The wise and charming international bestseller and hit Japanese movie--about a young woman who loses everything but finds herself--a tale of new beginnings, romantic and family relationships, and the comfort that can be found in books. Twenty-five-year-old Takako has enjoyed a relatively easy existence--until the day her boyfriend Hideaki, the man she expected to wed, casually announces he's been cheating on her and is marrying the other woman. Suddenly, Takako's life is in freefall. She loses her job, her friends, and her acquaintances, and spirals into a deep depression. In the depths of her despair, she receives a call from her distant uncle Satoru. An unusual man who has always pursued something of an unconventional life, especially after his wife Momoko left him out of the blue five years earlier, Satoru runs a second-hand bookshop in Jimbocho, Tokyo's famous book district. Takako once looked down upon Satoru's life. Now, she reluctantly accepts his offer of the tiny room above the bookshop rent-free in exchange for helping out at the store. The move is temporary, until she can get back on her feet. But in the months that follow, Takako surprises herself when she develops a passion for Japanese literature, becomes a regular at a local coffee shop where she makes new friends, and eventually meets a young editor from a nearby publishing house who's going through his own messy breakup. But just as she begins to find joy again, Hideaki reappears, forcing Takako to rely once again on her uncle, whose own life has begun to unravel. Together, these seeming opposites work to understand each other and themselves as they continue to share the wisdom they've gained in the bookshop. Translated By Eric Ozawa

Welding Deformation and Residual Stress Prevention, Second Edition provides readers with both fundamental theoretical knowledge about welding deformation and stress as well as unique computational approaches for predicting and mitigating the effects of deformation and residual stress on materials. This second edition has been updated to include new techniques and applications, outlining advanced finite element methods such as implicit scheme, explicit scheme, and hybrid scheme, and coupling analysis among thermal-metallurgy-mechanics. Non-destructive measurement methods for residual stresses are introduced, such as X-ray diffraction, the indentation technique, the neutron diffraction method, and various synchrotron X-ray diffraction techniques. Destructive measurement techniques are covered as well, such as block cutting for releasing residual stress, blind hole drilling, deep hole drilling, the slit cutting method, sectional contour method, and general inherent strain method. Various industrial applications of the material behavior and computational approaches are featured throughout.

The authors focus on the problem of sustainability from the standpoint of corporate management in this book. They propose that 'sustainability management not only earns profits, but also fulfills social responsibilities while considering the environment, people, and society, and enables management to continue to have the potential to survive in the future'. In that sense, it is also related to the Sustainability Development Goals. To fulfil this aim, the authors focus on how companies should implement sustainability management through considering both the theoretical aspects and practical aspects of actual companies.From a theoretical perspective, the authors consider the construction of a business model that achieves both economic and social value, the implementation method of governance control, and the performance evaluation method. From a practical perspective, the current state of sustainability management in Japanese companies is analysed by focusing on the cases of two manufacturing companies and two service companies. In addition, since cooperation with other companies and other organizations is necessary for implementation, the authors explore the ideal form of cooperation between companies and cooperation between the private sector and local governments.

Advances in Power Boilers is the second volume in the JSME Series on Thermal and Nuclear Power Generation. The volume provides the fundamentals of thermal power generation by firstly analysing different fuel options for thermal power generation and then also by tracing the development process of power boilers in about 300 years. The design principles and methodologies as well as the construction, operation and control of power boilers are explained in detail together with practical data making this a valuable guide for post-graduate students, researchers, engineers and regulators developing knowledge and skill of thermal power generation systems. Combining their wealth of experience and knowledge, the author team presents recent advanced technologies to the reader to enable them to further research and development in various systems, notably combined cycles, USC and A-USC, as well as PFBC and IGCC. The most recent best practices for material development for advanced power system as well as future scope of this important field of technology are clearly presented, and environment, maintenance, regulations and standards are considered throughout. The inclusion of photographs and drawings make this a unique reference for all those working and researching in the thermal engineering fields. The book is directed to professional engineers, researchers and post-graduate students of thermal engineering in industrial and academic field, as well as plant operators and regulators.

