Chemical Analysis

On the Oukawa (big river), on of the most prominent buildings is the Japanese School of Chemical Analysis. Attractively lit up in neon, it does look like a nightclub in the evening. The website is here, and contains a well-designed and informative (but Japanese-only) interactive animation, giving you entertaining chemistry-related facts. Did you know that behind every successful sportsman lies analytical chemistry (because it results in better wires used in tennis rackets), so don't you want to aim for the top together with world-record setting athletes?

Also, both informative and entertaining are the steps up to the building, which form a periodic table of the elements. Each one contains a little cartoon telling you what the element does for you.

Thallium banishes rats.

Radon is found in onsen.

Magnesium is used for spaceships.

Neon is used for night time drinking.

And my favourite one, Polonium, comes from Poland.

Outside there is a helpful display case telling us all the different things chemical analysis helps us with.

This poster poses the question "What 'Analysis' do you do at the Japanese school of chemical analysis?". The answer is given in the form of a bowl of fruit. We learn the answers to questions such as: What is an apple? Where is it? In the basket? Is it fresh? Through 'Analysis' we can learn the answers to all these questions.

Inside, there is a display case showing a range of chemistry-related items, such as CDs, pharmaceuticals, dyes, and...

...Pocari Sweat - one of my favourite isotonic drinks!

Its fine to walk around the lobby and photograph things, the receptionists will purposefully ignore you.

And back outside, don't forget to take one of these. This a robustly-designed flyer-holder, inside which are immaculately-wrapped (what did you expect?) packets of Chemical Analysis school information. I felt guilty taking one, not least because each packet has a sticker with "For High School Students" carefully hand-written on it, and two hand-drawn flowers.

But before I could do that, I had to figure out how to open it. The envelope is made from a appropriately clever self-sealing heavy plastic, and you have to carefully spot the flap:

The front page says "Lets become a white-coat wearing superstar!"

It contains an application form, a propaganda leaflet entitled "college news", in which former students praise the fun they had learning organic, inorganic, and environmental chemical analysis. However, the true story can be read from the incredibly-titled leaflet Labo-Freak:

Apart from the "tree of chemical analysis knowledge", students posing in safety glasses with colourful vials of chemicals, presumably for analysis.

But, importantly, there are small photos in which students are falling asleep in the classroom. No wonder they have to put a cartoon period table on the stairs - in order to attract sleepy students.

And this is rather like the market - you need to read between the lines if you're ever going to find out the truth.