Successful Launch of Soyuz Rocket

I am happy to see a successful launch of a Soyuz rocket on NASA's live broadcast. I was very excited to watch the rocket go up and out of sight in several minutes. 

A Soyuz rocket was successfully launched at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The rocket, carrying astronaut Koichi Wakata and two peers, entered orbit at an altitude of about 200 kilometers around the Earth. Everything is going well as scheduled. Soyuz is expected to dock with the international space station (ISS) at about 7:30pm (JST), and the astronauts will start their stay there for half of a year.

Wakata, 50, will work as an ISS commander from March next year until they leave the ISS. During the period, he will lead the entire management of the station.

The catchphrase he selected for a long stay in the ISS is "wa" in Japanese, which means both Japan and harmony.

It comes from his policy to:
-make a contribution to the mission with "Japanese" technology
-emphasize "harmony" between the team members in communication and dialogue.

I hope he will accomplish all his missions and come back home safely in six years.

YouTube： 英語公用化は必要か？

鳥飼玖美子先生がトーク形式で英語についてのお話をしております。約1時間20分の長めのビデオですが、非常に興味深く、英語学習のモチベーションを高めてくれると感じました。

Prof. Kumiko Torikai of Rikkyo University talks in the video about an English language, especially about education methods of English at school, making English the second official language and how to effectively learn English. It's about an hour and 20 minutes long, a little long video, which I felt was very interesting and enhanced my motivation to learn English harder.

I didn't like the host, Hiroyuki, but many tips for mastering Engish are packed in the talk. I hope you'll like it.

Click here to watch the video (Japanese language only) 

Jackie Chan makes a slip of the tongue

I really like his films, very exciting and attractive, so I was deeply disappointed when I read an article about him.

According to a news article published Wednesday on Business Insider, with the headline "Jackie Chan Would 'Really Like To See Some Countries Have A Disaster,'" he said in a TV interview where he was promoting his newest film, Chinese Zodiac:

"Sometimes I really like to see some countries have a disaster coming, or either big tsunami, or either big earthquake."

"After the big disaster coming, you see the whole world, everybody fly in to help the country, I'm so happy. No tsunami, no earthquakes, everybody nothing to do, then politics come in. You fight me, I fight you, I don't like to see those kinds of things."

I know he always says peace is the most important, so I want to believe he just made a slip of the tongue...

I wish he should have talked in the interview thinking about many victims in the 2011 great earthquake and tsunami hitting Japan.

For more to click below to jump to Business Insider's site:
http://p.tl/EAQb

If you click on "Then he said" on the page you'll jump to, you can also watch the video.

Coursera：課題提出&米国の薬学教育

アルコムワールドより転載：
http://alcom.alc.co.jp/users/247481/diary/show/312210

CourseraでIntroduction to Pharmacyという講義を受けているが、課題を提出しました。「Pharmacyの定義」を自分自身で考えて、200～300wordsで述べるというもの。想像以上に大変でした。 

この講義、全体的に少し抽象的すぎるせいか、少々僕には難しく感じますが、米国での薬局業務や薬学教育について知ることができて、いい勉強になっています。 

米国では2年間の前専門課程のあと4年間の専門課程を終えるとPharmDの称号が与えられ、薬剤師免許の試験を受けることができます。 

米国での薬学教育：以下のサイトが比較的わかりやすいです 
http://www.mext.go.jp/b_menu/shingi/chousa/koutou/022/gijiroku/03061701/003.htm 

現在の日本では6年間の課程を経て国家試験受験資格を得られます。専門科目が多いので1年次から専門科目が入っている学校が多いようです。なので、他学部からの編入は困難で、1年次から始める大学が多いみたいです。 

日本では生涯教育は義務ではありませんが、米国では義務になっているようです。これは我が国も見習わなければいけません。 

日本では年間所定の単位を修めると「研修認定薬剤師」という称号？が与えられますが、この業界ではあまり重要視されていないのが現状で、僕も認定薬剤師の更新をやめてしまいました。更新料がけっこう高いので･･･。 

しかし時代の流れからして、近い将来米国のように生涯教育が義務化されると思うので、そうなったら開始したいと思います。もちろん今でも認定薬剤師目的ではないけれど、勉強はしております^^ 

As described in a previous diary, I'm taking a course on Coursera--Introduction to Pharmacy. 

