Ritsumeikan University Research Report “RADIANT”
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Ritsumeikan University Research Report
[ Special Feature ]
The future is shining brightly Connecting RADIANT Ritsumeikan research activities with the World Division of Research, that enlighten the world Ritsumeikan University ISSUE 9 http://en.ritsumei.ac.jp/research/ March 2019 RADIANT March 2019 Issue 9 We now live in a borderless age where
all things transcend national boundaries. Special Feature: Researchers search for new insights Connecting with the World around the world to tackle global issues. Table of Contents
The researchers at Ritsumeikan also apply 04 STORY #1 The World’s first direct Observation of a Hypocenter: a world-embracing perspective in their fieldwork and studies, Uncovering the Mechanisms of Earthquake Generation whether domestic or abroad, Hiroshi Ogasawara (Professor, College of Science and Engineering) considering the entire planet as their research field. Through their findings, 06 STORY #2 A modern Economic System they aim to contribute to the betterment of humankind. in Hong Kong’s Underground Economy Sayaka Ogawa (Associate Professor, Graduate School of Core Ethics and Frontier Sciences) In this issue, our researchers, along with scientists from around the world involved in solving advanced, 08 STORY #3 Low-cost, high-efficiency, universal challenges that face humanity today, next-generation Thin-film Solar Cell to replace Silicon Jakapan Chantana will share the appeal of connecting across borders (Professor, Research Organization of Science and Technology) to engage with diverse cultures while advancing their studies. 10 STORY #4 To gain a better Understanding of Middle Eastern Politics Kota Suechika (Professor, College of International Relations)
12 STORY #5 How to Accommodate Food Taboos -A Key to a Successful Inbound Tourism Business Mariko Arata (Professor, College of Gastronomy Management)
14 STORY #6 The Impact of Science and Technology in Science Fiction’s imagined Futures Denis Taillandier (Associate Professor, College of International Relations)
Hiroshi Ogasawara has studied the physics of earthquake hypocenters 16 STORY #7 in South African gold mines for more than 24 years. He plays a central role in the South Africa DSeis Project, which brings together Japanese, Possession and Exorcisms in contemporary Societies South African, Swiss, American, German, Indian, Israeli, and Australian Andrea De Antoni researchers from a range of disciplines in the underground tunnels of (Associate Professor, College of International Relations) gold mines.
18 STORY #8 Can China be a Responsible Great Power? Miwa Hirono (Associate Professor, College of International Relations)
20 STORY #9 Artificial Intelligence that autogenerates Games to entertain Humans Ruck Thawonmas (Professor, College of Information Science and Engineering)
22 Research Topics
24 Column / Research Office
2 3 STORY #1 RADIANT | Ritsumeikan University Research Report | March 2019 | Issue 9 | Connecting with the World
Hiroshi Ogasawara The World’s first direct Professor, College of Science and Engineering Subject of Research: Study of the physics of earthquake hypocenters in deep South African gold mines Research Keywords: Solid earth and planetary physics Observation of a Hypocenter: Third from the left, together with his lab students, who also participated in the SA investigation
Uncovering the Mechanisms n June 2017, the DSeis Project (short- provided the means to enable the team to genic zone of the M5.5 aftershocks. They hand for Drilling into seismogenic start drilling from a 2.9 km-depth from the attempted to collect cylindrical samples I zones of M2.0–5.5 earthquakes in deep earth’s surface. Within 800–900m from the called cores by drilling these holes, 76 mm of Earthquake Generation South African gold mines) began drilling borehole collar, we can gather valuable sam- in diameter and about 820 m and 700 m in 1–3 km underground to get to a location ples from the faults of a M5.5 earthquake length. In February 2018, the second drill from which earthquakes of magnitudes still generating aftershocks. Ogasawara is hole penetrated the M5.5 aftershock zone. (M) 2–5.5 were generated. The drilling was hopeful, stating, “This is a global fi rst. We Where the fault fracture zone was intersect- completed in June 2018, and the borehole are having the closest unobstructed view of ed, a layer of substances thinner than 2 m logging survey ended in July. hypocenters, something that is unviewable with very slippery material was recovered. The proposal for this project was from the earth’s surface. We expect to fi nd Ogasawara explained their results, accepted by the Germany-based Interna- clues to address fundamental questions of saying, “We were able to collect a large tional Continental Scientifi c Drilling Pro- the mechanisms of earthquakes.” number of extremely interesting samples gram (ICDP) and is led by Japan, with the Between 2010 and 2015, Ogasawara’s of fresh fractures thought to have been help of South Africa (SA), Switzerland, the research team was able to successfully caused by M5.5 earthquakes or subse- U.S., Germany, India, Australia, and Israel. instrumentally monitor earthquake activity quent aftershocks, as well as samples The individual coordinating this huge in detail at gold mines at 1–3.4 km depths of new fi ssures caused by rock stress international research project is Hiroshi under the auspices of Japan Science and enhanced in host rock without previous Ogasawara of Ritsumeikan University. Technology Agency (JST) and the Japan seismic history.” They have already start- Ogasawara has studied the physics of International Cooperation Agency (JICA) ed measuring rock stress and conducting earthquake hypocenters in SA gold mines for the Science and Technology Research detailed structural geological analysis with for more than 24 years. (In Japan, he is Partnership for Sustainable Development the samples recovered from the hypocen- currently working together with Tohoku (SATREPS). ter faults. “It should be noted that a local University, Kyoto University, The University During 2015–2019, the collaborating increase in differential stress was found of Tokyo, Osaka University, Kochi Univer- researchers came from a wide range of ac- right at the upper fringe of the aftershock sity, the Fukada Geological Institute, 3D ademic disciplines, including seismology zone. With further seismological analysis Geoscience, Inc., the National Institute of and rock engineering, as well as geology, of the main rupture and aftershocks of the Advanced Industrial Science and Technol- structural geology, and geomicrobiology. M5.5 mainshock, we hope to clarify earth- ogy, and the National Research Institute They have been investigating not only the quake rupture propagation and the condi- for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience, seismic activity and geological structures tion that controls rupture propagation.” among others.) around hypocenters but also groundwater At the same time, the geomicrobiol- In SA, a large number of deep gold and microbiological activities. In 2019, ogy research group from Princeton Uni- reefs have been excavated over the past samples will be digitally archived into the versity in the U.S. is exploring rock-hosted 120 years. As a result of the many cavities, ICDP Information System and eventually microbes that live in the deep subsurface the host rock has become severely unsta- made available internationally for use in a of the earth. They hypothesize that earth- ble, resulting in small earthquakes occur- wider variety of scientifi c research fi elds. quakes rupture host rock, which generates ring on a daily basis. Ogasawara explains, hydrogen to fuel life deep in the rock. This “It is believed that natural earthquakes are o observe at the closest proximity could unravel the mystery of life during our also generated as a result of stress build- to a hypocenter, they must fi rst planet’s early history or extant life on Mars. ing up in the host rock, but it is too remote T identify the time and location of an Ogasawara explains that from here on to observe processes of stress build- earthquake occurrence and install an ultra- out, “We will analyze the core samples, but up and natural earthquake generation in sensitive seismometer near the hypocenter. we also wish to further extend the drilling detail from the earth’s surface. In contrast, Ogasawara made the drilling plan based of the DSeis Project and conduct drilling in gold mines at great depth, hypocenter on data thus obtained by Japan and its to probe a wider extent of the aftershock faults or ruptures can be easily exhumed or partner organizations in SA, which includ- zones in greater depth.” Are they close to a They are drilling a total of 1.6 km from 3 km underground to reach instrumentally closely observed. By study- ed a main shock and tens of thousands of new view of the mechanisms of earthquake ing them, we may discover what controls aftershocks and ultra-microearthquakes. In generation? Their fi ndings are eagerly seismogenic zones, generating quakes of about the same magnitude the occurrence and termination of seismic June 2017, they fi nally started drilling two awaited. activity.” holes from a tunnel 2.9 km underground, to as the one that struck northern Osaka in June 2018. Moab Khotsong mine, in particular, probe around the upper fringe of a seismo-
Under the leadership of Ogasawara, Japan, and SA, research teams from Switzerland, the U.S., Germany, India, Australia, and Israel are collaboratively conducting drilling and inves- If the direction of drilling into seismogenic zones is not carefully set, drilling severely pulverizes recovered samples. The teams successfully collected a core sample with a total length tigation of about 1.6 km with minimal drilling damage, allowing them to start a comprehensive investigation of fractures from earthquakes, fault substances, stress, geological features, physi- cal properties, microbes, gases, and groundwater.
