!Special Lecture「Japanese Culture」In Three Case Studies… Or, “So, what`s it like to live in Japan?”

Student and faculty guests from the College of Charleston are visiting our university this week. We have a very long, close and important reltionship with this college, so the Center for International Education is rolling out the red carpet and pulling out the top guns for a sample Japanese class, lecture on Japanese business and lecture on Japnese culture. I have been tasked with the last. So how am I supposed to explain the complexities of Japanese culture in 90 minutes? To be honest, the longer I have been in Japan, the less I seem to understand.

Around the time I was conscripted for this lecture, I had the pleasure of meeting my cousin's daughter's husband (or first cousin once removed-in-law), Preston. After talking for a while, Preston asked me, "so, what's it like to live in Japan?" I was taken back by this question, no one has asked me this in a long time. I tried to briefly explain my family, neighborhood, job and research. Then it dawned on me, why not organize my lecture in a similar way and call them case studies. So I will be talking about my neighborhood (with a focus on my research of its fall festival), my major research subject (Deaf communities and sign language) and my passion (the Hanshin Tigers).

Thanks, Preston!

I am providing some resources below for my lecture audience (and others who might be interested) with more details about the case studies.

1) My Neighborhood (in Kadoma-shi): Focus on the Fall Festival

Sources:

祭り Matsuri Photo Exhibition 写真展: https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/2024/01/matsuri-photo-exhibition.html

Japanese Anthropology Workshop (JAWS) Newsletter No. 53: https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/2025/04/announcement-new-jaws-newsletter.html

Distributed Multimodalities: Ethnographic Experiments in Memory and Performance: https://distributedmultimodalities.carrd.co/

Distributed Multimodalities on VAoJ: https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/search?q=Distributed+Multimodalities%3A+Ethnographic+Experiments+in+Memory+and+Performance

Fall Festival on VAoJ: https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/search?q=fall+festival

2) My Primary Research: Deaf Communities and Sign Language

Sources:

「A Primer on Deaf Communities in Japan: Identity, Sign Language and Diversity」@YCAPS, Getting to Know Japan Webinar (2024): https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/2024/06/announcementa-primer-on-deaf.html

The Embodiment of the Deaf in Japan: A Set of Heuristic Models for Identity, Belonging and Sign Language Use (2023): https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/2024/01/theres-nothing-like-holding-real-book.html

Sign language, what is it? An ESCAP guide towards legal recognition of sign languages in Asia and the Pacific (2022): https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/2023/05/new-publication-from-united-nations.html

Representations of Deaf People in Japan: Inspiration, Outrage and Real Life (2021): https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/2021/05/representations-of-deaf-people-in-japan.html

Barrier-Free Communication for the Deaf in Japan: A Local Initiative for Medical Interpretation Services in Japanese Sign Language (2021): https://kansaigaidai.repo.nii.ac.jp/?action=repository_uri&item_id=8036&file_id=19&file_no=1

Performance, Sign Language, and Deaf Identity in Japan (2019): https://www.anthropology-news.org/articles/performance-sign-language-and-deaf-identity-in-japan/

Living Partial Truths: HIV/AIDS in the Japanese Deaf World (2006): https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/2007/08/hivaids-in-japan.html

Deaf and Sign Language on VAoJ: https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/search?q=deaf+sign+language

3) My Passion: Hanshin Tigers

Sources:

Hanshin Tigers Webpage (in Japanese): https://hanshintigers.jp/

Food Terrorism and Japanese Baseball: A Hanshin Tigers Case Study@SWCAS 11/4/23: https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/2023/11/food-terrorism-and-japanese-baseball.html

Hanshin Tigers on VAoJ: https://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/search?q=hanshin+tigers

2025年度第24回手話言語研究セミナー The 24rd Sign Language Research Seminar「Memories of the Deaf Evoked by Home Movies」

Seems to be a perfect match for VAoJ! Sign language and home movies...

The Japan Institute for Sign Language Studies (JISLS) held its first "Sign Language Research Seminar" in 2000 with the aim of deepening the understanding of sign language research by exchanging opinions among participants from various fields such as sign language, sign language interpreting, welfare, and education. From FY2021, the seminar is being held as part of the "Sign Language Research and Dissemination Project" commissioned by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

In 2025, the theme will be "Memories of the Deaf Evoked by Home Movies," and we will discuss the importance of preserving old footage related to sign language, share the status of domestic and international research (Part 1) , and present research findings in 2025 (Part 2).

