Comparison on the Origin and Development of Sophora flavescens in China and Japan

Sophora flavescens , which was first recorded in Shen Nong s Herbal Classic , has the functions of clearing away heat, drying dampness, killing parasites and promoting urination. In its long-term application, traditional Chinese medicine has gradually deepened its understanding of the origin and efficacy of S. flavescens . In order to explore changes in the origin and efficacy of traditional Chinese herb S. flavescens in the history of China and Japan, in this paper, the origin and development of S. flavescens in China and Japan were compared from three aspects: the origin, medicinal efficacy, and processing methods of S. flavescens in China and Japan, hoping to provide clear understanding of the medicinal plant S. flavescens .

Hypertension and medical expenditure in the Japanese population:Review of prospective studies

Hypertension is a major determinant of health and is likely to have an effect on medical economics.The economic burden due to hypertension may be attributable not only to antihypertensive medication but also to the very expensive procedures required for cases of cardiovascular disease that occur more frequently in hypertensive compared with normotensive individuals.The objective of this article was to review articles published on prospective cohort studies that measured medical expenditure attributable to hypertension in community-dwelling populations in Japan.Many medical services in these populations are provided under the medical insurance system that requires the enrolment of all Japanese residents.Personal medical expenditure attributable to hypertension increases with worsening severity of the condition.Medical expenditure was increased further in cases of hypertensive patients who have another concomitant cardiovascular risk factor.In particular,hypertension,especially moderate-to-severe untreated hypertension,increases the risk of long-term hospitalization resulting in considerably higher medical expenditure,compared with non-hospitalized cases.Therefore,assuming that the use of antihypertensive medication is essential for hypertensive patients to prevent serious vascular diseases,a cost-effective highrisk strategy needs to be considered to reduce both ill-health and the economic burden due to hypertension.However,from a population perspective,medical expenditure attributable to hypertension comes mainly from pre-to-mild hypertension.Therefore,there is also a need to consider a population strategy that aims to shift the entire population to lower levels of blood pressure.

Role of Gas Hydrate System Associated with Active Methane Seepage,Off Joetsu,Eastern Margin of the Japan Sea

The Umitaka Spur and Joetsu Knoll region,eastern margin of the Japan Sea,has been investigated as the gas hydrate field associated with the occurrence of methane-related/induced activities.Massive to vein-like gas hydrates are found on/near the seafloor where huge methane plumes,reaching 600-650 m height, have been observed on the echo sounding images around the summits.Columnar chaotic gas-charged sediment structures are observed beneath the gas hydrate occurrences on the seismic images。

The relationship between income inequality and obesity in all 47 prefectures of Japan: Ecological study

The link between income inequality and obesity inJapanwas evaluated. Income inequality of all 47 prefectures of Japan as expressed by Gini coefficient was obtained from National Statistics Center, Japan. The rate of obesity (%) was also obtained from National NutritionSurvey,Japan. The effect of income inequality on obesity was evaluated by ecological study. Income inequality as expressed by Gini coefficient was 0.31 ± 0.01 and the rate of obesity was 31.6% ± 5.6%. Gini coefficient was significantly and positively correlated with the rate of obesity (r = 0.490, p = 0.0005). Income inequality was might be associated with the rate of obesity inJapan.

Alcohol drinking rates of male between 7th and 11th graders in Japan decreased gradually based on nationwide repeated cross-sectional surveys from 1996 to 2008

Early drinking is considered to result in making tolerant of alcohol consumption and a higher prevalence of alcohol related disorders in the later. We focused generational impacts on drinking rate among high school students based on multiple nationwide data. The surveys were nationwide, cross-sectional random sampling surveys given every 4 years from the Japanese Youth Tobacco and Alcohol Surveys, 1996 to 2008. Participants were male 53,925 high school students from 7th grade to 11th grade. We divided to the three follow-up groups every 4 years from 1996 to 2004 for male junior high school students in 7th grades and the end periods were 4 years later in 11th grades. Outcome measures in this study were life time drinking, current drinking within 30 days and weekly drinking. All drinking rates decreased each at 7th and at 11th grade. The increments in these drinking rates from 7th grade to 11th grade in males decreased gradually in recent follow-up groups. Generational impacts should be considered by using follow-up groups to study drinking behaviors among students.

