Fujisawa Sustainable Smart Town: Panasonic’s Challenge in Building a Sustainable Society

Urban utility equipment and electronic goods manufacturers are experiencing profound challenges in this age of rapid technological change. Panasonic, Japan’s leading electronics company, has also recognized the limits of its traditional product manufacturing orientation and decided to enter IT-intensive town management in view of these challenges. It has advanced a new strategy for creating sustainable communities to encourage both stakeholders and local residents to get involved. Stressing sustainability, the strategy has adopted a long-term perspective (i.e., a 100-year timeframe). Significantly, it must provide values that foster community-based sustainability and adopt a business model that ensures the economic viability of both constructing the town and managing its ongoing services. As information systems play a big part in the provision of services in the new town, the strategy requires the linking of information with technology and social aspects, quite unlike traditional manufacturing, which is solely based on technology concerns. As part of its new strategy, Panasonic defined five prominent service areas (i.e., energy, security, mobility, wellness, and community). The company thought these areas would expand and generate new value and services throughout the strategy’s timeframe

Formation of Network in International Transport through its lntermodalization

東海林滋教授古稀記念特

From Self-interest To Commons: Distinct Aspect Of social Bookmarking Services

With web contents being generated and shared at an ever-increasing pace, a number of approaches to effectively control and retrieve contents have been developed. Social tagging is a widely implemented method for classifying contents resulting from the dispersed activities of users. Social bookmarking services (SBM) is a web service with the purpose of making information generally available on a shared basis. Accumulation of tags on SBM occurs mainly without inviting the collaboration of others, but on the basis of activities satisfying individual self-interest. SBM is in fact the optimal web platform utilizing the sum of such activities for the formation of commons

Cavity flow over a wall-mounted fence

Ventilated cavity flow over a wall mounted fence is experimentally investigated in a cavitation tunnel. The flow over a 2-D fence, attached to the tunnel test section ceiling, is examined for a range of free-stream conditions. The dependence of cavity topology, cavitation number, upstream wall pressure distribution and drag on several parameters, including ventilation rate, fence height based Froude number (Fr), vapour pressure based cavitation number (σv ) and degree of fence immersion in the oncoming wall boundary layer, is investigated. Three different flow regimes are identified throughout the range of cavitation numbers for a particular set of free-stream conditions: shear layer cavitation, fully developed cavity and ‘blocked’ flow. The cavity exhibits a typical re-entrant jet closure and the re-entrant jet intensity is found to be a function of Fr. The high intensity re-entrant jet, present at high Fr, leads to an increase in drag. Drag decreases significantly with an increase in fence immersion in the oncoming boundary layer. Complementary measurements for a naturally cavitating flow are obtained for comparison. A more detailed examination of the topology and unsteady behaviour of ventilated and natural cavity flows over a 2-D wall-mounted fence was undertaken for fixed length cavities with varying free-stream velocity using high-speed and still imaging, X-ray densitometry and dynamic surface pressure measurements in two experimental facilities. Two main unsteady features are observed, the irregular small-scale shedding of structures at the cavity closure and a larger-scale re-entrant jet oscillation. Small-scale cavity break-up was associated with a high-frequency broad-band peak in the wall pressure spectra, found to be governed by the overlying turbulent boundary layer characteristics, similar to observations from single-phase flow over a forward-facing step. A low-frequency peak reflecting the oscillations in size of re-entrant jet, analogous to the ‘flapping’ motion in single-phase flow, was found to be modulated by gravity effects (i.e. a Froude number dependency). Likewise, a significant change in cavity behaviour was observed as the flow underwent transition analogous to the transition from sub- to super- critical regime in open-channel flow. A companion numerical study is undertaken to provide additional insight into particular flow features such as the separated flow region upstream of the fence and to assess the influence of blockage. An implicit unsteady compressible solver is used with a RANS k − ω SST turbulence model and VOF approach to capture the cavity interface. The numerical results are found to compare reasonably with the experimental data, additionally showing a significant influence of blockage on the studied flow. Along with the 2-D fence, a 3-D wall mounted fence, spanning nominally a quarter of the tunnel test section, is investigated. The impact that 3-D effects have on the cavity topology and the relations between the parameters characterizing the flow is observed. The most notable effect of 3-D flow is a change in the closure mechanism observed for low Fr. Following a decrease in Fr the closure topology transforms from a well defined single re-entrant jet regime, through a phase of gradual re-entrant jet widening to a completely split re-entrant jet separated into two branches. Generally, the 2-D and 3-D flows exhibited similar trends with any significant difference attributable to differing levels of flow confinement due to lesser width of 3-D fence