For more information and registration: https://jisls.com-sagano.com/seminar/

Mongolian Sign Language Website

Check it out!

https://mnsl.mn/

New Book Announcement: A LONG time in the making! "Anthropology through the Experience of the Physical Body"

Finally! The new book edited by Kaori Fushiki and Ryoko Sakurada has been published! The origins of this book go back to May, 2014 and the panel "Anthropology through the Experience of the Physical Body" at the International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Studies conference in Chiba, Japan. It has been a long and difficult road.

Book description (from Amazon.jp): This book seeks to break new ground, both empirically and conceptually, in examining changing understandings of the physical human body from a variety of anthropological perspectives. In doing so, it interrogates how the body has been and continues to be conceptualised, experienced and interacted with. After an introductory appraisal of recent approaches to understanding the body, the book provides empirically rich accounts from East and Southeast Asia of how cultural, environmental and social norms shape human physicality. The contributions are organised in four broad themes. Part I, ‘Body and Space’, offers two contrasting case studies from Malaysia, both of which examine gender norms associated with marriage and pregnancy, including the taboos associated with these rites of passage. Part II, ‘Imperfect Bodies: Communication and the Body as Media’, analyses two case studies―Deaf people in Japan and masked theatre performance in Bali, Indonesia, to reflect on changing attitudes towards disability, which reflect broader social norms and cultural beliefs about the nature of disability and its place in society. Part III, ‘The Body and Image’, provides a pair of case studies from Singapore, on male fans of the popular manga boys’ love genre and on ways that the Chinese zodiac system is determined from birth and continues to be spiritually embedded in the body of a Chinese individual through ritual practices. Part IV, ‘The Body as Container: Taming the Bodies?’, presents a single case study from Thailand of spirit possession among schoolchildren. Though wide-ranging, all the case studies posit that the body is a site of constant negotiation. The way the body is presented and the way it is seen are shaped by a complex array of social, cultural, political and ideational factors. Anthropology through the Experience of the Physical Body is a valuable interdisciplinary work for advanced students and researchers interested in representations of the body in East and Southeast Asia and for those with wider interests in the field of critical anthropology.

Of interest to VAoJ readers might be chapter 4, The Embodiment of the Deaf in Japan: A Set of Heuristic Models for Identity, Belonging and Sign Language Use. I will post more specifics when I actually receive my own print copy, hopefully soon. It is currently available on Amazon in Kindle format; the print format will be available is March, 2024.

Many thanks to the editors, contributors and production staff.

New publication from the United Nations Economic and Social Commission For Asia and the Pacific: 「Sign language, what is it? An ESCAP guide towards legal recognition of sign languages in Asia and the Pacific」

Abstract:

Sign language is a distinct language. This recognition is enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. There are over 200 sign languages spoken around the world by 70 million Deaf persons. Yet, most hearing people have not been exposed to sign languages and either misunderstand or have limited knowledge about Deaf persons and sign languages. Deaf persons remain largely unheard and unseen in Asian and Pacific societies. The Asia-Pacific region is rich with social, cultural and linguistic diversity. Sign language and Deaf culture are important elements of this rich tapestry.

Sign Language, What is It? An ESCAP Guide towards Legal Recognition of Sign Languages in Asia and the Pacific seeks to refute myths about sign language. It explains the history, distinct elements, and culture of sign language and Deaf persons. It clarifies the importance of early Deaf childhood learning, Deaf education and sign language interpreting. The Guide provides key elements of laws that recognize sign language as a language and that promote its use in diverse situations in the daily life of Deaf persons. This Guide is the first publication on sign language that has been produced to support ESCAP member States in understanding the importance of sign language as a basis for the implementation of the Convention provisions with regard to Deaf persons, Deaf linguistic rights and Deaf culture. This Guide emanates from a collaborative endeavour between ESCAP and The Nippon Foundation.

I might change the first sentence to "Sign languages are real languages that use a visual modality."

This project was a great undertaking and this guide is an excellent resource with useful information, references and citations of important research, infographics, photographs and other materials. Japan is well represented. Especially on pages 54-55, 57-58, 89, 95,137 and 178.