There’s a new Spider-Man in town! And he’s got a lot to learn about being a hero! An awkward teenager puts on Spider-Man’s suit, but quickly learns being a hero isn’t all photo ops and social media likes. Yu’s new high school is kind of awful. He’s failing his classes and striking out socially. Everything changes when he finds one of Spider-Man’s costumes abandoned in an alleyway. At first, it’s fun to put on the costume and play hero, but when powerful enemies appear, Yu quickly realizes he’s out of his element. Still, with the real Spider-Man nowhere to be found, the city needs someone to save it…

This volume contains papers based on presentations at the "Nagoya Winter Workshop 2015: Reality and Measurement in Algebraic Quantum Theory (NWW 2015)", held in Nagoya, Japan, in March 2015. The foundations of quantum theory have been a source of mysteries, puzzles, and confusions, and have encouraged innovations in mathematical languages to describe, analyze, and delineate this wonderland. Both ontological and epistemological questions about quantum reality and measurement have been placed in the center of the mysteries explored originally by Bohr, Heisenberg, Einstein, and Schroedinger. This volume describes how those traditional problems are nowadays explored from the most advanced perspectives. It includes new research results in quantum information theory, quantum measurement theory, information thermodynamics, operator algebraic and category theoretical foundations of quantum theory, and the interplay between experimental and theoretical investigations on the uncertainty principle. This book is suitable for a broad audience of mathematicians, theoretical and experimental physicists, and philosophers of science.

The Mandalorian and The Child are on the run, and nowhere is safe! Years after the fall of the Galactic Empire, a solitary bounty hunter is given a simple mission. Find and return the Child to the Imperial Remnant, all that remains of the once all-powerful Empire. This mysterious orphan has a power that can possibly turn events in their favor, and acquisition of that power is paramount. Instead, the bounty hunter goes on the run with the Child to protect him from the forces that would do him harm. Here is the story of The Mandalorian, and his desperate quest to save the Child and himself. Based on the series created by Jon Favreau and written by Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, Christopher Yost, and Rick Famuyiwa.

This open access book covers comprehensive but fundamental principles and concepts of disaster and accident prevention and mitigation, countermeasures, and recovery from disasters or accidents including treatment and care of the victims. Safety and security problems in our society involve not only engineering but also social, legal, economic, cultural, and psychological issues. The enhancement needed for societal safety includes comprehensive activities of all aspects from precaution to recovery, not only of people but also of governments. In this context, the authors, members of the Faculty of Societal Safety Science, Kansai University, conducted many discussions and concluded that the major strategy is consistent independently of the type and magnitude of disaster or accident, being also the principle of the foundation of our faculty. The topics treated in this book are rather widely distributed but are well organized sequentially to provide a clear understanding of the principles of societal safety. In the first part the fundamental concepts of safety are discussed. The second part deals with risks in the societal and natural environment. Then follows, in the third part, a description of the quantitative estimation of risk and its assessment and management. The fourth part is devoted to disaster prevention, mitigation, and recovery systems. The final, fifth part presents a future perspective of societal safety science. Thorough reading of this introductory volume of societal safety science provides a clear image of the issues. This is largely because the Japanese have suffered often from natural disasters and not only have gained much valuable information about disasters but also have accumulated a store of experience. We are still in the process of reconstruction from the Great East Japan earthquake and the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident. This book is especially valuable therefore in studying the safety and security of people and their societies.

Terutomo Ozawa introduces a newly reformulated theory of 'flying-geese' economic development, exploring Asia's dynamic growth and financial development. This unique book shows how the flying-geese theory can be expanded and applied to both the real- and the financial-sector structural transformation of regionally clustered economies. The author explores an array of concepts - from the ladder of economic development and hegemon-led growth clustering, through 'stages jumbling', to comparative advantage recycling and the Ricardo-Hicksian limits of industrialism - which together help bring an understanding of the dynamics of tandem growth and regional agglomeration in Asia. The book also investigates the causal mechanisms of structural upgrading and emphasizes the critical role of multinational corporations. Throughout this wide-reaching analysis, Terutomo Ozawa advocates a 'flying-geese' way of thinking-that is, to think of Asia's phenomenal growth in hierarchical, dialectical, and evolutionary terms. In a new era of rapid globalization and rising economic nationalism, this timely and insightful book will appeal strongly to scholars and students of international business, economics, political science, and international relations. Those specializing on Asia will find it of particular value.

