Big in Japan: Robots Will Take Care of Us When We’re Old

by Matthew Firestone on

Robots are all the rage here in Japan, which is why it shouldn’t come as a surprise that they’ll probably take care of us one day when we get old.

At a home care and rehabilitation convention in Tokyo this week, commercial buyers were given a demonstration of all the latest in care-taking robot technology.

A full-body robotic suit developed by the Kanagawa Institute of Technology is powered by twenty-two pneumatic pumps, allowing the user to hoist people off their feet with ease. Sensors attached to the user’s skin detect when their muscles are straining, and subsequently signals pumps to activate, thus providing support.

Considering that nurses sometimes need to lift a heavy patient off the bed to take care of them, the numerous applications of this technology are immediately apparent.

During a demonstration, a volunteer was quickly lifted off a table. “It doesn’t feel at all like I’m being lifted by a robot,” she said. “This feels so comfortable and very human.”

Since Japan’s population is rapidly graying, the elderly care industry is starting to boom. According to economists, the care technology market is estimated to be worth over one billion dollars. Hoping to capitalize on this lucrative niche, robotics companies have been rolling out some impressive contraptions.

For instance, consider Secom Co.’s My Spoon feeding robot, which helps elderly or disabled people eat with a spoon- and fork-fitted swiveling arm.

In a demonstration, developer Shigehisa Kobayashi operated the joystick with his chin, yet was able to finely slice a block of tofu and maneuver the piece to his mouth.

“It’s all about empowering people to help themselves,” Kobayashi said. “We want to give the elderly control over their own lives,”

With a price tag of US$3,500, clearly it’s also all about cashing in.

Of course, the incredible innovation doesn’t stop there.

A muscle suit developed by the Tokyo University of Science consists of just rubber and nylon, and can easily be slipped on like a life jacket. However, since its powered by air pressure actuators, the suit allows the user to enhance their strength.

Considering that the elderly lose a great deal of strength in their bodies, an invention such as this would greatly increase a person’s ability to lift objects and subsequently better take care of themselves.

Finally, the convention also saw the release of the intelligent wheelchair, dubbed TAO Aicle by Fujitsu Ltd. and Aisin Seiki Co.

This remarkable device has an onboard Global Positioning System (GPS), which allows the chair to identify its position and navigate between destinations. It can even respond to voice commands, automatically travel to present destinations, stop at traffic lights and maneuver around obstacles.

Amazing. What will they think of next?

For more information on the crazy robots coming to a future near you, check out my prior posting Japanese Robots Will Take Over the World.

** Photos Courtesy of the Associated Press (AP) **

Big in Japan: Scenes from the World Rubik’s Cube Championship

by Matthew Firestone on

Did you know that there is an annual Rubik’s Cube competition held every year in Budapest, Hungary, the hometown of Erno Rubik, the cube’s inventor?

I know I didn’t, which is why I was ecstatic to learn that the 2007 Rubik’s Cube World Championship this past Sunday was won by Yu Nakajima of Japan. The 16 year old boy was able to solve the classic 3×3 cube, which has six sides of a different color with nine tiles on each side, in an average time of 12.46 seconds over five attempts.

Damn that’s fast!

And, the craziest part was that unlike my friends and me, he was able to solve the cube without having to peel off and put back on the stickers.

For his unbelievable skill, honed prowess and somewhat absurd talent, young Nakajima was able to walk away with a prize package totaling €5,000, US$7,000 or roughly 840,000 yen.

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Of course, the fun and games didn’t stop there! After all, this is the Rubik’s Cube World Championship!

With more than 250 competitors from 33 countries taking part in the event, the fourth world championship overall and the first to be held in Hungary since competition began in 1982, Rubik’s Cube World Championship divvied out a total of €20,000 or US$28,000 in prizes.

Sharing in the loot was Andrew Kang of the United States, who finished second in the overall competition, and Mitsuki Gunji of Japan, who finished third. Kang also set the best time for a single attempt at the championship, which was an astonishing 10.88 seconds.

Amazingly, the world record is no more than 9.86 seconds, which has been held since May by Thibaut Jacquinot of France.

It gets more surreal.

The Rubik’s Cube World Championship also featured competitors who showed their skill at solving with one hand or with their feet.

Ryan Patricio, an 18-year old high school senior from California, defended his world title in the one-hand category with a new world record, averaging 21.13 seconds in five attempts. “Definitely there is room improvement and I expect a sub-20 (second) average at the next world championship in two years,” said the boy genius.

Finland’s Anssi Vanhala was fastest with his feet at 49.33 seconds. “I am very happy with the victory because I had set myself a target of 50 seconds, which I bettered,” said Vanhala, who is just 15 years old.

It gets even more surreal.

Hungary’s Matyas Kuti drew the biggest crowds after winning several of the blindfold events. Although exactly how they do it is completely beyond my realm of comprehension, blindfold contestants try to solve the game by memorizing the position of key cubes before covering their eyes.

(Yes. There are actually people out there who can solve a Rubik’s cube blindfolded – how stupid do you feel now?)

Kuti’s best blindfolded time for the 3×3 cube was just over 1 minute, 7 seconds.