For more information and a free download of the document! https://www.unescap.org/kp/2022/sign-language-what-it-escap-guide-towards-legal-recognition-sign-languages-asia-and-pacific#

"第14回国際手話言語学会 - Theoretical Issues in Sign Language Research 14: 2022, Osaka, Japan" - September 26- October 1, 2022 - National Museum of Ethnology (Minpaku)

TISLR14 will be held at the National Museum of Ethnology (Minpaku). TISLR will be held for the 14th time, but this is the first time it will be held in Asia. For this reason, we have also incorporated a project (panel discussion) that will serve as an opportunity to build a network for sign language linguistics research in Asia. This conference will be held online and onsite in parallel, with consideration given to preventing the spread of the novel coronavirus. We look forward to your active participation and submission of research presentations.　

Date: September 26 (Mon), 2022 - October 1 (Sat), 2022

Venue: Hall at the National Museum of Ethnology
Online and onsite sessions will be held in parallel
National Museum of Ethnology
10-1 Senri Expo Park, Suita, Osaka
565-8511, Japan

Main organizer: National Museum of Ethnology

Schedule:
September 25 (Sun) – 26 (Mon) : Pre-event (Japanese sign language class, Asian sign language workshop, welcome drink [tentative], meeting with interpreters [Presenters are required to attend])
September 27 (Tue) - September 30 (Friday): Theoretical Issues in Sign Language Research (TISLR14)

Official languages: Japanese Sign Language, American Sign Language, International Sign Language, English

https://www.tislr2022.jp/

"Homō loquēns ‘talking human’ Wonders of Language and Languages" - Special Exhibition at the National Museum of Ethnology, Osaka / 1 Sep 2022 – 23 Nov 2022

Dealing with “language”, which is too familiar for most people to think about, over 50 researchers inside and outside Japan, specializing not only in linguistics but also in anthropology, engineering, education, brain science and cognitive psychology, collaborate and show the wonders of language. As part of the exhibition, an installation that is inspired by language will be displayed. It was created by video artist YAMASHIRO Daisuke.

Thursday, September 1st 2022 – Wednesday, November 23, 2022
The Special Exhibition Hall, National Museum of Ethnology
Language: Japanese, Japanese Sign Language, English
Tickets: ¥880 (Adults), ¥450 (College and University Students), Free (High School Students and Younger)

https://loquens.site/

https://www.minpaku.ac.jp/en

"Acquisition of Sign Languages" in Annual Review of Linguistics, Volume 7, 2021

Abstract (in case it is too small to read in the image above): Natural sign languages of deaf communities are acquired on the same time scale as that of spoken languages if children have access to fluent signers providing input from birth. Infants are sensitive to linguistic information provided visually, and early milestones show many parallels. The modality may affect various areas of language acquisition; such effects include the form of signs (sign phonology), the potential advantage presented by visual iconicity, and the use of spatial locations to represent referents, locations, and movement events. Unfortunately, the vast majority of deaf children do not receive accessible linguistic input in infancy, and these children experience language deprivation. Negative effects on language are observed when first-language acquisition is delayed. For those who eventually begin to learn a sign language, earlier input is associated with better language and academic outcomes. Further research is especially needed with a broader diversity of participants.

While I am glad to see this article, it is sad that these facts aren't common knowledge among linguists, anthropologists and the general public.

URL: https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev-linguistics-043020-092357

Alternative Media for Visual Anthropology - check out the Graphic Ethnography in Anthropology News (especially Signs in ‘Toons)

URL: https://www.anthropology-news.org/issue/graphic-ethnography/

Image borrowed from Erich Fox Tree's "Signs in ‘Toons." URL and citation below.

Signs in 'Toons

For one anthropologist comic-style graphics provide a means to document, study, and strengthen Indigenous Mesoamerican sign languages. Linguistic ethnography within (non-tactile) sign language communities is almost inherently visual. Without images, how would one capture and convey how signers communicate?

Photography and video are not always acceptable for disseminating visual data and findings, let alone conducting fieldwork itself. Photos add expense to printing, and photocopied photos become undecipherable blurs. More problematically, cameras may be forbidden in ritual contexts, or participants and researchers may negatively associate them with witchcraft, exploitation, distraction, wealth, or past trauma. In rural Guatemala, where I work, many find electricity, phones, and Internet access costly and unreliable.

