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13 Mar 2009
In keeping with the theme of the meeting this year, ‘Our Planet and Its Life: Origins and Futures’, the RIKEN group that made presentations on their work included researchers doing cutting-edge work on environmental and life science-related topics.
10 Mar 2009
Originally, the Japanese and Chinese languages are quite different from each other. The Japanese originally had no written characters, but they adopted Chinese characters and adjusted them accordingly for use in a variety of societies within Japan.
10 Mar 2009
A large headline at the top of the first page of the January 19th evening edition of The Asahi Shimbun reported, "Yokohama city to start unified elementary and junior high school education."
06 Mar 2009
The powerful x-rays from a RIKEN synchrotron can provide high-contrast images of biological specimens
06 Mar 2009
A new theory predicts an unusual excitation spectrum for a chain of ultracold gas atoms
06 Mar 2009
Genomic studies have now provided enough understanding to design clock genes
27 Feb 2009
Koji Ishizaka currently co-hosts the TV antique show “Kai-un! Nandemo Kanteidan” (We’ll Appraise Anything) and has acted in many films. In the film “The Last Game The Final So-kei sen” released last August, he played the role of President Shinzo Koizumi.
27 Feb 2009
Keio University's President Anzai participated for his third time in the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting attended by world leaders in Davos.
27 Feb 2009
RIKEN and the National Institute of Radiological Sciences (NIRS) hosted an international conference, ‘Molecular Imaging 2008 — Breaking New Ground in Drug Discovery and PET Diagnosis’ in Kobe on Dec 14 and 15.
27 Feb 2009
A metal–organic framework that contains ordered channels of two different sizes can separate different gases
27 Feb 2009
Cells control interactions between two proteins with an important role in Alzheimer’s disease by stranding them on discrete membrane ‘islands’
20 Feb 2009
Scientists have discovered magnetic nanoparticles that, unlike most materials, shrink when they are heated
20 Feb 2009
Cellular proteins assist plant cells to ensure their offspring inherit the capacity to support themselves
20 Feb 2009
Muons are obscure particles that only appear naturally on Earth when high-energy cosmic rays collide with the upper atmosphere. So why do RIKEN scientists travel all the way from Japan to study muons on a remote hill in England?
20 Feb 2009
The project aims to clarify the mechanism of information processing in shogi players’ intuitive thinking, and thereby shed light on rapid perception and decision-making in the human brain.
18 Feb 2009
(IAS Center General Office at Waseda University)
Islamic civilization has spread throughout the world over the centuries; from the East to the West, from Southeast Asia, passing through the Middle East and Eastern Europe, and extending through to Western Africa.
15 Feb 2009
As the proverb says, too much water drowned the miller. Mothers’ too much care can break children’s sense of independence. For example, birth is a kind of antagonism if it is regarded as escape from protection inside the body, and weaning means an end of the protection named “mother’s milk.”
15 Feb 2009
It was a banner Nobel year for Japan last year. It was an exceptional feat that Japanese both captured the Nobel Prize for Physics, and we also shared the Nobel Prize for Chemistry. The Nobel Prize, of course, is not awarded to a nation, but rather to individuals in honour of their remarkable contributions to society.
13 Feb 2009
A standard measurement of resistance, the quantum Hall effect, changes dramatically at the edge of a sample
13 Feb 2009
On December 15, 2008, 150 people gathered at RIKEN’s Wako campus for the RIKEN-Nishina Memorial Symposium on ‘Charging Molecules: Fundamental Chemical Physics and Analytical Applications.’
13 Feb 2009
Two RIKEN researchers have developed a switch to control the formation and separation of DNA duplexes that may have implications in many biological processes, such as gene regulation.
13 Feb 2009
A team of scientists in Japan has demonstrated the possibility of switching the magnetization of a thin magnetic film with a non-conventional and innovative method, achieving a considerable step forward in magnetic data storage and the field known as spintronics.