Smoking rate trends of male 7th and 11th graders in Japan based on repeated, nationwide, cross-sectional surveys every 4 years from 1996 to 2008

Backgrounds: Smoking in childhood has become an important public health concern. Previous studies have reported on secular trends in childhood smoking rates and compared with smoking rates at fixed ages. They also described secular trends regarding the prevalence of smoking at fixed ages. The variations in smoking rate of young children and adolescents by follow-up groups have not been studied by follow-up groups at a national level. Objective: We looked at trends and generational impacts on smoking rate by using follow-up groups of male Japanese high school students to quantitatively assess differences in trends, based on multiple nationwide data from the Japanese Youth Tobacco and Drinking Surveys gathered every 4 years between 1996 and 2008. Methods: The surveys were nationwide, cross-sectional random sampling surveys given every 4 years from 1996 to 2008, using the single-stage cluster sampling methodology. The cluster unit of the sampling was school. The survey targeted junior and senior high school students from schools selected through Japan using the National School Directory. Students enrolled in the sampled schools were subjects of the study. Participants were 53,925 high school students from 7th grade to 11th grade in 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2008. We divided the three follow-up groups every 4 years from 1996 to 2004 for male junior high school students in 7th grades, age 13. The end periods were 4 years later when they had become 11th graders, age 17, from 2000 to 2008. Main outcome measures in this study were life time smoking, current smoking within 30 days and daily smoking at 7th or 11th grade and the trend of the smoking rates between 7th to 11th grades. Results: Life time smoking rate, current smoking rate and daily smoking rate in Japanese high school students decreased at 7th grade from 1996 to 2004. They also decreased at 11th grade from 2000 to 2008. However, the slopes differed among their follow-up groups. The increments in their smoking rates from 7th grade to 11th grade in male high school students were smaller in recent follow-up groups both in 2000 and in 2004 than in follow-up groups in 1996. Then, those increments in follow-up groups between in 2000 and in 2004 were similar in lifetime smoking rate and current smoking rate. Conclusions: We have shown that monitoring trends by follow-up group are important in studying smoking for public health. Values of smoking rates from a young age to adolescence by follow-up group should be examined. Values of smoking rate and regular changes in smoking rate are important because smoking rate changes dynamically during adolescence. Not only trends in smoking rates at fixed ages, but also generational impacts should be considered by using follow-up groups to study smoking behaviors among students. We need to continue careful monitoring of follow-up group smoking prevalence. When long-term health promotions are planned or assessed, policy makers need to look at changes in follow-up groups.

Factors Affecting Japanese HPV-Vaccination: Findings from the Semi-Structured Interviews with Adolescent Girls and Caregivers