My solution for preserving data is to draw cartoon-style caricatures. For research on Mesoamerican sign languages, cartoon graphics are not just a means of documenting signed linguistic discourses; they can reiterate and embody some of the ancient techniques that Indigenous artisans used to represent ancestral signs or gestures.

Read the entire article:

Fox Tree, Erich. 2021. “Signs in ‘Toons.” Anthropology News website, October 15, 2021.
URL: https://www.anthropology-news.org/articles/signs-in-toons/

"Kyoto slammed for manga telling people not to talk at restaurants" - SAVE THE WORLD! LEARN SIGN LANGUAGE!

Image and text from Japan Today, 2/21/21.

Ever since the pandemic began, Japan has been targeting restaurants as one of the primary risk spots for infection, with the main reason being that people inevitably have to remove their masks to eat.

And while some local governments have been asking restaurants to close their doors early at 8 p.m., to prevent diners from overdoing it on booze which tends to lead to loud talking without masks, the coronavirus doesn’t just come out at night, so people are now being asked to practice mokushoku, or “silent eating”, no matter what time they eat out at a restaurant.

While this seems to make sense, seeing as COVID-19 is an airborne virus, some people have been pushing back against the idea, even in Kyoto, where the city has now introduced a four-panel manga to help promote silent eating.

1. In the first panel, a character called Isamu enters a ramen restaurant and notices it’s quiet inside, even though a family is eating there. On the wall beside them is a blue poster, with mokushoku written on it in kanji, which asks people to eat in silence. These blue posters are being used a lot these days in restaurants and they’ve been widely shared on social media.

2. While Isamu waits for his order to arrive, he sees the family communicating to each other via smiles and hand gestures to express their thoughts on how good the meal is. Two of them give each other the thumbs-up sign while the other family member puts their hands above their head to form a maru circle, a gesture used to mean “good” in Japan. Isamu thinks to himself, “So this must be silent eating. This is great!”

3. When Isamu eats his ramen, he follows the example shown to him by the family, giving the staff a thumbs up while thinking “It’s delicious!” The staff smile in return and he feels that the meal enjoyed silently is really tasty.

4. Isamu sees the family leave the restaurant and it’s only then, when they’re outside with their masks covering their faces that they talk to each other, saying that the meal was delicious and they’d like to come back again. This last panel encourages everyone to “Do what you can when you can, bit by bit”.

The panel makes things pretty straightforward, laying out step-by-step alternatives to speaking for anyone confused by what mokushoku means, and Kyoto is keen for everyone to follow these guidelines when dining out.

However, what sounds good in theory might not be so great in practice, as a surprisingly large number of people were quick to criticize the idea online...

Source: https://japantoday.com/category/national/kyoto-slammed-for-manga-telling-people-not-to-talk-at-restaurants

"The Legal Recognition of National Sign Languages"

The World Federation of the Deaf is pleased to continue to provide updated information regarding countries that have legally recognised their national sign languages. This infographic shows which UN Member States have explicit legislation that clearly recognises the language as a distinct language for all deaf people in that country. Many other countries have laws which implicitly or partially recognise their national sign language(s) by way of interpreting or education for deaf children. These laws are not included here.

Here you can review the former infographic of 2017: https://wfdeaf.org/news/resources/infographics-legal-recognition-sign-languages-type-legislation/?fbclid=IwAR0rIM_XdxDow58ThiL0wBFzFSdg2lC7w4958lOd-dvxR_XnwKdoYwSQPno

More information on the 58 countries that currently recognise a sign language can be found here: https://wfdeaf.org/news/the-legal-recognition-of-national-sign-languages/?fbclid=IwAR1wW4JAmqx6-dbHl-zKX_LvfjesiWhbMsJ-LC1okPFr8Da_KGHL1QnuqRg

Source: https://www.facebook.com/Wfdeaf.org

Thanks to Soya Mori for sharing this.

Anthropology News: "Sign Languages as Disaster Entertainment"

Sign Languages as Disaster Entertainment

by Lynn Hou and Octavian Robinson
June 19, 2020

Sign language interpreters have become social media celebrities of our coronavirus moment. But signing is not a form of light entertainment; it should be lifesaving information.