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he China-based transnational informal trade started appearing “T in the early 2000s,” Ogawa ex- A modern Economic plained. She added, “Small-scale traders from Asia, Central and South America, the Middle East, Africa, and around the world came to China and built their own System in Hong Kong’s production and trade system. Although such a trade system has been conducted discreetly, as almost all of their business activities are illegal, it is said that it pro- Underground Economy vides employment to hundreds of millions of people globally and generates huge profi ts in the tens of trillions of dollars.” A vast amount of money fl ows through this underground economy. “This is intriguing,” Ogawa thought to herself and instantly became captivated by the idea. During her half-a-year stay in China, Ogawa tracked the daily activities of a Tanzanian second-hand car dealer who called himself “the boss of Chungking Mansions.” Through him, she explored the kinds of businesses Tanzanian traders conduct in China. Tanzanians in Hong Kong Ogawa explained, “There are two types of Tanzanian traders living in Chun- gking Mansions. The fi rst one comprises traders who visit Hong Kong for short pe- riods to buy products or look for valuable arrangements. informal economy that is unimaginable in goods. The second one includes those As most of their transactions are the context of a formal economy. who live in Hong Kong long-term and earn illegal, it is not uncommon for them to “Informal trade might sound like a living as brokers, dealers, and guides encounter fraud, non-payments, and other something dubious and unsophisticated, between their visiting fellow citizens and business troubles. Nonetheless, they have but Tanzanian traders and dealers are ac- the Chinese. Most of them are illegal work- built their own system that allows them tually using SNS, crowdfunding, electronic ers.” The Tanzanians export natural stones to conduct trade reliably. To anticipate money, and other advanced technologies to China and Hong Kong. Then they bring business problems, they use their own to the fullest and have built a global busi- various products, such as used cars, cell trade system called TRUST. With TRUST, ness network,” Ogawa explained. Most The Tanzanians of Chungking Mansions phones, home appliances, clothes, and Hong Kong dealers transact products with innovative economic systems, such as general goods from China to Tanzania. African dealers and buyers in an auction the sharing economy, free economy, and Ogawa was surprised by their business format on social media platforms such as blockchains, originate from underground Facebook. Once a deal has been conclud- economies run by small-scale traders. hungking Mansions faces Nathan cultural anthropologist Sayaka Ogawa there for about three years, became part ed, a small capital sum is solicited through Ogawa added that “this globalization from Road, which runs through Hong resided for over half a year, starting in Oc- of the Machinga community, and even crowdfunding and used to procure prod- below paradoxically emerges as a result of C Kong’s most prominent business tober 2016. She stayed in the complex in sold second-hand clothes by the road- ucts. Eventually, these products are sold dissatisfaction with and contradictions in district, Tsim Sha Tsui. Cheap accommo- order to conduct fi eldwork on small-scale side to better understand their business in Africa and then the profi ts are divided formal economies, which are considered dations are concentrated in this fi ve-block Tanzanian traders and their commercial arrangements. The Machinga approach among dealers, buyers, and investors. mainstream.” With eagerness, she said, complex, which attracts traders and back- activities. to business is known as ujanja, meaning These monetary transactions are conduct- “This is the real thrill of cultural anthropol- packers of all nationalities and ethnicities. In Tanzania, East Africa, Ogawa had slyness and craftiness in the Swahili lan- ed using electronic money via informal ogy.” Chungking Mansions, which is reputed to previously researched and closely ob- guage. Ogawa was particularly interested fi nanciers. be a den of vice for the dodgy activities it served the commercial practices of small- in the logic behind their approach, which The traders have also formed the has housed over the years, is where the scale traders called Machinga. She lived differs from formal business practices of Hong Kong-Tanzania Association and contracts and legal regulations that are Guangzhou-Tanzania Association to often employed in developed nations and facilitate mutual assistance in case of un- other societies. foreseen circumstances, such as injuries, In recent years, this group of peo- sicknesses, or death. Although they trick ple from Tanzania has been increasingly one another at times and engage in illegal Sayaka Ogawa Tanzanian Commerce travelling to China in search of new import trades, they use advanced technologies Associate Professor, products to replace the second-hand to achieve a form of collaborative com- Graduate School of Core Ethics and Frontier Sciences at the Chungking Mansions clothes they typically sell. Ogawa followed mons and form mutual organizations to, Subject of Research: Study on the consumption culture of them to Hong Kong and discovered an ultimately, conduct commercial activities present-day Africa as seen in circulation/consumption of used/ Filling a container with bought used cars non-regular goods, dynamics of brinkmanship, anthropology underground economy run by small-scale smoothly. Ogawa’s research highlights of practice/act, and anthropology of a hand-to-mouth life in Hong Kong traders from all over the world. the realities of such a fl exible and resilient Research Keywords: Area studies, cultural anthropology
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oday, as the number of energy-re- absorption layer, a buffer layer, a window during the deposition of the buffer layer to lated problems, such as environ- layer that lets light in, and a transparent achieve higher effi ciency. T mental pollution, the exhaustion of conducting layer. There are several meth- In recent studies, Chantana has cre- underground resources, natural disasters, ods for creating these layers. Sputtering ated solar cells using different materials and nuclear power plant accidents in- and other dry processes are used for the and deposition techniques for each layer creases, renewable energy is becoming CIS optical absorption layer, while a wet to compare their photoelectric conversion Low-cost, high-efficiency, increasingly more important. In particular, process called solution growth is used for effi ciencies. expectations are high for solar power, the deposition of the buffer layer between Chantana fi rst fabricated a solar cell but much development must take place the CIS optical absorption layer and the using a CIGSSe optical absorption layer next-generation Thin-film before it can surpass existing power gen- transparent conducting layer. However, and the conventional CdS wet process eration methods. Solar cells made from a wet process raises production costs, for the buffer layer (Fig.: Structure A). “We silicon currently have a market share of so it is preferable if all depositions can managed to achieve a photoelectric con- more than 90%, but there is a limit to the be achieved using dry processes. Anoth- version effi ciency of 18.3%, but we were Solar Cell to replace Silicon reductions in manufacturing costs that er issue is that cadmium sulfi de (CdS), left with the issue of a thick buffer layer can be achieved; thus, signifi cant efforts a hazardous substance, is often used that absorbs short-wavelength light.” To are being devoted to develop new types of solar cells that do not require silicon. ciency of 18.6% was achieved. One such new kind of solar cell is Structure of a CIS thin-fi lm solar cell with various buffer layers the CIS thin-fi lm solar cell, which mainly Furthermore, he succeeded in depos- consists of copper (Cu), indium (In), and iting all thin fi lms using dry processes, em- ploying a ZnMgO:Al transparent conduc- selenium (Se), with a chalcopyrite crystal- - Ni/Al - Ni/Al - Ni/Al - Ni/Al line structure. tive layer and a ZnMgO buffer layer (Fig.: Transparent Transparent Transparent Structure D) to achieve a high photoelec- Jakapan Chantana is engaged in the ……… AZO AZO ……… AZO ……… conductive fi lm conductive fi lm conductive fi lm tric conversion effi ciency of 20%. There is development of solar cells that use Cu, In, Zn Mg O:Al 0.9 0.1 no known successful case in which a CIS Se, gallium (Ga), and sulfur (S), instead of Window layer ……… ZnO ZnO Window layer ……… ZnO silicon, for optical absorption. thin-fi lm solar cell was created using these CIS solar cells are characterized by ZnS(O,OH) materials. In his research so far, Chantana Buffer layer Buffer layer ……… CdS ZnS(O,OH) Zn0.8Mg0.2O has developed a transparent conductive their capacity to absorb about 100 times CdS fi lm that is able to control the conduction more light than silicon-based cells. They Optical Optical ……… CIGSSe CIGSSe ……… CIGSSe CIGSSe band positions, using thin fi lms made can also be made into thin fi lms. The cell absorption layer + + absorption layer + + thickness of silicon solar cells is about 200 of zinc (Zn), magnesium (Mg), or other Rear-side Rear-side ternary mixed crystals containing zinc. Mg μm, while that of CIS thin-fi lm solar cells is electrodes ……… Mo Mo electrodes ……… Mo Mo no more than 2–3 μm. This is the extent to has a wide band gap and lets in more light than conventional fi lms that use only Zn, which we hope to decrease resource