Chemical nature and structure of organic coating of quantum dots is crucial for their application in imaging diagnostics

Rumiana Bakalova1, Zhivko Zhelev1, Daisuke Kokuryo1, Lubomir Spasov2, Ichio Aoki1, Tsuneo Saga11Molecular Imaging Center, National Institute of Radiological Sciences, Chiba, Japan; 2Medical Faculty, Sofia University, Sofia, BulgariaBackground: One of the most attractive properties of quantum dots is their potential to extend the opportunities for fluorescent and multimodal imaging in vivo. The aim of the present study was to clarify whether the composition and structure of organic coating of nanoparticles are crucial for their application in vivo.Methods: We compared quantum dots coated with non-crosslinked amino-functionalized polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers, quantum dots encapsulated in crosslinked carboxyl-functionalized PAMAM dendrimers, and silica-shelled amino-functionalized quantum dots. A multimodal fluorescent and paramagnetic quantum dot probe was also developed and analyzed. The probes were applied intravenously in anesthetized animals for visualization of brain vasculature using two-photon excited fluorescent microscopy and visualization of tumors using fluorescent IVIS® imaging (Caliper Life Sciences, Hopkinton, MA) and magnetic resonance imaging.Results: Quantum dots coated with non-crosslinked dendrimers were cytotoxic. They induced side effects in vivo, including vasodilatation with a decrease in mean arterial blood pressure and heart rate. The quantum dots penetrated the vessels, which caused the quality of fluorescent imaging to deteriorate. Quantum dots encapsulated in crosslinked dendrimers had low cytotoxicity and were biocompatible. In concentrations <0.3 nmol quantum dots/kg bodyweight, these nanoparticles did not affect blood pressure and heart rate, and did not induce vasodilatation or vasoconstriction. PEGylation (PEG [polyethylene glycol]) was an indispensable step in development of a quantum dot probe for in vivo imaging, based on silica-shelled quantum dots. The non-PEGylated silica-shelled quantum dots possessed low colloidal stability in high-salt physiological fluids, accompanied by rapid aggregation in vivo. The conjugation of silica-shelled quantum dots with PEG1100 increased their stability and half-life in the circulation without significant enhancement of their size. In concentrations <2.5 nmol/kg bodyweight, these quantum dots did not affect the main physiological variables. It was possible to visualize capillaries, which makes this quantum dot probe appropriate for investigation of mediators of vasoconstriction, vasodilatation, and brain circulation in intact animals in vivo. The multimodal silica-shelled quantum dots allowed visualization of tumor tissue in an early stage of its development, using magnetic resonance imaging.Conclusion: The present study shows that the type and structure of organic/bioorganic shells of quantum dots determine their biocompatibility and are crucial for their application in imaging in vivo, due to the effects of the shell on the following properties: colloidal stability, solubility in physiological fluids, influence of the basic physiological parameters, and cytotoxicity.Keywords: quantum dot, organic shell, biocompatibility, in vivo imaging, two-photon excited fluorescent microscopy, magnetic resonance imagin