Some gems from the article:

Read the whole article: https://www.anthropology-news.org/index.php/2020/06/19/sign-languages-as-disaster-entertainment/

Cite as: Hou, Lynn, and Octavian Robinson. 2020. “Sign Languages as Disaster Entertainment.” Anthropology News website, June 19, 2020. DOI: 10.1111/AN.1444

Post-Lecture and a shot of "double inspiration porn"

The talk at the Kyoto Asian Studies Group went very well last night. There was a good crowd with several familiar faces. The lecture was one hour and five minutes (thanks to my DWJ students for suggestions on how to cut an earlier and longer version...) and there was almost an hour of interesting and important discussion afterwards. It was a great time. Thanks to KAS and everyone who attended!

In a congratulatory message my former professor and colleague sent me this:

Those who came last night will immediately get it. For those who couldn't attend, it is related to the following quote used in the presentation (and ensuing discussion).

I used to watch videos of abandoned dogs finding their forever homes and deaf people being able to hear for the first time to help soothe me on a bad day.

"Inspiration porn misrepresents deaf people, culture"
BY BRITTANY CRUZ-FEJERAN
The Southwestern College Sun, 05/13/2019
url: https://www.theswcsun.com/inspiration-porn-misrepresents-deaf-people-culture/

See the video before and prepare to be double inspired! (Thanks to EK for the message and screen shot.)



See also: http://visualanthropologyofjapan.blogspot.com/2019/09/announcement-kyoto-asian-studies-group.html

"Why Sign-Language Gloves Don't Help Deaf People" -and- neither does the "'Woman's hand' iPhone case to keep you company" -and then- a couple of new products that were made with deaf collaboration

Editorial: As per usual at VAOJ, there are no product endorsements here. You might be wondering why I am comparing a technology aimed at "helping deaf people" and an iPhone case/toy. The answer is that they are both pretty ridiculous, although that might be a bit too harsh to describe the iPhone case. There might be a market for the case and it might generate some fun. But it would be as useless for deaf people communicating with hearing people as the sign language gloves. Those gloves are a continuing and contemporary example of the deficit model towards deaf people and their natural language. It expects deaf people to make the added effort to use this new technology so they can better communicate with hearing people through speech. It completely ignores the needs of deaf people and the realities/linguistics of sign language. How so-called scientists could work on such a technology (and receive research grants for it) while ignoring the vast research and literature about sign languages is astounding.

I hope more people read my article.

Fedorowicz, Steven C. 2019. "Performance, Sign Language, and Deaf Identity in Japan." Anthropology News website, June 5, 2019. DOI: 10.1111/AN.1182

http://www.anthropology-news.org/index.php/2019/06/05/performance-sign-language-and-deaf-identity-in-japan/

Read on...

Image and text borrowed from The Atlantic.com.

Why Sign-Language Gloves Don't Help Deaf People

Along with jet packs and hover boards, a machine to translate from any language to any other is so appealing as a fantasy that people are willing to overlook clunky prototypes as long as they can retain the belief that the future promised by science fiction has, at last, arrived. One particularly clunky subspecies of the universal language translator has a rather dismal history: the sign-language glove, which purports to translate sign language in real time to text or speech as the wearer gestures. For people in the Deaf community, and linguists, the sign-language glove is rooted in the preoccupations of the hearing world, not the needs of Deaf signers.

The basic idea dates to the 1980s, when researchers started exploring how humans could interact with computers using gestures. In 1983, a Bell Labs engineer named Gary Grimes invented a glove for data entry using the 26 manual gestures of the American Manual Alphabet, used by speakers of American Sign Language. But the first glove intended to make interactions between deaf and non-deaf people easier was announced in 1988 by the Stanford University researchers James Kramer and Larry Leifer. It was called the “talking glove,” and the entire system cost $3,500—not including the price of the CyberGlove itself.

...

