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2017　Japan Studies I

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Academic unit or major
Breadth courses
Instructor(s)
Saijo Miki  Yamamoto Hilofumi  Bektas Yakup  Saito Hirofumi 
Class Format
Lecture     
Media-enhanced courses
Day/Period(Room No.)
Intensive ()  
Group
-
Course number
LAW.X420
Credits
2
Academic year
2017
Offered quarter
4Q
Syllabus updated
2017/11/17
Lecture notes updated
-
Language used
English
Access Index

Course description and aims

This course is specially provided for the Tokyo Tech Winter Program participants. It focuses on Japan (Nippon) from five main aspects: Japanese culture, Japanese domestic industry, Japanese research institutes, the history of Japanese science and technology, and Japanese design.
This course is intended to be a gateway for program participants to gaining a basic understanding of Japan's culture, history, and science. It aims to enhance students' motivation to learn more about Japan on their own.

Student learning outcomes

In the Japanese design class, after defining what "design" is, students are introduced to special features of "Japanese design" through examples. In this way, students may gain insights into Japanese culture and values.
The history of science and technology in Japan classes intend to trace the story and the background of Japan's rapid development in science and technology since the mid 19th century.

Keywords

Japan, International exchange students, Japanese culture, History of Japanese science and technology, Japanese industry, Japanese research institutes, Japanese design

Competencies that will be developed

Specialist skills ✔ Intercultural skills ✔ Communication skills Critical thinking skills ✔ Practical and/or problem-solving skills

Class flow

May vary by instructor.

Course schedule/Required learning

  Course schedule Required learning
Class 1 Historical and contemporary issues in Japanese design. Submit report papers.
Class 2 Understanding Japanese traditional culture. Experiencing Japanese tea ceremony Understand the spirit/the history of Japanese tea ceremony.
Class 3 History of Japanese science and technology ① History of Tokyo Tech. Understand the development of Japanese science and technology through the outstanding discoveries from the Tokyo Tech.
Class 4 Domestic industry visit JXTG Nippon Oil & Energy Corporation part 1, Negishi Refinery. Exchange opinions with Tokyo Tech alumni who work in the JXTG and submit report papers.
Class 5 Domestic industry visit JXTG Nippon Oil & Energy Corporation part 2, Central Technical Research Laboratory. Exchange opinions with Tokyo Tech alumni who work in the JXTG and submit report papers.
Class 6 History of Japanese science and technology ② Edo Period. Understand the banning of fire-arms in the early Edo period as a unique example in the history of technology.
Class 7 History of Japanese science and technology ③ Meiji Modernization and Industrialization. Understand Morris-Suzuki's 'The Technological Transformation of Japan, 1-142 (esp.71-104).
Class 8 History of Japanese science and technology ④ History of Water Management: From Edo to Tokyo Explain duality of water problems in Tokyo.
Class 9 Domestic research institute visit Fukushima Renewable Energy Institute part 2 Submit report papers.
Class 10 Domestic research institute visit Fukushima Renewable Energy Institute part 2. Same as above.
Class 11 Presentation for assessment part 1 Students will present individual oral reports on what they learned in the course.
Class 12 Presentation for assessment part 2 Same as above.

Textbook(s)

Handouts will be given in each class.

Reference books, course materials, etc.

For history of Japanese science and techonology: Noel Perrin, Giving up the Gun: Japan's Reversion to the Sword, 1543-1879, (1988), Tessa Morris-Suzuki, The Technological Transformation of Japan (CUP, 1994); Fukuzawa Yukichi, An Outline of a Theory of Civilization (1875) (Sophia, 1973); James R. Bartholomew, The Formation of Science in Japan (Yale, 1993); Masayuki Tanimoto, ed., The Role of Tradition in Japan's Industrialization (OUP, 2006).

Assessment criteria and methods

Students will be evaluated on a pass/fail basis based on attendance, written reports, and a final presentation. To pass the course, students are required to join in the following activities: JXTG visit (Class 4, 5), Fukushima renewable energy institute visit (Class 9, 10) and final presentation (Class 11, 12).

Related courses

  • LAW.X422 ： Japan Studies II

Prerequisites (i.e., required knowledge, skills, courses, etc.)

Only participants of Tokyo Tech Winter Program can take this course.

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