Sobue in Inazawa, Aichi is famous for Ginkgo nuts production in Japan. During the 27th Sobue Yellow Leaves Festival, a public lecture “Ginkgo biloba is a living fossil” was held in a Lifelong Learning Center on November 24, 2024. The invited speaker explained the uniqueness of sexual reproduction of this plant, mentioned morphological mutations reported so far, and talked about fossils of the related species found in the world. In the present report, the authors discussed the possible contribution of the university to the local regions.

View full abstract

Brachymorphic mice have spontaneously brachymelia induced by the bm gene, which causes a point mutation in a sulfotransferase. Abnormalities such as shortening of the limbs, spine, and tail, and curvature of the spine have been reported in these mice. In this study, I examined histochemically whether administration of normal chondroitin sulfates (CHS-A,C) would improve the levels of undersulfated glycosaminoglycans in the renal tissues of brachymorphic mice. For light microscopic observation, aldehyde-fixed and paraffin-embedded sections of renal tissues were prepared from mice treated with CHS-A,C mixtures between 4 and 12 weeks of age and from a control group. The sections were stained with sensitized high iron diamine staining (S-HID) to detect sulfate groups in GAGs and digested with bovine testicular hyaluronidase for the detection of CHS-A,C. In the control group, sulfate groups were found to be present in the glomerular basement membrane, mesangial matrix, basement membrane and interstitial connective tissues of Bowman’s capsule and urinary tubules. Observation of the treated group confirmed that undersulfation of the mesangial matrix of the glomerulus and the interstitial connective tissue of the Bowman’s capsule and urinary tubules was improved, and that the improvement in undersulfation was dependent on the CHS-A,C administration dose. In addition, it became clear that brachymorphic mice are suitable for detecting the increase in sulfate groups of the administered CHS-A,C.

View full abstract

This study examines how events and states are construed in English and Japanese, focusing on cases in which a passive construction in English corresponds to a nonpassive construction in Japanese. A corpus of about 150 passive clauses was compiled from a contemporary English novel, using their published Japanese renderings as reference points for native-speaker intuition, rather than as translation data. While English passives typically foreground the affected element and place the agent in the background, Japanese frequently construes the same events using intransitive clauses or adjectival and nominal predicates. The classification and quantification of these correspondences reveal that Japanese does not merely avoid passives but reflects a distinct event-construal strategy, in which changes of state or the absence of an explicit subject have more salience than the affected participant. This analysis draws on established frameworks of transitivity and passive typologies, and concepts from cognitive grammar are used heuristically to clarify observed patterns. The study thus presents descriptive findings that highlight cross-linguistic differences in the construal of passivity.

View full abstract

This study examined the impact of diet and nutrition teachers on classroom teachers’ implementation of nutrition education in three elementary schools in Inazawa City. Although overall practice did not differ between schools with and without diet and nutrition teachers, consultation with diet and nutrition teachers was frequent in the former, while teachers in the latter relied on personal or university experience. Main needs included lesson plans, teaching materials, and individual support. The presence of diet and nutrition teachers influences teachers’ resource use and support needs. Enhancing teacher allocation, materials, in-school training, and itinerant support is essential to promote effective nutrition education in all schools.

View full abstract

To develop fresh, elastic rice flour pasta noodles, we prepared three types of noodles using rice gel as a dough binder. These included noodles containing rice gel alone (Q), noodles in which rice gel was combined with phosphate-crosslinked starch (R), and noodles in which rice gel was combined with acetylated phosphate-crosslinked starch (S). The properties of these noodles were compared with those of a control noodle sample (P), which was prepared from unmodified tapioca starch alone. In terms of physical properties, after 1 min of boiling, samples Q, R, and S exhibited higher fracture strength than sample P. Moreover, samples in which rice gel was combined with the modified starches (R and S) maintained fracture strength more effectively during post-boiling storage. Observation of the fresh noodle structure using scanning electron microscopy revealed that compared with the control, samples containing rice gel had fewer voids between the rice starch granules. These findings indicate that the combined use of rice gel and modified starch effectively imparts elasticity to fresh rice flour pasta noodles. Sensory evaluation further supported these findings. Across all sensory attributes, samples Q, R, and S received higher scores than sample P. In addition, overall acceptability was strongly correlated with the taste.

