Smoke Block Emergency Mask
One of the big dangers of an earthquake in Japan is the resulting outbreak of fire and release of dangerous gasses mixed with the smoke creating toxic fumes. To counter this, the Smoke Block Emergency Mask, developed by Tokyo-based Rescuenow, Inc. has a special three layer filter that keeps the toxic fumes from your lungs for up to 20 minutes, allowing you ample time to evacuate the dangerous surroundings.
The mask has been certified by the Japan Fire Equipment and Safety Center Foundation and has been on sale from June. A full-face mask W120 × D80 × H225mm (about 540 g) sells for 20,000 yen and a half-face version W115 × D63 × H156mm (about 360 g) goes for 14,000 yen.
Source: Iza
Vintage Animated Japanese Commercials
Here are some great vintage animated TV commercials from Japan from the early 1970s.
A commercial from 1970 does a nice job of combing live action with animated characters.
Stop motion animation
Source: Fanboy.com
Mizuho Hata, Japanese gravure idol
Mizuho Hata 秦みずほ was is a pretty Japanese gravure idol from Nagano prefecture, Japan. This 160cm cute beauty has one photo book Mizuho and 7 DVDs including Yesterday Today Tomorrow Past, Present and Future ( 昨日・今日・明日Past, Present and Future). She’s a popular magazine model appearing in BOMB, Get On, Taki, BLT, Weekly Playboy, Young Sunday etc. and she has appeared in few movies like Tokyo Real to her name.
Her hobbies include blogging and writing calligraphy. You can see more photos of Mizuho Hata here and here. Don’t you wish you had a cute Japanese girlfriend like her?
Mizuho Hata Videos
red bikini at the beach
calendar photo shoot
Death Jazz from Soil and Pimp Sessions
SOIL & “PIMP” SESSIONS are a six person Japanese Jazz outfit consisting of Shacho (agitator, spirit), Tabu zombie (trumpet), Motoharu (sax), Josei (piano), Akita Goldman (bass) and Midorin (drums). They preform their own intense brand of alternative, aggressive jazz they call “Death Jazz”.
The band has played at the Fuji Rock Festival, played all over Europe won several awards including the John Peel Play More Jazz Award and have released 3 singles and 3 albums since 2001. The band just finished their Summer 2008 European tour
Soil and Pimp Sessions STORM
Soil and Pimp Sessions AVALANCHE
Soil and Pimp Sessions SUMMER GODDESS
Cylinder sound system and speakers from Japan
There is nothing in the shape of the The Gais Lisire Series 020 that would make you think is a powerful sound system. The distinct and futuristic aluminum covered ported subwoofer tube is 12 inches long and is flanked by a pair of matching round satellite speakers. The subwoofer is powered by a built-in 6-watt amp, while the satellites output 2.5-watts per channel. This sound system is designed to be hooked up to your pc or television through its 3.5mm stereo mini-jack input. Cost of the Gais Lisire Series 020 is about 12,000 Yen available at Raktuen.
One hundred years of Japanese in Brazil
If you’ve ever met a Japanese Brazilian, you won’t easily forget him or her. The blending of Brazil and Japan is so special and on June 18th 2008, it marked a special day for Japan and Brazil. It celebrated the one hundred year anniversary of the first Japanese immigrants who arrived in Brazil. There are an estimated 1.5 million people of Japanese descent in Brazil, more than anywhere in the world outside of Japan itself. The first 165 families totalling 781 Japanese emigrants arrived on board the Kasato Maru to Brazil’s Santos Port to escape poverty and lack of job opportunities in Japan, and to meet the demand for workers in Brazil’s coffee plantations…
Learn more in the following videos and articles found on the web.
Wikipedia article on Japanese Brazilians
A young Yumiko Shaku appears on Super Jockey
Earlier this year Japanese actress Yumiko Shaku 釈由美子 reprised her role as as the lead lawyer on TV Asahi’s 5th series of Shichinin no Onna Bengoshi 7人の女弁護士 along side Yoko Nogiwa, Sachie Hara, Masaru Nagai, Chizuru Azuma, Tomoko Nakajima, Rieko Miura, and Saori Takizawa.
She turned 30 in June and also won the Japan Association of Adult Orthodontics’ annual E-Line Beautiful Award, a promotional award given to a celebrity with a beautiful profile. Former winners of the award have included Ryoko Yonekura Yuka, Aya Ueto, and Miho Shiraishi.
Yumiko has come a long way since she first started off as a gravure idol when she even appeared in the popular TV variety show Super Jockey as one of the idols/models that plays the silly games of taking of her bra and sitting in the tub of hot water.
A young Yumiko Shaku appearing on Super Jockey
(Japan Sugoi)