Hi! I am Vincent, a French scientist in Tokyo, and I have been working here for 3 years already.

"I need a blog!... I just don't know what to write" my 15 year-old brother Lucas said me once.
As for us, let's simply talk about being in Japan, and (a little bit) about science!

To start with I should say how gratefull I am to be in Japan. This is the place where I discovered what I really wanted to do and, subsequently, I got my dream job.
The first time I came here I was looking for a post-doctoral position in nanotechnology, and found an ideal environment where the research was very dynamic, with plenty of exciting projects.
The JSPS (Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science) offered (and it still does) very good conditions that are well thought of for the convenience of foreign researchers.
Two years later, my old dream came true: to work for a science museum, interact with people, and learn new things everyday. For my employer, Miraikan (the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation) , it probably was a challenge to hire a foreigner who could barely follow discussions in Japanese... but they did it!

Through my experience during my job search, I got the impression that the Japanese, when hiring, are quite sensitive to your personal dreams and you will mark points if you express them honestly in a job interview. Interviewers do not try to find and attack your weaknesses with tricky questions (like they do in France, at least). Rather, they would ask you predictable questions to give you an opportunity to express your message and your dream. Then it's up to you to convince them.

And working in Japan is not as hard as people say (no it's not worse either...). But let's talk about it later. Here is a picture of my working place: the Miraikan, located near Odaiba. Please come and visit it if you are in the area!

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O-Bon is, to a non-Japanese, a very interesting holiday. Interesting in that the entire nation recognizes the importance of family and ancestors and has designated a time to remember during August.

The first explanation I heard about O-Bon was described as a time to recall and memorialize one’s family’s ancestors. People typically go back to their hometown, visit grave sites, pray and remember. I was also told it was a time to express thanks to all those who had gone before, making current existence possible.

I now have seen that O-Bon is a time for family, with many families taking outings to parks, swimming pools, museums as well as doing the traditional duties. It seems to be more of a celebration of life and family as Mom and Dad and the kids share time and “adventures”, and I am heartened by this. The family unit has lately come under question with divorce rates increasing and O-Bon nicely counters. So, although the trains are crowded with families traveling to an outing of some sort, I enjoy knowing that recognizing the importance of family, of belonging, is alive and well in Japan.

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I am a 27 year old phD-student from Sweden and I am working on the molecular characterization of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a bacterium that is resistant to treatment by all the available staphylococcal penicillins, the beta-lactams.
In Sweden, the MRSA are more diversified and also exhibit different genetic organization of the resistance mechanisms than the well-known endemic strains.
I got the amazing opportunity to perform some work and investigate novel Swedish MRSA along with world-leading researchers in this field for seven months, at Juntendo University in Tokyo.

I was very excited to go to Japan and my visit and work was possible to perform only because I received financial support from several foundations. I was glad to meet such positive and encouraging response from most of the organizations that I was in contact with prior to my travel.
I was invited for a ceremony at the Sweden-Japan foundation to receive some grants and a diploma and this was a wonderful opportunity for me to meet other students going to Japan and other people who gave me good advice and further motivated me to go.
Before leaving Sweden, I tried to study some Japanese and learn more about the culture and lifestyle. However, I could never had imagined the differences between Sweden and Japan were actually all that big.
Once I arrived at Narita airport I soon realized that I could not read the signs and most people did not speak English. I understood that I had to keep a positive attitude and to consider my stay in Japan as an adventure, because the circus started the very first day I arrived in Tokyo.

Of course, I spent most of my time in the lab. In Sweden, we are told that Japanese people work a great deal more than us and that the hierarchy is noticeable. The working hours were considerably longer in Japan compared to Sweden. But no one in the lab ever complained about too much work or anything else for that matter.
I usually spend many hours alone in my lab in Sweden after the rest of the staff has gone home. And in Japan, I found it very nice to be surrounded by other motivated young researchers who were dedicated and very excited about their work.
Although the people in the lab were hard working and very skilled, the climate was warm and welcoming and everyone was very helpful. I gained lots of knowledge and experience in Japan that will be helpful for my future work and research. I also met many friends and made contacts that I will hopefully keep forever.

