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This article talks about several famous castles in Japan, including Kumamoto Castle and Edo Castle. Though the article doesn't mention it, after Kato Kiyomasa built Kumamoto Castle he was involved in the construction of some of the stone walls (ishigaki) of Edo Castle. The following Japanese blog entry says that while stone walls in the Edo Castle complex that were built under the supervision of other daimyo (regional lords) crumbled when heavy rains hit Edo Castle, Kato Kiyomasa's walls stood firm. The blog entry also explains how Kiyomasa's engineering differed from that of his contemporaries.
http://blog.q-q.jp/201203/article_13.html
http://www.timeout.com.hk/travel/features/68440/castle-spotting-in-japan.html
Castle spotting in Japan
As a nation shaped by warfare for well over 1,000 years, Japan has long been a land of castles. Mark Buckton of Time Out Tokyo chooses six of the most impressive Several hundred years ago, it would have been no exaggeration to claim the existence of well over 2,000 castles around Japan. Few ever lo

Governments, whether in Japan or in Canada, tend to use criteria that make it difficult to get certified as Minamata disease victims.
This article also describes documents that indicate that the government knew that the extent of mercury poisoning in the community was greater than it would acknowledge publicly.
Government mendacity and relative lack of concern for victims characterize the issue in both countries.
===start quote===
The report compared the board’s decisions in several cases with diagnoses made by Japanese experts on Minamata disease, a neurological syndrome caused by mercury poisoning, who examined the community between 1975 and 2004.
It found the board recognized only 38 per cent of the cases identified by the experts, noting the discrepancies “are due to different criteria used for evaluations.”
“The approach used by the Mercury Disability Board to assess whether or not an applicant has signs or symptoms consistent with mercury poisoning was designed based on the state of science and knowledge of the impact of mercury on human health in the 1980s,” it reads.
===end quote===
http://globalnews.ca/news/1477702/government-played-down-scope-of-mercury-poisoning-first-nation-report/
Government played down scope of mercury poisoning: Report
A northern Ontario First Nation says it has obtained an unreleased report that shows the federal and provincial governments failed to properly address widespread mercury poisoning among its members.

This article includes a few paragraphs about a ryokan in Kurokawa that has taken measures to increase it's foreign clientele.
===start quote===
During the symposium, the proprietor of a family-run ryokan that recently started receiving more visitors from foreign countries discussed the efforts they made to attract them.
Nozomu Shiga, president of Ryokan Wakaba at the Kurokawa Onsen spa resort in Kumamoto Prefecture, decided last year that his ryokan would take steps to bring in more visitors from overseas.
In 2012, foreign guests accounted for only several per cent of all his guests each month. But Shiga, 41, said this year they sometimes exceed 20 per cent per month, partly due to him and his staff taking English lessons.
They also produced menus, inn guides and Kurokawa Onsen resort maps in English, and revamped the facility's English website and booking procedures.
Shiga found that these measures did not cost as much as he expected. "What we should really do first is resolve to bring in more visitors from overseas," he remarked at the symposium.
===end quote===
http://news.asiaone.com/news/relax/ryokan-inns-continue-draw-foreigners-japan
Ryokan inns continue to draw foreigners to Japan
In recent years, more foreign tourists to Japan have been attracted by one of the nation's traditional travel charms-ryokan inns.Aiming to make use of the tourism resource unique to the nation, a symposium targeting ryokan proprietors for the better understanding the needs of tourists was held by Mi…

This article contains news of a sad incident that occurred in Taragi-machi, near Hitoyoshi:
"In Taragi, Kumamoto Prefecture, two parents jumped into the Kuma river to save their five-year-old daughter who had been playing, but both drowned in the process. A stranger nearby who witnessed the incident jumped in and saved the girl."
http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/11-dead-2-missing-in-weekend-water-related-accidents
The Kuma River (Kumagawa) has some of Japan's fastest flowing areas:
"One of the main experience-based tourist attractions in the Hitoyoshi/Kuma district is going down the Kuma River, which is famous as one of the three swiftest rivers in Japan. "
http://www.visitkyushu.org/2013/03/29/kumagawa-river-rafting/
11 dead, 2 missing in weekend water-related accidents
Eleven people died, one person remains unconscious and two are missing after water-related accidents across Japan over the weekend, police…

