CROSSROADSCROSSROA DS Language StudioÊs Newsletter March,
March , 201
20 1 7

Over the centuries, people haveassigned monetary value to all kinds ofobjects. Beads and shells were top currency
in many pacific cultures, as were dolphin’steeth! This latter item has been used in
the Solomon Islands for
hundreds of years. The
teeth were replaced in
more recent times with
the island’s modern dollar
currency. However, in 2008 the dollar wasdevalued. Then people started hoarding
money creating a coin shortage. So, theSolomon Islanders reverted to using
dolphin’s teeth as currency: “The whiteman’s money will end, but the dolphin teeth
will always be there for us”. This revived
dolphin culls and, of course, led toElla
international outrage from conservationgroups. Dolphin’s teeth? Not a good idea.
Salt has played an important role in thedevelopmentof many ancient civilizations.
JanisIn China 2200 BEC, salt was used to paytaxes. In the Ancient Roman era, soldiers
were sometimes paid in salt (the words“soldier” and “salary” in English arederived from the Latin word, “salarium”,
an adjective referring to salt).
Salt is not the only
edible that has been used
as money. Peppercorns
were extremely valuable
in ancient Greece. And in the 5th century
both the invading Visigoths and Huns
demanded huge quantities of black pepper
as payment in ransom from the city ofRome, or else! By the time the middle agesrolled around, peppercorns had become an
accepted form of currency in Europe.

Another fascinating, ingestible kind ofcurrency was the tea brick. Made in ancient
China with tea leaves and stalks, a few herbs
and some wood chips, along with ox blood andcow dung (for its binding effect),these bricks were still being
used as currency in the 19thcentury, not only in China but
also in Russia, Tibet, Siberia and Mongolia.
In medieval times, squirrel
pelts were highly valued andin Russia and Finland they
were used as currency with theanimal’s snouts and claws used as change!
Perhaps most intriguing is
the Rai Stones from the islandof Yap in Micronesia. Thesestones have been used as money
since 500 AD. The Yapese people needed to travelto the nearby island of Palau to get limestone forthese big circular discs. Shipping them back toYap was no easy task as some were 3.5m acrossand weighed over 4 tonnes. Their value depended
on their size and the amount of time and effort
necessary to transport them. The journey was
dangerous and if someone was injured or killed
along the way, the value of thestone went up! Some of thesestones were so large that once
they were placed on the island,
they were not moved again; their location was
not important, only their ownership. On one trip,a large stone fell overboard in transit and sank tothe seabed. Everyone agreed that the stone muststill be there, so they continued using it as
genuine currency even though it could no longer
be seen or touched!

NET LESSONS: Too busy to come to CROSSROADS?
…. Try our lessons on the net!
Go here for some more on the history of money:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ancient/history-money.html

Joshua Says: I was watching a Ken Robinson video lecture the other day when hespoke about “education” starting with “learning” not “teaching”. Much of what he had
to say made sense to me, although I don’t think everything he says about learning asecond language is suited to our situation here in Japan. And yet, how profoundly anduniversally true is this statement, “education starts with learning, not teaching”. I’dvery much like to find out what this might mean to you, our students.
Junko Says: Here’s another quote from Leonardo da Vinci: “A paintershould begin every canvas with a wash of black because all things innature are black except where exposed by light.” It is so true that without
light you see nothing but darkness. Everybody understands this and yet, I
wonder why it is so difficult to believe it. What do you think?
Matt Says: The F1 season starts this month on the 26th and so far it doesn’tlook like the new regulations will alter the field very much. Mercedes still
appear to have the fastest driver and car combination which most people
hoped might change this year. Hopefully Australia delivers some unexpected
excitement but I fear it may be another year of Mercedes dominance.
Nigel Says: I've noticed spring knocking on winter’s door; Prunus mume(plum blossoms) are in full bloom at the moment and it has reminded me ofhow pretty spring in Japan is. I'll most likely visit the castle again to take inthe different surroundings. Last time I went was at the end of the humid
summer so it'll be a nice change of scenery and temperature!
Danielle dit Trouver tous les mois un sujet à la fois digne d’intérêt mais qui
tient dans un petit paragraphe est une chose plus compliquée qu’elle n’yparaît. Ce mois-ci, manquant d’inspiration, je me suis donc dit que j’allais
tricher un peu et écrire un paragraphe parlant d’écrire ce paragraphe. Un peu
comme un serpent qui se mord la queue… Mais il semblerait que cela ait
marché puisque ce paragraphe se finit.
1ACROSS
1 holding a high level of interest
3 noses
7 brought back, reestablish
9 a system of money
11 a small furry animal
13 possible to eat and drink
14 animal manure
15 the fur and hides of animals
16 formed or developed fromDOWN
2 provoking curiosity
4 close5 lowered in value
6 secretly storing valuables
8 reduce the population by selected killing
10 gone back to a previous state
12 anger, disgust, revulsion(print version here)

