North-Sea
Lookout 8
No.

Dec. 21 Winter 2011

Student Research

Should Japan Have Nuclear Energy?
T h e p ro b l e m s w i t h
nuclear energy plants arecovered everyday on
Japanese TV. They werereported sometimes on TV
before the Great North
Eastern Earthquake. But
since then, people havebeen focusing extensively on nuclear energy. The government has
been trying to protect nuclear energy. There must be reasons why
we keep on using it. This report introduces ideas why Japan relies
on nuclear energy, the risks in maintaining it, and will introduce
new energy sources to solve this problem.
Nuclear energy is very helpful for Japan, but it is also a
dangerous thing. Actually, the Great North-Eastern Earthquake
did not only bring tragedy to the people living in Tohoku, it also
caused some secondary disasters. Above all, problems facing thenuclear energy power plant in Fukushima have not been solved
yet. In fact, they are expanding. We can say that there are both
high risks and high returns to nuclear power.
After the 1960s, the main energy source for Japan has beenfossil fuels. That is because Japan underwent rapid economic
growth, and fossil fuels are more efficient than hydroelectricity,
the main energy source before. However, an oil crisis occurred in
the 1970's, so Japan could not import so much oil for its energy
needs. Therefore, Japan started to use nuclear energy as analternative source of energy. Now, nuclear energy accounts foralmost 30 percent of its total Japanese power generation.
As nuclear energy became the main source of energy, the power
supply has increased much more, and living standards, industrial
production, and other areas have become better. The energy costs
became cheaper, so people could use high cost appliances like air
conditioners casually. Factories could run machines for 24 hours
and boost their production. In other words, nuclear energy madeelectric power more available. Also, areas which accept nuclear
power plants receive subsidies from the government, so these areas
can develop. As a result, a lot of people can find jobs there, andmake money. These are the main advantages to having nuclear
power plants.
If nuclear energy had only advantages, it would be recognized
all over the world as a significant source of energy. However, thisenergy has one critical problem. It is radioactive. If somethingcauses serious damages to a nuclear power plant, radioactive
contamination may happen in the area. The contaminated areas
would become too dangerous to live in because people would
absolutely suffer from radiation sickness. Also, radioactivity has
effects on food that people produce to eat or sell, so it strongly
affects human life. For example, the Chernobyl's accident in 1986
has been known as one of the most shocking nuclear accidents.

Now, even 25 years later, people still cannot enter these areas
because of radioactivity. Likewise, the area near the Fukushima
power plant is banned from entry.
Because of this, some people have been opposed to nuclear
energy. However, it would have been impossible for Japan to growinto one of the leading countries without such energy. So, people
should keep in mind that they have been relying on this energy
source to build their own country and lead comfortable lives. But,
as Japan is becoming more and more aware of the dangers of
nuclear energy, it might be the time for us to change our main
source of energy. In fact, Japan does not have fossil fuel, so we haveto import it from other countries. To make energy by ourselves,wind power, geo-thermal power, and solar power are recognized asalternative sources of energy. These total less than what nuclear or
fossil fuel can produce, but they can make up for some of it.
According to last year's news, there is a lot of methane hydrate
at the bottom of the Japan Sea. Methane hydrate is partly frozen
water buried at the bottom of the sea. This is partly made ofnatural gases. Recently, Japanese researchers have started to study
the way to extract this gas. Natural gas can become an energy
source, so if this study succeeds, Japan dependence on energy
sources could change dramatically. Japan will be able to develop its
own energy, and could even export this energy abroad. That way,
the Japan economy might improve because of newly exploitednatural resources. But of course, there are problems connected tothat. First, this is natural gas, so people need to burn it to getenergy, and so carbon dioxide levels will raise. Second, this gas
exists at the bottom of the sea, so people need to dig 1000 to2000 meters to get it. It is very difficult. Indeed, there are manyenvironmental and technical problems related to this venture.
Residents hope to live safe lives, and governments hope to be
wealthy. Yet, both have to understand each other firmly and sharecommon goals. Nuclear energy has been a reliable source forgovernments because it is efficient and produces an enormous
amount of energy. The problem is safety. Residents strongly insist
on that point. This has been the main conflicting point. If
somehow we found another efficient, powerful, and safe sourceenergy, this problem would be resolved. I think it is sufficient to
combine fossil fuels, natural gases, geo-thermal power, wind
power, and solar power.