I promised myself to take every opportunity to explore new places and enjoy my stay in Japan. Tokyo is the perfect city for sightseeing with an amazing range of things to see and places to explore in every season of the year.
The complicated spider-web-like map of the Tokyo metro scared me at first sight, but once I discovered how easy and convenient it was to use I spent all my free-time easily cruising through my Tokyo guidebook. I got lost many times in Tokyo, but the knowledge that I would always run into a metro-station made me feel more relaxed and open to explore new areas and places by foot.
I often visited the shrines that are found allover Tokyo, to enjoy the beauty and calmness and also to pray for my research results. That was a new approach for my research, but very successful, since my projects in Japan went well over my expectations.

As a foreigner in Japan, there were actually only a few things that really bothered me.
Worst of these were the earthquakes, which I could never get used to.
I spent many sleepless nights staring at my ceiling and waiting for the ground to start moving and dreaming about my house falling apart.
Before I left Sweden I promised my family and friends not to be afraid of the Japanese culture and food and to try something new every day. And I didn’t have to put much effort into that. Only by eating at the hospital restaurant I got to try new dishes more or less everyday, many of them still unidentified to me, but very tasty.
Although, eating with chopsticks were not easy for an untrained Swedish girl, especially the cutting and peeling or removing the bones from the fish was terribly tricky at the beginning and gave rise to many laughs.
A good memory of Tokyo will always be the friendly and smiling faces of the women working at the Juntendo canteen.

Living in Japan was not always easy but I would not say it was difficult, only very different for a Swedish girl. Yes, this was the adventure of my life.
Now that I have returned to Sweden I cannot stop talking about the fascinating island Japan and its wonderful inhabitants and beautiful seasons.
I miss Japan every day and I am looking forward to come and visit soon again.

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“It’s not personal, it’s business” seems like a silly thing to say, because business is conducted by people, for people.

I have been in business here in Tokyo for a while, and I have always enjoyed the humaneness of business here.

A quality product or service, professionally provided in a pleasant manner is expected and serves as a foundation for all commerce in Japan. Once that foundation is established, it then leads to relationships.

Many of my clients have developed into friends, and almost all have touched me with their loyalty, compassion, and support.

Just recently I experienced surgery and was unavailable for an extended time. The outpouring of concern and sincere well wishes was overwhelming; with my clients stating unequivocally that they would wait for my return instead of a replacement.

Japan has taught me business is personal, in that business is people working with, and for, people.

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Hello, my name is Gary Vierheller and I will be offering you a few thoughts on life in Japan from a non-Japanese, an alien. I hope you find these ideas of some interest.

Most people are unaware of why Miraikan (National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation) came into existence. Why spend $500M(USD) on another science museum?

The answer can be found with the Science Council of Japan (http://www.scj.go.jp/en/index.html) and their April 2005 report entitled “Japan Vision 2050: Principle of Strategic Science and Technology Policy Toward 2020.”(http://www.scj.go.jp/en/vision2050.pdf)

That long-winded name refers to a fascinating plan to develop Japan’s greatest natural resource, her people.
How to do this? The focus is on education in science and technology in order to meet the projected challenges that are beginning and will face every country on our planet--challenges such as “global environmental degradation, population growth, the widening of the North-South divide and the sustainability of human society”.

Miraikan was one of the first efforts in a vision to begin the re-education of all of Japan’s people, as well as non-Japanese in Japan, by breaking the psychological barrier that exists between people and science. Once people begin to learn that scientists are normal people, that science is approachable and understandable, and the purpose of science is to understand…everything, then non-scientists can become involved and begin to contribute to the continued progress of science.

As Dr. Mohri (Executive Director of Miraikan) says,
“Scientists are great people doing wonderful research for the benefit of all life on our planet.”

The step to follow is to educate scientists and researchers on how to improve their communication skills.

This is something Miraikan is doing right now through Science Work Shop Programs; Meet the Scientist program, and the Lab Tour. The idea is not scientists and researchers teaching, but rather “people teaching people”.

Miraikan is thought of as a nucleus inside of the spinning electrons of the media, schools, volunteers, researchers and engineers, administrative agencies, other science museums and businesses.

Miraikan serves to connect in every way imaginable all with the public and with each other. Miraikan is also reaching out beyond Japan to connect with other science museums in order to share successful methods and to learn from each other.

With the tragedy, cynicism, and mistrust in the world today, it is refreshing to encounter a long-range vision dedicated to the betterment of all life.

I suggest you take a look at the Science Council of Japan’s website. It just might inspire changes for good.

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