use Glass substrate ……… SLG SLG Glass substrate ……… SLG SLG and costs. Yet, the photoelectric conver- which is what enabled this high effi ciency. sion effi ciency of CIS thin-fi lm solar cells Chantana is confi dent, saying, “We remains inferior to that of silicon types, Structure A Structure B Structure C Structure D can increase the photoelectric conversion preventing replacement in the market. effi ciency further by changing the ma- Chantana explains, “The highest pho- terials and deposition methods for each toelectric conversion effi ciency achieved increase the effi ciency, the buffer layers transparent conductive layer causes sput- layer.” Chantana is leading the way in a for CIS thin-fi lm solar cells in the world is must be made thinner, or the short-wave- tering shocks, which damage the surface highly competitive global race to develop 22%. These solar cells are still at the re- length photoelectric loss must be limited of the CIGSSe optical absorption layer. CIS thin-fi lm solar cell materials. search stage. Nevertheless, there is still a using a substance with a wide band gap. CdS is resilient against sputtering shock big gap between this value and the 26.7% What would the structure of a Next, Chantana created a solar cell and protects the CIGSSe optical absorp- effi ciency of silicon solar cells. In addition, thin-film solar cell that does by substituting CdS with zinc sulfi de (ZnS) tion layer from damage, but there was no CIS thin-fi lm solar cells require rare metals and used sputtering to deposit a buffer substance to fulfi ll this shielding function such as cadmium and other materials that not use harmful cadmium and layer (Fig.: Structure B). This resulted in a in this new structure. are toxic to the human body during the band gap of ZnS of 3.5 eV, which is wider Therefore, Chantana decided to fi lm deposition process. Furthermore, sig- yet achieves high photoelectric than the 2.6 eV of CdS. This strategy elimi- deposit a buffer layer that combines ZnS nifi cant amounts of electricity are required nated the use of the harmful substance (O,OH) and an ultrathin CdS fi lm to in- to fabricate these high-quality thin fi lms conversion efficiency look like? and reduced the short-wavelength pho- crease short-wavelength sensitivity while, Jakapan Chantana using a vacuum process.” To overcome toelectric loss. Yet, Chantana explains, at the same time, reducing the sputtering Professor, Research these challenges, he is attempting to build “Compared to the previous solar cell, the damage (Fig.: Structure C). As a result, Organization of Science and Technology overall particle effi ciency was low, and the short-wavelength sensitivity increased, highly effi cient solar cells using a low cost, Subject of Research: Increasing the effi ciency of CIS thin- low power consumption method to fabri- voltage had clearly fallen.” The reason is and a high photoelectric conversion effi - fi lm solar cells cate the fi lm while eliminating most of the that sputtering of the ZnO window layer Research Keywords: Solar cells, solid-state electronics expensive and hazardous materials. that connects the buffer layer and the
he typical CIS thin-fi lm solar cell has a substrate structure covered T by rear-side electrodes, an optical
8 9 STORY #4 RADIANT | Ritsumeikan University Research Report | March 2019 | Issue 9 | Connecting with the World
However, in the owever,” Suechika explains, “it goes without fi eld of Middle East- Through the voices of ordinary citizens, saying that Islam does not infl uence all political ern political studies, “H phenomena of the Middle East.” The politics of globally, the research the tragedy of state failure and the Middle East contain a diverse range of topics such as on confl ict and state dictatorships, democratization, confl ict, war, and eco- failures has seen limit- its background come into focus. nomic problems relating to oil resources. ed progress. An indis- Recently, Suechika started a new research project pensable part of area focusing on confl ict and state failure in the Middle East, studies is to head out as a way to add a new perspective on the research he to the actual locations had conducted thus far. He discusses countries like Syria and collect the voices of its peoples, as well as its liter- and Iraq that have experienced confl ict and tries to clarify ature, but this is practically impossible in confl ict zones. why confl icts and state failures occur, as well as what As such, Suechika’s research project has commissioned Kota Suechika problems are caused by such failures. a local research institute to conduct a large-scale opinion “State failure is by no means a domestic problem. If survey, in an attempt to collect the voices of its residents. Professor, College of International Relations a state fails and confl ict ensues, not only will the peo- In 2017, they managed to collect data from about 1,000 Subject of Research: Contemporary ple of that country suffer, but it will have a major impact people each from Syria and Iraq. Such a collection can Middle East politics, with emphasis on Islamic political thought on international society as well.” The Islamic State that reveal the thoughts and attitudes of ordinary citizens, and movements in Syria and Lebanon emerged from the Syrian confl ict built a “state” that which are diffi cult to perceive from the macro perspec- Research Keywords: Middle Eastern area studies, international relations, comparative politics encompassed a vast territory across Iraq and Syria, and tive. “The detailed analysis will take a bit longer, but the then called on Muslims all over the world to become its data is beginning to show aspects different from what are “citizens.” It is well-known that, as a result, terrorism commonly claimed to be their thoughts or what had been has become rampant, not only in the Middle East but in previously thought of as common knowledge, in relation Europe and North America as well. to Middle Eastern politics.” Suechika says that a common misconception about confl icts in the Middle East is that the cause is sectarian antagonism. For example, the civil war in Syria is a confronta- s of 2018, the Syrian confl ict, said to be the worst tion between the Assad regime, humanitarian crisis of the twenty-fi rst century, has which advocates secularism, and A entered its eighth year. The antagonism between the opposition, which seeks to the Assad regime and the opposition was brought out restore Islam in politics. In other into the open during the Arab Spring of 2011. This an- words, the confl ict is about whether or not to have reli- tagonism developed into a confl ict, and eventually, the gion, rather than a confrontation between different sects. extremist group Islamic State (IS) appeared from among Suechika states that the fi ndings of this opinion poll have the opposition groups. Even after IS lost its clout, with corroborated the views held by him and his colleagues. the military intervention of its neighboring countries and Suechika explained that “in Japan and the Western major powers, the path to resolution is nowhere in sight. world, where the separation of church and state and sec- More than half of its entire population has been forced ularism are taken for granted, we are prone to think the to take refuge from the wartime destruction, either within cause of confl icts in the Middle East is religion. However, Syria or abroad, and tens of thousands of lives have been in reality, not all of politics is driven by religion, and some lost already. places are no different from the countries and regions “We are prone to believe that the confl icts and where we live.” Perhaps the Middle East may appear dif- political turmoil in the Middle East are due to some un- ferent at fi rst glance, but the causes and mechanisms of fathomable special causes. There is truth to this in some confl ict or peace may be surprisingly universal. Suechika respects, but we will never be able to develop an un- expressed his zeal, saying, “With the current research derstanding by fi xating on the differences. I believe that project, I want to pursue the methodologies and tech- we can better understand the politics of the Middle East niques further to gain a better understanding of Middle by discovering uniqueness and peculiarities, as well as Eastern politics.” commonalities and universalities.” These are the words of Kota Suechika, who has been grappling with this problem from the standpoint of Islamism. According to Suechika, Islamism is “a political ide- ology rooted in the teachings of Islam politics came out into the open, and such voices have that aims to bring grown stronger. Suechika moved his attention to this about social change relationship between politics and religion that was now and nation-build- being re-evaluated and has since studied what infl uence To gain a better ing.” Suechika Islamism has on politics in the Middle East, as well as explains the impor- how the relationship between the two will change in the tance of analyzing future. Islamism from a Numerous studies on the Middle East and Islam Understanding of long-term perspec- have been conducted in Japan as well, but they are still tive of more than a century. The issue of the relationship at an early stage when it comes to the attempt to cover between politics and religion that came about with the both topics. It is for this reason that Suechika’s research, collapse of the Ottoman Empire was long sealed away which is fl eshing out the reality of Islamism and using its Middle Eastern Politics at the hands of dictatorships. The Arab Spring greatly clues to reassess Middle Eastern politics, has garnered changed this situation. Movements to refl ect Islam in much attention.
