Tokyo 2020 Olympics chief Mori's derogatory comments about women, "board of directors meetings with many women takes a lot of time," caused chaos both at home and abroad. Media in Japan covered the issue extensively every day. But it seems their concern is whether other countries, expecially advanced western countries, regard Japan as a democratic nation, rather than sex discrimination itself. There was a clash of opinions on who would be his successor: choosing by abilities, regardless of the gender, or replacing him for a woman. In conclusion, Seiko Hashimoto, a former female Olympian at seven Olympic Games and Japan's Olympic minister, has been chosen as the new president of the Olympic Organizing Committee effectively with closed doors, not in the selection panel.

In Japan, it is not common to discuss gender discrimination in our daily lives. It comes up when someone famous makes sexist remarks in public such as this case or Japan has been ranked much lower by a global gender equality ranking, like Global Gender Gap Report. Japan has placed 121st out of the 153 countries in the Global Gender Gap Index 2020 rankings.

Some men say Japanese women are passive in improving their career. But Japanese girls have not received necessary and proper education on building their career and the leadership of women at school. Researchers revealed that males were main characters in 122 out of 170 stories included in Japanese language textbooks used in the elementary schools in 2008. It accounted for 71.8% out of all the stories. In the rest of the stories, a female main character or a leading character whose gender was unknown was featured. Stories on only three women's lives appeared in the textbooks while those on seven men's lives were included. As for social studies, 45 people were in the textbooks, but only three females, such as Murasaki Shikibu, were included. There were no females in modern times and later.

In Japan the despotic leadership style is still the most common among public and private organizations. Despotic leaders are forceful, direct, and tough, based on personal dominance and authoritarian behavior. In contrast, many in advanced western countries have adopted the democratic leadership style. The shared leadership allows equal participation of team members in the decision-making and the problem-solving processes. Women have a tendency to place more importance on relationships with other people. Which comes first, spreading the democratic leadership style in Japan or drastically increasing the ratio of female leaders? Or neither of them?

*Reference Sites:

World Economic Forum

Hiroshima University Institutional Repository

STU Online

February 21, 2021

It is said Albert Einstein had autism spectrum disorder(ASD). He did not wear socks and removed cuffs from his shirts by cutting them off because he was hypersensitive to texture. The winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics said he had seldom thought in words and thought through visual processing. He was not admitted to ETH Zurich at first because he failed examinations for the college except physics and mathematics. His worst subject was language. The German-born physicist did not like to listen to classes in his school days. After enrolling in ETH Zurich, he often cut classes and spent time at the library. His friend, Einstein's lifelong companion, showed Einstein his notebooks, so that the man of great importance in future years could pass examinations to put himself through college.

There are a great number of signs and symptoms showing that a person has ASD. The most commonly known feature is that people with ASD have difficulty with verbal and non-verbal communication. Their abilities to learn, think and problem-solve range from gifted to severely challenged. Albert Einstein was remarkably gifted. However, he could not have drawn out his potential without sympathetic supporters such as the friend at ETH Zurich and good environments like a happy home environment. Einstein had typical signs of ASD. Many with ASD are oversensitive to touch, taste, sound, sight, smell, balance and proprioception(body awareness). For example, people hypersensitive to sound cannot do without noise-cancelling headphones. Research shows people with high-functioning autism can be classified into three types by thinking styles: visual thinkers whose talents for art, handcrafts, and design stand out, verbal specialists who are good at talking and writing but they are devoid of visual skills, and pattern thinkers who excel in music and math. Photo-realistic visual thinkers have photographic memory. Like other people, individuals with ASD have their own strengths and weaknesses. But, they have an extreme difference between strengths and weaknesses. They become overly absorbed with interest in specific fields. It takes autistic people longer to process what they heard verbally. In addition, they have trouble understanding what others are saying correctly because certain sounds are hard for them to understand. These are why children with ASD have difficulty in learning in traditional ways. Lectures are still the basis for how teachers give their lessons in Japan.

April 2 falls on World Autism Awareness Day recognised by the United Nations and the period between April 2 and April 8 is observed as Developmental Disorders Awareness Week established in Japan. Awareness-raising activities such as the distribution of flyers and leaflets was conducted to raise public awareness about ASD and other developmental disorders at Okayama Station on April 4 and at Kurashiki Station on April 2. Okayama Castle, Bitchu Kokubunji Temple, and some other facilities were lit up in blue on some days during the period. But it is doubtful whether it raised the awareness of developmental disorders among many people in such trite ways.

*Reference Sites:

Autism Speaks

Forbes: Research Shows Three Distinct Thought Styles in People with Autism

Understood

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Okayama Prefecture Web Site

e-Healthnet

Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology - Japan

Hirosaki University

NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation)

Sanin Rosai Hospital

Business Insider: The U.S. IT Companies Including Microsoft Take Great Interest in Human Resources with Developmental Disorders Such As Autism. Can Japan Dig Up Buried Human Resources?

*Reference Books:

Lonely Childhood that produced geniuses

How the Girl Who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World

April 11, 2021