Nuclear energy has brought a lot of benefit to Japan sofar. However, nuclear facilities cannot always standtidal waves. The
government needs toconsider alternative
sources of energy totake the place of
nuclear energy.
Hikaru Furukawa.

2Student Voice:
What do you think of an
80% attendance rule?
HGU students should be forced to attend
class at least 80% of the time, or fail theircourse if they don’t.
I am for this suggestion for three reasons. First, it isnecessary to study hard because teachers expect this. However,students may catch a cold and it might take them two or three
weeks until they are better. During this time, they should not
go to the university when their symptoms are very bad, or else
other students will catch their cold.
Because physical strength is different depending on the
person, we sometimes need to compromise and be allowed to
be absent two or three times. However, in such cases students
should hand in a medical certificate or do something like areport to show the teacher sincerity of our study. Finally,
students themselves make the decision to go to university, so it
is important that they attend classes and not be absent too
often. For the above reasons, students should make an effort
not to waste their valuable time at university and not be absent
more than 20 percent of the time.
Kaori
I'm against this suggestion because university students ought
to have flexible schedules. Most HGU students belong to aclub and do club activities. It is valuable for students because
they can socialize with many people and gain goodcommunication skills. Also, students have to work in their parttime jobs. Working is not easy, and employees are strict withthe way we do our tasks. Furthermore, this part-time work
allows students to socialize and experience working life, which
can be more important than classes, because students need to
be given more personal responsibly in order to become adults.
Next, if a teacher gives a boring lecture in class, students
should be able to choose whether they will take that class ornot. Students would rather study other things by themselves
than attend a boring lecture. Finally, if transport problems
happen, especially in winter, some students cannot go touniversity since many students don't live near this university.
Therefore, I believe that this suggestion is not useful and mustnot be applied at HGU.
KiwamuI agree with this rule, because we entered the university to
study, so we must attend class. Moreover, our parents pay lotsof money for this, so we must attend class to show ourgratitude. Our parents want us to obtain knowledge atuniversity, and our academic life is more important than parttime work because if we haven't obtained knowledge, we can't
get a job or work effectively. However, I believe that part-timework is also important because it allows us to experience
working life, and to learn personal responsibility. However, weare students first - so attending class should be the mostimportant thing for us.
Yuka
I support this idea. I think academic life is more important
than part-time work or social life, because if we don't obtain

No.8

Winter 2011

knowledge we can't work effectively. Also, our parents pay a lotof money for us to take classes in university, so we must attend
classes and study hard. If we attend classes every week, we canpass tests more easily. In fact, student of the law department inthis university don't have to attend every class, so some people
don't attend classes at all.
Although many students say they don't attend classes
because they're boring, they still fail their courses. Therefore,
we have to attend classes and get credits. Also, it's difficult forteachers to do class tests because if many students are missing,teachers must do retests. For the above reasons, I support this
80% attendance rule.
Misa
I am for this suggestion because I think obtaining
knowledge is the most important thing for university students.
We won't be able to study much after graduation and, if not,we can't work effectively within society. Also, we must attend
class because our parents pay lots of money for college fees.
Many parents want us to study and graduate from university, so
we should study hard and fulfill their wishes. Besides, attendingclass allows us to gain better scores and pass tests more easily.
In addition, such a rule would be better for both students
and teachers. If many students are absent from class, it isdifficult for teachers to teach and do class tests. For all of theabove reasons, I agree with this suggestion.
MizukiI am for this suggestion. Obtaining knowledge (academiclife) is more important than part-time jobs or a student's social
life. For example, in my Intensive Writing or Intensive
Speaking classes there is at least one person who arrives late or isabsent. As an excuse they say they overslept, or forgot to get off
at their station. As a result, they can't arrive at university on
time. Of course, there is also the reason that they are sick.
However, almost all students say “ I overslept.”
There are many students (including me) who work parttime, which is important for students to earn enough moneyfor entertainment or to cover their cost of living. However, after
graduating from university, you will be too busy working for aliving and won't have any time to study. You must do that now.
If you cut class you may feel relaxed, but it's a waste oftuition money. Your family still has to pay 1,228,000 yen inyour first year, and 1,011,000 yen tuition every other year.
There are a large number of scholarship students in thisuniversity, and my parents must work harder than when I was ahigh school student. For the above reasons, I agree with the
80% attendance rule because we have to go to university forboth our family and for ourselves.
Kato
I disagree with this suggestion. In my opinion, university
students need flexible schedules. We have many things that weneed to do. For example, we should enjoy our academic life,social life, work life, club activities, and also our family life.
I have some ideas. First, university students should have towork in a part-time job to earn spending money for shopping,
and to pay for some club activities. In particular, students wholive alone have to earn their living. Second, university students
are becoming adults, so they need to be given more personal
responsibility. Third, there are some boring lectures. Althoughmost students are attracted to university lectures, some teachers
speak to the blackboard, and not to us! Therefore, we think thatit's too much trouble to attend such a class. For these reasons
above, I disagree with the 80% attendance rule.
OnoderaNo.8

