We examined the learning effect of tatami (Juncus effusus var. decipiens), which is commonly used as flooring in the Japanese style room. The research was conducted in two different types of classroom so as to ascertain the effect of tatami: one was a tatami-matted classroom where a group of schoolchildren were given easy calculation problems for thirty minutes (n=260), and the other was a normal wooden floor classroom where they were given a similar set of problems. We were able to confirm a significant increase ( p<0.001) in the total number of answers in the tatami-matted classroom. As to number of correct answers, however, there was no significant difference between the two types of classrooms. As the total number of answers increased and the correct answer rate was maintained in the tatami-matted classroom, it may be concluded that the examinees maintained their concentration better in the tatami-matted classroom than in the wooden floor counterpart.

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セルロース布は無水フタル酸と無水コハク酸によって化学修飾した．MRSA，S. aureus，K. pneumoniae および T. mentagrophytes に対する抗菌，抗真菌活性と洗濯耐久性を評価した．無水コハク酸によって処理した試料のS. aureusと MRSA に対する抗菌活性は無水フタル酸によって処理した試料よりも優れていた．しかし，それら２つの処理方法は，T. mentagrophytes および K. pneumoniae に対してほとんど明白な相違がなかった．繰返し 10 回洗濯後の抗菌活性は MRSA および S. aureus に対して若干低下した．しかしながら，洗濯耐久性は，ある高いレベルで保持され市販抗菌防臭加工製品と比較して優れていた．この処理方法は，他で報告した金属加工布よりも簡単で容易な方法である．更に，化学修飾セルロ―ス布は，グラム陽性菌，グラム陰性菌，および真菌の伝播を防ぐ効果があった．したがって，化学修飾セルロース布は，MRSA や黄色ブドウ球菌を含む様々な院内感染菌の蔓延を抑制するための補助手段になる可能性を示唆した．

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This work creates a foundation for the study of eating disorders by observing abnormal eating behavior and revealing the tendency toward eating disorders. The study involved 453 male and female university students answering a questionnaire concerning abnormal eating behavior, with a particular focus on their gender. The results show a difference in abnormal eating behavior between the biological sexes, with female students demonstrating hyper-sensitivity in their awareness of energy consumption and dietary restriction, together with a strong bias toward negativity and the concept of duress vis-à-vis eating such as guilt and an obsession towards eating. It appears that this bias was stronger among those with lower self-esteem. On the other hand, the male students displayed stronger sensitivity to social pressure and the views of others in their eating behavior, with this being more evident among those with lower self-esteem. The phenomenon of 'new femininity' elicited from the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BRSI) was found to have a positive influence on abnormal eating behavior. The differences in food intake between the normal group and the at-risk group in terms of abnormal eating behavior show that the at-risk group ate low-energy foods and avoided high-energy foods.

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A sensory evaluation of the deodorizing efficacy of a titanium oxide type of deodorant was conducted. The percieved difference by the subjects for odors in a refrigerator was assessed by 13 contrasting pairs of adjectives on an 11-point scale. The assessment was conducted three times; first immediately before placing the deodorant in the refrigerator, then after keeping it in the refrigerator for one week, and lastly one week after removing it from the refrigerator. The obtained sensory spectrum corresponding to the changes of scores between the first and the second (second minus first) showed an upward tendency with a positive value in terms of 13 descriptors. This implies an improvement of odors when placing the deodorant in the refrigerator. The respective spectrum (third minus first) at the removal was just the reverse. These results became fixed with the repetition and extension of the experiments in the present study.

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This study investigated whether volatile components of human waste, such as dandruff and sebum, would attract Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, commonly referred to as house dust mites, which cause allergic symptoms. This study found that: 1) D. pteronyssinus was attracted by extracts from both a used-pillow cover and house dust; 2) nonanal, decanal and acetic acid, which are highly volatile, are attractive components (this is a newly reported finding); and 3) the dosages of nonanal and decanal needed for the highest activity were both 1/100 that of palmitic acid (low volatility), which is the main attractive component of human sebum. As D. pteronyssinus was attracted not only by low volatility components but also by high volatility components, it would seem to be important to remove and deodorize high volatility components first in order to reduce mite numbers.

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Both the literacy rate and the educational level are very low, and the gender discrimination in the field of education is quite distressing in Pakistan. This paper aims to clarify the status quo of the female education in Pakistan. The research was made from 16th to 27th December, 2006, in Punjab State, Pakistan. Interviews were conducted at several schools there. The recent education policies in Pakistan aim to raise the percentage of female attendance in primary school and to improve the literacy rate of the female population. In fact, a great many women in rural districts have had no experience of going to school; the social activities of women have been traditionally restricted in many ways, which is considered as an impediment to female education in Pakistan. Under such circumstances, the efforts have been pushed forward to realize the literacy education programs in regional areas.

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"Baishi's Diary" was studied to investigate the Confucian household festivities held by the Rai family in the latter part of the Edo era from the aspects of the food offered and how festivities were conducted in a newly established Confucian scholar's home. The presentation of diary entries was 64.4% for the conjunction and full-moon festivities, 72.4% for auspicious day festivities (generally called gosekku), 68.9% for anniversaries of ancestors'deaths, and 58.8% for seasonal festivities (jisai). Grand banquets were held on the anniversaries of ancestors'deaths and at seasonal festivities, the menu for the banquet being recorded separately from "Baishi's Diary," while details of the food offered at conjunction and full-moon festivities and auspicious day festivities were reported in full in the diary. This resulted in the low proportions of anniversaries of ancestors'deaths (4.9%) and seasonal festivities (2.4%), and the high proportions of conjunction and full-moon festivities (35.9%) and auspicious day festivities (39.0%). The anniversaries of ancestors' deaths and seasonal festivities were reported in "Baishi's Diary" from about 1793, while entries for the conjunction and full-moon festivities and auspicious day festivities were usually made from 1802. Many the food offerings were presented by relatives and acquaintances, much of them being sea food.

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The "Fundamental Law of Food and Nurture" was passed in 2005 and shows the importance of considering regional foods and the culture of dietary habits. Our interest is how to promote food education that adopts regional foods in traditional dishes and in cultivating dietary habits. The history of cultivating strawberries in the Naruo region and the changes in strawberry cultivars was therefore studied. Strawberry production grew from the Taisyo to Showa eras in the Naruo region as a subsidiary farming business. Strawberries were recognized as an indispensable seasonal food for residents in the surrounding areas. The kind of strawberry produced in Naruo is specified and there is a growth plan for the future. We will further study documents on how strawberries were eaten and how strawberry products were made in the Taisho era.

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This paper presents the observations derived from investigation during the repair of five noh costumes thought to have been made from the latter half of the 16th century to the first half of the 17th century. The costumes repaired are: (1) Karaori (Fig. 1), (2) Atsuita (Fig. 2), (3) Atsuita (Fig. 3), (4) Atsuita (Fig. 4), (5) Karaori (Fig. 5). An investigation during the repair provided information about the width of the material, the type of clothing into which they were originally made and the history of their remake. Based on such information, it was possible to determine the time at which they were made into their present state, the method of patterning and the development in weaving designs. As a result, it became clear that the width of the material for each costume varies from 40.9 cm to 45.0 cm. Observations suggest the following about these costumes. Item (1) was originally a costume for an adult but was remade after the Meiji period into a child's costume. Items (2) and (4) had been disassembled during the early Showa period. It is assumed that item (3) was remade into a costume with wide sleeves, a type that appeared after the middle of the Edo period. Item (5) is thought to have been remade after 1960 because of the use of lining fabric with adhesive and the way the okumi and the sleeves are made.

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