Bike Parking

This is my current bike, parked in front of the building housing my office.
I took this the same day I took the other shots of the risible bike parking lot in Shinagawa.




I'd just written an article for Metropolis, and I took the photos just in case the editor wanted them.

The article's here, and the conditions described haven't improved noticeably:

http://metropolis.co.jp/tokyo/696/lastword.asp

Literacy and Technology and How They're Used

With admirable timing, an old friend sent this link to me today.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121063808679386853.html?mod=opinion_main_commentaries


I'll read that book at my first opportunity, even though the only thing I found really surprising in the review is the quoted figure from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, saying that 24% of US 12th graders can compose "organized, coherent prose in clear language with correct spelling and grammar".

I'm surprised that it's that many.

Literacy

I'm aware of the post hoc ergo propter hoc fallacy, but it's difficult not to see a connection between a news story about misappropriation of funds intended for school library book buying
(http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/more-than-20-of-school-library-budget-misappropriated )
and another about Japanese young people recently having trouble reading sub-titles in movies
(http://www.japantoday.com/category/kuchikomi/view/what-are-nazis-todays-kids-cant-handle-movie-subtitles).


As for the adequacy of education regarding modern history, or ancient history, for that matter, that's a topic for another time.

For starters

Welcome to the blog.


For starters, here's a link to the most recent of the (almost) weekly articles I write at the behest of my employer:
http://archive.mag2.com/0000130401/index.html


The navigation stuff is in Japanese, but unless you want to subscribe to it you really only need to know that the box with the list of dates and the arrows at the lower right is where you go to look up previous weeks' articles.


The first one, April 26, 2004, gives a more detailed introduction of my background.