MITI and the Japanese Miracle Revisited: Reevaluation of the Administrative‐Centered Government

Chalmers Johnson, MITI and the Japanese Miracle: The Growth of Industrial Policy, 1925–1975 (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1982). xvi, 393 pp. $27.95 (paper), ISBN: 9780804712064.     

Urgent issues and prospects at the intersection of culture,memory, and witness interviews: Exploring the challenges for research and practice

The pursuit of justice increasingly relies on productive interactions between witnesses and investigators from diverse cultural backgrounds during investigative interviews. To date, the role of cultural context has largely been ignored by researchers in the field of investigative interviewing, despite repeated requests from practitioners and policymakers for evidence-based guidance for the conduct of interviews with people from different cultures. Through examining cultural differences in human memory and communication and considering specific contextual challenges for investigative interviewing through the lens of culture, this review and associated commentaries highlight the scope for considering culture and human diversity in research on, and the practice of, investigative interviewing with victims, witnesses, and other sources. Across 11 commentaries, contributors highlight the importance of considering the role of culture in different investigative interviewing practices (e.g., rapport building, questioning techniques) and contexts (e.g., gender-based violence, asylum seeking, child abuse), address common areas of cultural mismatch between interviewer–interviewee expectations, and identify critical future routes for research. We call for an increased focus in the investigative interviewing literature on the nature and needs of our global community and encourage constructive and collaborative discussion between researchers and practitioners from around the world to better identify specific challenges and work together towards evidence-based solutions.     

The G8 Summit and Japan

In the following article, Akira Kojima, managing director and editorial page editor of the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, evaluates the 2000 Kyushu-Okinawa Summit. In contrast to those critics who contend that the summit has deteriorated into an irrelevant and redundant international gathering, Kojima argues that the summit is even more important than it has ever been. In this evaluation of the 2000 G8 Summit, he outlines the role of the summit and, in particular, explains the significance of the summit for Japan, both for politicians and for the general public. He also discusses the rationale for the choice of Okinawa as the venue for the last G8 Summit of the twentieth century.     

A new phase in Japanese economic cooperation

The merging of the Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund (OECF) and the ExportImport Bank of Japan to form the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) signals a new phase in Japanese economic cooperation. In this article, Akira Nishigaki, former president of the OECF , describes the role and significance of Japan's official development assistance and considers recent policy trends and issues. It is essential for the peace and prosperity of Japan and of the world as a whole, he says, that Japan maintain favorable relations of interdependence in the international community. In this spirit, he expresses his hope that in funding and implementing assistance the JBIC will continue to strengthen Japan's considerable contribution to the development of developing countries.     

Studies on the frequencies of PGM1, PGM3 and Es-D types from hair roots in Japanese subjects and the determination of these types from old hair roots

The frequencies in Japanese subjects are reported of hair roots type PGM₁, PGM₃ and Es-D, and the determination of these types from old hair roots. The gene frequencies were: PGM₁¹, 0.762; PGM₁², 0.230; PGM₁⁷, 0.008; PGM₃¹, 0.621; PGM₃², 0.379; Es-D¹, 0.625; and Es-D², 0.375. The old hair roots were analysed after storage at 25 °C, 4 °C and ?80 °C; the enzyme activities were detected and typed at 25 °C within PGM₁ 10 days, PGM₃ 4 days, and Es-D 4 days.     

Methamphetamine body packer: acute poisoning death due to massive leaking of methamphetamine

We encountered three methamphetamine (MA) body packers presenting simultaneously, one of whom died. Three Nigerian men (39, 35, and 37 years old) who attempted to smuggle were found to contain 35 (498 g), 21 (292 g), and 5 packages (73 g) of methamphetamine hydrochloride (MA-HCl) in their stomachs, respectively. Packages were wrapped with plastic film and Scotch tape. The 39-year-old man died with acute poisoning from c. 20 g of MA-HCl that had leaked from the packages into the stomach. His plasma MA concentration was 8.6 microg/mL when he was hospitalized (17 h before his death). Autopsy findings showed extreme pulmonary congestion and edema as well as moderate hepatic edema and several petechiae. Quantitative analysis was performed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Extremely high concentrations of MA and its metabolite amphetamine (AP) were found in cardiac blood (63.5 microg/mL and 1.2 microg/mL), urine (4,518 microg/mL and 72.4 microg/mL), gastric contents (8,490 microg/mL and 16.9 microg/mL), and in all other autopsy samples. These high concentrations confirmed that the cause of death was acute MA poisoning. Furthermore, impurity-profiling analysis of the seized MA revealed that the MA smuggled by the three suspects originated from the same batch.