the qualia journal

When I was 15, I traveled to Vancouver. It was summer. That was the first time that I ever went abroad. Although I had by then studied Engli...

When I was young I used to have many objections against the so-called blockbuster films from Hollywood. I liked films by Yasujiro Ozu, Andre...

The other day, walking along a Tokyo street, I noticed that a plum tree had started to bloom. While my mind was being deeply shrouded in the...

People talk a lot nowadays about cloud computing. When put in the strictly algorithmic context, there may be many targets and obstacles, sti...

I had a chat with my philosopher friend Ken Shiotani over lunch. He was lecturing in Hosei University, and I caught him as he was waiting fo...

I met with Ilya Farber on Sunday afternoon. When I first heard that he was staying in Tokyo from Friday to Monday, I was amazed at his hecti...

The functions of molecules such implicated in social contexts as vasopressin and oxytocin would naturally depend on the biochemical and biop...

I don't like wearing a coat even in the middle of winter, as I dislike the feeling of suffocation as one enters the indoors. Consequentl...

Nobel Peace Prize for Google! http://twitter.com/kenmogi 　

Google's recent decision and moves as regards their operation is laudable. I here pledge my fullest support. The online manifesto by Jon...

I am in Hakata now. My mother was originally from this region. When I was a kid mother used to take me to the Kyushu Island. Summers in Kyus...

It is quite fascinating how a particular piece of culture is accepted on a foreign soil. The Japanese have never understood, for example, ho...

Mystery is generated and deepens when you can experience something at a particular place and time only. Misere, composed by Gregorio Allegr...

My best philosopher friend Ken Shiotani is rather big, weighing 120kg according to his recent report. In this slim overconscious civilizatio...

My body is stoutly built, and my legs are not that long. Therefore, I am not a good one for dancing in the style of ballet. However, I quite...

The great novel "Sanshiro" ends thus. --------- Yoshiro moved closer to Sanshiro. "How do you like 'Woman in Forest?'...

Drank with my best friends until late at night. Had an early morning, but simply had to stay. There are nights like this when you simply wan...

During the course of my life, I sometimes search for dissonance. Consonances are surely beautiful. To drink a good white wine in a sunlit ro...

To encounter new things, you often need to see things in the periphery. The central vision captures things of interest as you understand it ...

Take the starry night by Vincent van Gogh, for example. This oil painting, painted in 1889, strikes one with a vivid impression. However, Go...