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AI scammers — stealing our work then trying to trick us again for PR
“As a science fiction author, I’ve always loved hearing from fans of my fiction,” [US based author Jason Sanford] tells the Guardian. “But now when someone emails saying they loved one of my stories, my first thought is that this is yet another scammer setting me up for the kill.” https://www.theguardian.com/books/ng-interactive/2026/mar/12/ai-book-scams-publishing-fraud?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other Yet another reason I […]
“Don’t worry about it” — Van Allen A to burn up tonight
“For the average person, it will be a nice light in the sky if you get lucky and, otherwise, don’t worry about it,” Dr. McDowell said. “We have much more scary re-entries that happen. Occasionally, there is a 20-ton Chinese rocket stage that comes down. Those are much scarier for me.” https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/10/science/space/nasa-satellite-earth-re-entry.html?unlocked_article_code=1.SVA.dk5d.09lMgapDCbYq&smid=nytcore-ios-share OK, granted that the odds […]
Dear Diary – October 5, 2003
I feel as if I have two personalities, one which speaks English and one which speaks Japanese. The one which speaks English can never get past being a high school geek. The one which speaks Japanese cannot get past being a “strange foreigner.” The only time I feel comfortable now is when I am teaching. […]
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Category Archives: school
End of an Era: Goodbye, Nursery School
And so it begins. The end of the start of the rest of my children’s childhood. By which I mean our youngest daughter graduated from nursery school / kindergarten. Thinking back, we’ve been coming to our local nursery school every … Continue reading
Posted in coming of age, day care, education, festivals, Japan, Japanese, Japanese society, nursery school, parenting, school, separation anxiety
Tagged child care, child education, child-raising, children, customs, Japan, Japanese, Japanese kids, kindergarten, nursery school, parenting, reflections
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Farewell, Nursery. Hello, Kindergarten
After turning five in January, our youngest daughter finally made to the end of nursery school (“nen-cho,” 年長). Or so we thought. We had heard rumors in previous years that the system might change. It turns out that in this … Continue reading
Posted in day care, education, Japan, Japanese, Japanese culture, Japanese society, nursery school, school
Tagged education, hoikuen, Japan, kindergarten, kodomoen, MEXT
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Who was that Masked Flu Avenger?
Looking back now, I can laugh. The first week of February was rough. My wife had to work both weekend days, at the end of an already exhausting end-of-semester work week. I had also had little sleep. The previous month, my … Continue reading
Posted in festivals, health care, Japan, Japanese, Japanese culture, Japanese society, parenting, school, sickness
Tagged children, customs, family, health, Japan, medicine, parents
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