Drawing from a decade-long collaboration between Japan and Russia, this important volume presents the first major synthesis of current knowledge on the ecophysiology of the coniferous forests growing on permafrost at high latitudes. It presents ecological data for a region long inaccessible to most scientists, and raises important questions about the global carbon balance as these systems are affected by the changing climate.

Making up around 20% of the entire boreal forests of the northern hemisphere, these permafrost forest ecosystems are subject to particular constraints in terms of temperature, nutrient availability, and root space, creating exceptional ecosystem characteristics not known elsewhere. This authoritative text explores their diversity, structure, dynamics and physiology. It provides a comparison of these forests in relation to boreal forests elsewhere, and concludes with an assessment of the potential responses of this unique biome to climate change.

The book will be invaluable to advanced students and researchers interested in boreal vegetation, forest ecology, silviculture and forest soils, as well as to researchers into climate change and the global carbon balance. "

... cover[s] the effects of the life-cycle experiences of teenage pregnancy and childbearing, divorce, and years of widowhood on women's economic status and poverty rate (the feminization of poverty). . . . Ozawa finds a conflict between women's traditional nurturing and caring roles and the development of their earning capability. Interesting statistical tables and a selected bibliography. Choice Gender, like race and ethnicity, is an increasingly important factor in assessing social policy in the U.S. For those who want to understand the role of gender in the poverty problem today, Women's Life Cycle and Economic Insecurity provides a splendid collection of articles containing new knowledge and fresh insights. Sheila B. Kamerman Columbia University School of Social Work According to a global United Nations study, women perform 66 percent of all work, but receive only 10 percent of all income and own less than 1 percent in material assets. Although the economic status of American women has been somewhat higher than that of women globally, it is increasingly apparent that the United States is facing the emerging social problem of women's economic insecurity in the midst of growing affluence. In this timely study, ten experts methodically survey every vital aspect in the life of American women, from early sex-role socialization in the home to long-term elderly care, and examine their economic implications. Ozawa's introductory chapter provides a helpful overview of the subject; her concluding chapter summarizes recommendations for change and proposes steps necessary to the establishment of economic and social equality between the sexes. In Educational Preparation of American Women, Shirley M. Clark analyzes female socialization and discusses women in higher education: enrollment trends, degrees earned, and women faculty. James P. Smith's chapter investigates Women, Mothers, and Work and considers wage prospects. Other chapters explore teenage pregnancy: patterns, consequences, and prevention strategies; divorce and child support issues, the history and effects of inheritance, old age, and care of the elderly. The text is enhanced by twenty-five tables and eight figures that present vital statistical information, including labor force participation rates of various groups of women, data relating to children and their care, fertility, income, life expectancy, and health. Women's Life Cycle and Economic Insecurity presents a comprehensive assessment of the condition of women in the United States today. This groundbreaking study provides insights and statistics that will be especially useful for research in the areas of women's studies, sociology, economics, and American history.

The first ever book on the applications of fullerenes and nanotubes. World's experts on the industrial use of these new forms of carbon contributes chapters, that are based on lectures given in a large workshop held on February 2001, and expanded thereafter. The contents are intended for those who are interested in the exploration of industrial applications of fullerenes and carbon nanotubes.

Comparing the UK, US, Germany and Japan, this book draws on innovative concepts of varieties of gender regime as well as varieties of capitalism. The volume re-thinks the processes of de-gendering and re-gendering of working practices in the context of both de-regulation and re-regulation of employment.

