Japan has had two lost decades – years where the country’s economic growth has failed to impress – and continues to deal with a weak economy. Martin Fackler looked at one reason why:

• The value of the yen compared to other currencies is extremely high. And the government is doing little to reduce its value.
• A high yen is good for Japan’s retirees – who make up almost a third of the population – since it allows them to buy cheap imports from abroad.
• It’s bad for the young. Local businesses are unable to sell products to other markets, because the high value of the currency makes their products more expensive.
• This inter-generational inequality is not widely known or understood in Japan.
• Since the elderly make up such a large proportion of Japan’s population, and because they come out to vote in large numbers, it is difficult to propose policy measures that would bring down the value of the Yen.
• In the long run though as Japan’s domestic industry continues to wither even the elderly will suffer.

To read more including why the Bank of Japan isn’t acting, how other countries have responded to the same issue, some of the strategies that Japan could pursue, what this means for Japan’s future, the actions that the government has taken, an initiative by the Democratic Party to solve the problem, what experts have to say, and what the elderly have to say, click here.

Source: Financial Chronicle

Via: Marginal Revolution

Michael Sacasas took a look at the history of toilet paper:

• Toilet paper was used in China by the 1300s.
• In other places people would make use of what was around such as leaves.
• Until the end of the 1800s Americans used discarded reading material.
• The Farmer’s Almanac came with a hole punched in it so that it could be hung up and have its pages torn off with ease.
• It is unclear if this is why Americans today still take reading material to the bathroom.
• Toilet paper first appeared in 1857 but it wasn’t declared “splinter-free” until 1935.
• Two-ply paper appeared in 1942.
• There was a toilet paper shortage in 1973.

To read more about toilet paper that would give you splinters, why there was ever a toilet paper shortage, what this says about innovation and technology, how we have come to take certain things for granted, how this relates to Seinfield, what the Romans did for us, and other interesting details, click here.

Source: The Frailest Thing

Via: Marginal Revolution

We’ve previously looked at the future of food. The BBC also got in on the act and contacted experts that suggested ways our diet may develop:

• Lab-grown meat. The world’s first test-tube burger might be ready by the end of the year.
• Algae. It can be grown in the ocean which is appealing since we’re running short on both land and fresh water. It is also a healthy replacement for salt.
• Sonic-enhanced food. We all know that sight, taste, and texture affect how we taste our food. But it turns out sound does as well. Piano music makes things taste sweeter. The research is in its infancy but in the future you could use soundtracks to alter the taste of what you eat.

To read more including how our notion of food has changed over the years, why Timon and Pumba might have been onto something, what sounds make your food taste bitter, NASA’s involvement in all this, how these ideas might affect the environment, the different types of algae available, and how some of these things might infiltrate our diet without us realizing, click here.

Source: BBC

Would the financial crisis have happened if kids were in charge of our banking system? Well if The Children’s Development Khazana continues to grow we might eventually find out. France24 reported on a bank run for and by kids:

• The first branch opened in New Delhi in 2001. Now there are 12 in the capital of India, and another 300 in locations as far as Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and Kyrgyzstan.
• The banks are run for street children so that they have a place to put their money where they can be confident that it won’t be stolen. This encourages them to save and invest.
• The ‘branches’ are located in children’s shelters.
• Every six months account holders elect two child managers for each branch.
• To qualify for an account, children can’t make money from begging or drugs.
• Savings with the bank earn 5%.
• The only time an adult is involved is when the money is deposited in a nationalized bank at the end of the day.

To read more including the legality of child labour in India, the people who started the bank, what one 14-year-old manager has to say about those who put money in the bank, the stories of children who use the bank, what they plan to do with their savings, the number of clients a bank may serve, what the branches look like, and how it helps children build a stake in their own future, click here.

Source: France24

Via: Kottke

In a story that brings together mysticism, the Russian Mafia, Paris Hilton, and Will Smith, Jean Lasker Gottlieb took a look at the human hair market:

