Dr NakaMats The World’s Greatest Inventor

Who is the world’s greatest inventor? Many people in Japan will tell you it is Dr NakaMatsu also known as Yoshiro Nakamatsu.

Dr NakaMats has been called the Edison of Japan and has invented thousands of products. He is still going strong at the age of 84 and is a quite a celebrity in Japan.


Some of his greatest inventions include:

Japanese Hair Washing Robot

Japanese giant Panasonic has come up with a robot that can wash and blow dry hair. The product due for release next year is aimed to help the elderly population in Japan, and is seen as being a great aid to the rapidly increasing ageing population.

The washing robot can replicate the dexterous touch of a human hand and Panasonic believes the robot could help replace human care-givers in Japan.

The robot has 24 robotic fingers and 2 motorised arms, and shampoos, massages the scalp and rinses in about three minutes. Conditioning and a blow-dry add another five minutes to the process. Panasonic hopes to export the robot to other ageing societies such as South Korea and China, in the future.

Japanese Ice Bra

Japan’s hot and humid summers have led to many great ideas and inventions to try and stay cool and beat the summer heat. Last summer it was the Air Conditioned Jacket.

The latest is a bra with built in ice packs that promises to keep women cool this summer. The ice bra from underwear firm Triumph Japan dubbed the “Super Cool Bra” was unveiled on Wednesday. The bra features a pair of small fish tanks encompassing the breasts, a traditional Japanese wind chime and a mint leaf.

How does it all work?

McDonald's Japan Beverly Hills Burger

The McDonald’s Japan Big America Burgers have returned for 2012. You can read about the previous editions of the burger here
Big America Burger Series.

The latest and final release in the current series is the Beverly Hills Burger, which features a beef patty, cooked egg, lettuce, onions, avocado sauce and Caesar salad sauce.

McDonald's Japan Big America Burgers Broadway Burger

The McDonald’s Japan Big America Burgers have returned for 2012. You can read about the previous editions of the burger here.

The latest release is the Broadway Burger, which features a quarter-pound beef burger topped with fresh vegetables, pastrami bacon, mustard sauce and cream cheese sauce.

Tsukimi Burger

September in Japan usually brings with it Autumn or Aki (秋) with cooler weather, beautiful fall leaves and Autumn food and drinks. One of my favourite Autumn foods in Japan during this time is the Tsukimi burger. When this starts appearing on The McDonald's menu I know for sure that Autumn has arrived in Japan. The burger is only available for a limited time during the Autumn and is currently on the menu again.

Air Conditioned Clothing

http://www.inhabitat.com

Japan’s hot and humid summers have led to many great ideas and inventions to try and stay cool and beat the summer heat. The latest is from Japanese entrepreneur Hiroshi Ichigaya, and is air conditioned clothing. Ichigaya is selling jackets, shirts and pants fitted with battery-powered “personal cooling systems”. Small fans circulate so much air over the wearer’s body that a 31C room feels comfortable, according to America’s ABC News, which has tested the clothing. According to ABC News, Ichigaya is selling to 1000 companies and even getting requests from the Prime Minister’s office for half a million jackets.

Shopping in Tokyo

Tokyo is one of the best places in the world to go shopping. Tokyo offers everything for the keen shopper ranging from flea markets to high-end department stores. Most of the shopping hotspots in Tokyo are accessible via the Japan Rail (JR) Yamanote Line with a one-day JR train pass for 730 yen (about $9).

The following are the best spots in Tokyo for shopping.

Shinjuku – around Shinjuku station are lots of major discount camera stores and music shops. Shinjuku also has most of the major big department stores on Shinjuku Dori (avenue). One of the best is Takashimaya department store and food hall. Tokyu Hands is an eight level craft store and Uniqlo is a great store for really cheap, high quality, basic clothing.

Harajuku - home to Japanese street fashion. Harajuku Station and Takeshita Dori have many shops that cater to teen fashion and Japanese street fashion. For cheap knick-knacks, souvenirs and bargain gifts check out Daiso in Harajuku, which is one of the famous 100 Yen Shops where nothing costs more than 100 yen ($1.25) plus 5 yen tax. The Daiso in Harajuku is one of the biggest and best in Japan.

Shibuya - has a little bit of everything. Tokyu Hands is a must visit as it is the complete do-it-yourself department store as well as Parco and Shibuya 109 the 10 level fashion emporium.

Akihabara – known as electric city this is where dozens of stores sell everything electronic. You will find dozens of mainly duty free stores selling computers, cameras and TVs. The Yodobashi Akiba megastore houses nine floors of electronics.