The most recent project is from July 2017, when a team at the University of California, San Diego, published a paper in PLOS One describing a gesture-recognizing glove. The project was headed by Darren Lipomi, a chemist who researches the mechanical properties of innovative materials, such as stretchable polymer-based solar cells and skin-like sensors. On July 12, the UCSD news office promoted Lipomi’s publication with a story proclaiming, “Low-cost smart glove translates American Sign Language alphabet and controls virtual objects.” The next day, the online outlet Medgadget lopped “alphabet” out of its headline, and reports of a glove that “translates sign language” again spread far and wide, getting picked up by New Scientist, The Times in the United Kingdom, and other outlets. Medgadget wasn’t entirely to blame—Lipomi had titled his paper “The Language of Glove” and written that the device “translated” the alphabet into text, not “converted,” which would have been more accurate.

Linguists caught wind of the project. Carol Padden, the dean of social sciences at UCSD and a prominent sign-language linguist who is also deaf, passed along a critique of the sign-language glove concept...

“I was surprised and felt somehow betrayed because they obviously didn’t check with the Deaf community or even check with ASL program teachers to make sure that they are representing our language appropriately.”

...

all the sign-language translation gloves invented so far—misconstrue the nature of ASL (and other sign languages) by focusing on what the hands do. Key parts of the grammar of ASL include “raised or lowered eyebrows, a shift in the orientation of the signer’s torso, or a movement of the mouth,” reads the letter. “Even perfectly functioning gloves would not have access to facial expressions.” ASL consists of thousands of signs presented in sophisticated ways that have, so far, confounded reliable machine recognition. One challenge for machines is the complexity of ASL and other sign languages. Signs don’t appear like clearly delineated beads on a string; they bleed into one another in a process that linguists call “coarticulation” (where, for instance, a hand shape in one sign anticipates the shape or location of the following sign; this happens in words in spoken languages, too, where sounds can take on characteristics of adjacent ones).

...

Also, though the gloves are often presented as devices to improve accessibility for the Deaf, it’s the signers, not the hearing people, who must wear the gloves, carry the computers, or modify their rate of signing. “This is a manifestation of audist beliefs,” the UW letter states, “the idea that the Deaf person must expend the effort to accommodate to the standards of communication of the hearing person.”

...

Still, as long as actual Deaf users aren’t included in these projects, inventors are likely to continue creating devices that offend the very group they say they want to help.

Read the whole article: https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/11/why-sign-language-gloves-dont-help-deaf-people/545441/?fbclid=IwAR2gD3-rpnw2AEcWPds8TdFFmzlpS3JCFz9VnQ6Y7EXBvyVNVNfY8zCDq0k

Images and text from Japan Today, 7/1/19.

'Woman's hand' iPhone case to keep you company

If you're looking for a handy new iPhone case, look no further. Sold by Japanese smartphone case retailer Hamee, this unusually shaped case called "Nami's Hand" is realistically modeled after a real woman's hand, reproducing details right down to the whites of the nails and palm lines. Although not as soft and flexible as a real hand, the fleshy parts of the fingers and palm are still remarkably soft to the touch.

You can use it as a conversation starter, as a joke (but please be careful with people with weak hearts or who are easily frightened or startled) or, if you're not creeped out by an inanimate hand, as a "virtual" friend to keep you company.

You can enjoy a bracing breakfast that will quickly dispel the sleep from your eyes when you put Nami's Hand at your table in the morning.

You can use Nami's Hand to organize your headphones and she looks great when you're charging your phone. You can also give Nami's Hand as a gift to someone in a paper bag (bag sold separately).

Source: https://japantoday.com/category/features/new-products/'woman's-hand'-iphone-case-to-keep-you-company

Here are a couple examples to help deaf people that actually collaborated with deaf people (again, no product endorsements, just fyi...)...

"Fujitsu develops user interface device to sense sound with body"

From Japan Today, June 30, 2019.

Fujitsu Ltd has launched a service supporting sports and cultural events using Ontenna, a device that lets users sense sound with their bodies. The company said it is providing a free trial version of Ontenna for schools for the deaf.

The trial is being conducted in 30 schools, with the goal of encouraging the use of this device in day-to-day education for deaf students.

Developed in collaboration with members of the deaf and hearing impaired community, Ontenna is a user interface device that can be equipped to users in various ways - worn like a hair pin or attached to the shirt collar-, letting them sense sound characteristics through vibration and light.

The manufacturer of Ontenna, Fujitsu Electronics Inc, plans to develop enterprise businesses using Ontenna and begin sales to individual consumers via ecommerce sites, in July 2019.

