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Child Should be Protected from Technology

Child Should be Protected from Technology

August 9, 2023

By Yui Naoi
Have you heard a child crying, “Lend me smartphone! Lend me tablets!” Parents hand over their smartphones to their demanding children. It is unfortunate, because the period up to the age of five is an important period for children’s healthy growth. How they spend this critical period will greatly affect their development and personality in the future. There are several reasons why children under the age of five should should be protected from harmful communication technologies.

Smartphones and tablets negatively affect the healthy growth of children. Looking at the same screen for a long time can cause eyestrain and poor eyesight for children who are still immature. Also listening to electronic sounds for a long time will also weaken their hearing. Electronic media creates a world of light and sound, and there is no light, sound, smell, taste or touch that nature creates. Therefore, only sight and hearing are working, and the five senses cannot be developed in a well-balanced manner.
In addition, children will stop playing outside if they are entertained at home with games on smartphones and tablets. If children only play indoors and stop playing outdoors, they will not get enough exercise. Lack of exercise can lead to obesity and stress. Also, since children play only on the screen by themselves, they will not be able to communicate with many friends and build social relationships. I think that small children should learn to develop social skills by talking, quarreling and laughing together with their peers.
Using smartphones and tablets will limit the interaction with their family members. First of all, spending time with their family members is the most important thing to do for young children. If children cannot communicate well with their family members, parent-child and sibling relationships will deteriorate. In addition, children use electronic media, and blue light prevents them from developing their imagination and concentration by eliminating the time for reading, which is important for their healthy growth. In conclusion, disadvantages of using modern media is serious for children under the age of five. They include mental, physical, and social problems. Children under the age of five should stay away from modern communication technologies.

Serious Trash Problem on the Beach

Serious Trash Problem on the Beach

August 9, 2023

By Tomoki Fujii
     Nowadays, trash on the beach is getting more serious around the world. Trash on the beach mainly contain plastic products. According to the study by National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS), 8 million metric tons of plastic trash harm marine animals and ecosystems. The cause of this phenomenon is said to be human activity. In fact, throwing away trash and the development on the coast pollutes the beach, and these human activities sometimes cause death of wild animals like seabirds and sea turtles. This means that trash on the beach trouble not only humans but ecosystems. Despite this serious situation, there are still certain ways for people to solve the problem of trash on the beach.
     As stated previously, trash on the beach affects not only humans but wild animals. However, wild animals may face more serious problems than humans. That’s because they sometimes eat trash like plastic products by mistake. They also get caught on trash. These incidents result in death of them. Despite these facts, there are some people who don’t stop throwing away trash, and much trash on the beach doesn’t decrease at all. People need to understand these situations because it is too late when things get bad. In addition, they must consider what they can do to solve the problem of trash on the beach. Then what should they do to deal with the problem? To answer this question, the following must be helpful.
     One way that people reduce trash on the beach is to set up a trash box in every beach. One of the reasons why some people throw away trash is that there are not enough trash boxes on the beach. As you know, there are some signs that tells people not to throw away trash on the beach. However, at the same time, you may notice that there is not enough trash box on the beach. This means that people who come to the beach should bring back their trash. Although this is quite natural for people, but it needs to be considered that there are some people who don’t obey instruction of the sign. That’s why it is necessary to install enough trash boxes on the beach.
     A weekly clean-up event is another possible solution. As you already know, there are many events everywhere to clean up the beach. For example, the article of The Government of Japan says that a woman in Hokuriku region, Japan, leads her team who positively engage clean up the beach once a month. However, almost all of them take place yearly or monthly. It means that few clean-up events take place weekly. The more frequently people clean up the beach, the more trash on the beach certainly decreases. It is natural and implies that more frequent opportunities to clean up the beach is important. In addition, the other ways play an important role to increase participants in such events.
     To reduce a large quantity of trash on the beach, installing trash boxes on every beach and weekly clean-up events are valid solutions. In addition, you must remember the fact again that almost all of trash on the beach relate to humans and destroy ecosystems. These things certainly bring a big change to the environment.

