Archives

No. 90

I’ll write about woodlands today.

The other day, I visited a place called
Afan Woodland in Nagano prefecture.
I met Mr. C.W. Nicol, the director,
and Mr. Morita, who taught me about
woodlands in detail.

More than anything, I was surprised to
learn that…

once the environment is destructed, it will
not recover to the original state unless
humans make efforts for that to happen.

I used to think that it’s for the
benefit of the nature to do nothing,
that it’s better for the environment
to refrain from human interventions…
It was not the case.

Oh, how ignorant was I.

In Japan, most woodlands have turned into
afforestation of cedars and larches because
we were only concerned about economic progress.

Thus, the woodlands have been transformed
by humans, and as a result, they have become
places where mudslides occur,
where trees do not grow,
where animals find it hard to live.
It’s the environment that is far from
what it’s meant to be.

Maybe, if you look at it in the perspective
of 1000 years, there are chances for the
woodlands to recover to its original state.
But during that time, many kinds of animals
that are barely surviving now will be extinct.

But there is something we can do.

The woodlands have been destroyed and transformed
into today’s unnatural state by the humans,
but it is we humans too that are able to bring
them back to their original state.

They told me that Japan’s latitude and its shape of
extending from north to south form a very good
environment for living beings
(microorganisms, insects, trees and plants,
amphibians, mammals, etc).
I can see why Mr. Nicol fell in love with Japan.

In its natural state, an ideal woodland consists
of big trees, and then trees of the next generation,
which are of medium height, and then the grass
underneath.
You can see that it’s slightly different from
the woods you find inside a park.
Also, the croaking of frogs, the songs of birds,
the chuckling of water, and the whispers of trees.
A pleasing contrast of light and shadow, the
refreshing blow of the wind, its coolness.

As a Japanese, I thought it is important to be
proud of this nature and to try my best to keep
its beauty.

Mr. Nicol has a deep affection for woodlands in
Japan, and I agreed with him when he called for
the protection of woodlands with an vision of
woodlands (Japan) in 100 years from now.

A beautiful Japan… let’s start with the woodlands.

Afan Woodland

http://www.afan.or.jp/

Ciao!

No. 89

When you create something, it’s critical to
have your own philosophy or thought.

Even when you draw a picture, compose music,
or create video games, of very high quality,
it often appears to be boring unless you can
convey your philosophy or thought through your
creation.
It becomes more difficult to get across your
message to many people.
It can be called the responsibility of the
creator, or you might say that the creator
gave up on sending his/her message.

This is, I think, what they mean when they say
what is important is the creator’s vision,
and the reasons behind his/her creation.
When the creator has his/her own
philosophy or thought, his/her
creations have a power that surpasses
their quality.

It might be said that it’s the difference
between something of highest quality and
art.

When you create something and put your
thought into it, you are likely to be
emotionally involved with it.
Everything has its reason.
Pokemon’s design has a reason.
A musical note, and how loud it should be
played, has its reason.

Although the creator and the audience
play different roles, I’d suggest you
think about
‘why is this the way it is?’ and
‘why did they make it like that?’
I’m sure you begin to find new answers.
And someday, you will begin to understand
other people’s thoughts and find your own
thought.

See ya.

No. 88

Everyone, thank you very much!!!

Thanks to you, we can now announce that more
than 10 million Pokemon have been traded
through the Global Trade Station (GTS).
I’m thrilled !!!
It’s a number that exceeds our expectations.
Especially those in North America seem more
likely to be connected via WiFi. Thanks!

Pokemon Diamond & Pearl will be released in
Europe on July 27th.
With this release, 4 more languages, Italian,
French, Spanish, and German, will be also available.
Please try trading Pokemon with those in
abroad by making Pokemon carry your mail.

See ya.

No. 87

At Tokyo National Museum, the “Leonardo da Vinci”
special exibition is being held.
Did you go there?

I found not only his paintings but his philosophy
and thought very interesting.
He must have been passionate about his research,
must have been inquisitive and full of curiosity,
and must have been a master of inventions and
discoveries. I got such impressions.

When you look at something that’s a result of a
highly sophisticated thought, you feel it’s awkward
to say that it is of high quality because it is
so artisitic.

Although the number of pictures he painted before
he died is small, his knowledge, techniques, and
ideas are truly overwhelming.
In ‘Annunciation,’ you can sense the
other-worldness only by looking at the trees.
Also, in a different picture, it’s amazing that he
carefully studied the proportions of the body of
a horse or the human face in such detail, even
though it might not have occurred to him if he
hadn’t built a huge construction.
The invention of aerial perspective is amazing too.

How many times have I used the word ‘amazing’?
He’s so amazing that you can make up such a question!

After I visited the exhibition, my fixed ideas
were destroyed, and also my sense of value was
suspended.
In many ways I received a pleasing sense of shock.

The exhibition ends this weekend on June 17th
(Sun). If you haven’t been there, hurry!

See ya.

No. 86

Today, I gave a lecture from 10 am at my old school,
Japan Electronics College.
The school is located near Okubo in Shinjuku (Tokyo),
and it’s been many years since I last visited there.
I felt as if I was still a student.

The lecture was only about 40-minute long, but
most students listened to my talk intently
and I think it was a meaningful event.
I hope to have given them some inspiration,
even if it’s small.

As for me, I attended the Computer Graphics course
at that school. Then, CG was not as advanced as
it is now. It was a tool a doctor of mathematics
used for his research, not a tool to ‘express yourself
in drawing,’ and the technology was still primitive.
Techniques such as scan-line method, ray-tracing, radiosity,
and bump mapping were available, but in ray-tracing,
for example, it took more than 1 day to draw one picture.
Now we use virtual images for those time-consuming
manipulations. Computer graphics has become a technique
to draw pictures, not a tool to display an object in
a truly real way.

When I was a student, I learned various topics from
UNIX (OS), 3D programming, such mathematical topics as
normal vector and matrix, to how to come up with
ideas, how to write a plot, or how to draw illustrations.
At that time, I immersed myself with what I found
interesting, but somewhere inside my mind I had a
doubt about their usefulness in the future.
That was not the case!
I’m making full use of what I learned then
for my current job.
Learning is a strange process, isn’t it?

See ya.

No. 85

The other day, I visited JT Biohistory Research
Hall located in Takatsuki city, Osaka.

The exhibits were presented in a unique way and
the place was filled with nature’s wonders.
Also, the director, Professor Nakamura, was such
a wonderful person, and her passion made the hall
a very attractive place to visit.

The most interesting or educational thing that I
learned there was the fact that every living being
on this planet has DNA.
I mean, all of them.
That is to say, human beings are not special.
And it all began 3.8 billion years ago.

What’s more, the basic strategy of DNA seems that
it looks to continue its life as long as possible.
If you look at it that way, trees live longer
than humans, and they have more diversity.
You cannot forget how diverse the insects are, either.

The wonder of life, and its relation to humans.
It seems we humans still have a lot to learn about life.

If you live near the hall, I’d recommend you visit
there. I’m sure you will discover something you
didn’t know before somewhere inside the hall.

More details here!

http://www.brh.co.jp

See ya.