Here's another report on Kumamoto Castle coming in first on a "how glad are you that you went?" survey.
一度は籠城してみたい　行ってよかった日本の城ランキング発表

Scorching Summer days expected in Japan
The Japan Meteorological Agency on Friday issued heat warnings for most prefectures across Japan, and forecasters say there are probably more days like it coming up.

The temperature has gone above 34C (about 93F) in Kumamoto each day since Wednesday, the 23rd.
http://weather.goo.ne.jp/past/9999/12/819/index.html

If you are a student, you are invited to participate in this event to be held on August 12th.
http://consortium-kumamoto.jp/en/2014/07/24/【the-consortium-of-universities-in-kumamoto】come-and-join-the-consortium-of-universities-in-kumamoto-midsummer-sports-event-on-tuesday-august-12th/
【The Consortium of Universities in Kumamoto】Come and Join the Consortium of Universities in...
The rainy season finally ended, and the summer has come to Kumamoto.The Consortium of Universities in Kumamoto is hosting a Summer Sports Event.

If any of you have information you can share about job opportunities for English teachers, please do so. Thanks!

Sorry for the ad in my last post. I clicked "no thumbnail" but, apparently, the advertisers have found a way to override my override.

CMOS is a kind of semiconductor,
http://www.tvtechnology.com/article/sony-continues-expansion-of-stacked-cmos-image-sensors-production/271452
TVTechnology: Sony Continues Expansion of Stacked CMOS Image Sensors Production
TVTechnology Sony said it will invest in its Nagasaki and Kumamoto Technology Centers next year to increase production capacity for stacked CMOS image sensors.

Here are some screen shots from a segment broadcast on NHK's morning news show on July 13th. The segment says that "extremely hot days" (moshobi) are defined as days where the high is 35C (95F) or higher and that "tropical nights" (nettaiya) are nights where the temperature does not go below 25C (77F). I thought these national figures were interesting because they indicate that, when it comes to "extremely hot days," Kumamoto is ranked 4th in the country after Kyoto, Kofu, and Gifu. (Kumamoto averages 17.7 such days each year.) Predictably, Okinawa has the most "tropical nights" but I was surprised to learn that "extremely hot days" are actually quite rare in Okinawa -- just slightly more common than in Sapporo.

Nordic Aviation Capital signs LOI with Amakusa Airlines
http://www.traveldailynews.asia/news/article/56170/nordic-aviation-capital-signs-loi

I received an e-mail today about the latest issue of YOKA:
http://kumamotojet.com/documents/SummerYOKA2014.pdf
Here's part of the text of the e-mail:
=== start quote ===
The 2014 Summer YOKA is out! This YOKA features:
Skateboarding in Kumamoto by Sam Van Ginhoven
4,541 Miles of Perspective by Jarissa Lum
Chinese Characters Worth Getting Tattoed by Chris Ott
Short Stories from Kumamoto by Sam Zimny
Summertime Swimming in Kyushu by Chris Ott
Photos by Lacey Lee and Valeria Reyes
This YOKA was designed by Valeria Reyes.
The YOKA is sent to all current and former Kumamoto JETs by email. If you prefer not to receive future issues of The YOKA, please reply to this email and we will take you off the emailing list. Similarly, if you know of a current or former Kumamoto JET or someone else who would like to receive The YOKA, or if your email address has changed and you would like to receive The YOKA at a different address, please let us know. We'll make the changes accordingly.
Finally, if you are a former Kumamoto JET, please don't hesitate to stay in touch. Whether it's by contributing to the YOKA, or sending us a short email saying "hi", we always love to hear from sempai. We can also help you track down former teachers or friends in Japan whom you would like to contact.
=== end quote ===

