Beyond the Sky and into Space JAXA 2015-2016

JAXA has achieved various social contributions through aerospace activities in JFY 2015 including information provision for disaster preparation/prevention by DAICHi-2 throughout the year, demonstration of D-SEND#2 or flight verification by an experimental supersonic airplane for low sonic boom design technology in July, the ISS expedition mission by Astronaut Yui from July to December, verification of upgraded technology for the mainstay launch vehicle by H-IIA F29 in November, and the...(Click here to watch video)

Japan Plays an Important Role on the International Space Station

On August 24, 2015, the KOUNOTORI 5 cargo spacecraft arrived at the International Space Station. KOUNOTORI 5 was captured by astronaut Kimiya Yui, who was on a long-duration mission on the ISS. On the ground, astronaut Koichi Wakata assisted the docking as lead CAPCOM (capsule communicator). It was the first time that the two roles were handled by Japanese at the same time. In the meantime, the Japanese Experiment Module Kibo has been operating securely since its completion in July 2009, and its...(Click to read more)

JAXA&YOU: The Women of JAXA

A sub-series of JAXA&YOU, “The Women of JAXA” includes video interviews and articles particularly showcasing some of the contributions that the women who work at JAXA have made to the space community. Noriko Shiraishi received her bachelor’s degree from the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Tokyo Metropolitan University in 2000 and then subsequently received her master’s in systems engineering from the same university in 2002. Soon after graduating, she joined the National Space...(Click to read more)

K computer and high-tech weather radar come together to predict sudden torrential rains

Today, supercomputer-based weather predictions are typically done with simulations that use grids spaced at least one kilometer apart, and incorporate new observational data every hour. However, due to the roughness of the calculations, these simulations cannot accurately predict the threat of torrential rains, which can develop within minutes when cumulonimbus clouds suddenly develop...(Click to read more: Website | Video)

Energizing photons to the max

The RIKEN SPring-8 Center hosts the most powerful synchrotron radiation facility in the world and an x-ray free-electron laser that is a billion times brighter. Encircling mount Miharakuriyama, about 100 kilometers west of Osaka, is a 1,436-meter-long obstacle course for subatomic athletes. Here, in the SPring-8 synchrotron facility at the RIKEN SPring-8 Center, bunches of electrons wiggle, lurch and careen through vacuums and magnetic fields at 200,000 loops a second. They whiz past, like Sonic the Hedgehog, in a flattened mass of ten billion electrons, three hairbreadths wide...(Click to read more)

PET imaging of adult neurogenesis may contribute to better diagnosis of depression and evaluation of drug therapy effectiveness

Scientists from the RIKEN Center for Life Science Technology (CLST) in Japan have used a new non-invasive PET scanning technique to obtain images of neuron proliferation in the subventricular zone and subgranular zone of the hippocampal dentate gyrus. Neurogenesis in the hippocampal dentate gyrus is known to be particularly affected by depression. These two areas are known to be neurogenic regions, where neural stem cells give rise to new...(Click here to read more)

Dreamless sleep stores the day’s sensory experiences

The discovery of how tactile experiences are encoded in the brain during deep sleep could help to treat people with memory problems. A good night’s rest is known to help people remember what they learned during the day. But just how sleep allows us to retain the memory of stimuli received through our five senses while awake has been a mystery. Researchers at the RIKEN Brain Science Institute have mapped a neural circuit that helps the brain encode and store these kinds of sensory memories during...(Click here to read more)

SATREPS: Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainablity

SATREPS is a Japanese government program that promotes international joint research. The program is structured as a collaboration between the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), which provides competitive research funds for science and technology projects, and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which provides development assistance (ODA). Based on the needs of developing countries, the...(Click here to read more)

SATREPS Case Study: Environment and Energy (Climate change)

For a future in which people can live with peace of mind - developing scenarios for creating low-carbon societies. The aim of this project is to produce scenarios for the creation of a low-carbon society using Malaysia as the model. Comprehensive research will be conducted from all angles with the aim of producing scenarios that reflect the wishes and hopes of the many people living in Malaysia, as well as curbing greenhouse gas emissions...(Click here to read more)

SATREPS Case Study: Infectious Diseases Control

Saving humanity from leptospirosis - battling infectious disease with vaccines and diagnostic technology. Leptospirosis is a bacterial disease that is found throughout the world, mainly in tropical and subtropical regions. Contracting leptospirosis causes illness, such as jaundice, pulmonary hemorrhage, and kidney failure. In most severe cases it can lead to death. Japan is not spared from this disease, since many infections have occurred in southern Kyushu. Despite the seriousness of this disease, there is...(Click here to read more)

SAKURA Exchange Program in Science (SSP) by JST

Asia is undergoing a period of dramatic progress. Promoting science and technology is a key engine to materialize a bright future of Asia and it is vitally important to enhance the exchange of Japanese and Asian youths who will play a crucial role in the field of science and technology. Based on this concept, “Japan-Asia Youth Exchange Program in Science” (SAKURA Exchange Program in Science) is the program for enhancing exchanges between Asia and Japan of the youths who will play a crucial role in the future field of science and technology through the close collaboration of industry-academia-government by facilitating short-term visits of competent Asian youths to Japan. (Click here to read more: Website | High School Student Special Course Videos)

AMED joining the Global Alliance for Chronic Diseases (GACD) as a newest member

AMED joined the Global Alliance for Chronic Diseases (GACD) as a newest member. (29 June, 2016.) The Global Alliance for Chronic Diseases (GACD) is a collection of the world's largest public health research funding agencies. They fund joint programs into lifestyle related or chronic diseases (cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, certain cancers, lung diseases and mental disorders). The alliance coordinates and...(Click here to read more: English | Japanese)

Pamphlet on Scholarship for International Students in Japan 2016-2017

"Scholarships for International Students in Japan 2016-2017" contains details about scholarships provided by various organisations that have responded to a questionnaire survey carried out by JASSO. (Click here to read more)

Free student counselling at the Embassy of Japan

Our new Student Advisor Ms Regina provides free student counselling for people interested in studying in Japan. The counselling will be held at the Embassy of Japan, 16 Nassim Road, Singapore 258390. No appointment is necessary. Please call 62358855 if you have any queries. There will be no counselling sessions on Embassy holidays. (Click here to read more)

Japan Alumni eNews Vol. 88 August 10th, 2016

Japan Student Service Organisation (JASSO) publishes Japan Alumni eNews every month. The contents are as follows:

1. Life in Japan by Photo
2. Alumni News
3. Academic News
4. Business News (Job Hunting)
5. Visit Japan
6. NIPPON Information
7. JASSO News
8. From the Reader

The Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme

The Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme is administered through the collaboration of Japan’s local government authorities, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), and the Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR)...(Click here to read more: Website | Video)