• In 2011 $1.3 million worth of human hair entered the United States.
• It has become so valuable that in 2011 thieves stole $230,000 worth of it from salons – while ignoring the flat-screen televisions and cash registers.
• The most valuable hair is virgin hair – never coloured, cut, or processed.
• The hair is used to fashion authentic looking wigs. Hollywood is a big buyer. Film wigs have to be durable and high quality and can cost as much as $6,000.
• Paris Hilton was charged $6,000 for her first wig, but after she lost it within a year, the price went up to $10,000.
• Cornrow wigs are the most difficult to make and it can take three people six days to make one.
• After the collapse of the Soviet Union entrepreneurs went to Russia believing that the people were poor enough to want to exchange their hair for cash. But the Mafia eventually saw how lucrative the market was and wanted a 20% cut.
• Instead people turned to India where it is tradition for women to grow their hair long. In 2011 66% of imported human hair came from India.
• At Tirumala Venkateswara 20 million pilgrims a year visit for good luck. Some have their hair shaved, and the Tirumala administration collects it and auctions it. At one of these auctions they made $27 million.
• But cultural practices are changing in India and people are looking to other countries to renew their supply of human hair. There are few candidates. In Ukraine bunkers full of human hair have to be protected by armed guards.

The entire two page article is fascinating and takes a look at many things including what hair means to us as a society, what it’s like to lose it, the future of the industry, the wigs worn by Will Smith and Samuel L. Jackson, the most valuable colour of hair, what the hair looks like when it arrives in boxes, other sources of human hair in India, what Paris Hilton named her wig, how the quality of hair changes as it ages, the importance of being able to tie a knot, the violent thieves that steal hair, and why human hair is like an endangered species. You can find it here.

Source: The Atlantic

Via: Marginal Revolution

Japan is generally thought of as a high-tech country on the cutting edge of robotics and gadgets. Yet fax machines – a throwback to a previous era in most other countries – are surprisingly popular there writes Mariko Oi:

• 87.5% of surveyed Japanese businessmen say that “a fax machine is a crucial business tool.”
• It is considered by many to be rude to send letters and notes that aren’t hand written. Resumes must be hand-written so that employers can judge hand-writing. Calligraphy classes are popular.
• Part of the reason is that in Japan hard copies of documents are important.
• The most important documents require seals, not signatures. The majority of the Japanese have their own personal seal registered with the government. These are easily faxed.
• But the main reason for the popularity of fax machines is that more than 20% of the population is over 65 and have trouble adapting to new technology.
• One supermarket started allowing orders by fax machine, after its internet ordering system was met with indifference.
• Because so many of their customers are old, the same supermarket calls up to check on them if they haven’t ordered in a while.

To read more about what Japanese fax machines look like, why hard copies of documents are so important, etiquette in Japan, the two types of Japanese consumers, the proportion of Japanese households that have a fax machine, the rise of internet faxing, and quotes from the Japanese about the importance of fax machines, click here.

Source: BBC

Hannah Seligson reported on a new initiative to teach entrepreneurship:

• Founder Institute requires students to have incorporated their own business in order to graduate.
• The tuition is only $1,000 but the Institute takes a 3.5% stake in the company that is founded.
• The program is so tough that 60% of students fail to graduate.
• Of those that do, 42% have received external funding within the first six months of their businesses’ operation, while 10% have failed.
• Founder Institute has chapters in 14 countries and courses are altered to fit the local market. In Singapore, for example, there is a session on doing business in China.
• Overall the institute claims that it has helped to found more than 500 companies.

To read the testimonials of people who have been through the program, some of the mistakes they were making, the story of the man who founded the Institute, how it compares to getting an MBA, the ownership structure of the institute, what it means to take the program part-time, what you have to do to get admission, and what experts have to say, click here.

Source: The New York Times

Via: Marginal Revolution

In the future, writes Tim Adams, you may just be able to “print” out your own drugs and medicines when you need them. Highlights of his report include:

• The majority of drugs are made out of some combination of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and common agents such as oils.
• 3-D printers could put together these base elements in the right way to produce the drugs you need.
• Lee Cronin, a project researcher, believes that once the devices become widespread it would be akin to having an app store for medicines.
• A lot of counterfeit drugs available today are of low quality. Such a machine would eliminate that problem since you could potentially purchase licensed chemical blueprints.
• There are also several drugs that have been researched but aren’t produced because they’re too expensive. By democratizing medicine-manufacture you could bring immediate economies of scale.
• You would also only produce drugs when you needed tem and wouldn’t have to worry about getting them in advance.
• NATO has shown some interest – having a complete medical kit for battlefield soldiers would be valuable.

To read more including the genesis of the idea, current prototypes, a more technical explanation of how the machine works, why he doesn’t think the pharmaceutical industry would oppose it, what the future even beyond this machine might look like, the research funds that are available, and what industry experts have to say about it, click here.

Source: The Guardian

Via: Marginal Revolution