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ver the past few years, with the provided by FOODPICT Inc. They cover offering alcohol drinks could, for example, number of foreign tourists soar- major allergens and religious taboos, and add additional information such as ‘For O ing, the inbound tourism business accommodate vegetarians, also. However, adults only’ or ‘OK for kids, too.’” How to Accommodate has been booming all over Japan. Aside “if you use foodpicts, you must strict- from China, Europe, and North America, ly observe the guidelines. Picking and ne issue that has garnered atten- the number of tourists from Southeast choosing a part of them as you please is tion in the food business world in Asia has also visibly increased in recent not acceptable,” she warns. “What would O recent years is halal. According Food Taboos years. Many such visitors list food as happen if there was a hotel buffet that to Arata, halal signifi es “things allowed in one of their reasons for visiting Japan. used foodpicts for only the seven allergen- Islam or things legal under Islamic law.” At a time when the restaurant and food ic ingredients? A vegetarian might never When it comes to halal food, the global- industry is attempting to fi nd a way to imagine there were no labels for meat or ization of distribution and the sophistica- A Key to a Successful accommodate these foreign visitors, one fi sh and could end up consuming it. This tion of food processing have resulted in especially urgent task is how to deal with would render the foodpicts useless.” an increase in food and drink whose halal Inbound Tourism Business food taboos and avoidance. She also says that care is required status is diffi cult to verify immediately, “At least one third of the world’s when labeling for alcohol. This is because which has increased the importance of population observes food taboos and two types of needs exist: 1) the need to halal certifi cation, by which certifi cation practices avoidance based on beliefs avoid all food and drinks that use ingredi- bodies guarantee that “this is halal.” or religion. There are also a signifi cant ents derived from alcoholic drinks (khamr), While there are fi rms that enter Muslim number of people with allergies, yet Japan regardless of the amount, for religious rea- markets by obtaining halal certifi cation, cannot be said to be suffi ciently there are examples of restaurants accommodating such taboos and and accommodation facilities that avoidances.” This is a point made struggle with how to manage this. by Mariko Arata, a cultural anthro- However, “Many people pologist who has conducted fi eld- misunderstand this, but halal is work on food culture in Indonesia not the same as being halal-cer- and has made many contributions tifi ed.” Arata explains. “To begin to halal studies. wit h, certifi cation is a very new In the Japanese food service institution that came about toward and ready-meal industries, a lack the end of the twentieth century. of consideration due to ignorance Moreover, there are diverse inter- is not uncommon, and conversely, pretations of what constitutes ha- some choose to exclude every- lal among Muslims, depending on thing to the point of neglecting the their sects or schools of jurispru- basics of providing delicious food. dence, etc., while food preferenc- In response to this current situa- es and customs also differ among tion, Arata is proposing a method countries and cultures. Foods are of providing food to people who often judged to be authentically observe diverse forms of food halal and consumed by Muslims taboos and avoidance. Arata without any certifi cation, while on attaches the greatest importance the contrary, some halal-certifi ed to disclosure. “First, there are foods may be suspected to be two types of disclosure to keep in non-halal. More important than mind when displaying the menu obtaining certifi cation, just as with at a restaurant. There is menu FOODPICT©INTERNASHOKUNAL & NDC Graphics any other product, is 1) providing information such as ‘Deep-fried reasonably priced products that Foodpicts are the 14 pictograms provided by FOODPICT Inc. accom- chicken’ and ‘Potato salad,’ which modating allergies, religious taboos, and vegetarianism, which can be are in line with consumers’ needs lists the main ingredients of a dish used as an effective tool for disclosing information on ingredients used and preferences and 2) gaining in a dish to international visitors. and describes its cooking method, their customers’ trust.” and then there is ingredient infor- She explains, “What we mation, which reveals all ingredients used, sons and 2) the need to avoid intoxicating should worry about the most is non-Mus- including those used in small amounts.” food and drink because of reasons such lims arbitrarily deciding what is halal and Menu information is suffi cient for custom- as pregnancy or having to drive. In the what is not.” She is concerned that there ers who choose their dishes based only on case of the former, because some people is an overprotective tendency to avoid preference, but those who have allergies avoid food seasoned with sake, mirin, risk by judging products to be “non-halal” or religious taboos cannot get by without or alcohol-added miso and soy sauce, based on a shallow understanding. the ingredient information. If a detailed de- foodpicts accommodate this stricter re- She stresses that “Muslims, Jews, scription is diffi cult, simply adding labels quirement; however, for those who fall into vegetarians, and others each have their such as “Pork-free” or “Meat-free” makes the latter category, such labels may be an own food taboos, but they are the same it easier for many people to choose their overstatement and lead to confusion. Ara- as any of us, as each possesses a rich dishes. ta suggests that “restaurants and shops culinary world of their own. To help such Moreover, Arata rec- people from all over the Mariko Arata ommends not only textual world enjoy Japanese information but also label- How do we accommodate the food food, it is important that we Professor, College of Gastronomy Management ing, using foodpicts. create an environment in Subject of Research: Indonesian food culture studies, halal food studies, food business in Foodpicts are pic- taboos that apply to one third of the which each and every one multi-cultural societies and glocalization, food preference, and food choice tograms that refer to 14 world’s population? can choose freely, follow- Research Keywords: Eating habits, area studies, linguistics, Japanese language education, kinds of food materials ing their own judgment.” foreign language education, cultural anthropology
12 13 STORY #6 RADIANT | Ritsumeikan University Research Report | March 2019 | Issue 9 | Connecting with the World
hat if the worlds of science According to Taillandier, “Soft Clocks artist, in his delirium of interpretation, is Denis Taillandier fi ction were to become a real- connects art and technology by shedding able to reveal multiple images—otherwise W ity? Denis Taillandier, whose light on things that are otherwise invisible invisible—within the same confi guration of Associate Professor, College of International Relations research looks into the dynamics at play to the eye.” By unveiling the connections reality, organizing and objectivizing them Subject of Research: Japanese science fi ction studies, repre- between science, technology, and sci- between Dalí’s aesthetics and the nan- so that they become a tangible reality. sentations of science and technology in science fi ction, interplay between real science and fi c t i o n a l science ence fi ction (SF) from a cultural studies otechnological imagination, Taillandier And it is, on the other hand, nanotechnol- Research Keywords: Cultural studies, Japanese literature perspective, explains that “SF is not just points out the conceptual similarities ogy’s ability to peer into the infi nitesimal fi ction but has infl uenced and been infl u- that underpin early twentieth century world of atoms and molecules and gen- enced by real science and technology, aesthetics and early twenty-fi rst century erate images of atomic surfaces by using playing a role in their development.” Tail- technology. “On the one hand, it is Dalí’s a microscopic scanning tip. The artistic landier, who studied Japanese at a French paranoiac-critical method, whereby the creation and the technological imaging university, aims to understand technol- ogy-driven modern society by focusing on Japanese works of science fi ction and analyzing the relationships between real science and fi ctional science. “SF tends to be perceived as fi ction in the sciences and as entertainment in literary studies. However, Sakyo Komatsu pointed out that ‘the hybrid aspect of SF contributes to the understanding of both literature’s evolution and society’s scientif- ic and technological development,’ iden- tifying SF not as the literature of science but as a literary fi eld of its own: a literary science.” Drawing on Komatsu’s insight, Taillandier initially focused his interest on the fi eld of nanotechnology, analyzing how it has been represented in works of SF and how those representations evolved. Taillandier’s name fi rst became known through a critique of Yoshio Ara- maki’s early science fi ction novella Soft Clocks. Since the late 1960s, Aramaki has written specu- lative science The Impact of Science and Technology in fi ction novellas infl uenced by New Wave SF and surrealism. As indi- cated by the title, Soft Clocks is a novella articulated around Salvador Dalí’s famous Science Fiction’s imagined Futures painting, The Persistence of Memory. Taillandier won wide acclaim for drawing connections between the aesthetics of Dalí’s surrealism, rheology, and nanotech- nology through the analysis of Aramaki’s novum, “fl abby engineering.” processes share common aspects.” Nobel Laureate Richard Feynman’s 1959 cial impacts of science and technology.” Taillandier concluded that Arama- speech, in which he speculated “wheth- Project Itoh’s Genocidal Organ looks, for ki’s science-fi ctional use of Dalí’s artistic er—ultimately—in the great future, we can instance, into the military applications of perception of space offers valuable insight arrange the atoms the way we want,” but nanotechnology, raising questions about in terms of nanotechnology and its under- many of the ideas formulated by Feynman its convergence with biotechnologies. Itoh lying conception of the world. revolved around metaphors that were further explores the medical and social already circulating in science fi ction. implications of nanotechnology in his What would it mean to live in a post- aillandier argues, “Science fi ction Taillandier has also looked into the 2009 novel Harmony, in which a device is often seen as the poor relation mobilization of science fi ction rhetorical embedded in the body enables complete nanotechnological world? T of science: It is convenient and techniques in the discourse on nanotech- medical monitoring and management of This is the very question that science fiction’s entertaining when it backs up technosci- nology. “Getting funds is a hard task that the population. ence’s dreams and hopes, but it becomes requires complex rhetorical skills. Scien- “SF raises questions about the social imagined futures ask of present-day reality. inaccurate fantasy when it leads to fear tists need to convince decision-makers and philosophical impacts of scientifi c and and anxiety. Nevertheless, SF has had that their research is innovative and excit- technological development. SF imagined a major infl uence on the development of ing, and that they will have a tremendous futures are not just mere fantasies: They nanotechnology, while nanotechnology impact on society, thus producing an are distortions of present-day trends that has contributed, in turn, to the birth of the effect close to the SF sense of wonder.” they contribute to critically looking back nanopunk subgenre.” Nanotechnology’s Taillandier contends that “SF plays an on. This is why SF is so fascinating.” genesis was retrospectively attributed to important role in discussion of the so-