The objective of the present study was to qualitatively assess the obstructive and facilitative factors affecting adolescent girls and their caregivers when the adolescent had received or was considering receiving the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccination. Using these data, we propose recommendations for medical and nursing staff concerned with HPV vaccination. Participants were 20 adolescent girls (aged 10 - 19 years) and their caregivers, who had visited any of the 3 pediatric clinics in the Tokyo metropolitan area during a specified period since HPV vaccination began in Japan. The girls and their caregivers were separately interviewed by 2 child and/or family nursing care specialists with a semi-structured interview. The responses were qualitatively analyzed by 2 specialists, and the obstructive and facilitative factors affecting participants’ decision to receive HPV vaccination were extracted from the responses. Among the 20 sets of participants, 7 adolescents had completed HPV vaccination, 9 were going to receive vaccination, and 4 had not received any vaccination. The obstructive/facilitative factors related to considering or receiving HPV vaccination and actual vaccination were extracted and 4 main categories of factors were identified. Facilitators toward HPV-vaccination of daughters included clear future self-image and visions, fear Cervical Cancer (CC) and desire to escape from CC, having discussion with mothers about HPV-vaccination and CC, and to have a boyfriend. Barriers toward vaccination included the mothers’ reluctance to explain the sexual matters about HPV-vaccination to their daughters and difficulty with find the appropriate clinic or hospital to HPV-vaccination. Relevant factors about vaccination included positive family attitudes toward vaccination, having family system allowing consultation and having a public financial support for vaccination for daughters. Our conceptual model adapted from the Katz, et al. conceptual framework integrated the key barriers and facilitators as factors within each of four domains. These four domains have an important link. Especially, the environmental factors and the structural and sociocultural factors domain affect the individual adolescent and the caregiver factors domain, respectively. The results of present study suggest that medical/nursing activities centered on promoting HPV vaccination in Japan should comprehensively cover CC/vaccination/sex education in an integrated fashion, while schools and public health centers should provide opportunities for caregivers and adolescents to jointly participate in awareness education on HPV vaccination.

Daily step counts were associated with suicide in all 47 prefectures of Japan

The link between suicide and daily step counts was evaluated in all 47 prefectures of Japan by ecological study. The crude rate of suicide was significantly and negatively correlated with daily step counts. However, the association between the age-adjusted rate of suicide and daily step counts was noted only in men. These results suggest that increasing daily step counts may be useful for preventing suicide, especially in men, in Japan.

Relationship between Road Traffic Accidents and Drinking Habits in All 47 Prefectures of Japan

We evaluated the road traffic accidents and drinking habits in all 47 prefectures of Japanby ecological study. Data on traffic accidents were obtained from Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications,Japan. Drinking habits were also obtained from Ministry of Health Labour and Welfare and The General Insurance Association of Japan. The effect of drinking on road traffic accidents was evaluated by ecological study. Road traffic accidents were 15442.0 ± 14404.9 deaths due to road traffic accidents were 103.5 ± 57.5 and injured subjects due to road traffic accidents were 19068.3 ± 17433.6 in 2010 inall 47 prefectures of Japan. Drinking habits was significantly and negatively correlated with injured subjects due to road traffic accidents. However, road traffic accidents due to drinking was positively correlated with injured subjects due to road traffic accidents (r = 0.492, p = 0.0004). In conclusion, drinking habits and road traffic accidents due to drunk driving were closely linked to injured subjects due to road traffic accidents inJapan.

Features of the Chinese Studies Abroad (II)

Currently, the most important feature of Chinese Studies in Japan is to focus on the value orientation of "facts" and "problems". Chinese Studies in Japan originates from the deeper tradition of Sinology. And the socalled "Sinology" refers to the study of annotations in the Han Dynasty, i.e., the predecessor of the textual research in the Qing Dynasty. Japanese scholars tend to prefer facts and problems to theories and doctrines. Their essays or papers are not to find facts for arguments and frameworks but to discuss matters and imply arguments in factual statements. Sometimes, the arguments may even be concealed by too many facts.

Cross-Cultural Bioethics at an International University in Japan

Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University （APU） in Beppu city, Japan has a large body of students from well over 90 countries, especially from the Asia Pacific region, including Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, and Indonesian students. To improve analytical thinking skills among college students, a course on ＂bioethics＂ was introduced and offered in two consecutive semesters to undergraduate students for which 245 students registered at each semester. The course was taught in the form of 14 lecture and discussion sessions, each for 95 minutes based on the content of A Cross-Cultural Introduction to Bioethics （2006） edited by Darryl Macer, and reviewed a wide variety of ethical and bioethical issues. In the next semester, the students received a similar teaching content that was rearranged to reflect the 15 universal principles of bioethics and human rights covered in the Bioethics Core Curriculum （2008）. Case studies were also added to each unit of the Core Curriculum with the support of the UNESCO＇s Asia Pacific Regional Office, Bangkok （Case Studies for Bioethics 2010）. To evaluate the results of teaching and to compare the achieved objectives between the two groups of students, a short questionnaire was given to all students who finished the course and took up the final written examination. In the whole, 454 students （225 in group I and 229 in group 2） completed the course and took the final examination and 427 （218 in group 1 and 209 in group 2） responded to the questionnaire which inquired into their interest in the discussion of bioethical issues： why they believed they were important, and what they had learned through them. The results of the questionnaire have been examined and compared to evaluate the success of ＂bioethics＂ in stimulating the interest and thinking ability of the students and enriching their experience of a cross-cultural discussion over bioethical issues using universal principles as general guidance. The result of this examination was so impressive that from 2011 bioethics has been formalized into the reformed curriculum of our international school.