Fujitsu said Ontenna can convert sound vibration patterns from an audio source between approximately 60 and 90 dB to 256 levels of vibration and light strength. In addition, by delivering specific sounds at sports competitions and events with more dynamic vibration and light, Ontenna can convey the ambiance and a sense of unity among the audience, increasing the value of the experience.

Because Ontenna is not reliant on language, it can also provide a new way of attending events regardless of disability or nationality, Fujitsu said.

Source: https://japantoday.com/category/tech/fujitsu-develops-user-interface-device-to-sense-sound-with-body

"Wavio and Area 23’s ‘See Sound’ Project Wins Top Innovation Grand Prix at Cannes Lions"

From ADWEEK.COM, June 20, 2019.

A new way to help people who are hard of hearing understand the sounds around them at home has won this year’s top innovation award the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

Today at the annual festival in France, judges awarded Area 23’s campaign for Wavio the coveted Grand Prix for its “See Sound” project. The mobile app, enabled by machine learning through a collaboration with Google to identify everyday sounds, notifies users of normal and abnormal sounds in and around the home with text-based notifications on their smart phone.

According to Bill Yom, global creative director of Cheil Worldwide and jury president for the Innovation Lions, the project had the jurors “convinced from the beginning” after the presentation. They were impressed not just by the idea of helping people who are hard of hearing, but also by the use of collaboration with YouTube and the project’s “beautiful design.”

“We should definitely award it to send a signal to the industry that you have to collaborate to create something outstanding for innovation, because that’s the way you have to change to try something outstanding for this world to help people,” Yom said during a press briefing.

Source: https://www.adweek.com/creativity/wavio-and-area-23s-see-sound-project-wins-top-innovation-grand-prix-at-cannes-lions/

Youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92pweVNZAXc&feature=share

More advertisements for the recent article...

http://www.anthropology-news.org/index.php/category/section-news/

http://seaa.americananthro.org/category/news/seaa-news/

Society for East Asian Anthropology

More recent stuff that indicates my article is current and relevant...

Illustration borrowed from National Geographic.com.

Soya Mori recently posted about a National Geographic article published a few days ago about the so-called origins of sign language.

"How monks helped invent sign language. (subtitled) Vows of silence and humanist beliefs led European clerics to create new communication methods for the deaf 500 years ago." BY INÉS ANTÓN DAYAS. National Geographic.com. May 28, 2019.

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/archaeology-and-history/magazine/2019/05-06/creation-of-sign-language/?fbclid=IwAR3pJg5dpANNRpRTZfaTj0t3wlFia5cz8T9411N1AtVIl-C-60tSxc2mV5M

The article, simply put, is strangely biased and greatly uninformed.

On the one hand: Bonet criticized some of the brutal methods that had been used to get deaf people to speak: “Sometimes they are put into casks in which the voice booms and reverberates. These violent measures are by no means to the purpose.”

And then in conclusion: Thanks to the development of formal sign languages, people with hearing impairment can access spoken language in all its variety.

The author confuses sign language with manual alphabets (fingerspelling) and signing system for educating the hearing impaired. Thank goodness there were early Europeans to invent these systems for the benefit of the deaf. There is no discussion about natural sign language or Deaf communities.

I hope more people read my article.

Fedorowicz, Steven C. 2019. "Performance, Sign Language, and Deaf Identity in Japan." Anthropology News website, June 5, 2019. DOI: 10.1111/AN.1182

http://www.anthropology-news.org/index.php/2019/06/05/performance-sign-language-and-deaf-identity-in-japan/

Perfect Timing? It would seem my article is current and relevant...

On the day my article went live, members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in Japan went to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) to present a proposal to help support deaf children (as reported in the following source):

難聴児のシームレスな支援を 自民党議連が文科相に提言 [The Liberal Democratic Party Parliamentarians propose to the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology the seamless support of deaf children] in 教育新聞 [Education Newspaper], June 6, 2019.

