Salt taste perception and blood pressure levels in population-based samples : the Circulatory Risk in Communities Study (CIRCS)

To examine the associations of salt perception with salt intake and blood pressure levels in general populations, we performed a cross-sectional study in two communities where salt intake level is different, Akita and Osaka in Japan. Taste perception (detection for certain taste and recognition for salt taste) was determined using a Na-impregnated test strip for 1024 Akita and 1199 Osaka adults aged 30–74 years. The proportions of detection for 0·1 % salt were 61, 62, 79, and 79 % in Akita men, Osaka men, Akita women and Osaka women, respectively. The corresponding proportions of not recognising of 1·6 % salt taste (>1·6 %) were 34, 30, 16 and 21 %. Detection threshold was higher in Akita than in Osaka for women aged 60–74 years, and recognition threshold was lower in Akita than in Osaka for women aged 30–59 and 60–74 years. The high detection (≥0·4 %) and recognition (>1·6 %) thresholds of salt taste were associated with higher salt intake scores for Akita men aged 30–59 years, whose detection and recognition thresholds tended be positively associated with systolic and diastolic blood pressures (SBP and DBP) after adjustment for potential confounders. Among Akita elderly men, detection threshold tended to be positively associated with SBP and DBP, while among Akita middle-aged women, recognition threshold was associated with SBP. In conclusion, the high thresholds of salt perception were inversely associated with salt intake for Akita middle-aged men and with blood pressure levels for Akita middle-aged and elderly men and middle-aged women

Manganese intake from foods and beverages is associated with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes

BackgroundDespite the hypoglycemic and antioxidant effects of manganese, only one recent Chinese study has investigated the association between dietary manganese intake and type 2 diabetes.MethodsWe recruited 19,862 Japanese men and women in the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study. The participants completed a food frequency questionnaire at the baseline survey (1988 = 1990) and a diabetes history at both baseline and 5-year surveys. We calculated the odds ratios (95 % CIs) of the 5-year cumulative incidence of self-reported physician-diagnosed type 2 diabetes according to quartiles of dietary manganese intake.ResultsWithin the 5-year period, we confirmed 530 new cases of type 2 diabetes (263 in men and 267 in women) with a 5-year cumulative incidence of 2.7 % (3.6 % in men and 2.1 % in women). Higher manganese intake was inversely associated with the women’s but not the men’s cumulative risk of type 2 diabetes over the 5-year period. In a full model adjusted for the participants’ characteristics, diabetes risk factors and a wide range of dietary variables, the multivariable odds ratios (95 %CIs) of type 2 diabetes across the increasing quartiles of manganese intake (Q1 to Q4) were 1.00, 0.97 (0.65, 1.43), 1.04 (0.67, 1.61) and 1.10 (0.64, 1.92), p-trend = 0.66 among men and 1.00, 0.74 (0.51, 1.06), 0.62 (0.41, 0.94) and 0.53 (0.31, 0.88), p-trend = 0.01 among women. The association was observed mainly for those with low iron intake in women, particularly premenopausal women.ConclusionStrong inverse associations between dietary manganese intake and risk of type 2 diabetes were observed in women but not men