From the article:
"Yoshimura's NPO is now seeking out supporters for the project. A bottle of shochu will be sent to anyone who contributes 2,000 yen ($20). The money collected will be used to provide assistance to the Fukushima Organic Agriculture Network, another nonprofit organization."
http://ajw.asahi.com/article/0311disaster/recovery/AJ201407220006
Fukushima rice finds a home in Kumamoto shochu - AJW by The Asahi Shimbun
The owner of a ramen shop in central Kyushu believes he has just the right elixir for those who are shunning produce grown in southern Tohoku as a result of the nuclear disaster there: Kumamoto shochu made with Fukushima rice.

I have a few thoughts about this:
1. It probably would be nice to have more programing with English subtitles (and subtitles in other languages) but I'm a bit surprised that such a huge adjustment to daily programing in Japan would be made on behalf of those visiting short-term for the olympics. Of course, it would be open to anyone but the article (and a similar article in Japanese) makes it sound like the olympics and the comments of short-term visitors are primary motivations for the change.
2. The article says that Japanese content will be "automatically translated by a system to produce the foreign-language subtitles." Such subtitles might be intelligible for things like a weather forecast, but I can't imagine them being of much use (except as something to laugh at -- because of their poor quality) with variety programs.
3. Instead of making a major adjustment like this to satisfy the whims of short-term visitors, perhaps the money to make this change could be spent to improve the quality of disaster information and disaster warning systems for people who actually live here.
http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0001439680
Japanese:
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/it/20140721-OYT1T50025.html
TV shows to get foreign-language subtitles by 2020 - The Japan News
July 22, 2014 Menu Close 4:40 am, July 22, 2014 The Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry will develop a system to show Japanese TV programs with subtitles in foreign languages, including English and Chinese, to provide a more comfortable viewing experience for foreign visitors, according to…

According to this article, police were trying to discourage drunk driving at this beach in Kumamoto. I don't think the article mentions the name of the beach but it looks like Otachimisaki:
http://www.otachimisaki.com/park/sea.html
http://news.tbs.co.jp/newseye/tbs_newseye2256014.html
「海水浴客を検問、飲酒運転防止呼びかけ 熊本」TBS　News i
　全国各地で飲酒運転での痛ましい事故が後を絶たない中、熊本の海水浴場では、飲酒運転を防ぐための特別警戒が行われています。

The Consortium of Universities in Kumamoto is recruiting volunteers for the Mizuakari Festival, which is held in October. See the following page for information in English:
http://consortium-kumamoto.jp/en/2014/07/17/big-recruiting-announcement-for-the-mizuakari-festival-volunteers/
こんにちは。 大学コンソーシアム熊本事務局です。 大学コンソーシアム熊本では毎年、10月に開催される市民のお祭り、 「熊本暮らし人祭りみずあかり」にボランティアとして多くの学生が参加しています…

The nuclear plant that is scheduled to restart is just 40 kilometers from Minamata. Victims of one environmental disaster don't welcome the risk of another.
http://www.tokyo-np.co.jp/article/national/news/CK2014070802000126.html
水俣の叫び　「再稼働反対」　川内原発４０キロ圏
　四大公害病の一つ、水俣病が発生した熊本県水俣市は、再稼働審査が優先的に進む九州電力川内（せんだい）原発（鹿児島県薩摩川内市）から四十キロ圏内にある。

This is about a Kumamoto-based company that has invented a video stabilizer for iPhones. I haven't decided what to do yet but personally I'm temped to contribute $79 and get my hands on a prototype.
http://www.geeky-gadgets.com/compact-iphone-camera-stabilizer-launches-on-kickstarter-16-07-2014/
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/gizmon/elephant-steady-smallest-stabilizer-ever
Compact iPhone Camera Stabilizer Launches On Kickstarter (video)
The Elephant Steady has been designed to offer users the world’s smallest iPhone camera stabilizer and uses the processing power from your iPhone