Winter 2011

3

Haiku
SpringSummerSun meets cherry tree.
Tree said “I can bloom flowers”.
She became lovely.

Hear the cicadas
Imagine the sea waves
Feel the sea soon come

Shori Taniguchi

Junya Etou

There is a parting
And there is an encounter
These bring a new life

It's the best season
Long vacation at the sea
BBQ with friends

Mari Sawaguchi

Akihisa Kureha

A cherry blossom
A season of encounter
Today's my birthday.

Hot and steamy day
People are idle all day
It's a lazy day!

Harumi Oozeki

Kana Satou

AutumnA very hot day
White balls fly high in the sky
High school baseball games

Hot season slips by.
Sunlight changes to cool winds.
Leaves burn themselves up.
Tsutomu Aoki.
The leaves turn colors
What are these sharp silver swords?
They are Sanma

Sosuke Takahashi
The winds of August
Chasing it by bicycle
Along the river
Hiroto Ukai

Hitomi Shiiki

WinterToday's moon viewing
Eating dango with green tea
See the two rabbits

It's so cold outside
There are exciting events
I feel so happy

Mayaka Itai.

Hitomi SatouThe best day in my life
I will never forget the day when I scored a goal in asoccer game. I was still an elementary school student. That
was my last competition in elementary school. My motherand grandparents came to watch my game. I hadn't scoredany goals before though I was forward player in those days.
I think I was very nervous on that day because thecompetition was a tournament. So I moved in a flurry fromthe beginning of the game. Falling into panic was one of myweak points. It was my usual tendency. The stronger theemotion to score a goal, the more I made mistakes…But
our manager didn't change any members. Just then we got a
corner kick. Our ace player kicked. The ball came flying at
me. I swung my leg. The ball was rolling into the goal.
Finally, I scored a goal! And I won the game. My motherand grandparents praised me. That day was a wonderfulday!
Kentaro Watanabe