I submitted my assignment, on which I had to make my own definition of pharmacy in 200-300 words. The task was more difficult than I thought. 

To tell the truth, the content of the course is a bit too abstract for me, which I think makes me feel it all difficult. 

But this course has been giving me a good chance to know about pharmacy practice and pharmaceutical education in the United States. 

"PharmD" stands for Doctor of pharmacy, required for pharmacist licensure (four years of professional training, preceded by a minimum of two years of pre-professional study). 

The US education system of pharmacy has "continuing education" required to maintain certification or licensure. Pharmacists are required to report a specified number of continuing education units per year. 

In Japan, of course, we have a continuing education system similar to the US, but it is not obligatory. So the US education system of pharmacy is superior to the Japanese system. 

I think the Japanese system will be obligatory like the US in the near future, because all the pharmacists have to keep upgrading their knowledge and skills to provide better medical and health care.

Clinical study using iPS approved in AMD cases

The section for science and technology of the Health Science Council of the Health Ministry approved Friday an action plan of a clinical study to apply induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells to treatment of an eye disease “age-related macular degeneration.” RIKEN and other research organizations had applied for the approval. The review board in the section has decided that the plan should include security arrangements such as checking the presence or absence of genetic abnormality prior to transplantation. A series of procedures will be completed in the near future after receiving the health minister’s approval.

RIKEN and other research groups applied for a clinical study plan to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry on February 28 this year and the review board approved it on June 26. To reduce risk of future cancerous change in the transplanted cells, the board has required conditions that the study groups should report detailed genetic analysis of iPS cells to the institutional ethics board and the Minister’s review board, and the analysis report should be evaluated by experts of cancer research. The section for science and technology of the Ministry has approved the plan under the condition that a security system is introduced during the period from creating iPS cells to transplanting them to a patient.

In clinical research using iPS cells, it is the first time for the national government to request from a research institute a detailed report prior to transplantation. After reviewing the application from the research groups, “iPS cells remain unknown. I hope research will be carried out carefully,” said Ryouzou Nagai, chairman of the section for science and technology. He is president of Jichi Medical School.

The plan of the clinical study using iPS cells is led by Masayo Takahashi of RIKEN’s center for developmental biology in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture. Out of patients with age-related macular degeneration, in which central part of the retina is damaged to cause distorted or dark vision and to lead to blindness in the worst case, the study includes patients with “exudative type” in which blood vessels grow up behind the retina. Six non-responders to medication will be selected and receive transplantation as early as the summer of the next year.

The Japan News Readers Forumに私の投稿が掲載されました

本日2013年5月25日付のThe Japan NewsのReaders Forumに私の投稿が掲載されました。

これで4度目かな？　お題は「日本での女性の就業状況を改善するために何ができるか？」

日本が抱える難しいテーマです。

で、いつものようにトイレや風呂に入っているときに考えました。

私の意見は、
・女性が安心して外で働ける環境を作る
・そのためには男性が家庭に入って育児や家事をすることが当たり前の世の中になることが必要
・「主夫」に対する差別や偏見が根強くある
・女性は家庭に入って育児や家事を行うべきと広く考えられている
・男性の役割、女性の役割といった差別、偏見をなくすべく努力が必要
・妊娠・出産以外のことは男性でもできる。
といった内容です。

毎度のことですが、他にも言いたいことはありましたが、何せ300 words以内という縛りがあったので、「男性・女性といった性別での役割を見つめ直すべき」という内容に焦点を絞りました。

-------------------
What can be done in Japan to improve working conditions for women?
-------------------

Reexamine gender stereotypes

Women are said to have lower social status and less advantages for promotion than men. What is the cause of this gender discrimination?

