Jemapur - Maledict Car (Dir. Kosai Sekine)
Tokyo gets mirror-tweaked to kaleidoscopic effect in Jemapur’s “Maledict Car” video directed by Kosai Sekine (produced by W+K Tokyo Lab). Sekine’s previous work includes the quirky “Right Place,” which won the best short film award at Cannes in 2006.
Kosai Sekine - Right Place
Original post by Edo
Poor planning? Engineering gone wrong? Unconventional street decor? Whatever the explanation, this quiet residential street in Tokyo’s Setagaya ward boasts perhaps the highest manhole density in town, with 85 of them scattered along a 200-meter stretch of pavement. Fans of the curious street call it “Manhole Ginza.”
[Link: Google Maps]
Related: Japanese manhole covers
Original post by Edo
For drowsy train commuters afraid of sleeping past their stop, inventor and manga artist Pyocotan has developed “Noriko-san,” a sleep mask with an electronic scrolling display that communicates the wearer’s destination to fellow passengers.
Noriko-san is designed to give sleepyheads greater peace of mind (and thus a deeper level of sleep) by increasing the odds that a stranger will wake them in time. In theory, other passengers feel compelled to act either out of courtesy or simply so they can sit in the empty seat left behind. Here’s a video of Pyocotan testing a prototype on Tokyo’s Yamanote line.
The video shows Pyocotan board the Yamanote line at Nishi-Nippori station. When a seat becomes available, he sits down, slips on the mask and goes to sleep. The mask’s scrolling message reads: “I will get off at Mejiro station.” Unfortunately, nobody wakes him up when he arrives. The test fails.
Pyocotan admits that […]
Original post by Edo
Losing directions is one of my weaknesses. If there are too many roads around, I would find myself extremely clueless with the directions whether I am walking or driving without a map or a few phone calls to friends. Sometimes I wondered whether there is a better way than having a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) or Satellite Navigation System (SatNav) that would possibly cost a bomb to have one installed in your car.
In some countries, GPS or SatNav are so common that in Tokyo, every taxi has one!
Clean seats, courteous driver and very informative taxi.
Then just recently I found this online. A 1920s “SatNav”, also called The Route Finder. It is a tiny machine complete with maps that would tell motorists which way to go. Isn’t that cool or what! Imagine, a wristwatch-style device equipped with mini maps.
1920s Route Finder
But this is no GPS, not even a full […]
Original post by Pamela
Photographer Shintaro Sato captures beauty in the chaotic Tokyo cityscape viewed from emergency staircases at dusk. Check his site for the full gallery of high-resolution images.
[Link: Tokyo Twilight Zone]
See also:
- Suburban Tokyo nightscapes
- Highway interchange photos
- Fantastic Japanscapes
Original post by Edo
To NY-based architect-poets and “reversible destiny” philosophers Arakawa & Gins, comfort deserves only a limited role in the home. In their vision, a home that keeps its inhabitants young and healthy should provide perpetual challenges. A tentative relationship with your environment, they argue, is key to “reversing the downhill course of human life.”
This video takes a peek inside their Reversible Destiny Lofts in the Mitaka area of western Tokyo. Designed to stimulate the senses and force inhabitants to use balance, physical strength and imagination, the lofts feature uneven floors, oddly positioned power switches and outlets, walls and surfaces painted a dizzying array of colors, a tiny exit to the balcony, a transparent shower room, irregularly shaped curtainless windows, and more.
For the adventurous, two rental units are now available for 220,000 and 250,000 yen ($2,000/$2,400) per month, which is a bit pricey for Tokyo, but not outrageous. Short-term stays […]
Original post by Edo
One day after a wild Japanese macaque caused a commotion at Tokyo’s Shibuya station and escaped back into the streets, police have received multiple reports of monkey sightings in the area.
According to this TBS video news report, which refers to the search effort as “Operation Capture Monkey,” the Japanese macaque was observed at various locations in the Harajuku/Omotesando area near Shibuya early this morning. Police armed with nets roamed the streets of Omotesando after at least one person reported seeing the monkey climbing a pink building. Others reportedly witnessed it scurrying across power lines. In addition to the sightings, a local resident found tomatoes and eggplants missing from his garden. He believes the monkey was responsible.
Original post by Edo