〈論文〉ニッチトップ型中小企業の地方移転と国内・海外事業展開 : 株式会社 協立製作所の事例分析

本論文は、地域経済の再生あるいは産業の空洞化を回避する一翼を担うことが期待されるニッチトップ型中小企業の国内および海外における事業展開について経営史的に検討することを目的とする。特に本論文では、日本を代表する企業城下町として発展してきた日立の周辺地域（筑西市）に移転し、その後同地を拠点として活動する協立製作所を事例として取り上げる。その分析により、［ 1 ］1970年代初頭に東京から地方への工場移転を契機として、油圧部品の一貫加工体制を整備することで同社発展の基盤を形成したこと、［ 2 ］ 1990年代以降、油圧機器のメインスプール市場においてニッチトップの座を獲得し、ニッチトップ型中小企業へと転身するとともに、［ 3 ］油圧部品の加工のみならず、製品の組立を新たに手がけることで事業の多角化と取引関係の拡大をはかり、それまでの一社専属的な事業展開からの転換を実現したこと、［ 4 ］同じ時期に中国（上海）に現地工場を設立することで、日本国内における生産拡張の制約を克服するとともに、現地での新たな取引関係を形成したこと、［ 5 ］以上の展開により、同社は、バブル崩壊以降の外部環境の変化に適応しただけでなく、それ以前より高い企業成長を実現するに至ったことを明らかにした。The purpose of this paper is to examine the business development of the niche top type small and medium sized enterprises, which are expected to take revitalization of regional economies or a role avoiding deindustrialization. In this paper, we focus on the case of Kyoritsu Seisakusho Co., Ltd. （KS） based in Chikusei City, Japan and clarify as follows: [1] KS formed a base of the company development by making an integrated production system after transferring the factory from Tokyo to the local city in the early 1970s. [2] KS got a position of the niche top in the main spool market of the hydraulic equipment parts after the 1990s, and [3] it realized switch from business relationship to depend on the specific company by newly entering the assembling business of the products as well as the processing of the hydraulic equipment part. [4] KS also overcame limitation of the production expansion in Japan and formed new business relationships in Shanghai, China by establishing a local factory there at the same time. [5] By these results, KS achieved the company growth that was higher than it past as well as adapted to the changes in the external environment after the collapse of Japanese bubble economy

Experimental characterization and performance improvement evaluation of an electromagnetic transducer utilizing a tuned inerter

This research reports on the experimental verification of an enhanced energy conversion device utilizing a tuned inerter called a tuned inertial mass electromagnetic transducer (TIMET). The TIMET consists of a motor, a rotational mass, and a tuning spring. The motor and the rotational mass are connected to a ball screw and the tuning spring interfaced to the ball screw is connected to the vibrating structure. Thus, vibration energy of the structure is absorbed as electrical energy by the motor. Moreover, the amplified inertial mass can be realized by rotating relatively small physical masses. Therefore, by designing the tuning spring stiffness and the inertial mass appropriately, the motor can rotate more effectively due to the resonance effect, leading to more effective energy generation. The authors designed a prototype of the TIMET and conducted tests to validate the effectiveness of the tuned inerter for electromagnetic transducers. Through excitation tests, the property of the hysteresis loops produced by the TIMET is investigated. Then a reliable analytical model is developed employing a curve fitting technique to simulate the behavior of the TIMET and to assess the power generation accurately. In addition, numerical simulation studies on a structure subjected to a seismic loading employing the developed model are conducted to show the advantages of the TIMET over a traditional electromagnetic transducer in both vibration suppression capability and energy harvesting efficiency

第四次 団体の基礎構造に関する調査 : 日本13市区：自治会・町内会など近隣住民組織に関する調査コードブック

東海大学プロジェクト研究「QOL向上のための、日本とアジアにおける都市ガバナンスモデルの構築」（ 2019年度～21年度）研究報告

Wave flume testing of an oscillating-body wave energy converter with a tuned inerter

In this study, the effectiveness of an oscillating-body WEC with a tuned inerter (TI) proposed by the authors is shown through wave flume testing. The TI mechanism consisting of a tuning spring, a rotational inertial mass, and a viscous damping component is able to increase energy absorption capability by taking advantage of the resonance effect of the rotational mass. This mechanism has been recently introduced for civil structures subjected to external loadings such as earthquakes and winds to decay vibration response immediately. The authors applied this mechanism to oscillating-body WECs and showed that the proposed WEC increased the power generation performance and broadened the effective frequency range without increasing the mass of the buoy itself through numerical simulation studies. To verify the validity of the proposed WEC experimentally, a small-scale prototype of the proposed device is designed and wave flume testing is carried out with various regular wave inputs of different frequencies. The results show that the WEC with the properly adjusted TI mechanism demonstrates better power generation performance compared to the conventional WEC over a wide range of wave frequencies