14 15 STORY #7 RADIANT | Ritsumeikan University Research Report | March 2019 | Issue 9 | Connecting with the World
Possession and Exorcisms in contemporary Societies
fter I underwent a purifi cation ritu- through religious healing practices known tinuous increase of visitors. De Antoni had come to be exorcized did not even observed a young woman suffering from performance change depending on where al at the Shinto shrine, my chronic as exorcism, after medical treatments repeatedly visited the shrine over several ‘believe’ in the existence of dog-spirits demonic possession groaning loudly in a one’s attention is directed. But it’s not just A illness was cured as if an evil spirit had had no effect on them. He conducted years to observe and document over 150 or, for that matter, any other spiritual voice that was very different from her own our attention or physical conditions that had been exorcized. An anecdote such participant observation of the treatment worshippers undergoing the ritual, and entity.” De Antoni continued, “Although as she struggled so violently that fi ve men change. How our body performs depends as this does not exist only in legends process, and interviewed those individu- he conducted interviews with them . His they perceived Kenmi Shrine as a shrine were barely enough to restrain her. De An- on the skills and abilities we acquire and folklore. In fact, even today in the als. “By understanding what is happening interviews included questions such as for exorcizing spirits, the vast majority toni analyzed this experience by focusing through enculturation and frames of refer- twenty-fi rst century, there are many such from the patient’s point of view,” De Antoni What are your conditions or symptoms? of participants had no interest in fi nding on the sensations experienced during this ence. That is to say, the body is directed stories and locations related to ghosts and explains, “I would like to shed light on how What motivated you to come here? Have out whether they were possessed by a ritual, which were: 1) all sensations felt by towards acting in a specifi c way within its possessions all over the world. within our present late capitalist societies, you been seen at a hospital? What were dog-spirit. Despite this, strangely, many the person during the ritual, 2) all phenom- cultural framework.” “While demonic pos- you diagnosed with? people still genuinely felt De Antoni notes other session and exorcisms, What treatment have that their ‘symptoms were interesting differenc- or so-called religious and you received? Did you alleviated’ after the exor- es between Japanese spiritual healing practic- experience any specifi c cism.” exorcisms or purifi cation es, have been observed sensations while praying? rituals and Italian demonic from ancient times, there If yes, could you describe e Antoni is also exorcisms. For example, remain many phenome- the feelings? A detailed investigating differences were seen in na we experience in our analysis of the responses D exorcists and the patient’s relationship physical bodies that mod- helped De Antoni identify exorcisms of demonic with the Gūji (the chief ern science still struggles a number of interesting possession, in a region priest of a Shinto shrine) to explain. This theme fi ndings. in Italy, where the Catho- versus that with exorcists remains an active area One such fi nding lic infl uences are deeply in the Catholic church, of interest and debate in was that while a variety rooted. Although the particularly with respect the fi eld of socio-cultural of physical pains, ail- phenomenon of posses- to the patient’s physical anthropology,” shared ments, and sufferings sion is known in Italy, it responses and healing Andrea De Antoni, who were expressed by many nonetheless differs from processes. Although the has visited places that are of the worshipers, such the Japanese version. comparative analysis will believed to be connected as headaches, stomach- First, in contrast to the take additional time, he to hell and the afterlife aches, lower back pains, worshippers who go to has already found one an- across Japan to research and heaviness in their Kenmi Shrine with a range swer to his initial question: the relations between shoulders, as well as of symptoms, the people “The majority of modern humans and non-human coughing, most of them who undergo exorcisms people do not believe in actors, as well as how were unanimous in saying in Italy suffer from a rather spirit or demonic pos- such relations and dis- Despite its inconvenient location, surrounded by precipitous mountains, people continue that hospitals were unable fi xed set of symptoms. It is said that “those who have fallen outside the scope and framework of modern medi- session. However, since courses are perceived and to visit the shrine. (Kenmi Shrine, Tokushima) to identify their disease As De Antoni explains, cine” visit the shrine in desperation to pray. (Kenmi Shrine, Tokushima) people heal or, in other experienced as reality. At or a successful way to “This is because the role words, because the rituals present, he is widening his fi eld of re- where Western medicine has become treat their conditions. “We can observe,” of exorcists is strictly institutionalized in ena perceived by the witness of this event themselves have actual effi cacy, ‘posses- search beyond Japan to include Italy and institutionalized, spiritual and religious De Antoni explains, “how those who had Catholicism.” Only people who exhibit (for example, the groans and strength that sion’ paradoxically continues to exist with- Austria to conduct comparative research healing still persists and has effi cacy.” fallen outside the scope and framework of specifi c symptoms are diagnosed with seemed to belong to someone else), and in this modern, globalized society. .” on cases of spirit/demonic possession His fi rst investigation took him to Ken- modern medicine had turned in their des- demonic possession and thus considered 3) feelings of relief in response to the act He continues to conduct research on and exorcism in late capitalist societies. mi Shrine in Tokushima, the most famous peration to the shrine to visit and pray.” for exorcism. of exorcism. He argues that the reality the boundaries between religion, the spiri- One of the characteristic features of shrine in Japan for exorcizing dog-spirits This was not the case in Italy, as will be Another aspect in which they differ of demons and possessions is upheld tual, and science in the search for insights De Antoni’s research is his focus on indi- (inugami). Despite the shrine’s inconve- discussed below. from Japan is the dramatic response through the experience of such phe- that can contribute to psychiatric care and viduals who experienced spirit posses- nient location in the midst of precipitous What intrigued De Antoni the most demonstrated by people who suffered nomena. “Existing research has already physical therapy. sion. He focuses on patients who healed mountains, there has been dearth con- was that “the majority of the people who from demonic possession. De Antoni had shown that one perceptions and physical
Cross-Cultural Comparison of Andrea De Antoni Cross-Cultural Comparison of
Associate Professor, College of International Relations spirit/demonic Possession and Exorcisms Subject of Research: Medical experiences between religion and science—anthropological re- spirit/demonic Possession and Exorcisms search on spirit/demonic possession and exorcisms in contemporary Japan, Italy, and Austria Research Keywords: Cultural anthropology, religious studies, area studies
16 17 STORY #8 RADIANT | Ritsumeikan University Research Report | March 2019 | Issue 9 | Connecting with the World
