Nope, this image hasn’t been photoshoped. A Japanese Mac addict actually grows these apples. Ok, no, it’s not a new species of apple. They are actually Fuji apples, however they really do have Apple logos.

A month before it’s time to harvest the apples, he cuts out the logos from what looks like opaque plastic sheets. He then sticks the logos directly onto the apple. The sticker blocks out sunlight to the area causing the apple to lack the normal pigment. This is very similar to females using stickers on their skin before tanning.

Who would of thought to do it on apples… besides him.

Gizmodo via JapanSoc.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Technorati Tags: apple, japanese mac, japanese mac addict, mac apples, tan apples, tanned apples

As I stopped at the last redlight before pulling into my driveway tonight, it hit me. Barak Obama and Taro Aso, prime minister of Japan, share one similarity; thier legions of fans on the internet. I believe I can safely say they are 2 of the talked about heads of state on the internet.

I know I don’t have to tell you how the internet played a huge role in Obama’s presidential campaign.  I read an article yesterday about Barak Obama having to give up his blackberry and almost all communication done through the internet. For someone who has used the internet so much in the past 2 years, I can only imagine he’s dreading the day he takes office and has to stop. They say he may be the first U.S. president to have a laptop in the Oval Office.

Taro Aso also has legions of fans from on the infamous 2ch message board and Akiba. While his appointment to prime minister didn’t utilize the same approach to the internet as Barak Obama did, his fan showed their support around various message boards and blogs.

With the internet now as the most powerful communication medium ever, one who can harness the power of the internet is truely in a powerful position. Barak’s massive social network is the first of its kind for a U.S. president. No political figure has ever been as connected to the ordinary people as Barak and Aso are online. I’m interested to see how they both take advantage of it.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Technorati Tags: 2ch, akihabara, barak obama, obama 2008, obama social network, prime minister, taro aso

Madonna… Japanese? Well that’s what she says. Madonna revealed that she was a “Japanese warrioress” in a previous lifetime. I guess stranger things have come out of Madonna’s mouth. This is just weeks after her very public divorce of Guy Richie. I wonder if this is ment to be a statement to Guy about the terms of their divorce. Maddona says,

I must have been Japanese in a previous life. I’m pretty sure I was a
warrioress. I can’t explain it, I just know. I’m good at fighting –
fighting with a big sword.

AZ Central reports that there may be a big custody battle between Madonna and Guy. This could be her signal that she’s willing to fight for what is hers. But why did she have to bring Japan into this?

AZ Central via FG

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Technorati Tags: japanese warrioress, madonna, madonna japan, madonna japanese, madonna warrioress

When real women just are not your thing, where do you go for love? A Japanese man has taken his case to the Japanese government. He has started a petition to legalize marriage between a human and a 2D character. Taichi Takashita already has over 1,000 signatures within his first week, and is well on his way to his 1 million signature goal. Takashita writes,

I am no longer interested in three dimensions. I would even like to become resident of the two-dimensional world. However, that seems impossible with present-day technology. Therefore,
at the very least, would it be possible to legally authorize marriage
with a two-dimensional character?

Well it’s cool that he has dreams and desires. Those without them tend to be really boring people.

Via Yahoo

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Technorati Tags: 2d manga, man marry manga, manga marriage, marry manga

Here is one of the coolest origami pieces I have ever seen. What makes it so cool is that it’s totally otaku. I will admit, I didn’t have a clue what he was making till the music suddenly changed into the intro music that gives it away. I wont tell you when it starts to play, you just have to watch it for yourself.

Via New Akiba

Popularity: 2% [?]

Technorati Tags: cool origami, difficult origami, otaku, otaku origami

My favorite RSS reader by far is Google Reader. Without it, I could easily spend most of my day reading blogs without getting anything done. They just recently added a very cool new feature that integrates thier translation service into the google reader application.

While the translation service is hardly even close to perfect, it’s better than not being able to read the characters of the foreign language it was written in. Since I’m sure you are interested in Japan if you are reading this right now, chances are you can’t read Kanji. Now you don’t have to copy the URL of the post you want to figure out just to have an idea about what’s going on.