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The Science Column with S(a)3’s Sakiko:Will we ever be able to meet an aquatic monster, a Kappa?

That’s me!

When I was a child, I read a book named “After 100 Years”. The story originated from an old folktale in which
aquatic monsters, Kappas, told humans about an outbreak of heavy metal poisoning.
This story was set several decades ago; I think it was probably in the 1950’s or 60’s. A girl lived with her
grandfather in a small village near a river. Her parents lived upstream near a mine where they worked. I guess thatmining was the main industry of the village. There, everyone used river water to drink, cook with and wash clothes,dishes and so on in. The river was essential for supporting life.
However, not only humans, but also aquatic monsters, the Kappas, used the river. One day the girl saw some
Kappas playing with a ball made of water. She was so surprised, she screamed. The Kappas noticed her and threw
the ball to her. She got soaked and ran away. As she did, she heard the sound of the Kappas laughing. It was her
first contact with Kappas.
One night, there was a heavy storm. After the storm, the river’s water turned muddy. Then a serious incident
occurred. After the muddy water drained away, she saw a lot of dead fish floating in the river. At first glance, theriver water looked clean and normal. The girl thought it was strange.
During a silent night, she heard a strange sound. Her grandfather heard it also. They heard it again the followingnight and again the night after that. She and her grandfather went out of their house and towards the sound.
They found that it was the moans of the Kappas. She and her grandfather saw a crowd of Kappas goingsomewhere. Then one of the Kappas noticed the girl and said, “This river water is very harmful for us. We can’t live
here any more. But we will come back after 100 years. Please clean the water up”.
After this incident people became concerned about the quality of the river water. Investigators came to thevillage and tested the contents of the water. Then the government prohibited people from using the river water.
Later the residents found out that the water was polluted by heavy metal from the mine. This story ended withthe girl thinking, “When the Kappas return, what will we play?”
Whenever I remember this story, I think about many things. What happened in the village after thisincident? How did they change their life? Could they let go of their main industry? How could they live
without the river water? There were many serious problems that were not written about in this story.
Anyway, I am waiting for the return of the Kappas. I would like to ask them about current waterconditions. Our rivers have become much cleaner compared with several decades ago. I hope that theyare now suitable for Kappas.
LO V E R H E A R DGC O N V I N C E DSDCRLS T R I C TOW A G E R SASPVTPBYEVI L L E G A L
ERNEOTLFIO C C U R R E N C ECERGESHGIHIP E R M A N E N TODLNNDP O S S E S S I O N
R O Y A L T I E SD

Last Month’s Puzzle Solution
ACROSS
2 hearing without the speaker's knowing
3 persuaded
7 severe, harsh
8 money used in gambling
11 not legal
13 happening
14 unchanging
15 ownership
16 payment to the holder of a copyright

DOWN
1 make or enact the law
4 sent towards a designated goal
5 exclusive rights
6 income (money) before deductions
9 became friends with
10 slightly different from the original
12 related to the law

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