interviews a diverse group of insiders, in the context of humanitarian aid. This says that insiders are extremely apprecia- including senior government offi cials, reality isn’t clearly visible in theoretical tive of China for providing oil across the journalists, ordinary citizens, researchers, discussions.” Tibetan border. With respect to the effect fi rms, medical practitioners providing aid, Hirono also gained interesting in- this has had, Hirono comments, “It was a and the local Chinese community, and sights during her survey in Cambodia. new revelation that things like geopolitical conducts a qualitative analysis to illumi- She explains, “What surprised me fi rst conditions and relations with surrounding nate their perceptions. was that almost all insiders responded countries, which are ordinarily considered ‘Yes’ to the question, ‘Do you think China in a context different from disasters or ne of the survey sites was Aceh, is a responsible great power?’ They said c o n fl i c t per se, do infl uence perceptions Indonesia, which was devastated the reason was that China ‘supported about what makes a responsible great O by the 2004 Indian Ocean earth- King Sihanouk.’” During the civil war, in a power in the context of disasters or con- quake and tsunami. Immediately after the conservative estimation, the Khmer Rouge fl i c t . ” disaster, Japan, Western countries, and (the Communist Party of Kampuchea) is In recent years, a growing awareness China arrived and devoted themselves to said to have murdered over one-fi fth of of environmental protection and sustain- providing humanitarian aid. Hirono com- the Cambodian population. Many Cam- ability in developing countries and regions ments that “when asked about China’s bodians still carry wounds from that time, has prompted local skepticism about the international responsibility in connection so it would not be surprising for some to nature of China’s international contribu- Can China be with this disaster, the majority of insiders reject China for having supported that tions. For example, the Myitsone Dam surprisingly answered, ‘China’s respon- regime. Still, Hirono says, “Nevertheless, construction project, jointly carried out by sibility should lie in economic assistance they highly appreciate China for welcom- the Myanmar government and China, was such as investments into the trading port ing Sihanouk to Beijing after his expulsion suspended because of popular concerns in Sabang, Aceh.’” The economy in Aceh by the Pol Pot regime and for helping to about its impact on society and the envi- saw rapid development thanks to recon- establish the government in exile. This ronment. a Responsible struction projects after the disaster, its perspective on history by the people of “As China is promoting the Belt and growth rate reaching as high as 5%. How- Cambodia had never appeared in previous Road Initiative, it will not be able to ignore ever, as soon as the fi ve-year assistance studies.” local perceptions about great powers’ period ended, most countries withdrew, Moreover, the survey in Nepal re- international responsibilities.” The insider and the disaster-affected areas faced vealed another unique dimension. Soon perspective revealed by Hirono will per- economic stagnation. “I realized that what after a massive earthquake struck Nepal in haps become even more meaningful in the Great Power? was most urgent for the insiders in such April 2015, relations with neighboring India coming days. areas was economic assistance with a deteriorated, and Nepal’s oil supply was long-term perspective, even if it happened cut off in September of that year. Hirono
After the December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, China provided humanitarian assistance in Aceh, Indonesia, by building a village and supplying items such as prefabricated tents. (Photo by Miwa Hirono)
A Chinese peacekeeping memorial in Skun, central Cambodia. In 1992, two members of the Chinese peacekeeping team stationed there as part of the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) mission died in the line of duty. (Photo by Miwa Hirono)
t the UN peacekeeping operations ment based on the Western perspective.” international community grows, whether (PKO) summit in September 2015, Since the 2000s, China has actively or not the country is a responsible great A as the U.S. and other countries carried out PKO and humanitarian as- power has become a major question.” In declared that they would expand their sistance in developing countries and in a climate where discussions about what contributions, Chinese President Xi areas affected by confl icts or disasters it means to be a responsible great power Jinping surprised the world by announc- in Asia and Africa. Today, about 2,500 are going nowhere between China and ing contributions on a remarkably grand Chinese peacekeepers are deployed in the West, Hirono garnered much attention scale, creating an 8,000-strong standby PKO, far more than those from any other by setting forth a novel viewpoint, asking, force and permanent peacekeeping police permanent member of the UN Security “What are the perceptions of the recipi- squad, and contributing US$1 billion in Council. China’s fi nancial contribution is ents of such assistance (the insiders)?” military assistance to the African Union. also second only to that of the U.S., so Hirono explains, “My current research Most of Japan and the West saw this as there is no doubt that recipient countries project is an investigation of how the a strategy to restore China’s worsening see China as indispensable. While the people—the insiders—living in confl ict and international image, but Miwa Hirono says international community supports these disaster-affected areas where China has she was “skeptical of this one-sided argu- contributions, it often criticizes China’s carried out PKO or humanitarian assis- strategic methods tance perceive China’s responsibility in and development, the international arena.” She is conducting Miwa Hirono which can at times on-site surveys in fi ve countries: Cambo- be inconsiderate of dia, Indonesia, Nepal, South Sudan, and Associate Professor, College of International Relations environmental and Liberia. Asking locals about how they perceive Subject of Research: China’s peacekeeping operations, social sustainability. Characteristic of Hirono’s research disaster management, cultures of humanitarianism in East Asia, China’s role in confl ict-affected regions, peacebuilding Hirono com- is that she takes a qualitative approach Research Keywords: International relations, China’s interna- ments that “as Chi- by carefully collecting the opinions and China’s international contributions tional relations na’s infl uence in the voices of the individuals concerned. She
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development for health promotion, using algorithms that prompt players to make the FightingICE platform. He approaches jumping movements, thereby increasing health from three angles—physical, men- the effectiveness of the exercise.” tal, and social—and is developing games Furthermore, the background images Artificial Intelligence that promote each of these aspects. that make up the game stages consist One is a study of AI that increases the of Japanese ukiyo-e paintings that shift user’s amount of exercise through Fightin- appropriately, which allow players to enjoy gICE. “We capture the player’s movements Japanese culture as the game promotes that autogenerates using Kinect motion capture technology, their health. which recognizes gestures; have the play- Next, Thawonmas is developing game er fi ght an AI-controlled character (enemy) AI that emphasizes storytelling to promote in the game; and have the enemy charac- mental health. The PPG explained above Games to entertain ter induce player movements. By setting falls into this category. He constructs algorithms that allow the MCTS-using algorithms for AI that creates a pattern of enemy character to choose effective initial struggle, a gradual comeback, and actions in any given situation, it induces fi nally, a reversal victory. The challenge Humans players to move both sides of their bodies is to derive functions that restrict char- in a balanced manner. We also created acter movements to create natural story
ame applications of artifi cial services to watch games, yet almost no platform for an international competition intelligence (AI) technology have research has been conducted on game at the Conference on Computational G made progress in recent years. AI that targets spectators.” Thawonmas’s Intelligence and Games of the Institute of Developing the official game “Digital games are also a challenging re- research team is engaged in researching Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), search theme in the AI fi eld because of the Procedural Play Generation (PPG), which an authority in the international research for a fighting game AI competition need for real-time computation, despite autogenerates contents for spectators’ community. “Until 2016, the top perfor- the limitations of machine capability.” enjoyment. mance was monopolized by the Monte at an international conference on game AI These are the words of Ruck Thawonmas, There are no human players involved Carlo Tree Search (MCTS) method, which one of the world’s foremost researchers in PPG. The characters fi ghting each other determines an individual’s own actions on AI in fi ghting games. move automatically, based on algorithms, based on the results of simulating the progression that does not feel sudden or his vision: “In the future, I want to develop Recently, the presence of individuals and users can autogenerate gameplay in enemy’s randomized actions. However, a forced. games that can help prevent depression.” who enjoy games as spectators instead accordance with their preferences of fa- diversity of search methods has gradually A unique development involves Another multiplayer game developed of as players has been receiving attention vorite playstyle and progression. Thawon- been researched, and recently, there has games that induce smiles. A system using based on SB, AngryICE, is equipped with in this fi eld. Thawonmas explains, “Every mas and his team use their independently been an increase in participants using Science Birds (SB), a clone of the action a chatbot*. It is designed for multiple month, several hundreds of millions of developed fi ghting game, FightingICE, for deep learning.” Just as Thawonmas says, puzzle game Angry Birds developed by users to participate and play by working people use video-game live-streaming their research. our competition offers glimpses of trends overseas researchers, uses a web camera together. The aim is to promote social FightingICE is ex- in AI research. to recognize player facial expressions and health by inducing user behavior and con- tremely versatile, as it al- is programmed so that smiling triggers versations. lows the use of both Java fter coming to Japan, Thawonmas switches for shooting and other actions. Thawonmas plans to make all the Ruck Thawonmas and Python languages. encountered AI for the fi rst time in Thawonmas explains, “A lot of research games he develops available for free. It has become the game graduate school and developed on the correlation between smiling and FightingICE has already been released. Professor, College of Information A Science and Engineering of choice for researchers an interest in Japanese culture and the health has been conducted in the fi eld of His goal is to make broad contributions to Subject of Research: Game AI, games for studying fi ghting game Japanese fi ghting games that caused a health science. We’re planning on veri- society while boosting the evolution of AI health promotion, digital humanities AI all over the world. It is global boom, incorporating them into his fying the health effects of our proposed to entertain humans. Research Keywords: Artificial intelligence also used as the offi cial research. His current focus is on game system through clinical trials.” He shares
*Chatbot: A program that uses AI to autogenerate text and voice to converse and exchange messages.