Animals in Families with Children

Animals in Families with Children

August 9, 2023

By Shiori Yamamot
Dogs, cats, tropical fish, parrots and hamsters… Today, lot of people live with a wide variety of animals. Most people feel at ease or feel happy by spending time with their pets. Also, in recent years, the positive effects that animals bring to us, such us animal therapy, have been gathering attention. Animals have a marvelous ability that cheer people up without words. Keeping a pet have positive effects on children in terms of mentally health, development of social skills and understanding of the importance of life.
     Taking care of animals helps children reduce stress. Some children cannot express their ideas well to their parents. At such a time, pets are always by their side. Especially, dogs or cats must be the best counselor for them.
     Iaddition to mental health, taking care of pets contributes to improvement of social skills of kids. If their parents welcome an animal as a new member of the family, the children always must care about the pets for their health because pets cannot complain of pain with words. Therefore, children need to understand the animal’s feeling from their actions or facial expression. In the process, children can acquire the skill to understand the feelings of other people. Also, kids can deepen understanding of the importance of life. Most animals cannot live longer than humans, so the owner has to be by their pet’s deathbed. It must be a very sad thing and hard to move on. However, children will learn that nobody has an eternal life and life is so precious. This experience helps children value not only their life but also others’.
     Some people might disagree because children often have more interests in other things rather than taking care of their pets. However, this concern might be solved by an assignment of responsibility within the family. By entrusting a specific role instead of leaving all the care of animals to the children, they will obtain a strong sense of responsibility to their duty.
     In conclusion, taking an animal at family with children have many benefits as for kids’ mental health, social skills and comprehension of life. Keeping a pet contributes to enhance children’s healthy development.

Benefits of Reading Books for College Students

August 9, 2023

By Tomi Watanabe
A lot of college students these days use their phones. They often use their phones during breaks, while waiting for a bus, in the library and at home. Many people waste their time using phones. I wasted a lot of time on the YouTube and SNS’s, too. I regarded my bad behave when I failed an examination. I should have stopped using my phone. I would like to argue that college students should read more books.
Reading books have many good points. For example, if you read books, you can build vocabulary. If you built good academic vocabulary, you could write reports easily and able to obtain good grades. You can get a lot of good knowledge. It’s true some online materials offer good information, but printed books are carefully edited and the value of information in printed books is greater. In addition, by reading novels, your imagination improves. You be able to anticipate a variety of things through reading novels. Likewise, by reading some business books, you can get the knowledge what required for your job.
　Some people might say that purchasing some books cost, on the other hand, apps on our phone are free to spend the time. Surely, buying books requires money. However, I am convinced vocabulary and knowledge are more than worth the money. Reading books is the easiest way to invest in yourself. In conclusion, college students should read books instead of enjoying SNS’s and video sharing. Reading books help you to live a better life. Why don’t you should set yourself apart from phones.

Benefits of Study Abroad

Benefits of Study Abroad

August 9, 2023

By Ami Tsuru
     “It seems that studying abroad is good, but is it difficult?” I think there are many students who want to study abroad but are hesitant because of money and cultural differences. I have considered studying abroad several times. Universities and government are helping students with a lot of ways to study abroad. However, there are many people who don’t study abroad. Some people think that there is no point in going just because it costs money. Nonetheless studying abroad gives you a variety of experiences and skills. There are several reasons why studying abroad as a student is important, including acquiring English ability, understanding different cultures and increasing future options.
     Learning English abroad will help students acquire the ability to speak English fluently. Unlike in Japan, English is widely spoken overseas. To continue to study, you will need the ability to speak English. In Japan, there are few foreign people around, so there are few opportunities to talk in English. Since there are only foreign people abroad, it is necessary to speak a lot of English. Therefore, the ability to use English naturally and practically grows.
     We can experience the culture of country we visit. Behaviors that are allowed in Japan will be allowed in foreign countries. For example, in Japan, it is a good manner to hold a rice bowl while eating, but in Korea, it is good manners to keep the rice bowl on the take while eating. Also, in Japan, people often take off their shoes when entering a house, but in many other countries, people enter a house without taking off their shoes. We can learn manners and rules in a foreign country that we wouldn’t normally know if we lived in Japan.
     If we can speak English, we can get a job at an overseas in the future or go on to an overseas university. Studying abroad will increase the number of occupations you can choose, which is useful for finding a job. We can expand our horizons by meeting people with various backgrounds in foreign countries. Being able to speak English makes it easier to find a job because there are more options for many kinds of occupations. If we make use of experience and go on to study abroad, we will be able to learn deeply.
     Some students might object to going study abroad, saying the drawbacks. It requires a lot of money. Graduation may be delayed due to the time spent in studying abroad. Also the life will be stressful in a foreign culture. However, as stated previously, studying abroad provide good experiences and the ability to speak English.
     In conclusion, study abroad will help you acquire ability to English, understand different cultures, and expand your future career options. We can learn a lot of things that we didn’t know by going abroad. Go among the students and have a nice experience!