强制留学:抗战时期日本的中国占领区留日警察政策

抗战时期,日本政府强令中国占领区各伪政权选派警察赴内务省警察讲习所留学,各伪政权大多以刚刚成立或财政困难为由,提出不派、缓派、少派请求,但在当地日军、日本使领馆和内务省派遣人员的压力下,不得不按照日本的原定计划选派。这些留日警察的接受、教育和管理,主要由外务省文化事业部和内务省警察讲习所协商负责。日本政府的目的是培养直接服务于其殖民统治和侵略战争政策的“协力者”,但它忽略了抗战时期中国人民族国家意识的增长,最终事与愿违。

教育研究中的时间视角:简历分析与传记研究讨论

基于现象学中的视角原理以及对时间本质的初步分析,将时间分为公共时间(钟表时间)和个人时间,并提出公共时间和个人时间之中都有横向和纵向视角,现象会在各个视角显现。横向和纵向4种视角的互补研究有助于我们全面认识“现象”和“真”。简历分析基于个人时间纵向视角,其局限在于个人时间所嵌入的公共时间需要接近线性。古典时间观是线性时间观,现代时间观是非线性时间观,瞬间是时间非线性的拐点。由于瞬间的存在和非线性的个人时间,对重大的、具有颠覆性意义的创新或范式跃迁所涉拔尖创新人才,单独进行简历分析需要谨慎。从方法论层面对简历分析和传记研究在时间中的本质进行把握,简历分析和传记研究的互补推进方能促进教育学想象力的发展。

20世纪二三十年代现代中国作家自传与他传虚构之具体成因比较

“自传”,是作者自叙生平的一种文类;“他传”,是作者叙述他人生平的一种文类。20世纪二三十年代,在中国,无论是就自传,抑或是就他传而言,都曾爆发过一场写作热潮。考察这一时期现代中国作家们的自传文与他传文创作,无论是他们的自传创作,抑或是他传创作,“虚构”都是无法避免的。需要注意的是,在这一时期现代中国作家们的自传与他传书写之中,“虚构”所出现的“具体原因”,却并不尽然相同。

中日社区教育政策及执行比较

社区教育能够更有效调动区域内民众的个人素质要求、文化知识需求,社区教育政策为社区教育活动提供方向引导,为配备设施、经费、人员提供保障。中日社区教育政策背景、时期、内容不尽相同,以文献研究资料为基础,将日本第二次世界大战后社区教育政策的转折与完善时期,与我国80年代开始社区教育政策逐步系统化时期进行比较,细化中日社区教育政策政府与民众的着眼点、政策推行制度与力度、民众政策执行意识等通过比较的方式,明晰社区教育管理目标、组织形式、管理体制,为我国社区教育发展提供可借鉴、可推广的政策模式。

