According to the International Monetary Fund, recent economic growth in
Asia is estimated as 2.75% for 2009 and 5.75% for 2010. The engine of the
growth is sustained by development in China whose growth would be 8.5%
for 2009 and 9% for 2010. On the other hand, the unemployment rate
(registered job losers only) in big cities in the third quarter of 2009
in China is 4.3% and it is estimated 24million job seekers would appear
for the near future. After all, it is a big disparity between the
economic growth proportion and the unemployment rate. Traditionally,
the more economic growth reached, the more unemployment rate reduced.
However, in the recent years, it has been proved that economic growth does
not lead to the decrease of unemployment rate. In the case of China,
as scores of university graduates have not found jobs, it seems educated
people are in a difficult situation to find good jobs. The term of
“good” in the respect means high-salary and better status in economically
guaranteed corporations and organizations. The situation looks similar
in the U.S. who sees new college graduates and middle-age educated ex-workers
suffer from difficulty to find good work place. Why do they continue
to fall in a deadlock situation for job finding? I think the key
reason is in the fact that many companies and organizations are becoming
more and more computerized. In ordinary offices, every worker uses
desktop or notebook PC for daily operation which would potentially cover
many tasks and calculations without needing certain number of staffs.
You might remember the days on which most workers used counting board and/or
simple calculators thirty years ago! Nowadays, one small PC can substitute
various tasks of accounting and administration staffs. Even in factories
and plants, onsite workers’ operations have been changed to more systematically
than the past’s labor-concentrated work. So, it is very cynical
to see technology developments are depriving education-oriented work opportunities.
If this is the world trend in most advanced economies, we have to think
about the definition and formation of corporations and organizations as
a profitable unit to meet with the essential structural change. But
the reality is most of us are forced to witness short-sighted leadership
in world body. That is fusty cozy relationships among governments,
specific financial institutions and politicians who try to realize ostensible
economic growth which is an essentially bi-product of jumping financial
profits in literally secured “insider trading” in world scale called
as investment activities on stocks, bonds and commodities, which is an
unlawful sanctuary in one sense apart from civil workforce realness.
Does it make sense for ordinary citizens? (Takashi Higashi, President, TCS)
Key articles on Japanese industry scenes selected by TCS
Headlines of the articles:
| ELECTRONICS |
LED-Base Photocatalysis for Growing Crops and Plants |
|
Lithium Ion Battery in Household Appliance to be Applied for Electronic Vehicle |
|
| Remarkable Technology for Reducing Power Consumption in Optical Communication | |
| MATERIAL |
Various Bio-Resins to Appear without Using Oil |
|
High Moisture Retention in Fish to be Utilized for Cosmetics |
|
|
Sophisticated IC Tag Based on Auto-Wiper’s Rubber |
|
| ENERGY |
Innovative Technology Devoting to Transportation and Refinement of Oil Sand |
|
Compact and High-Efficient Household Fuel Cell Embedded with Ceramic |
|
| Propylene-Base Resin to Realize from Coal Reaction | |
| ENVIRONMENT |
Antivirus Bacteria to Prevent Disease and Fungi on Agricultural Products |
ELECTRONICS
LED-Base Photocatalysis for Growing Crops and Plants
October
16--SYNERGYTEC built up a pilot facility for hydroponic culture by using LED
lighting instead of sun light. The
facility restrains heat generated from LEDs in circulating water for green
plants as well as enhances light generation efficiency.
Lithium Ion Battery in Household Appliance to be Applied for Electronic
Vehicle
September
30--Panasonic plans to develop a battery system for electronic vehicle embedded
with lithium ion battery which is usually used in digital household appliances
such as notebook PCs. The company
targets to decrease battery production cost of the vehicle one-third that for
the existing batteries by replacing to the above lithium ion battery.
Remarkable Technology for
Reducing Power Consumption in Optical Communication
September 28--Tohoku University devised a new technology to restrain power
consumption in optical communication to one-tenth the existing consumption
level. The university
succeeded to increase information volume, which can be sent by one kind optical
signal, up to about 30 times at maximum the world’s first ever and as a result,
proved efficient optical communication with a less number of signals.
MATERIAL
Various Bio-Resins to Appear without Using Oil
October
23--Mitsui Chemical and Nippon Shokubai will start mass produce of resins
without using petroleum. Mitsui will
produce a resin material in decomposing waste molasses from sugarcane and waste
timbers by using coli bacterium. Nippon
Shokubai will manufacture acrylic acid which is a material for disposable
diaper by using glycerin, a bi-product of bio-diesel fuel from palm
coconut. Both products are expected to
contributing to large reduction of CO2 exhaust.
High Moisture Retention in
Fish to be Utilized for Cosmetics
October 23--NISSUI will start selling fish oil, which is included in the
skin of white fish captured in New Zealand, as a material for moisture
retention cream for cosmetics use. The company decided to utilize high moisture retention
ability of the fish oil which combines fatty acid and alcohol.
Sophisticated IC Tag Based on Auto-Wiper’s Rubber
September
16--Toppan Printing developed an IC tag with by rubber materials for bending. The new IC tag includes a specific rubber
used for wipers of automobiles to enhance water prevention and durability. Even 2,000 times’ bending motion at 180
degree angle does not lower the quality of the tag. The product is applied for logistics,
wrapping bags and clothes.
ENERGY
Innovative Technology Devoting
to Transportation and Refinement of Oil Sand
October
16--Chiba Institute of Technology invented a technology for oil sand to be
easily available at existing oil facilities. Water and iron particle are added to the extra heavy oil in oil sand,
and the oil is radiated by microwave. As a result, the oil is decomposed into
low molecular, resulting in high liquidity for easy transportation and
refinement.
Compact and High-Efficient Household Fuel Cell Embedded with Ceramic
September
30--ENEOS and Kyocera will co-develop a household fuel cell whose output is 1kW
which can cover 60% of household’s power consumption. The cell enables to realize compact and
high-efficient power generation at more than 700 centigrade degrees by using
Kyocera’s ceramic material. Power
generation efficiency will be about 45%.
Propylene-Base Resin to
Realize from Coal Reaction
September
2--Mitsubishi Chemical developed a new technology to produce resin products
from coal. The company transforms coke
furnace gas into methanol in solvent reaction, and converts the methanol todimethyl ether for producing propylene. With the
new technology, Mitsubishi Chemical also enables to restrain CO2
exhaust.
ENVIRONMENT
Antivirus Bacteria to Prevent
Disease and Fungi on Agricultural Products
October 7--Anise, in cooperation with Kinki University, created mass production
technology of a microorganism that features antivirus ability against disease
and fungi on agricultural products. The company processes a naturally-existed and
human-harmless antivirus microorganism into a film. Agricultural seeds are wrapped by the film
for continuing the antivirus effect.
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(Source: Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun)
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