Carbocyclic Cage Compounds Chemistry and Applications Eiji Osawa • Osamu Yonemitsu Here is an in-depth presentation of current research and theory on the chemistry of three-dimensional polycyclic molecules, or " cage molecules, " synthesized compounds with closed structures. Internationally known scientists introduce their areas of expertise, ranging from general principles to highly specialized perspectives on this fascinating branch of pure chemistry.

This book originates from the session "Harmonic Analysis and Partial Differential Equations" held at the 12th ISAAC Congress in Aveiro, and provides a quick overview over recent advances in partial differential equations with a particular focus on the interplay between tools from harmonic analysis, functional inequalities and variational characterisations of solutions to particular non-linear PDEs. It can serve as a useful source of information to mathematicians, scientists and engineers. The volume contains contributions of authors from a variety of countries on a wide range of active research areas covering different aspects of partial differential equations interacting with harmonic analysis and provides a state-of-the-art overview over ongoing research in the field. It shows original research in full detail allowing researchers as well as students to grasp new aspects and broaden their understanding of the area.

This book examines the role of trust in European-Russian energy relations and how some European countries have become dependent on Russia for energy. It examines how trust is developed between nations, the social interactions that underpin it, and the significant differences in the ways in which difference countries create energy partnerships. The role of cooperation and direct experience, historical memories, national culture, individual personalities, and trade agreement structures are also discussed. European-Russian energy relations are contextualised within the Russia-Ukraine war, Europe’s energy transition, the economic sanctions imposed on Russia, and the role played by the European Union. This book aims to present policy recommendations to ensure European energy security. It will be relevant to researchers and policymakers interested in energy economics and the political economy of energy.

Nearly thirty million species of organisms are believed to now live on Earth. In addition to accumulating evidence from classical biology, paleontology and earth science, the recent progress of molecular biology has provided new insights into understanding how present-day organisms have evolved with such tremendous diversity. Molecular biological studies show us that all living forms, including "E. coli" and human beings, derive from a single ancestor that emerged some 4 billion years ago on Earth. This volume aims to discuss the motifs of organismic evolution from the viewpoints of biogeo-interactions and diversification of the genetic systems. Based on these fundamental understandings, the last section of this volume is devoted to human evolution that includes phylogeny of man as well as evolution of human culture. Such comprehensive discussion will give us a synthesized view of the evolution of life, that is undoubtedly one of the most important problems not only for science but also for human culture in general.

This book postulates the proposition that small economies exhibit a higher degree of outward orientation and structural adaptability, compared to their larger counterparts within the context of the European Union and two case studies (i.e. Catalonia and New Zealand).
The number of nations has doubled in the last half of the century to around 200 independent economic units. Moreover, the break-up of the former Soviet bloc into a large number of small independent nations in Central and Eastern Europe, and the continued threat of separatist groups (i.e. Canada, Spain, and Sri Lanka) have sparked economists' interest to focus on the size of nations once again. This book offers a more comprehensive measurement of smallness than the conventional one for the analysis of the globalization strategies and flexibility of countries to overcome smallness.
Small independent economic units, when economically successful, tend to be more export focused in manufacturing, likely to specialize in differentiated manufactures, more actively involved with direct overseas businesses, more sensitive in strategically managing exchange rates, likely to be in a better position to achieve price stability, more actively involved in international trade through varying degrees of economic integration, likely to have a higher degree of flexibility, more actively involved to forge a complementary government-firm relationship, and likely to have a higher degree of corporatism.

Yoshihiro Shibata has made many significant contributions to the area of mathematical fluid mechanics over the course of his illustrious career, including landmark work on the Navier-Stokes equations. The papers collected here - on the occasion of his 70th birthday - are written by world-renowned researchers and celebrate his decades of outstanding achievements.

Supernatural horror - and directorial debut from Jason Zada - set in the legendary Aokigahara Forest, a real-life place at the base of Mount Fuji in Japan where people go to end their lives. A young American woman Sara (Natalie Dormer) comes to the forest in search of her sister who has gone missing. In spite of everyone's warnings not to stray from the path she enters the forest in search of her sister, only to be soon confronted by the tortured souls of the dead who prey on those they encounter.