20 21 TOPICS RADIANT | Ritsumeikan University Research Report | March 2019 | Issue 9 | Connecting with the World RESEARCH TOPICS
Ritsumeikan University and Dalian Awards Ceremony for the “12th here on, Man-Machine Synergy Effectors wishes to supply the award together with Professor Sumio Iijima (Meijo University Gradu- world with robots that can operate in environments like that of the ate School). University of Technology to set up joint Ritsumeikan Shizuka Shirakawa Awards aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake. We believe that our Research Center for East Asian Characters and Culture” products—anthropomorphic heavy machines—are useful in a variety of industries and that their implementation is having a major impact.” Faizul Salihin Bin Abas (Graduate School On April 17, 2018, Dalian On May 26, 2018, an awards ceremony and memorial lecture for the of Science and Engineering) is awarded University of Technology 12th Ritsumeikan Shizuka Shirakawa Awards for East Asian Charac- the ISPlasma2018 Best Oral Presentation in China and Ritsumeikan ters and Culture was held at Kinugasa Campus. University entered into an The awards are given by the Shirakawa Shizuka Institute of East Estimating the Ideologies of Japanese Award agreement to establish a Asian Characters and Culture to honor the achievements of the late Twitter Users with Machine Learning: joint research center. Shizuka Shirakawa, emeritus professor of Ritsumeikan University, as News Audience Fragmentation in some Second-year doctoral student at The aim of the agreement well as to publicly acknowledge meritorious individuals and groups the Graduate School of Science is for Dalian University as a way to encourage and support capable persons in fi elds such Media and Engineering, Faizul Salihin of Technology and as East Asian characters and cultural studies. Bin Abas (The Nanishi & Araki Ritsumeikan University At the 12th ceremony, the excellence award was conferred on Assistant Professor Yuki Ogawa (College of Information Science Lab. for Optoelectronic materials to establish the “DUT-RU Co-Research Center of Advanced ICT for Professor Makoto Ueno (Faculty of Letters, Nara University) and and Engineering) and his research team have used machine learning and devices research) was Active Life” as a center to research Information and Communication Professor Dai Matsui (Graduate School of Letters, Osaka University) to estimate the ideologies of news audiences in Japanese Twitter awarded the Best Oral Presenta- Technology (ICT), medical care, and health, as well as to further by Takao Sugihashi, Director of the Shirakawa Shizuka Institute of with high accuracy and have demonstrated that the kind of news tion Award at the ISPlasma2018/ advance collaborative research between the two universities and East Asian Characters and Culture, along with certifi cates and extra audience fragmentation by ideology seen in the U.S. and elsewhere IC-PLANT2018 international contribute to scientifi c development. prizes. cannot be found in Japan, with some exceptions. This study was symposium in March. The signing ceremony at Suzaku Campus was attended by President Following the awards ceremony, the awardees delivered their memo- led by Associate Professor Tetsuro Kobayashi (City University of Mikio Yoshida, President Dongming Guo of Dalian University of rial lectures titled “The Bewilderment of a Student of the Manyoshu Hong Kong) and also involved Assistant Professor Ogawa, Assistant Technology, and other representatives from both universities. on receiving the Ritsumeikan Shirakawa Award” (Professor Makoto Professor Takahisa Suzuki (Tsuda University), and Professor Hitoshi Cell Wall Pectin Synthesis in Growing Ueno) and “East Asian Cultural Exchange as seen from the Multi- Yamamoto (Rissho University). The findings were presented in the Plants: Terrestrialization and Evolution lingual Inscriptions in the Dunhuang Caves” (Professor Dai Matsui). Asian Journal of Communication on April 6. North Wing Restoration Ceremony at Professor Sim Kyung Ho (Korea University), the fi rst-ever recipient Twitter and other social media facilitate users’ selective contact with A Ritsumeikan University research group led by Associate Professor the Nagae Family Residence, a tangible of the award, delivered a keynote lecture titled “The Sinographic information that is in agreement with their pre-existing views. Thus, Takeshi Ishimizu of the College of Life Sciences, in collaboration with cultural property designated by Kyoto City Culture of Korea.” the possibility of news audience fragmentation has been pointed researchers at Nagoya University, Konan University, and Tohoku out in case of conservatives, while liberals follow media that tend University, have, for the first time, elucidated the mechanism by toward either side. As news usage on social media increasingly has which plant cell wall pectin is synthesized. On May 24, 2018, a ceremony was held to commemorate the Special Lecture by Dr. KANAOKA (Visiting a tendency to “see only what one wants to see,” news audiences The Ritsumeikan group included graduate student Kohei Kato, also completion of the restoration work in the north wing of the main become fragmented along ideological lines, opportunities for people of the College of Life Sciences, and postdoctoral researcher Yuto building of the Nagae Family Residence, a tangible cultural property Researcher) on Man-Machine Synergy of different viewpoints to know each other’s opinions and carefully Takenaka of the Ritsumeikan Global Innovation Research Organiza- designated by Kyoto City, which had sought to restore the interior to Effectors consider political issues are lost, and there is a risk of rigid public tion, among others. how it looked when the building was constructed 150 years ago. opinion. Pectin, which is synthesized in growing plants, consists of sugars After Ritsumeikan University was donated a collection of items be- On May 17, 2018, the Biwako Kusatsu Campus (BKC) Research Associate Professor Kobayashi expects that the fi ndings of the study that are connected in a chain. The research group discovered that longing to the Nagae Family Residence, the university’s Art Research Offi ce (Division of Research, Ritsumeikan University) and the Kinki will help clarify the role of social media in the formation of Japanese glycosyltransferases are responsible for synthesizing the pectic Center documented each of those items in a database. Based on Head Offi ce of the Organization for Small & Medium Enterprises and public opinion. backbone. They also found that these enzymes belong to a novel this donation, Art Research Center also began to plan and manage Regional Innovation, Japan, held the BKC Graduation Memorial Lec- gene family. This gene family appears to have emerged during the the folding screen festival (Byobu Matsuri) at the Nagae Family ture, delivered by Dr. KANAOKA (visiting researcher at the Robotics terrestrialization of plants. The research suggested that pectin Residence, held in conjunction with the annual Gion Festival in July. Research Center of the Research Organization of Science and Emeritus Professor Nanishi is awarded synthesis is a key factor that contributed to successful terrestrial During the restoration, the College of Image Arts and Sciences, Technology, former lecturer at the Department of Robotics, College the ISPlasma Special Recognition Award adaptation by plants. along with the College of Science and Engineering, documented the of Science and Engineering), Representative Director and President This discovery has helped elucidate part of the developmental restoration and surveyed the site. At the commemoration, footage of Man-Machine Synergy Effectors, Inc. After starting to teach at Emeritus Professor Yasushi mechanism in plants. The results of the group’s study are applicable of the restoration process was screened, and the attendees of the the College of Science and Engineering, Dr. KANAOKA proceeded Nanishi (College of Science to the breeding of fast-growing crops. Pectin has been used as a ceremony watched the restoration process captured on film with with robotics development in the BKC incubator, but as the business and Engineering) was gelling agent (thickening agent) in food additives. The newly discov- great interest. expanded, he decided to relocate to the Himitsu Kichi Jinki Ittai (JINKI awarded the ISPlasma ered enzymes may also help develop a new type of gelling agent Furthermore, on the 25th, the restored Nagae Family Residence the Secret Base) in Kusatsu. The special lecture celebrating Dr. Special Recognition Award with novel functions. was opened for a special showing as an opportunity to publicly KANAOKA’s new start was attended by a total of 116 people. at the ISPlasma2018/IC- This discovery was published in the September 2018 issue of Nature display Kyoto’s valuable and tangible cultural properties—the Nagae Dr. KANAOKA looked back on his 16 years at Ritsumeikan and PLANT2018 international Plants, a sister journal to the British scientific journal Nature. The Family’s Residence itself and the collection of items belonging to the said, “I dedicated my life to robots and have been pondering what symposium in March. News & Views section of Nature Plants will cover this research residence—to a broader audience. my mission is,” identifying the Great East Japan Earthquake as an ISPlasma is a prominent project. This study was supported by Grants-in-Aid for Scientific event that spurred international symposium in Research (KAKENHI) from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, him into action the Tokai region that gathers outstanding researchers with consid- Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan, and the Japan Society for when he was not erable research performance in the fi eld of plasma from around the the Promotion of Science (JSPS), as well as the Ritsumeikan Global able to make any world to conduct broad discussions about the latest in plasma sci- Innovation Research Organization (R-GIRO). contribution in a ence, the applications to nitride semiconductors and nanomaterials, situation in which Find out more and collaboration with industry. robots should Title: Pectin RG-I rhamnosyltransferases represent a novel plant-specifi c glycosyl- On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the establishment of transferase family have played an ISPlasma, Emeritus Professor Nanishi was recognized for his many DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41477-018-0217-7 active role. He Journal: Nature Plants 4, 669-676 (2018) years of contributions to ISPlasma/IC-PLANTS and received the expressed, “From Contact corresponding author: Takeshi Ishimizu, [email protected]
22 23 COLUMN RADIANT | Ritsumeikan University Research Report | March 2019 | Issue 9 | Connecting with the World
COLUMN #1 The World of Shirakawa’s Letter Science COLUMN #2 The other Side of the AI Boom COLUMN #3 College of Comprehensive Psychology regular column Research Office On the Special Feature: The World Building Robot Cognition and How to make an extinction Illusion The Research Offi ce has a goal of contributing to society through research exchanges, technological transfers, support of ventures, etc., Semantic Understanding using Word or PowerPoint utilizing the intellectual assets of the university. To centralize information on researchers in the university and their diverse external needs and to promote industry-government-academia activities more smoothly, depending on the challenges involved, we serve as an integrated point of Takao Sugihashi Tadahiro Taniguchi Akiyoshi Kitaoka contact for all the various matters associated with research.