4

Travel guide
Goryokaku Park
Goryokaku Park is a wonderful place in Hakodate. Goryokaku
Park is one of the best places in Hokkaido to see cherry blossoms.
You can enjoy flower viewing in spring. Goryokaku Tower is built in
Goryokaku Park, which has two observation decks. You can see
beautiful views of Mt Hakodate, the Tsugaru Straits, and historicalspots of Goryokaku. On the 1st floor, there is a shop which sells
many original goods so you can buy souvenirs for your family andfriends. On the 2nd floor, there are three restaurants. If you come in
December, January or February, you can see an event called “Dreamof stars illumination” or “Hosni no yume illumination” in Japanese.
This is an illuminated Goryokaku Park, which is very beautiful andmoving.
Business hours
You can visit Goryokaku Park whenever you like. Goryokaku
Tower is open from 9 am to 7pm from April 21st to October 20th
but closes 6 pm from October 21st to April 20th. Hakodate
magistrate's office is open from 9 am to 7pm from April to Octoberbut closes 6 pm from November to March. The office is closed from
December 31st to January 3rd.
Entrance fee
Goryokaku Park is free for everyone. Goryokaku Tower costs 840
yen for adults, 630 yen for junior and senior high school students,
420 yen for elementary school students, and children under 6 are
free. Hakodate magistrate's office costs 500 yen for adults, 250 yen
for students, and children under 6 are free.
Access to Goryokaku Park
You have two ways to get to Goryokaku Park from Hakodate
station.
1. To get to Goryokaku Park, you can take the street car. You
have to get off “front of Goryokaku Park”. It takes about 10
minutes. Then you walk about 15 minutes.
2. To get to Goryokaku Park, you can take the Hakodate bus.
You have to get off “entrance of Goryokaku Park”. It takes
about 20 minutes. Then you walk about 1 minute.
Telephone Numbers
・Goryokaku Park0138-51-2864
・GoryokakuTower0138-51-4785
・Hakodate magistrate's office0138-51-2864
Mami Yota

No.8

Winter 2011

costs 4,200 yen per person. It takes 3 hours to drive from Sapporo.
The best season to go is summer but Harvester is open every day of
the year.
Nakamura Yorino

Otaru Aquarium
Otaru Aquarium is agreat aquarium in west of
Hokkaido. There aremany kinds of animals
such as dolphins, seals,
and river otters. Someshows are held in theaquarium, like the South American sea lion show and the dolphin
show. They are held from March to November. In this aquarium,
there is a small amusement park where children can play from April
to October. This aquarium has a souvenir shop with cute original
goods such as very pretty small towels with pictures of animals.
There is a restaurant which serves delicious food such as ramen,
hamburgers, and curry and rice. Hattyan and Nanatyan arecharacters of this aquarium. They are cute, and they welcome you at
the entrance. You can take pictures with them.
This aquarium is open from 9 am to 5 pm in the summer andfrom 10 am to 16 pm in the winter. The aquarium costs 1300 yen
for adults, 530 yen for elementary and junior high school students,
210 yen for children over 3 years old, while children under 2 years
old are free. To get to Otaru, you can take the JR train from Sapporo
station. It takes 40 minutes to get to Otaru station and you need totake a bus from there to Otaru aquarium.
Saki Fujita

Trick Art Museum
The trick art museum is in Furano in the center of Hokkaido.
The museum has many optical illusion pictures. There is a lot of 3D
art at the museum. You can not only enjoy seeing the pictures but
also touching them and taking
photographs with them! At themuseum you can physicallyexperience this strange art.

Harvester Restaurant in Yakumo
Harvester is a restaurant with a lot of delicious food and asouvenir shop in Yakumo town near Hakodate. Yakumo town sits
between both the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan so there are
beautiful sea views. Harvester is also a farm and you can see someanimals such as rabbits, guinea pigs, and cute sheep.
To get toYakumo station, you can take the express train from
Sapporo station. It takes 2 hours and 30 minutes. From Yakumo
station, it takes 10 minutes to get to Harvester by taxi. The train(http://tokachidake.com/art/sakuhin.html)

Moreover, there is an ice cream shop, a Ferris wheel, and abarbecue terrace near the museum. The ice cream shop has manyflavors like pumpkin, yoghurt, and lavender!

5

to Hokkaido
No.8(http://tokachidake.com/ice/)

How to get there from Sapporo?
First, to get to Asahikawa, you can take the train from Sapporo
station. The express train leaves every 30 minutes. It takes about 90
minutes to reach Asahikawa. Second, to get to the art museum, you
can take the bus from Asahikawa station. The Furano bus leaves
every 1hour. It takes about 1 hour to get there.
Information
The museum is open from 9amto 5pm in April, October, andNovember, and until 6pm in May and September, and until 7pm inJune, July, and August. The museum is closed from December to March.
How much does it cost?
The trick art museum costs 1300 yen for adults, 1000 yen forjunior and senior high school students, 700 yen for children over 10,
while children under 11 are free.
Miyu Kaneta