This book bridges Japanese and European scholarly approaches to ecclesiastical history to provide new insights into how the papacy conceptualised its authority and attempted to realise and communicate that authority in ecclesiastical and secular spheres across Christendom. Adopting a broad, yet cohesive, temporal and geographical approach that spans the Early to the Late Middle Ages, from Europe to Asia, the book focuses on the different media used to represent authority, the structures through which authority was channelled and the restrictions that popes faced in so doing, and the less certain expression of papal authority on the edges of Christendom. Through twelve chapters that encompass key topics such as anti-popes, artistic representations, preaching, heresy, the crusades, and mission and the East, this interdisciplinary volume brings new perspectives to bear on the medieval papacy. The book demonstrates that the communication of papal authority was a two-way process effected by the popes and their supporters, but also by their enemies who helped to shape concepts of ecclesiastical power. Communicating Papal Authority in the Middle Ages will appeal to researchers and students alike interested in the relationships between the papacy and medieval society and the ways in which the papacy negotiated and expressed its authority in Europe and beyond.

Recent progress in brain science has been remarkable, especially with regard to advances in the area of neuroscience. Particularly in the past decade, there have been many important discoveries about signal transduction in the brain. With this background, biological research in affective disorders has become well developed in relation to neural signaling. However, this field is fairly hard to understand comprehensively, and there is relatively little integrative work with clinical psychiatry in spite of the involvement of a wide variety of scien tific disciplines. This monograph brings together up-to-date reviews from several young Japanese scientists who work in basic and clinical neuroscience. The intention is to explain in plain language the information that has evolved on signal transduction in terms of the biological abnormalities and mechanisms of anti depressants. The model shown on the cover (and on page 24) is intended to help the reader understand signal transduction in the brain and the patho physiology of affective disorders as well as the mechanisms of antidepressants.

This book features a collection of papers devoted to recent results in nonlinear partial differential equations and applications. It presents an excellent source of information on the state-of-the-art, new methods, and trends in this topic and related areas. Most of the contributors presented their work during the sessions "Recent progress in evolution equations" and "Nonlinear PDEs" at the 12th ISAAC congress held in 2017 in Vaxjoe, Sweden. Even if inspired by this event, this book is not merely a collection of proceedings, but a stand-alone project gathering original contributions from active researchers on the latest trends in nonlinear evolution PDEs.

Written by a senior industry expert with nearly 40 years of hands-on experience, Cathodoluminescence and Photoluminescence: Theories and Practical Applications presents a thorough review of advances, challenges, and recommendations for improving photoluminescent (PL) and cathodoluminescent (CL) phosphor display devices in terms of energy efficiency, image quality, color fidelity, operational lifetime, and production cost. This book traces the development of cathode ray tubes (CRTs), PL and CL phosphor screens, and fluorescent lamps (FL) into modern phosphor display devices. The author relates luminescence phenomena and color to chemical composition, excitation mechanisms, energy conversion efficiencies, and bulk properties of phosphor particles. He also addresses image quality issues such as flickering, smearing, whitening, and contrast. Subsequent chapters focus on powder deposition techniques and the production of phosphor powders themselves. The text describes the necessary raw materials, flux materials, and growth conditions for producing ZnS powders. It provides a quantitative analysis on optimal processes and parameters for ensuring higher quality color and screen resolution. Offering a detailed guide for next-generation scientists and engineers in the field, Cathodoluminescence and Photoluminescence describes current technologies and promising developments for producing higher quality, energy-efficient, and long-lasting phosphor CR and flat CL screen displays.

The concluding volume of The Poetry of Ran, this epic tale follows warrior poet Torue, recording the legendary deeds of the disgraced monster hunter Ran. Perfect for fans of romance, poetry and epic fantasy action! The epic conclusion of The Poetry of Ran, as Torue a young bard, records the exploit of the untouchable monster hunter Ran — a young man who absorbs the evil he destroys into himself to prevent it from leaking out into the world…