Examines various current events along with historical facts
Examines various current events along with historical facts
Ceramics in Everyday Life Ceramics are a traditional craft that has developed alongside daily life since ancient times. Beyond their practicality and functionality as vessels or decorations, they enrich everyday life with artistic beauty, warmth, and uniqueness, bringing small joys…
The DeLorean is a car-shaped time machine that appears in the Back to the Future film series (1985, 1989, 1990). When traveling or flying at a speed of 88 mph (approx. 142 km/h), it time travels to a date and time…
The Changing Times and the Need for Information Literacy In the era centered on reason, the ability to respond to change was emphasized as a proof of life, in the era of the masses, values that justified mass production and…
Understanding Premonitions and Intuition Everyone has probably had some kind of premonition or intuition, even if nothing has actually happened, or no bad news has arrived. Individually, these might seem like trivial things, but a slight difference in the atmosphere…
Kintsugi: Finding Beauty in Breakage My cherished Turkish porcelain container, which I’d treasured for many years, fell to the floor and shattered into numerous pieces. Made in Kütahya, a town known for its porcelain production in Turkey, it was shaped…
Personal Memories and the Intrusion of Digitalization My photo app showed several pictures I took years ago as “memories,” and a wave of nostalgia washed over me. They were pictures related to my beloved cat who passed away 20 years…
Understanding Incurable Diseases and the Fear of Death The term “incurable disease” is used to refer to serious, life-threatening illnesses from a medical standpoint. These diseases are characterized by being incurable, chronically progressive, or having an extremely low chance of…
The Beauty of Transience and the Origins of Mono no Aware Modern society seems to have a tendency to seek unchanging things such as lasting success, unwavering relationships, universal values, and even the extension and continuation of life. Looking back…
The Birth of the Universe and the Question of What Came Before According to the Big Bang theory, the universe, once a single point of extreme heat and density, was born from nothing 13.82 billion years ago in a sudden…
The Human Desire for Immortality Immortality (不老不死) means not aging or dying of natural causes, and it also includes the concept of being immortal (不死身), being able to withstand external factors such as injury, illness, blows, and pain without dying…
Seasonal Transitions, Doyo, and the Need for Renewal Encountering any kind of turning point can bring about a cyclical process of ending one chapter and beginning a new one, or a sense of purification, leading to an impression of freshness,…
The 100th Post and the Inheritance of Memory This marks the 100th blog post since this website was launched in the midst of the virus turmoil. It all started when a friend repeatedly suggested that I share my email replies…
Famine, Fragile Food Systems, and the Collapse of Public Order In many developed countries, vegetables and ingredients from around the world are supplied year-round, regardless of the season. While this might lead some to feel that the sense of seasonality…
Historical Recurrence, Social Cycles, and the Rise and Fall of Power The phrase “history repeats itself” is attributed to either the ancient Roman historian Quintus Rufus (1st century AD) or the ancient Greek historian Thucydides (c. 460 BC – 395…
A solar eclipse is an astronomical phenomenon that occurs when the moon passes between the sun and the Earth, aligning them in a straight line. As a result, the sun appears to be hidden behind the moon from Earth’s perspective,…
The practice of adults telling stories to children before bedtime, whether through oral literature or read-alouds, is a long-standing tradition across all regions of the world. While literary works are primarily enjoyed through silent or aloud reading of written texts,…
In the opening of his novel Kusamakura (草枕, 1906), Natsume Soseki (夏目漱石, 1867-1916) states that if one leans too heavily towards intellect, emotion, or stubbornness, it will cause problems in human relationships and social life, ultimately making the world a…
Sweetness is not perceived as a sharp sensation, but rather as a soft, pleasant, comforting, and rounded taste that is felt on the tip and throughout the tongue the moment it enters the mouth. Some sweetnesses are clearly apparent and…
Salt, the white crystals that are casually and naturally placed in the corner of the kitchen, is more than just a seasoning; it has held special meaning since ancient times, symbolizing life, purification, and contract. Moreover, these white crystals have…
As a child, many people have had the experience of standing with their back to the sun and bending their fingers to make shadows of birds and animals, or of deforming their body as distortedly as possible to enjoy the…
Sumo is a sport in which two rikishi (力士, sumo wrestlers) wearing mawashi-belt (loincloth) compete in a circular ring called dohyo (土俵), and the winner is decided by pushing the opponent out of the dohyo or by forcing any part of…
Walls are physical obstacles. They serve as boundaries that divide space, and whether inside a house, a building, or outdoors, walls provide security, protect privacy, and can even function as symbols of defense or, conversely, as symbols of division and…
Miles Davis (1926-1991) was a jazz trumpeter, composer, and arranger who continuously pioneered innovative approaches to musical expression in each era, including cool jazz, hard bop, modal jazz, electric jazz, crossover, and hip-hop jazz. Miles transcended the boundaries of jazz,…
When the term “dictatorship” is used as a concept describing a power situation or a form of rule, it is often replaced by the institutional concept of a “dictatorial regime,” and discussed as a form of political system. In a…
The word “lottery” is said to have originated from the Dutch word for “fate” or “chance.” Indeed, lotteries, despite the near certainty of losing, offer the tantalizing prospect of winning a life-changing sum of money. Although the asymmetry in the…