06 Feb 2009
Using moss to remove heavy metal contaminants from water; X-ray charge density to directly observe chemical interactions at the molecular level; new fluorescent probes to discover unknown functions and potential in living things; iPS cells against cancer; Omics Science Centre and The X-Ray Free Electron Laser (XFEL)
06 Feb 2009
Long-range spin currents induced by heat herald a new era for spintronic applications
06 Feb 2009
The application of sophisticated imaging techniques illuminates spatio-temporal regulation critical for T cell activation
06 Feb 2009
Unscrambling the link between molecular bonding and distributing pigment leads to potential therapeutics for a rare skin disease
06 Feb 2009
Statistical analysis helps the search for fundamental causes of disease. Most Japanese people fall into one of two distinct groups genetically, biostatisticians from RIKEN’s Center for Genomic Medicine in Yokohama have shown.
04 Feb 2009
TOKYO, 4 Feb - Japanese researchers have announced the world’s first discovery of genes in jigsaw-like pieces from an archaeon living in hot spring, which gives new insight into the origin of genes.
02 Feb 2009
Up until last September, we thought the U.S. financial and economic crisis was just “fire on the other side of the Pacific.” Now we know otherwise: this America originated crisis is striking Japanese corporations directly.
02 Feb 2009
Originating with the US subprime loan situation, it’s not just the worldwide financial crisis that is causing problems — there is a growing and strong impact on the real economy.
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Giants in history
Ruby Sakae Hirose (1904 – 1960) was a Japanese-American scientist whose research contributed significantly to our understanding of blood clotting, allergies and cancer.
Haisako Koyama (1916 – 1997) was a Japanese solar observer whose dedication to recording sunspots – cooler parts of the sun’s surface that appear dark – produced a sunspot record of historic importance.
Michiaki Takahashi (17 February 1928 – 16 December 2013) was a Japanese virologist who developed the first chickenpox vaccine.
Toshiko Yuasa (11 December 1909 – 1 February 1980) was the first Japanese female physicist whose research on radioactivity shed light on beta decay – the process in which an atom emits a beta particle (electron) and turns into a different element.
Baron Kitasato Shibasaburo (29 January 1856 – 13 June 1931) was a Japanese physician and bacteriologist whose work led to a new understanding of preventing and treating tetanus, diphtheria and anthrax.
By isolating soil microorganisms and studying the compounds they produce, Satoshi Omura (born 1935) discovered almost 500 organic compounds with unique properties that were produced by these microorganisms, including many new antibiotics.
In 1915, pathologist Katsusaburo Yamagiwa and his research assistant Koichi Ichikawa became the first to prove that chronic exposure to chemicals can cause cancer.
In 1915, Koichi Ichikawa along with pathologist Katsusaburo Yamagiwa became the first to prove that chronic exposure to chemicals can cause cancer.
Reiji Okazaki (8 October 1930 – 1 August 1975) and Tsuneko (7 June 1933) were a Japanese couple who discovered Okazaki fragments – short sequences of DNA that are synthesized during DNA replication and linked together to form a continuous strand.
Tsuneko (7 June 1933) and Reiji Okazaki (8 October 1930 – 1 August 1975) were a Japanese couple who discovered Okazaki fragments – short sequences of DNA that are synthesized during DNA replication and linked together to form a continuous strand.
Husband and wife team, Kimishige (3 December 1925 – 6 July 2018) and Teruko Ishizaka (28 September 1926 – 4 June 2019) discovered the antibody class Immunoglobulin E (IgE) that triggers allergic reactions. They also discovered that IgE antibodies attach to white blood cells, known as mast cells, releasing histamine, which causes allergic reactions.
Husband and wife team, Kimishige (3 December 1925 – 6 July 2018) and Teruko Ishizaka (28 September 1926 – 4 June 2019) discovered the antibody class Immunoglobulin E (IgE) that triggers allergic reactions. They also discovered that IgE antibodies attach to white blood cells, known as mast cells, releasing histamine, which causes allergic reactions.