To use it, just subscribe like you would with any other feed. Then in the top right section, you will see a button listed as “Feed Settings”. Just click the button, then select “Translate into my language” and Reader will automatically translate the feed items for you whenever you view the feed. Cool huh. What will they think of next.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Technorati Tags: auto translate, google reader, japanese to english, translate

I’m currently trying to decide whether to get a Playstation 3 or an XBox 360. I admit I’m not much of a console gamer, but I’m willing to get into it as the 2 systems have really stepped up online play. I’ve always been into first person shooters on the computer since the old Quakeworld days in the late 90s.

I stumbled upon this Resistance 2 commercial from Japan. I think its pretty effective, and really brings the idea of the game to life. A normal commercial here is around 30 seconds. This one did a much more effective job that most commercials in half the time. With everyone’s time becoming more valuable, companies are going to have to pull off commercials as good as this to stay competetive.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Technorati Tags: fall of resistance 2, fall of resistance 2 japan, horror games, japan commercials, ps3 games

As the temperature drops across America, cold weather typing plagues many people who just are as addicted to the Internet as I am. Leave it to the ingenuity of the Japanese to come up with a viable solution. Thanko has come up with a keyboard that has a built in heater to keep your hands and joints nice and warm. It features a control to adjust the fan speed as well as temperature. To power the actually heater, a single USB port wont do. This keyboard requires 2 USB ports to be free. Small price to pay for not only keeping your hands warm in the winter, but also cool in the summer.

Via OhGizmo!

Popularity: 4% [?]

Technorati Tags: ac keyboard, keyboard heater, thanko, thanko keyboard, usb keyboard

Who doesn’t love odd robots from Japan? Here’s a 4-legged “spider” robot that was debuted at Robo Japan 2008. While I don’t see much practicality to this setup, you gotta admit, its different. It’s basically a table with legs.

The concept may not seem new to you. There have been countless movies, cartoons, and sci-fi TV shows that have used the idea of a insect-like walking robot. And come to think of it, I don’t think I have seen a robot that did it just like what you see in the movies. I wish I could find a video of this in action. It looks like a bumpy ride.

This isn’t the only robot that I have found that moves this way. Although its certainly the biggest though I have seen. Hexabods are another alternative. They fit in the palm of your hand.offers a cool little robot that reminds me of a crab for some reason.

youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6g610buepo]

Via Gizmodo.

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Technorati Tags: japanese robot, robo japan 2008, robot, spider desk

Students at a high school in Shiga Prefecture got an unexpected surprise from an unlikely place. The students at Yokaichi Minami High School raised a chicken that laid a relatively large egg (8.1cm and 158 grams). The egg got so much attention from local and national newspapers, the school decided to put it on display. However school teachers decided to remove the shell after they noticed a small crack in the egg. Upon further investigation, the teachers realized that there was another medium size egg inside.

I don’t think I have ever heard of this happening before. The large egg still had the yolk and white intact. The school hopes to break open the inner egg sometime next week. We will have to wait and see what’s inside.

Via Japan Today.

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Technorati Tags: chicken egg, egg inside egg, shiga prefecture, yokaichi minami high school

Growing up, my mom hated any sort of pet with hair or fur. I always wanted a puppy, but never got him. The only pet my mother could tolerate were fish. We had various fish during my childhood. Now that I am older, fish don’t excite me as they once did. However, if they still do, here are 2 things you may want to check out.

Have you ever wanted to see the inside of your as your pet fish see it? Japan Trend Shop sells the Aqua Eye, a mini underwater video camera for your aquarium. The tiny 2.7 megapixel video camera camera comes equipped with 4 LED lights to light up your underwater subject. I can imagine that this will be used for more than just figuring out what your fish do when they hid in that ceramic house you have in your tank.

If the work associated with keeping up a fish tank just isn’t your thing, but you do like fish, you may want to check out Sega’s pocket aquarium. It’s somewhat like a fish tomagatchi, but with much better graphics. You have your choice of system, each equipped with a different type of fish. OhGizmo! suggests parents buy this for their child before they decide to get them the real thing. Kinda gauging dedication. Good idea, but for $59, might as well just buy them a goldfish.

Japan Trend Shop & OhGizmo!

Popularity: 2% [?]

Technorati Tags: aqua eye, aquarium toys, fish toys, japanese toys

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Technorati Tags: barak obama, obama, obama japan, obama president, us elections