论清史《儒林传》扬州学人记载的形成

扬州学派被视为清代儒学的一个重要派别,研究成果较多。但学界未曾注意到,清史《儒林传》对扬州学人有系统的记载,且形成过程复杂,是该学派研究史的重要一页。本文依据台北故宫博物院藏清史《儒林传》相关档册,从纂修层面揭示清史《儒林传》第一次稿和第四次稿对扬州学人的记载情况。清史《儒林传》第一次稿中,阮元将任大椿为代表的扬州学人群体载入,但该传被删除。光绪年间,清史《儒林传》第四次稿中有八位扬州学人立为正传。这些传记在扬州府呈送的《儒林刘宝楠刘文淇朱士端王念孙汪喜苟焦循凌曙江藩(江苏咨送采访册)》的同名传记基础上删改而成。国史馆纂修官重点改写并表彰了扬州诸儒在《易》《春秋左传》《礼记》《论语》《孟子》等专经研究上的成就,彰显了扬州诸人的“汉学”宗风,突出了他们的地域联系和家族特色。清史《儒林传》虽未用“扬州学派”之名,但已经记载了扬州学派的学风和地缘特色等要素,在正史中确立了扬州学派的史料基础。

日本近代学校体育的历史流变——评《日本近代学校体育研究(1868—1936年)》

《日本近代学校体育研究(1868—1936年)》一书,结合日本近代由弱到强进而走向侵略扩张的社会背景,系统梳理和深入剖析这一历史时期学校体育的流变历程、特征、作用、历史地位及影响因素,反思其学校体育的军国主义化。研究认为:日本近代学校体育并非单纯的体育教育活动,它是近代教育的重要构项,是日本推进文明开化的场域之一,在改善国民体质方面发挥了重要作用。但随着军国主义的蔓延,学校体育逐渐与军事捆绑,逐步沦为扩军备战的工具,既违背其自身的发展规律,也对学生身心健康造成严重伤害。学校体育只有回归教育本质,才能得到健康持续的发展,真正实现促进学生全面发展的目的。

近代日本东方文化学院的对华研究

日本东方文化学院是二战前日本政府假借退还庚子赔款名义推行的“东方文化事业”的一部分,集结了拥有时称东京帝国大学和京都帝国大学相关学术背景的众多中国研究权威学者。然而,通过解读外务省档案资料可以发现:东方文化学院的成立和运营均由日本外务省主导,是国家意志全面控制下的对华研究机构,其开展的研究活动归根结底服务于日本的对华侵略政策。本文对东方文化学院开展的研究活动进行了考察,简述其在推动日本对中国深入研究方面发挥的作用,同时揭露了其作为日本侵华学术工具的本质。

中日两国保健食品管理和评价策略比较研究

保健食品是一类可声称功效且具有食用级安全性的特殊食品。由于我国经济发展和人口老龄化使得保健食品需求大幅增加,但管理制度尚不完善,存在夸大功效、虚假宣传、违规销售等问题。日本作为全球保健食品行业先行者,其保健食品评价、审批和管理机制多有与我国不同之处。该研究系统论述和对比了中日两国保健食品的定义、分类、审批流程、功能评价、标签管理和安全监管的差异和优势。研究结果发现,保健食品分类方面,日本分类更详细,功能及适用范围更丰富;审批流程方面,两国保健食品评价机构、结果认证、审批部门及审批模式等均存在差异,各有优势环节;功能评价方面,日本要求研究者将功效和安全性评价结果发表于高影响力期刊,有助于保障评价的科学性;安全监管方面,日本有更为完善的安全追溯系统。上述对比结果为我国保健食品管理模式改革提供了可借鉴的优势策略。

日本对中国蔬菜进口监控措施研究及分析

日本是中国重要蔬菜出口市场,但近年来中国输日蔬菜被通报不合格屡见不鲜,日本频繁更新对中国产蔬菜实施的进口监测计划,因此通过梳理、分析2017—2023年日本对中国产蔬菜实施的进口监控措施及监控结果,综合研判得出有机磷类、三唑类、有机氯类以及新型农药如腐霉利、吡氟氯禾灵等农药为被监控高频项目,鳞茎类、茄果类、豆类、芸薹属等蔬菜为被监控高频蔬菜,同时分析中国蔬菜出口日本受阻原因,并建议从农药残留控制、加工环节质量管控、完善农药残留限量标准等方面进行提升。