Paper Books or E-Books?

Paper Books or E-Books?

August 9, 2023

By Ryuki Tada
Nowadays, you can read various books on your smartphone. There are people who slide their screens sideways on their phones and people turning pages on their paper books. Probably now is the middle of the transition from paper books to e-books. Reading contents are released in both paper books and e-books. I would like to compare the differences between paper books and e-books.

Many people still love paper books. They say that paper books are good for the eyes because they do not emit blue light harmful to the eyes. They also say that it is easier to concentrate on contents because books do not distract the attention of a reader with annoying notifications. They also argue paper books are more beautiful than e-books. Each paper book has a different design, and readers can enjoy arranging their books on books shelves as they are part of the interior.
However, I think e-books are better in many ways. First, the portability of materials is greater. When I moved to a new place to attend university, I left most of my comic books at my parent’s house because they did not fit in my luggage. I thought if I had read them in an e-book, I could have brought all of them with me in my smartphone. E-books are more convenient. If you have an e-book, we can read stories anytime and anywhere. I often read stories during breaks between classes and waiting time at a hospital. Also, when you read an e-book, you can change the text size to your desired size. The most remarkable point of e-books is that we don’t have to go to a bookstore to buy books. We can buy contents whenever we want to read them. In addition, for e-books, we can buy not only one volume at a time but also one episode. In other words, we can buy it at a low price and read it little by little. I have been enjoying the book for a long time by buying and reading each episode. In addition, by paying a certain amount of money every month, you can read as many books as you want for free.

Paper book lovers will argue that the data will be lost if a smartphone is broken. It is true. I lost my comics contents once when I broke my smartphones. However, I was able to restore the data from another smartphone when I created my account in it. The data were saved in the cloud.
In conclusion, after talking everything into consideration, I think e-books have more advantages than paper books. E-books are portable, convenient, and reasonable. Media are evolving. I think e-books are on trend.

Face-to-Face Classes are the Best

Face-to-Face Classes are the Best

August 9, 2023

By Towa Oguni

Most students have thought at one time or more, may this class change to online or on-demand from in person? A lot of university and other school have taken classes on online or on-demand due to coronavirus. But now, many schools change class format from online or on-demand to face to face. There are some students saying that on online or on demand a class is the best way. Nonetheless, a class in person is suitable for students to study. Teaching in person allows direct communication between a teacher and students, and also allows a teacher to choose the teaching method that best suits students. There are several reasons why teaching in person at school or university is important, including improving communication skill, asking a question in direct and effective classes for students.
     Taking a class in person leads to improve communication skills. Classes face to face allow students to interact with each other. Students can improve their communication skill by discussing and solving problems and discussing issues in class. By communicating with various people, you can be stimulated by them and grow as well. Communication skills are important even as adult and face to face classes have a role in developing them.
     In addition to improve communication skills, students are more likely to ask questions of their teachers. It is not a good idea to leave something you do not understand, and it is difficult to ask questions in an on class, and not on demand. While classes in person allow students to ask questions directly to teachers or professors. Also, when one person asks a question, other students can get ideas from it and creating a good learning environment.
     Becoming from online or on-demand classes to in person lead to effective learning. Teachers can teach materials that suits students face-to-face. It is not possible to tell the student’s level of understanding online because their body language cannot be clear online. Teachers can manage students activities easily in the classroom as well.
     Some students might claim that online and on-demand classes could offer the same content as in person. It is true that the content itself may be the same. On the surface, this point has some merits. However, as stated previously, it is also true that online and on-demand classes have less positive impact for students, and in person classes are overwhelmingly more effective for students.
     In conclusion, there are many merits of classes in person. A school or college is a place where students learn, and it is the mission of school to provide effective instruction for students. If students who take effective classes achieve higher grades, it is more likely to lead to future success. Schools should offer classes in person.

Merits of P.E. Class for College Students

Merits of P.E. Class for College Students

August 8, 2023

By Nozomi Murakami

Children are running on the school ground under a blue sky without any clouds. A runner is crossing the goal line and spectators are screaming and shouting. In Japan, children take P.E. classes to graduate from high school. Most university students, however, do not take P.E. classes. I would like to argue that university students also should take P. E. classes for three reasons.