ギシン カイナン ショウロン アコウ ロウシ ウチイリ ジケン オ メグル ロンソウシ ノ タメ ニ アコウ ジケン ニカンスル ブンゲイ ト シソウ

Gishin　Kainan　was　written　by　Matsumura　Kyazan（松村九山），a　Confucian　scholar　and doctor　from　Ono　han（大野藩）in　Echizen（越前）province．　Gishin（義臣10yal　retainer） refers　to　the　fortyseven（or　six）γδ痂of　Akδ，　a　castle　town　in　Harima　province，　and　kainαn （解難）to　Dazai　Shundai’s（太宰春台）treatise　on　theγδπ勿，　in　which　he　rehabilitated　their name．　Matsumura　criticized　Dazai’s　treatise，幽σS勧露γo肋s雇～oπ（赤穂四十六士論 Treatise　on　the　Forty－Seven〔or　six〕R6nin　of　Ak6），focusing　on　the　folIowing　points． 　　　1）　The　usage　of　the　terms　raihei（来聰imperial　envoy）and　Yamashiro　Tenn6（山 城天皇Emperor　Yamashiro）； 　　　2）　The　reasons　for　and　interpretation　of　the　vendetta； 　　　3）　The　lengthy　delay　before　Oishi　Yoshio（大石良雄）and　the　other　forty・sixγδη勿 carried　out　their　raid，　in　1702，0n　Kira　Yoshinaka’s吉良義央residence； 　　　4）　The　question　of　whether　theγ伽勿held　a　grudge　against　the　s妨g〃πor　Kira，　who was　master　of　ceremonies　III　the　s勿g襯’s　palace．　The　meaning　of　loyalty　is　also　considered here　with　respect　to　the　views　of　Dazai，　Matsumura，　and　Goi　RanshU（五井蘭洲），which　are comparatively　discussed；and 　　　5）The　ethicality　of　the　forty・six　in　waiting　for　the　bαkufu’s（幕府）sentence　instead　of taking　the　initiate　to　commit　suicide． 　　　Matsumura’s　criticisms　show　him　to　be　nearly　identical　in　position　to　Goi　RanshU，　a writer　opposed　to　Dazai．　Although　Matsumura　could　sympathize　with　theγδη勿，　he　upheld the　absoluteness　of　the　shogun’s　authority　and　thus　opined　that　their　behavior　was　contrary to　the　laws　of　the　shogunate，　However，　Matsumura　admired　Oishi　and　his　band　for　their bravery　and　Ioyalty　in　pursuing　the　will　of　their　deceased　rnaster．　He　also　praised　their prudehce　in　remaining　within　Iegal　bounds　and　condoned　their　reasons　for　enacting　their long－cherished　ambition．　His　ideas　contrasted　sharply　with　Dazai’s　opinion　that　not　only did　Oishi　not　fully　comprehend　the　meaning　of　loyalty，　but　he　also　transgressed　the　samural code

"Risk Reduction Systems of the Internet Shop---Based on the consumer survey in Japan---" (in Japanese)

Many Internet shops have appeared, and most of the shops worry about customer acquisition. We applied the focus to consumer's perceived risk as a key to the success of the Internet shop, and considered the strategy of the shop. That is, it is thought that the Internet shop adopts an appropriate risk reduction system, and the customer can be acquired. Especially, the questionnaire survey for the consumer was executed to clarify the relation between the consumer attribute and the risk reduction system. As a result of the investigation, the following two points have become clear. First, risk reduction systems are possible to divide roughly into the offer of evaluation information and the offer of detailed information, and the consumers also were recognizing the difference of these. Secondarily, the persons who had confidence in the Internet shopping had the tendency to value detailed information more than evaluation information, and were doing "Selection of the risk reduction system". They are the lowest the perceived risk, and shop at the Internet shops frequently. It was guessed that other consumers that the confidence degree was low did not relate to the repeat purchase because the perceived risk was high. It is thought that the Internet shop should adopt the risk reduction system that people with a high confidence degree chose, in order reduce the perceived risk effectively and to expand customer.