View full abstract

This article points out three things about the Renge-e, Chikubushima’s largest ceremony:

- The ideological foundation is the “Kanbutsu Samaikai-kyo Sutra.”

- The reason for choosing Benzaiten as the object of the ceremony, rather than the original deity worshipped, was due to a split within the sect to which Chikubushima belonged, which led to an assertion of the sect’s uniqueness, and to changes in people’s attitudes toward gods due to climate change.

- In later years, the Renge-e was touted as having been founded by Ryogen (the 18th Tendai Abbot), and the presence of Ryogen’s mother was also highlighted. Behind this lay the religious strategy of the monks of Agui.

View full abstract

This paper reports on the exhibit presented by Nagoya Bunri University at the Expo Aichi 20th Anniversary Festival held in Aichi, Japan in 2025. The exhibit featured student projects including robot programming tools, AI/AR prototypes, interactive videos, digital fabrication works, and an AR-based archaeological reconstruction, under the theme “Play with Media.” In addition to these collaborative projects between the university and the local community, the exhibit also included a partial revival of the university’s original exhibits from the 2005 Expo.

View full abstract

In the Department of Information and Media Studies, first-year students learn basic programming concepts using the visual programming language “Scratch” in the required course “Programming Introduction” during the first semester. In the second semester, they learn the text-based programming language “C” in the required course “Programming Exercise I.” I have been supporting the transition from Scratch to text-based programming, using the number of blocks used in Scratch works as an indicator. In this study, we applied the Random Forest method to analyze the number of blocks and the types of blocks used in Scratch works, in order to identify which factors influence learning during the transition to text-based programming.

View full abstract

　Basic medical sciences, particularly anatomy and physiology, are essential as the “common language” for all healthcare professionals in modern medicine. However, a deep-rooted challenge exists in many healthcare training programs: entry-level students often struggle to master these foundational subjects. This difficulty is compounded by a trend of students moving away from science in secondary education and the diversification of academic pathways, resulting in significant variation in students’ fundamental academic preparedness. While remedial education has been introduced to address these gaps, most current programs remain uniform and fail to meet the specific knowledge needs of individual professions in clinical practice.

　The purpose of this review is to systematically propose a novel solution to this critical issue. First, building upon the clusters of difficult-to-learn terms and concepts identified in the author’s previous study, the author will provide an overview of the common shortcomings of existing remedial education. Next, focusing on various healthcare professions̶such as nurses, physical therapists, registered dietitians, speech-language pathologists (speech therapists), clinical laboratory technicians, emergency medical technicians, and orthoptists̶we conduct a detailed literature review to analyze the specific basic medical knowledge required by each profession’s unique specialization.

　Finally, we integrate these findings to propose a hierarchical remedial education model. This model consists of a “common core” for essential knowledge shared by all professions and “specialized modules” designed to deepen expertise according to each profession’s specific clinical demands. Furthermore, by incorporating Interprofessional Education (IPE), we discuss the significance of how learners can establish their own specialized expertise while simultaneously deepening their understanding of other professions and experientially learning the importance of that common language. This paper concludes by proposing concrete measures to transform remedial education from a mere supplementary course into a foundational step toward developing robust professional competencies.

View full abstract

This study aimed to examine the relationships between the frequency of sweet consumption, emotional responses (happiness and eating-related guilt) during consumption, and body image concerns among university students. A total of 127 university students responded to a questionnaire assessing the frequency of sweet consumption, emotional responses during consumption, and concerns about the body, among other factors. The results showed a significant positive correlation between the frequency of sweet consumption and happiness, indicating that sweet consumption elicits positive emotions. Conversely, a significant positive correlation was observed between the frequency of sweet consumption and eating-related guilt, suggesting that consuming sweets can generate negative emotions. Additionally, eating-related guilt was positively correlated with concerns about the body. Structural equation modeling indicated that eating-related guilt functions as a mediating variable between sweet consumption frequency and body image concerns. Analysis of the free-response section revealed that reasons for feeling eating-related guilt included “concerns about weight and body shape,” “worries about negative health and physical impacts,” “awareness of calories,” and “failure in self-management or self-control.”

View full abstract