Research Offi ce at Kinugasa Campus Why this issue’s special feature is Connecting with the World Over the past fi ve years, the world has become excited about artifi - I study visual illusions. To begin with, the Japanese word for world (sekai) was a Buddhist cial intelligence. Something special is happening within the employment Twitter helps me collect information on which illusions are popular. The term that made its way to Japan from India via China. In China, the word’s environment for students hunting for jobs, as separate quotas are being set extinction illusion is rather popular. High spatial frequency and high-contrast Humanities and Social Sciences meaning was already expanded beyond the sutras, and the usage kept up exclusively for AI-related jobs. However, this boom will surely come to an components of an image obstruct the perception of low-contrast contours. growing in Japan. end of sorts. I think this will happen in 2018. This phenomenon can be used to hide images in a loud, striped pattern. College of Law, College of Social Sciences, College of International Now, what does the Shirakawa grammatology say? Unfortunately, Put succinctly, the current AI boom is “a boom in pattern processing This kind of illusion can be produced using graphic design software. Relations, College of Letters, College of Image Arts and Sciences, Shirakawa’s character dictionary does not contain any commentary on the based on developments in deep and machine learning.” What is a pattern? When I tweeted about how to use it, a third-year student from the College Graduate School of Science for Human Services, Graduate School of Language Education and Information Science, Graduate School of compound 世界 (sekai). Looking at the characters individually, 世 (se) is It can be images of human faces, patterns on a go board, or the aerial vibra- of Comprehensive Psychology, Ritsumeikan University replied that using Core Ethics and Frontier Sciences, School of Law, Graduate School of described as “the shape of vegetational branches and leaves spreading, tions we call speech. PowerPoint will suffi ce. I confi rmed this and found that Word is also an op- Public Policy, Graduate School of Professional Teacher Education sprouts appearing. Signifi es new branches and leaves.” Clearly rejecting As you know, regular computers are called von Neumann architecture tion. I then realized that someone might propose Excel, so I confi rmed that the argument of the Shuowen Jiezi (read as Setsumon Kaiji in Japanese, an and function on the basis of operations supported by mathematical logic. it would also be possible to use Excel for the creation of such an illusion. early 2nd Century Chinese Dictionary that was the fi rst to analyze the struc- Fundamentally, it is the logical management of discrete strings of symbols. Please try these programs. 56-1 Toji-in Kitamachi, Kita-ku, Kyoto 603-8577, Japan ture of the characters), he writes, “The character’s shape is close to 生 (sei), However, when we humans perceive things visually or aurally, the process TEL: +81-75-465-8224 which also has the shape of vegetation yielding branches and leaves. In the does not abide by such logic. Consecutive patterns are conveyed to the FAX: +81-75-465-8245 Mail: [email protected] metal script, se is used to construct 枻 (ei) and 葉 (yō). Trees take the shape brain via the visual and auditory senses and are processed to give rise to of se and grass the shape of sei. Se is also called yō, so 万世 (bansei) is perception. At the core of this boom is the understanding that the neural called 万葉 (manyō)” (Source: Jitsu). This is what it means to live up to one’s network is astonishingly skilled at such consecutive processing. reputation, that is, “From the growing of fresh spouts, it is used to signify ‘a Now, AI aims to construct human intelligence using computers, but person’s life […] society [made up of humans]’” (Source: Joyo Jikai). the very question of “What is intelligence?” is a diffi cult one. Is intelligence Research Offi ce at Biwako-Kusatsu Campus 界 (Kai) has the following commentary. “介 (Kai) is in the shape of an nothing more than a pattern processor? Certainly not. armed person with armor in the front and back of their body,” so “it carries We are conducting AI research with the aim of building robot cognition the meaning of protecting one’s body and separating oneself from others.” and semantic understanding. That is, our viewpoint is based on the desire Social Sciences Natural Sciences This “is applied to fi elds, so that kai carries the meaning of borders that to build a robot that lives in the real world, understands things, and auton- College of Economics, College of Sport and Health Science, College demarcate fi elds” (Source: Joyo Jikai). omously carries out symbolic communication with others. In the previous of Science and Engineering, College of Information Science and In other words, the world (sekai) can be seen as a word combining academic year, the R-GIRO* research program International and Interdis- Engineering, College of Life Sciences, College of Pharmaceutical the meanings of time (se) and space (kai). Let’s set down se and kai in the ciplinary Research Center for the Next-generation Artifi cial Intelligence and Sciences, College of Gastronomy Management ancient script. Semiotics was established at Ritsumeikan. At the core is a system theory called Symbol Emergence System Theory that I proposed. Is it possible for robots to achieve the same cognition as humans? I hope that Ritsumeikan 1-1-1 Noji-higashi, Kusatsu, Shiga 525-8577, Japan University will go beyond the third AI boom and become a world-leading AI TEL: +81-77-561-2802 FAX: +81-77-561-2811 research base. Mail: [email protected] * Ritsumeikan Global Innovation Research Organization
Research Offi ce at Osaka Ibaraki Campus
At every Ritsumeikan University Open Campus event, I distribute optical illusion fans, where Social Sciences visitors fi nish their fans by gluing a label of their favorite illusion design on the ribs. These are College of Policy Science, College of Business Administration, College very popular. This year I added a label with an of Comprehensive Psychology, Graduate School of Technology Se (Bronze inscriptions) extinguishing illusion design that hides my face. How about making and presenting a fan with Management, Graduate School of Management an extinction illusion design that hides visitors’ faces? I might be able to make one in three minutes if I practiced enough. 2-150 Iwakura-cho, Ibaraki, Osaka 567-8570, Japan TEL: +81-72-665-2570 FAX: +81-72-665-2579 Mail: [email protected] Kai (Seal script)
[Conclusion and Effectuation of the Japan-China-Kore- an Trilateral Agreement on Academic Exchange] Tadahiro Taniguchi Tadahiro Taniguchi Contact Us On December 9, 2017, the three directors of the Shirakawa Symbol Emergence Robotics: An Illustrated Guide to Shizuka Institute of East Asian Characters and Culture, the Introduction to the Mechanisms of Intelligence Artificial Intelligence Latest information on research activities Nanjing University Institute for the Study of Asian Classics (Kodansha) (Kodansha) in Chinese, and the Korea University Institute of Chinese Ritsumeikan University Characters & Korean Literature in Classical Chinese met and Research and Industry-Academia-Government Collaboration website each signed the agreement at Nanjing University in China. Photo (top): Director Zhang Bowei of the Nanjing University Institute http://en.ritsumei.ac.jp/research/ for the Study of Asian Classics in Chinese (right) Photo (bottom): Director Sim Kyung Ho of the Korea University Insti- Tadahiro Taniguchi Professor, College of Information Science and Engineering tute of Chinese Characters & Korean Literature in Classical Chinese Professor Tadahiro Taniguchi, who is currently with the College of Information Science and Watermelon is my latest optical illusion design For inquiries in relation to RADIANT, the Ritsumeikan University research report, contact: Engineering, earned his Ph.D. in Education from the Graduate School of Engineering at for a fan. Kyoto University in 2006. He was an Assistant Professor and Associate Professor at the College of Information Science and Engineering, Ritsumeikan University and, later, a pro- Offi ce of Research Planning & Development, fessor at the same college, before assuming his current position in 2017. He was a visiting Division of Research, Ritsumeikan University Associate Professor at Imperial College London in 2015–2016 and from 2017 was involved Akiyoshi Kitaoka Professor, College of Comprehensive Psychology in AI research and development at Panasonic as a guest chief engineer. This was the first Professor Kitaoka received his Ph.D. from the Graduate School of Psychology, University of TEL: +81-75-813-8199 FAX: +81-75-813-8202 university-to-company cross-appointment in Japan. He is also known as the originator of Tsukuba.He studies perception and visual illusions. He also produces a variety of illusion de- Takao Sugihashi Director of the Shirakawa Shizuka Institute of East Asian Characters and Bibliobattle. Works include Can We build Robots that Communicate? (NTT Publishing), Symbol signs. One of his designs was used in the inner design of the Lady Gaga CD album Artpop. E-Mail: [email protected] Culture/ Professor, Kinugasa Research Organization and Professor Emeritus Emergence Robotics: Introduction to the Mechanisms of Intelligence (Kodansha), and many more. He has written many books on visual illusions.
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