This paper is based on my public lecture delivered at the 51st General Meeting of the Japanese Association of Cultural Anthropology at Rokko Campus of Kobe University on 29 May, 2017. It aims to consider two different modes of sociality, grid and wave, in relation to nationalism. Most cases of "grid mode" are found in the disciplinary system of the state. By wave, I mean social relationships in a face-to-face situation. It is primarily related to orality as against literacy. Nationalism is a movement to interpellate people into a nation. A modern state needs not only an archival control over its subjects, but a story to mobilize them to fight for the state. The final part starts with two novels by Shun Medoruma of Okinawa origin. Then, I bring up Christian Boltanski's art works, which tell a possibility of wave mode against a gigantic and collective phallic monument, where personal names are not visible.

Recently, the notion of "embodiment" has become a crucial concept in robotics and Artificial Intelligence (AI) research. Embodiment emphasizes that a physical body is a requirement for intelligent interaction with the physical world. Based mainly on my fieldwork in a cognitive robotics laboratory in the Kantō region, this paper examines the fluid thought styles of roboticists, who draw on a range of disciplines in order to operationalize embodied intelligence in robots. These thought styles shape computational assemblages and the making of widely different robots intended to mirror particular aspects of life. The paper shows "life" to be infused into a research area that primarily deals with machines, data, and complicated algorithms, despite the fact that the robots are not themselves seen to be alive.

This paper presents the author's observations of three-dimensional (3D) motion analysis of ballroom dance and aims to contribute to the study of human walking. Specific examination was applied to the state of being center-balanced. This term differentiates the center of gravity (COG) used in the ballroom dance walk and that of everyday walking by Japanese people, which is instead front-balanced. This study clarifies the COG placement when center-balanced walking is achieved, with examination of differences between movement of the COG during the usual daily walking of Japanese people and during a standard ballroom dance walk. Furthermore, reasons for recommending a center-balanced walk in ballroom dance are discussed.