Japanese chemist Takamine Jokichi (3 November 1854 – 22 July 1922) founded the Tokyo Artificial Fertilizer Company, where he isolated a starch-digesting enzyme (named takadiastase) from the fungus Aspergillus oryzae.
Hideki Yukawa (23 January 1907 – 8 September 1981) was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1949 for predicting the existence of the pi meson subatomic particle. Japan’s first Nobel laureate, Yakawa also expressed his support for nuclear disarmament by signing the Russell–Einstein Manifesto in 1955.
Shinichiro Tomonaga (31 March 1906 – 8 July 1979), together with Richard Feynman and Julian Schwinger, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1965, for their contributions to advance the field of quantum electrodynamics. Tomonaga was also a strong proponent of peace, who actively campaigned against the proliferation of nuclear weapons and promoted the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
Japanese chemist Kenichi Fukui (4 October 1918 – 9 January 1998) was the first Asian scientist to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Together with Roald Hoffman, he received this honour in 1981 for his independent research into the mechanisms of chemical reactions.
Minoru Shirota (April 23, 1899 – March 10, 1982) was a Japanese microbiologist who invented the popular fermented drink Yakult.
Japanese physicist Ukichiro Nakaya (1900-1962) made the world’s first artificial snowflakes. He started his research on snow crystals in the early 1930s at Hokkaido University, where there is an unlimited supply of natural snow in winter. By taking over 3,000 photographs, he established a classification of natural snow crystals and described their relationship with weather conditions.
The techniques that make industrial pearl culturing possible were developed over a century ago at the Misaki Marine Biological Station in Japan. The station’s first director, Professor Kakichi Mitsukuri, emphasized to Kokichi Mikimoto in 1890 that stimulating pearl sac formation was important for pearl growth, and they went on to successfully develop methods for culturing pearls.
The field of solid-state ionics originated in Europe, but Takehiko Takahashi of Nagoya University in Japan was the first to coin the term ‘solid ionics’ in 1967. ‘Solid-state ionics’ first appeared in 1971 in another of his papers, and was likely a play on ‘solid-state electronics’, another rapidly growing field at the time.
Chika Kuroda (24 March 1884 – 8 November 1968) was a Japanese chemist whose research focussed on the structures of natural pigments.
Motoo Kimura (13 November 1924 – 13 November 1994) was a Japanese theoretical population geneticist who is best remembered for developing the neutral theory of molecular evolution.
Osamu Shimomura (27 August 1928 – 19 October 2018) was a Japanese organic chemist and marine biologist who dedicated his career to understanding how organisms emitted light.
Kikunae Ikeda (8 October 1864 – 3 May 1936) was a Japanese chemist who discovered the fifth basic taste, umami.
Umetaro Suzuki (7 April 1874 – 20 September 1943) was a Japanese scientist best remembered for his research on beriberi, a disease caused by vitamin B1 deficiency, characterized by limb stiffness, paralysis and pain.
Kono Yasui (16 February 1880 – 24 March 1971) was a Japanese botanist who researched the genetics of poppies, corn and spiderworts and surveyed the plants that had been affected by the nuclear fallout after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Hitoshi Kihara (1893 – 1986) was one of the most famous Japanese geneticists of the 20th century. One of his most significant contributions was identifying sex chromosomes (X and Y) in flowering plants.
Michiyo Tsujimura (17 September 1888 – 1 June 1969) was a Japanese agricultural scientist and biochemist recognized for her research of green tea components.
A Japanese surgeon, Tetsuzo Akutsu (20 August 1922 – 9 August 2007) built the first artificial heart capable of keeping an animal alive.
Ogino Ginko (3 March 1851 – 23 June 1913) was the first registered female doctor to practise modern medicine in Japan.
Japanese geochemist Katsuko Saruhashi developed the first method and tools for measuring carbon dioxide in seawater