URL (article in Japanese): https://www.kyobun.co.jp/news/20190606_04/?fbclid=IwAR3eKSaqvaqXH-dZxOT3v6bqrBszCw-AwIbUAREU6gNqffHULlCG3gPYPIg

Thanks to Soya Mori via Facebook for the heads-up on this. https://www.facebook.com/1Language2Disability/

These LDP members make up a group which can be translated in English as the "National Federation for the Prevention of Deafness." Their proposal included improving neonatal and early childhood hearing testing for all children (early screening). And for deaf children the proposal promotes better medical treatment, early implantation of cochlear implants, better support and training for speech therapists, better placement at special needs schools and the like.

As Mori noted in his comments there was nothing about promoting Japanese Sign Language and the focus was on medical aspects. There seemed to be no Deaf participation in this proposal.

Here it is again (still?). Hearing people are making decisions for the deaf, what I refer to "small-d deaf" orientations in the article. In the article I did not have the time to get into the academic and social welfare models of disability and deafness, namely the deficit/medical model ("small-d deaf") and the cultural/social model ("capital-D Deaf"). For an excellent discussion of these models, especially in the Japanese context I suggest Carolyn Steven's Disability in Japan (2013, Routledge).

So why I am disappointed (although not surprised) by this political development, I am happy with the timing. It would seem my research is current and relevant. I hope more people read my article.

Fedorowicz, Steven C. 2019. "Performance, Sign Language, and Deaf Identity in Japan." Anthropology News website, June 5, 2019. DOI: 10.1111/AN.1182

http://www.anthropology-news.org/index.php/2019/06/05/performance-sign-language-and-deaf-identity-in-japan/

"Performance, Sign Language, and Deaf Identity in Japan" has gone live on Anthropology News!

My photo collage from the article. 

Caption: Members of Japanese Sign Language Atelier practice to 

improve their performance of JSL and create greater Deaf identity.

My new article is now live and available on the Anthropology News website. It appears as part of a Society of East Asian Anthropology series called Cultural Consumption and Performance in Asia. The article is a little different from my usual style but I hope it will serve as an overview and introduction to deaf/sign language issues in Japan.

I would like to thank the SEAA column editors, Shuang Frost and Heidi Lam, for their patience and incredible editing endeavors. I would also like to to thank Elizabeth Kenney, my sensei and colleague, for her support throughout my career as well as her suggestions/editing of an early draft of the article. A shout out to my colleagues in the Asian Studies Program at KGU for their advising and encouragement. Lest I forget my wonderful students from Spring 2019 Deaf World Japan class who allowed me to read this paper as a part of their "midterm review" and gave me helpful constructive criticism comments. I couldn't have done the research without the assistance of Fumie Fedorowicz. And finally, my thanks and appreciation to the members of Atelier in Hirakata-shi as well as my deaf friends throughout Japan.

I benefitted from so much mulitmodal collaborations... However, any errors of interpretation in the article are mine alone.

Please check it out!

Fedorowicz, Steven C. 2019. “Performance, Sign Language, and Deaf Identity in Japan.” Anthropology News website, June 5, 2019. DOI: 10.1111/AN.1182

http://www.anthropology-news.org/index.php/2019/06/05/performance-sign-language-and-deaf-identity-in-japan/

"Deaf Lives Matter with Nyle DiMarco | January 30, 2019 Act 3 | Full Frontal on TBS"

Tokyo International Deaf Film Festival

Image and text borrowed from 
Tokyo International Deaf Film Festival web page.

Tokyo International Deaf Film Festival (hereinafter referred to as TDF) is a film festival where all the films are selected by the Deaf staff. ​
It is held every 2 years in Shibuya, Tokyo by both the Deaf and hearing staff altogether. ​

The main theme of the films screened in this festival is Deaf itself, and they are mostly feature films. ​​

The main goal of the TDF is to contribute to the development of the Deaf society and the Deaf art, and to create a place where both the Deaf and the hearing can come together and understand each other by providing both the hearing and also the Deaf themselves with films concerned with the Deaf society with sign language and the Deaf culture. ​

There are lots of various events held in the TDF such as film screenings with a kinema-interpreter in sign language, Japanese film screenings with Japanese subtitles, talk shows and symposiums with guests both from Japan and overseas, a photo exhibition, and workshops. ​

May 31, 2019 – June 3, 2019
Venue: EuroLive in Shibuya, Tokyo
http://eurolive.jp/

Read more at the Tokyo International Deaf Film Festival web page (in Japanese, English, American Sign Language and International Sign):
https://www.tdf.tokyo/