Rubik himself, an engineer who developed the cube in 1974, made a rare public appearance at the medal ceremony. “I’m glad the cube is reaching new generations, who face it with fresh wonder, curiosity and enthusiasm,” he added.

Big in Japan: Drinking Collagen Keeps Japanese Women Young and Beautiful

by Matthew Firestone on

Ever wonder why it is that Japanese women have such healthy looking skin? Ever wonder how Japanese women manage to look so young well into their golden years?

What if I told you that there was a simple and cheap remedy for reducing wrinkles, hiding blemishes and firming up loose skin. For just a few dollars a day, you too can turn back the clock and wash away the visible signs of aging.

And no, the answer is not a face lift…

And no, the answer is not Botox…

Although the secret is slowly spreading to the Western World, for years Japanese women have been drinking daily mega-doses of collagen as supplement to their diet.

Collagen, the main protein of connective tissue in animals, is a long, fibrous, structural protein that gives strength to tissues and cells. It is also responsible for skin strength and elasticity, and its degradation leads to the formation of wrinkles that accompany aging.

Collagen, dissolved in vitamin water and bottled for your consumption, is also sold at convenience stores across Japan.


Now, I know that it’s easy to be skeptical about health and beauty products, especially since the next big thing is always being touted on late night infomercials across North America. And of course, we all know that the Japanese have incredibly healthy diets that are based on rice and fish, compared with the North America propensity for fatty foods.

Also, I don’t want to discount their genetic predisposition, especially considering that the Japanese tend to age very well, and generally look younger than their Western counterparts.

But, there is scientific reason to believe that collagen may in fact be something of a fountain of youth. And although anecdotal evidence isn’t exactly the most reliable of methods, my Japanese friends swear by stuff.

As a structural protein, collagen has great tensile strength, and is the main component of cartilage, ligaments, tendons, bones and teeth. In addition to retaining the firmness of skin, it is also responsible for strengthening blood vessels as well as connective tissues.

For years, collagen has been widely used in various types of cosmetic surgery, as a healing aid for burn patients, for reconstructing bones and ligaments, and in a number of dental and orthopedic procedures.

Of course, all of this doesn’t necessarily mean that drinking collagen will result in better skin, thicker hair, stronger teeth and healthier bones, and the scientific consensus on the benefits of liquid supplements remains undecided. However, this hasn’t stopped Japanese health and beauty companies from packaging the stuff and selling it in bulk to the consumer, netting millions of dollars of profit each year.

In Tokyo, you can by bottles containing 10,000 mg of collagen dissolved in a vitamin and mineral packed peach-flavored solution for approximately US$2 (230 yen). And remarkably, you don’t even have to go to a specialty store to buy the product.

Instead, just simple walk out of your apartment, head into the first convenience store you see, and give in to your vanity for the same price as a cup of coffee.

Truth be told, I can’t stop drinking the stuff.

Call it vanity (or possibly stupidity), but there’s no denying how young and healthy all of my Japanese friends look.

Will let you know how my quest for beauty works out in a few months’ time…

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Savvy Traveler: How to Spot Fake Wasabi

by Iva Skoch on

Wasabi (aka the lump of green stuff that comes with sushi) is not horseradish. Wasabi is a plant that grows primarily in Japan but now also in the Pacific Northwest of the US. It is difficult to grow and can cost up to $100/lb. You see where I’m going with this…

In order to meet the rising demand for $6 supermarket sushi, the green stuff you are most likely getting with your sushi is American horseradish, mustard and coloring, hopefully at least mixed with the real stuff.

If you would like to be sure what you have, Sushifaq.com suggests, you can ask your wait staff if what you are served is ‘real wasabi’ or ‘fresh wasabi’ and if not, if it is available. If you are served putty, more than likely it is not real. Real wasabi is grated (traditionally on a sharkskin grater called an oroshi) and looks as such. Fake wasabi is not and does not. Just ask your wait staff for ‘fresh wasabi’ and if they have the real thing, they will usually return with a dish with a grated pile of the real thing, which is a very different experience from fake wasabi. If you are buying wasabi in store, read the label to determine if you have real wasabi or something else.

GADLING TAKE FIVE: Week of September 29–October 5

by Jamie Rhein on

How exactly does one pick just five posts to highlight out of a week’s worth of post bounty? Impossible, I say. Particularly since we have one more blogger on our team who has been a writing fiend ever since he started posting on Monday. Blogger Grant Martin has an eye and ear out for cheap travel and the bizarre story like Delta Requires Two Seats for Conjoined Twins.

Then there is Leif Pettersen’s last post on his hilarious series My Bloody Romania. He’s back in Minnesota thinking that everywhere he goes smells like french fries. I’ll miss Leif’s missives here, but more can be found at his blog Killing Batteries.

We’ve had a week of dabbling into science and technology with posts on a man-made island (Neil), space travel (me), and forays into the mysterious like the Loch Ness Monster (Catherine). Kelly’s travel read picks have also started again now that she’s back from Australia. There are five new One for the Road gems.

Here are my five posts if I must pick five–and I must. It’s “gadling TAKE FIVE,” that’s why.

This coming week, watch for another Where on Earth post. Brett’s wild about Gozo, Malta, the place he featured for this go round.