First, the P.E. class gives students a chance to get along well with their classmates. When college students just enter university, they are worried about if they can make friends. In academic classes, it’s hard to get close, because students only talk about questions that they are asked to discuss in the class. However, in P.E. class, students can talk about personal matters, while enjoying sports.
Second, the P. E. class is good for college students’ health. In college, students who take enough exercise are few. They are busy with studying and homework. If they are required to take P.E. classes, they will have more opportunities to do exercise, and they will be healthier.
Finally, the P.E. class positively impacts academic achievement of students. Physical exercise such as competing in a group and getting better each other leads to boost students’ mental power. In addition, physical activity improves memory. Better cognitive ability and memory will help college students understand materials and do well in exams. Thus, there are many benefits of taking P.E. class for students. Good P.E. class makes it possible for students to make friends, to live healthy life and to do well academically.

Danger of Distracted Driving

Danger of Distracted Driving

August 8, 2023

By Kyoko Abe
     You may have seen people who eat, make a call or put on makeup while driving. Also, you must have heard some news about car accidents because of these careless activities. People are busy and want to do it while driving. Whatever their reasons, distracted driving is a serious problem.
     First, it’s dangerous to drive and do something else. According to data of the National Police Agency, the number of traffic accidents related to mobile phone use, etc. doubled to 2,645 in 2019, compared to 1,380 per year in 2009. Each day, more than 9 people are killed due to distracted driving. More than 1060 people are injured in crashes that involve a distracted driver. One out of 3 people text while driving. You are 23 times more likely to crash while texting while driving. Distraction was reported as a factor in nearly 1 in 5 crashes in which someone was injured.
     Second, drivers underestimate the danger of distracted driving. The number of traffic accidents caused by using mobile phones was 1424 in last year. Also, the fatal accident rate because of using mobile phones was 2.4 times higher than the cases where people didn’t use them. The length of time a driver perceives danger by looking at an image varies depending on the driving environment, but according to various research reports, it is consistent that the driver perceives danger if the image is viewed for more than two seconds. If you drive at 60 km/h, it will cover approximately 33.3 meters in 2 seconds. If a pedestrian crosses the road during that time, or if the vehicle in front of you stops due to a traffic jam, you may cause an accident. It means that looking away lead to an accident.

Finally, imprisonment for distracted driving is too short. As of January 2021, if you look at the screen of a smart phone call or car navigation system while driving, you will be subject to “imprisonment of up to 6 months or a fine of up to 100,000 yen”. Compared to November 2019, a new penalty of imprisonment has been added, and the fine has doubled from “50,000 yen or less” to “100,000 yen or less”. The penalty is tripled to 18,000 yen (for ordinary cars), and the number of violation points is also tripled to 3 points. However, if you cause traffic hazards, you will be subject to “imprisonment of up to one year or a fine of up to 300,000 yen”. Since there is no penalty and the score is tripled to 6 points, you cannot escape the penalty by paying the penalty and your license will be suspended. However, the penalties should be heavier because it involves human lives. In addition, people do not have a sense of danger because the penalties are lenient.
Thus, distracted driving is very dangerous. Drivers should be aware of the dangerous consequences of distracted driving and the term of imprisonment should be longer.

photo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/intelfreepress/8598246170/sizes/o/in/photostream/

Kanazawa Castle

August 8, 2023

By Ryota Kawamoto

Have you ever been to Kanazawa in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan? Kanazawa is a good place for sightseeing. There are a market where you can enjoy delicious food, a downtown where you can see old-fashioned streets. If you want to experience traditional Japanese culture, Kanazawa Castle is best spot for your sightseeing. Kanazawa Castle is a great sightseeing spot.
The Castle was built 400 years ago. It is surrounded with white walls and stone walls as if it protects the headquarter from enemies. The traditional castle let you feel 400-years history. After pass through the gate, there is a lot of nature there. The park has lush green grass, and you can take a break while feeling nature everywhere. In spring, cherry blossoms bloom and the park is so beautiful. At night you can enjoy cheery blossoms lit up at night. In autumn, the park is filled with maple leaves which turn bright orange and red colors. Right next to Kanazawa Castle, there is a wonderful park, Kenrokuen. Kenrokuen is one of the three most famous gardens Japan. The spacious garden was built by the lords of Kanazawa Castle.

If you come to Japan, please visit Kanazawa. It is a great place to feel the atmosphere of traditional Japan.