Ginza – home to exclusive department stores, galleries and coffee shops. This is where some of the best high-end shopping can be done or like me some great window shopping. At the Ginza intersection is Wako, Japan’s most exclusive department store, and Mitsukoshi, known as the Harrods of Tokyo.

Skiing in Hokkaido Japan

Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido offers some of the country’s best snow and has been unaffected by the recent earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan.

Hokkaido’s winter season is November to early April with some ski resorts still having snow until early May. Sapporo is the cosmopolitan main city on Hokkaido, but does not get a lot of snow until early December. The best places are ski resorts like Niseko, Furano, Rusutsu and Kiroro.

Nissan Leaf

Have you heard about the Nissan Leaf? The Nissan Leaf is Nissan’s electric car and was unveiled on August 2, 2009. The Leaf went on sale in Japan and the US in late 2010 and will make its debut across global markets from 2012. The great thing about the Leaf is it does not emit any CO2 when driven and doesn’t even have a tail pipe.

The Leaf also comes in handy in other areas. The electric car can also feed power from its battery back into a family home and run appliances for up to 2 days. Using the “Leaf to Home” system, the lithium-ion batteries of the car’s zero exhaust emission can be used as an emergency power backup. Great for any emergencies that pop up and that sudden loss of power. The system works by linking the car to the house’s electricity distribution panel. Power can also be fed the other way if the house generates its own electricity with rooftop solar. The Leaf batteries have a capacity of 24 kilowatt hours when fully charged, enough for two days for the average household.

Amazing stuff and Only in Japan

Read more about the Nissan Leaf at the Nissan Website

Find Out How To Import Cars From Japan and Save $$$$$$$!

Cat Time Café in Osaka

In Gifu, there is a famous chain restaurant called Cat’s Café that specialises in cheap affordable food and the restaurants are famous for their atmosphere that features a lot of cat decorations scattered all over the restaurant. The Cat Time Café in Osaka goes one better with real cats roaming the café which patrons pay to play with the feline friends.

The Cat Time café, which opened in 2009 has 21 cats residing at the café and specialises in “cat relaxation”. Customers pay at least 850 yen ($9.80) just to step In the door and enjoy the pleasure of sipping their coffee and admiring the assortment of cats that make their way around the café. Customers have one hour of so called “cat time” to enjoy. The café has various beverages available as well as cakes and a limited number of cat treats. Cat toys can be hired in 10 minute blocks from 210 yen.

These types of café have been on the rise in Japan due to the tiny apartments which are extremely commonplace in large cities and pets are often forbidden by landlords.

Osaka currently has 10 such cafes and the new phenomenon has already spread to Tokyo and Seoul.

How does it all work?

Upon arrival at Cat Time Café, guests must remove their shoes, pay their money and then have their hands sprayed with hand cleaner. They are then free to enjoy their coffee and cake and to interact with the cats. There are a few simple rules such as no shouting, do not disturb any sleeping cats, no outside toys are to be brought in and no smoking is allowed.

The typical customer at Cat Time Café usually only stays for an hour and spend their time moving between various cats, occasionally stopping to pat one of the cats or to take a photo with their mobile phone. Most customers come to the café to relax and enjoy the assortment of cats.

Cat Time Café
8-8 4 Chome
Kita-ku
Osaka Tenjinbashi

This is my submission to the November 2011 J-Festa Dining in Japan

Japan’s Sense Roid Replicates Human Hug

Japanese inventors have pushed the boundaries of technology again with the ultimate companion for lonely singles, a wired torso-shaped device that you can hug and it will hug you back.

Called the Sense-Roid, it looks like a tailor’s mannequin with silicone skin and is packed with pressure sensors. It is connected to the jacket worn by the user and replicates the feeling of an embrace with the help of air compressors.

The illusion of a mutual hug is enhanced by artificial muscles and vibrating devices in the jacket. According to reports many people initially feel surprised and uncomfortable about the unusual experience, but gradually get accustomed to it.

Watch the video below for the unique Sense Roid

Once again, I can just say Only in Japan

Read more about some of the lighter and more interesting stories about Japan at Only in Japan


Discover The Secrets Of Dating The Beautiful Women Of Japan

Tower Cheese Burger

The Lotteria fast food chain in Japan has just brought out its new burger. The Tower Cheese Burger. Released on June 24th and based on its original 160 yen cheese burger you can stack up to 10 beef patties for 100 yen each. Lotteria has been promoting the new burger based on the two versions below.

Tower Cheese with 5 beef patties 700 yen about (USD $7)

Tower Cheese with 10 beef patties 1400 yen about (USD $14)

It is a whole lot of beef and cheese with no vegetables. Only extras include pickles and ketchup.

What do you think? Would you try one?

