Kimchi to the Rescue

Hello everybody!  Cherry blossom season has arrived, but make sure to go and see them before they disappear for the year!  Golden Week is also approaching quickly.  Do you have any plans?  I will stay in Nagoya this year and enjoy a staycation with my family.  

For today's blog post, we want to explore a health issue that affects everybody around the world.  However, it's possible that a delcious solution has been discovered to solve the problem. 

Scientists have found tiny pieces of plastic called microplastics and nanoplastics in nature and even inside our bodies. Some studies say people may take in up to 120,000 tiny pieces of plastic each year. You may have also heard that our bodies can contain about 7 grams of plastic, which is about the weight of a credit card. Scientists are worried about what this could do to our health.

Nanoplastics are especially concerning because they are so small. They can travel through the body and reach organs like the brain, heart, and liver. Scientists still do not fully understand how harmful they are, but they believe there could be risks in the future.

A new study shows that bacteria from kimchi, a Korean fermented food, may help remove these tiny plastics from the body. Researchers found a microbe that can stick to nanoplastics in the gut. The body can then safely remove them as waste. Scientists hope this discovery will help reduce plastic in our bodies and plan to keep studying kimchi.

What did you think of this topic?  Please discuss this with your teachers when you visit BRIDGE again. 

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The Oscars

Hello everybody!  The first day of spring is rapidly approaching and so are the beautiful cherry blossoms.  Please go outside and enjoy this wonderful time in Japan.  Today, we are going to talk about a famous awards ceremony that just happened in America last weekend.  

The Academy Awards are one of the biggest nights in movies. In 2026, the 98th Oscars were held in Hollywood to honor films from 2025. The event is run by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and winners receive a gold statue called an Oscar. Many people around the world watch to see which movies and actors win.

At the 2026 Oscars, the biggest winner was One Battle After Another. It won Best Picture, the top award of the night. The director, Paul Thomas Anderson, won Best Director. The award for Best Actor went to Michael B. Jordan for his role in Sinners. Best Actress was won by Jessie Buckley for her role in Hamnet. These winners were praised for their strong performances and storytelling.

There were also important nominees from around the world. The Japanese film Kokuho was nominated for Best Makeup and Hairstyling at the 2026 Oscars. However, it did not win. Even so, being nominated for an Academy Award is a big honor. It shows that the film’s makeup and design were among the best in the world.

Have you seen any of these amazing films from 2025?  If so, let's discuss this topic when you come to Bridge again.  Enjoy the beginning of spring and have a great day. 

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The Dinosaurs

Hello all you English-language learners!  How are you doing?  Well, spring is almost here, so please stay strong and put up with the cold weather for a few more weeks.  By the end of this month, we all can enjoy the beautiful cherry blossoms all over Japan.  Until then, you might want to watch a good movie or TV show in the comfort of your own home.  If that sounds good to you, we'd like to recommend a fun, new educational show for you to watch in English . 

A new documentary series called The Dinosaurs has just been released and is very popular on Netflix. The four-episode show has a perfect score on the popular American review website Rotten Tomatoes. Famous actor Morgan Freeman narrates the series, and famous director Steven Spielberg is the executive producer. Spielberg also directed the dinosaur movie Jurassic Park.

The show explains what Earth looked like millions of years ago. About 50 experts helped create the series. Using computer graphics, the team rebuilt the ancient supercontinent called Pangaea. They also created volcanoes, storms, floods, forests, and many dinosaurs. The story begins with the first small dinosaurs that lived long ago.

The series later shows the biggest and most famous dinosaurs, such as Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops. In the final part, the show explains how a huge asteroid hit Earth. This event, called the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, caused the dinosaurs to die out. A review by The Guardian praised the show’s realistic science and visuals.

What do you think?  Does this sound interesting to you? If so, please watch the show and share your thoughts with us about The Dinosaurs when you come to BRIDGE again.

Thanks for reading, and if you liked this post, please click below.

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