To further the advance of women in society and secure equal status, conditions that allow women to work outside the home free from anxiety about housekeeping and child rearing are essential.

Unfortunately, this is not the case in today's Japan.

Of course, it is important to take measures to improve workplace environments and reduce the nationwide waiting list for nursery schools to zero, but I think it's more important to dispel the stereotypical gender roles at home.

In Japan, there is still an expectation that women should stay home to do housework and raise children, and men should leave home for the workplace, where women obviously remain at a disadvantage.

To advance the status of women, it shouldn't be uncommon for men to stay home for housekeeping and child rearing, which I believe is the top priority. If that happens, a situation in which women can work beside men as equals will finally be in place.

Just as there is discrimination against women in workplaces, there is also discrimination against stay-at-home dads.

Men are capable of performing all aspects of child rearing except pregnancy and childbirth.

Men that carry their children are called "ikumen," a trendy word suggesting that men who participate in child care are somewhat special or rare.

A society in which stay-at-home dads are a common sight would lead to an accelerated advance of the status of women in society.

It will take time to break down the outworn stereotypes, but we must never stop fighting for the enforcement of the gender equality laws nor hesitate to correct our old ways of thinking.

長瀞日帰り旅行

昨日、長瀞へ日帰り旅行に行ってきました。団体ツアーです。

GW後半戦の初日ということで関越道の下りは練馬ICから目的の花園ICまでずっと渋滞で超のろのろ状態。寄居で11時に乗る予定だったSL列車には間に合わず。やむなく普通電車で寄居から長瀞まで向かいました。

長瀞駅周辺は観光客でにぎわい、お土産さんが立ち並ぶ細い道を下っていくと長瀞ライン下りの船着き場に到着。駅からは5分程度なので楽ちんです。

荒川の上流にある長瀞。流れは穏やかで、川岸には独特の岩畳。

「瀞」という字は静かな流れという意味だそうで、たしかに静かでした。

水量が少なく、あと5 cm水位が低ければライン下りは運行中止になってしまうそうです。

水量が少なかったこともあり、ややスリルは欠けましたが、十分楽しめました。おすすめツアー・スポットです。

次いで、羊山公園へ。「芝桜の丘」で有名なスポットですが、小さな可憐な花が満開で、きれいでした。思っていたよりも規模が小さかったですが、斜面を利用して作られており見事でした。人がもう少し少なければよかったのですが、まあ連休なので仕方ありません。

芝桜を間近で見たのは初めてで、本当にかわいい花です。手入れは簡単で、簡単に増えて、時期になれば咲くそうです。花屋で売られているのを見たら買ってしまうかも。

帰路は渋滞はなく、ストレスなく帰ってくることができました。横浜駅で食事をして帰ってきました。SLに乗れなかったのは残念ですが、ライン下りはいい思い出になりました。

ほのぼの

This is one of my favorite paintings, warming my heart...

翻訳コンテストで佳作受賞

The Japan News（旧The Daily Yomiuri）の翻訳コンテストで、佳作に選ばれました。約4か月ぶりの入賞。今度も和文英訳です。

The Daily Yomiuriがこの4月にThe Japan Newsに変わって以来初めて。ほんとにうれしいです。何度入賞してもうれしいです。

通算で、和文英訳4回、英文和訳1回の入賞。4か月も間があくと正直すっかりあきらめモードでした。

入賞して「やったー！」→落ちて「がっかり」→また落ちて焦燥感→またまた落ちてあきらめ気分→やっと入賞して「やったー！」のサイクル。

嫌なのは、この焦燥感。何とも表現しがたい、嫌～な気分です。頭や胸の中がそわそわして落ち着かなくなります。

目標として月に1回は入賞できるようになりたいです。

「継続は力なり」を信じて頑張ります！

今回は、計128通のうち6名（優秀1名含む）が入賞、4.7%の入賞率でした。

----原文----
中央銀行の仕事は「パーティーが盛り上がった時に、パンチボウル（お酒を入れた器）を片付ける」ことだと言われてきた。パーティー（経済）に過熱の兆しがあれば、お酒（通貨）を減らして、悪酔い（インフレ）の芽を摘んでしまう。