Tower Cheese with 10 beef patties

Compare the double cheese burger with the Tower Cheese with 5 pattues and 10 patties

 

Check out some other burgers from Japan including:

The Burger King Meat Monster

McDonald`s Big America series

Necomimi

Japanese inventors have come up with a new device that blends Japan’s fascination with cuteness and its penchant for experimental high tech gadgets. The gizmo is called Necomimi, neco meaning cat and mimi meaning ears in Japanese. The gadget is fluffy cat’s ears for humans that read their brainwaves. The fluffy headwear reads user’s brain activity, meaning the ears perk up when they concentrate and flop down when users enter a relaxed state of mind. A promotional video for the gadget shows a young woman’s cat ears perk up as she bites into a donut and again when she passes a young man in a park, only to flatten as she apparently brushes off the missed encounter, relaxes and smiles.

The inventors said “We were exploring new ways of communicating and we thought it would be interesting to use brainwaves.” “Because the sensors must be attached to the head, we tried to come up with something cute and catchy.”

The company behind the product, Neurowear hopes to market the device by the end of the year.

What do you think?

Watch the video for Necomimi below

Read more about some of the lighter and more interesting stories about Japan at Only in Japan

The Secrets Of Speaking Japanese Fluently

Japanese Banana Artist

Japanese artist Keisuke Yamada excels at carving sculptures out of bananas. He uses a toothpick and spoon to create the masterpieces and can spend up to 30 minutes on each piece before they go brown and he eats them.

Yamada, 23 has already made 11 pieces so far. The unique collection includes bananas with the faces of Elvis Presley and Davey Jones from Pirates of The Caribbean.

The artist, who calls himself a ‘perfectionist’, said “I started making them about two weeks ago and since posting pictures of them online they have really taken off,” the Daily Mail quoted Yamada as saying.

'It began when I peeled a banana and thought it might be interesting to carve a face into the fruit,” he added.

You can view many of his unique creations on the web.

Read more about some of the lighter and more interesting stories about Japan at Only in Japan

How to become an English Conversation Teacher

Stuff About Japan

Here is some more cool stuff about Japan. A Technology company  in Japan last month organized the world`s first marathon for robots.

Five robots entered the event, which organizer Vstone Co said would demonstrate the machines durability and manoeuvrability. The “Robo Mara Full” race is open only to androids with two legs. The robots must complete 422 laps around a 100m indoor racetrack, to cover 42km.

Once again, I can just say Only in Japan

Read more about some of the lighter and more interesting stories about Japan at Only in Japan

The Secrets Of Speaking Japanese Fluently

Meat Monster in Japan

The Meat Monster has hit Japan. The Burger King franchise has just released its Meat Monster hamburger in Japan. The 4900kj hamburger costs about $10 and contains two beef patties, a chicken fillet, three bacon rashers, two slices of cheese and more, served on two white buns. Don't worry, it does contain some salad coming with lettuce and tomatoes and onions to balance it out.

The Meat Monster has been created just for Japan and will be available Only in Japan.

Read more about some of the lighter and more interesting stories about Japan at Only in Japan

The Secrets Of Speaking Japanese Fluently

Japanese Gadget

Japan has come up with a new gadget. The Japanese gadget is a giant net, which Japan hopes to deploy in orbit to sweep up space junk. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Nitto Seimo Co, a fishing net company have joined forces, and are planning to tackle the problem of debris in space that threatens to wreck space shuttles and satellites. The thin metal net, spanning several kilometers, will be deployed by satellite and sweep up waste in its path as it circles the earth. After several weeks, the net will become charged with electricity and be drawn back towards the earth, with both the net and its contents burning up on entering the atmosphere.

What do you think? A World Wide Web for junk or a waste of space?

The Secrets Of Speaking Japanese Fluently

Weird and Strange News

Get ready for some weird and strange news from Japan. Japan is well known for its high-tech toilets with prosterior jets and perfume bursts, but Sega has gone a step further. Sega has just installed urine-controlled games in Tokyo urinals. Each urinal has a sensor and a viewer. In one game, the urines stream`s strength decides how far a virtual girl`s skirt is lifted. Don`t know about that one, but only in Japan could it happen.


Discover The Secrets Of Dating The Beautiful Women Of Japan

Made in Japan

There is a new made in Japan vending machine that has created a lot of buzz. Japan is well known for its vending machines that sell all kinds of different products, but now they are going high-tech. The new vending machine uses facial recognition technology to recommend drinks based on the customer`s age and gender. Suggested products may also change depending on the temperature and time of day. This new technology has lead to sales tripling as a result.


Learn how to make your own Green Tea At Home and save $$$$