The number of the subjects were 1685, 1729, 1674, respectively. MethodsWe used logistic regression analysis to clarify the association between mothers’ PIU (Young’s Diagnostic Questionnaire for Internet Addiction score: ≥5) and their recognition of child abuse (selecting < True of me > for < I sometimes think that I am abusing my child > on a questionnaire survey), which was adjusted for covariates such as maternal age, number of children, daytime caretaker, social support, postpartum depression, and current smoking status of the parents. ResultsBased on the multivariate logistic regression analysis, the mothers’ PIU was significantly correlated with their recognition of child abuse for children aged 4 months, 1.5 years, or 3 years [odds ratio (OR): 13.30, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.26–139.98, OR: 7.02, 95% CI: 1.28–38.55, and OR: 28.06, 2.48–317.93, respectively]. ConclusionThis study revealed the possibility that mothers with PIU recognize child abuse more than mothers without PIU. However, further studies should be conducted to increase reliability and validity.

Patients with Diverticular Bleeding in Matsue City Hospital: A Review of Therapeutic Methods and Outcomes

Patients with Diverticular Bleeding in Matsue City Hospital: A Review of Therapeutic Methods and Outcomes

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in sediment cores from lakes Shinji and Nakaumi, SW Japan: A proxy of recent fire events in the watershed

PAHs in sediment cores have been investigated as a useful proxy of historic fire events in the watershed of an estuary. Oxygen poor and anoxic lake bottom conditions in estuarine brackish lakes Shinji and Nakaumi could prevent the oxidization of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and preserve a record of PAHs in sediments. PAHs emitted from wood and/or grass burning have been analyzed for composition and concentrations during the last ∼300 years. Carbonized plant material which remained after artificial agricultural fires and heating experiments have been used to estimate fire temperature. The equation relating maximum temperature and hydrogen to carbon (H/C) atomic ratio of the charcoal is as follows: Temp (°C) = 317 x (H/C)−0.708 (R2 = 0.924, 200–700 °C).These experiments and the gas chromatography - mass spectrometry analysis of PAHs on the charcoals suggest that PAHs were primarily produced at temperatures less than 500 °C in the burning of wild plants.The PAHs contents in the two sediment cores were not related to total organic carbon (TOC) contents and emission of industrial waste, and were directly due to fire events in this region. Although TOC contents of the sediments were constant at about 0.5% in Lake Shinji and 1.0% in Lake Nakaumi before ca. 1900 CE, and increased up to about 4% due to recent nutrient discharge, the profiles of PAHs contents were completely different. The sediment cores contained the following PAHs: phenanthrene (P), fluoranthene (Fla), pyrene (Py), benz[a]anthracene (BaAn), benzofluoranthenes (Bflas), benzo[e]pyrene (BePy), indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene (InPy) and benzo[ghi]perylene (BghiP). The contents of 6-ring InPy and BghiP, high temperature markers, are lower than those of the other low ring Py, BaAn, Bflas and BePy, showing low to medium intensity/temperature fire events. Relatively higher BaAn contents suggest that the PAHs were carried and deposited in the sediments for a short period after the fire. The PAHs peak groups B (1830–1870 CE) and C (1920 CE) may be attributed to the burning of wood buildings in Matsue City, and the PAHs peak group period D (1970–1980 and 2000–2007 CE) could be mainly due to forest fires. The general increase in PAHs after 1850 CE could be caused by climate change after the Little Ice Age. The PAHs with maximum total peak concentrations at 30–34 cm depth (1850 CE: 4890 ng g−1) in Lake Shinji and at 8–12 cm depth (1970–1980 CE: 2030 ng g−1) in Lake Nakaumi are not at a toxic level.

Search for sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) cultivars suitable for warm climate in the southwestern region of Japan

The cool climate of the northern part of Japan’s main island, Honsyu is suitable for the cultivation of sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.). In recent years, the warm southwestern region of Japan has also been proposed as a candidate region for cherry cultivation; cherry fruit set has, however, previously been reported to be significantly inhibited under warm climate conditions before flowering. We aimed to identify a suitable cherry cultivar for cultivation in the warm southwestern region by examining five cherry cultivars: ‘Summit’, ‘Benitemari’, ‘Kokanishiki’, ‘Benisyuho’, and ‘Saori’. Trees were grown in 2013 and 2014 in Matsue city, Shimane prefecture, Japan, (35°28’N; 133°03’E) with an annual mean temperature of 14.9°C, annual means of maximum and minimum temperature of 19.9 and 11.6°C, respectively (2013) and annual precipitation of 1787.2 mm. The data showed that the full bloom dates were around mid-April. These cultivars could all cross-pollinate one another. The fruit set of the cultivars was over 10% but that of ‘Summit’ was only 5.7% in 2013. Harvesting time was overlapping in June (June 1-20 in ‘Kokanishiki’ and ‘Benisyuho’, June 1-30 in ‘Benitemari’, June 4-16 in ‘Summit’, and June 6-20 in ‘Saori’). Harvesting time in Shimane prefecture could be two weeks earlier than those in the Yamagata prefecture, primary cherry producing prefecture in Japan. The soluble solid content of ‘Kokanishiki’ and ‘Benisyuho’ cherries was over 20 °Brix, and ‘Kokanishiki’ softened more rapidly. With juice extraction ratios of between 30 and 40%, the fruits of all cultivars were juicy. We recommend ‘Benisyuho’ which possessed the highest quality as being the most suitable cultivar for cultivation in the warm southwest region of Japan; the other three cultivars, excluding ‘Summit’, were also suitable for cultivation in this area.

마쓰에시(松江市)의 ‘무사(武者)’콘텐츠를 활용한 관광전략 고찰

마쓰에시(松江市)의 ‘무사(武者)’콘텐츠를 활용한 관광전략 고찰

The effect of school quality on housing rents: Evidence from Matsue city in Japan

This study investigates the effect of public school quality on housing rents within a school district. I estimate the causal effect of school quality as measured by average test scores on housing rents, by using a regression discontinuity design to control for unobserved characteristics of neighborhoods. Specifically, I focus on apartment buildings located within school attendance district boundaries. I find that school quality has a significantly positive effect on housing rents of apartments for families, but school quality does not have a significant effect on housing rents of dwellings for single people. These results show that parents are willing to pay more to send their children to a better school.

Implementation Status of Dietary Education in the Kindergartens and Nursery Schools of Matsue City, Shimane Prefecture

Implementation Status of Dietary Education in the Kindergartens and Nursery Schools of Matsue City, Shimane Prefecture

The Current State of Kominkan in Matsue City and Its Problems

The Current State of Kominkan in Matsue City and Its Problems

「子ども110番の家」の設置状況とその課題の検討

The purpose of this report is to clarify the located issue of kids refuge houses to call emergency number 110, case study on 20 elementary school area in old Matsue city. Kids refuge houses have been needed since 1990s, because of increase of atrocious crime. Police and prefectural government put ahead that volunteer puts kids refuge houses into school route. In this research, it is clear that kids refuge houses at urban area are shops and at rural are dwellings. In urban area, there is no balance of distribution of kids refuge houses, because a large number of that concentrate at commercial area. On the other hand, in rural area, many kids refuge houses are difficult to use because of put on private dwellings.