日銀の場合は違う。

日本のここ10年の経済成長率は、平均で実質年1%に満たない。デフレは15年ほどになる。黒田東彦（はるひこ）新総裁の使命は、しけたパーティーを盛り上げることだ。

その手法として黒田総裁は10年以上前から、「通貨量をもっと増やすべきだ」と唱えてきた。安部首相の肝いりで1月に導入されたインフレ目標の強力な支持者でもあった。

この先、物価が下がると思えば、企業や家計は投資や消費を見あわせ、経済活動は停滞する。だから、中央銀行がインフレ目標を掲げ、達成まで通貨を増やすと宣言することで、デフレの見通し（期待）をインフレ期待に変える必要があるというのである。

----My 訳文----
It has been said that the job of central banks is “to take away the punch bowl just as the party gets going.” If the party (economy) has a sign of overheating, the amount of alcohol served (money supply) will be reduced to eliminate the cause of drunken frenzy (inflation).

That is not the case for the Bank of Japan.

Japan’s economic growth rate for the past ten years is less than an actual annual rate of 1 percent on average. The deflation has been continuing for about 15 years. New BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda’s mission is to liven up the boring party.

As a way to carry out that, Kuroda has advocated for more than a decade that the BOJ should increase the amount of money in circulation. He is also a strong supporter of the inflation target introduced in January under the auspices of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

If people think prices will go down in the future, companies and households will put off their investment and consumption to cause stagnant economic activities. Therefore the central bank needs to change a prospect of the deflation to an inflationary expectation, by setting an inflation target and declaring that it will issue currency to achieve the goal, Kuroda has been claiming.

非制限用法関係代名詞の形容詞用法･･･

The Daily Yomiuri翻訳コンテスト2012年12月27日付の課題に対する訳文（訳例）で、???。
It plans to demolish the structure in April or after, at which time the state-owned land will be returned to the national government.
（「来年4月以降に壊し、敷地の国有地は国に返還する」の部分）

at whichの後のtimeが気になって仕方なかったのです。このような使い方は知らなかったので、何かの間違いではないか、と思ったのです。

ジーニアス英和大辞典のwhichの項、
《正式》[形容詞用法・非制限用法]そして[しかし]その《◆（１）通例and the…の意味になるが、前後関係によりandのほかにbut, because, though, ifなどの意になることもある。（２）前置詞に後に用いる以外は《まれ》》
用例：
In 1960 he came to Tokyo, in which city he has lived ever since.
彼は1960年に東京に来て、それ以来都内に住んでいる《◆in which cityの代わりにwhereを用いる方が普通》
I said nothing, which fact made her angry.
私が何も言わなかったので、そのことで彼女は腹を立てた《◆普通はfactを取って…nothing, which made…のようにする；《略式》では次のようになる：I said nothing and this made her angry.》
He may not know the fact, in which case will be in danger.
彼は事実を知らないのかもしれない。とすると危険な目に遭うだろう。

ネットで検索したら、あるブログで以下のように書いてありました。

at which point　 その時点で、そこで
They refused to listen to us, at which point we left.
by which time 　それまでに
Wait until Sunday, by which time the town will be quieter.
in which case そうしたら
We may get stuck in traffic, in which case we'll miss the plane.

なるほど。わかりました。
これからは、whichの後に余分な（？）名詞が挟まっていても驚きません。