Slashdot Mirror
The Japanese/American Tech Deficit
Why do the Japanese get all the coolest gadgets, while the U.S. is left with the second-tier, less-innovative ones? The San Francisco Chronicle delves into this age-old mystery and provides a few explanations for those of us who don't live near Akihabara.
Many hot game titles are available here first
That's not true. Newest games are available first on the streets of Taiwan.
Free XBox, PS2
which is why your folks stll want you to move out.
"It is a greater offense to steal men's labor, than their clothes"
because we spend our money on the latest and greatest weapons and warfare.
inarguably.
while very very cheap pirate copies are easily available on the streets of the various other 3rd world South East Asian countries.
What the article fails to mention is that the family physician is a 20-foot robot. He processes all this morning information while he "sleeps" in a closet in his office.
Honor Among Slackers. A veri
Could it be that I prefer to not be monitored by my toilet?
One of my main reasons which drive me to move back to asia, for all the gadget glory.
The other reason being your fetish for Japanese midgets, for all the midget wrestling glory.
Tech, life, family, faith: Give me a visit
Why do the Mennonites get all the good stuff first?
Japanese guy: "Yes, We may have best gadgets, but you Americans have bigga penis"
Judging by all the Hummer II's I've been seeing, not so much.
"Nobody knows the age of the human race, but everybody agrees that it is old enough to know better." - Unknown
Johnny stumbles to the bathroom to answer the call of nature using the household's amazing Matsushita-brand Smart Toilet, which automatically measures his weight, body fat, blood pressure and urine sugar and sends the results to the Sokko family physician via the Internet.
"Your urine contains traces of an illegal subtance. The bathroom door has been locked and the police has been notified. Please remain seated until they arrive.
Thank you for using Matsushita."
True, but let's put this into perspective. I mean - it's not like we don't have some cool toys of our own.
[Ours just aren't quite so damned gay...]
Yeah, according to the article, the Japanese high tech gizmo market is driven in no small part ...
by teenage girls.
Now, that's a demographic that most slashdotters (including myself) have a very limited experience with. I'm not sure how envious I am of a market that that puts style and color in front of most everything (backed up by an infrastructure that this country will never equal). YMMV, of course.
Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
The US doesn't recruit the mad geniuses the way Japan does. Japan has an aggressive program that attracts and subsidizes their research in many important fields, such as mecha research, mind control rays, cellular reanimation techniques, and psychic enhancement. As a result, we are trailing behind Japan in the tech race.
Some have pointed out that we don't have giant robots battling in the strees, gangs of psychic mutant orphans roaming the streets, and little to no defense against nude female aliens with magical powers, but I for one don't really find that to be a realistic assesment of the situation. As anyone in Japan can tell you, those problems are more than adequately delt with by the superhero cyborg schoolgirls that roam the countryside.
HA! I just wasted some of your bandwidth with a frivolous sig!
So do they have Duke Nukem Forever yet?
General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
What I want to know is if Johnny's taking a piss, how the hell is the toilet taking his blood pressure? Unless there's a cuff attaching to his ankle, I can only envision one other "appendage" from which a reading could be taken. Perhaps this explains the popularity of the toilet among Japanese males?
Here's an actual transcript of a recent Meowlingual translation:
C: "Meow!"
M: "Feed Me!"
Cat: "Meow!"
Meowlingual: "I am the coolest thing on this planet".
C: "Meow!"
M: "Don't touch me! Leave me alone!"
C: "Meow!"
M: "I am way too important to be inside this house!"
C: "Meow!"
M: "I will do what I want, when I want, and YOU will learn to like it!"
Shaka, when the walls fell.
Similar to the upcoming US election results
I'll have to remember that next time I order a Salmonella omelet with a side of Botulism soup.
With extra E.Coli for flavor...
By the taping of my glasses, something geeky this way passes
Nobody in America would spend $400 for a portable Walkman type device
I know what you mean! Just look at how much the ipod has flopped!
Disconnect your television. Do your own research. Draw your own conclusions. They're probably lying. Don't be a sheep.
They ship all their garbage to America, package it, and resell it.
Apparently, you've never seen cautionary tales as "Attack of the Killer Tomatoes". Of course, after seeing "The Toxic Avenger" I'd take irradiation over chemical preservatives any day...)
There is no America. There is no democracy. There is only IBM and AT&T and DuPont, Dow, General Electric, and Exxon