Mikasa Municipal Museum
The Mikasa Municipal Museum is in Mikasa city between
Sapporo and Furano in Hokkaido. You can learn about the historyof Hokkaido's first coal mine which was opened up in 1886. In themuseum, there are many fossils such as ammonites, sea lizards, andmany reptiles. There are many trees and mountains around Mikasa,
so you can enjoy the natural environment.
To get to there, you can take the train to Iwamizawa from
Sapporo. After you get off the train at Iwamizawa, you can take thechuo bus bound for Ikushunbetu, and get off the bus at last stop. It
takes about 50 minutes to get there. Next, you can walk for 5
minutes to east. Then, you'll see the museum.
The museum is open from 9 am to 5 pm. The museum is closed
every Monday. In case Monday is holiday, the Museum is close thenext weekday. From December 20 to January 4, the Museum is closed,
too. The museum costs 450 yen for adults, and 150 yen for elementary
school and junior high school students. If you want to know more
about the museum, please call this number: 01267-6-7545, or please
mail this: hakubutsukan@city.mikasa.hokkaido.jp
Yuria Ikeda

Noboribetsu Jigokudani
Jigokudani, located in Noboribetsu, Hokkaido is a volcanic crater
that is appeared 10,000 years ago because of a volcanic eruption.
When you set foot in the crater, you can feel the atmosphere is filledwith the smell of sulfur, and when you go to the inner part, youalmost can't see anything because of the steam rising from a hot

Winter 2011spring. You can circle the crater in about 10 minutes by foot.
There are some hot springs and hotels around Jigokudani, andyou can see the leaves turning color in autumn. The nearest hotel,
which is called Daiichi Takimotokan, is located at the south of
Jigokudani and there are some huge hot spring baths with somehealing effects; for injuries, for mind healing, and for beauty. If you
don't stay at the hotel, but you want to take a hot spring bath, itcosts 2000 yen for adults and 1000 yen for junior high school
students and younger from 9am to 4pm. And from 4 pm to 6 pm, it
costs 1500 yen for adults and 750 yen for children. You can also eat
lunch from 11:30am to 2pm if you pay an additional 500 yen.
You can go there by JR and bus from Sapporo. First, take a train
from Sapporo to Noboribetsu. It takes you about an hour. Next,
take a bus from Noboribetsuekimae to Noboribetuonsen.
It takes you about 15minutes. Then, a 10minutes walk will bring
you to the Jigokudani. It will cost you 4490 yen to go there by JR
and bus. You can enter Jigokudani for free.
Yuki Sarodo

Rusutsu Resort
Rusutsu Resort is famous in Hokkaido for skiing and playing
golf. It is located near Mt. Yotei. In addition to skiing, you canexperience snowmobiling, snow rafting, cross-country skiing,
horseback riding, and dog sledding. You can rent ski boots, ski suits
and snowboarding boots. In summer, you can play golf on the
Tower course, River course, Wood course, and Izumikawa course.
You can golf from April 29 to October 30.
There are many hotels in Rusutsu. Rusutsu tower has suite rooms
and the North and South Wing has deluxe family rooms, standard
rooms and Japanese style rooms. It takes only 90 minutes from New
Chitose Airport and a round-trip fare is 4000 yen. There is a free
shuttle from Sapporo. A one day ski pass costs 5100 yen for adults,
2550 yen for children and 4300 yen for seniors. You can also get 2day, half day, night, and season tickets.
Miho Yoshida

The Sapporo Art ParkThe Sapporo Art Park is largest and the most famous museum in
the Sapporo. The Sapporo Art Park has exhibitions and performances
all year except winter when there is too much snow. There are displays
both inside and outside, so you can enjoy art everywhere. Therefore,
you are able to enjoy everywhere around in the art park and you canfind the art with a guidebook in hand. If it is difficult for you to findthe art, you should try a walk with a volunteer tour guide. You should
apply for volunteer guided tours at the ticket office. A music festival
takes place on the outside stage in summer. Famous foreign musiciansand orchestras come to play music from around the world.
You can go by public transport or car. It takes 15 minutes to get to the
Sapporo Art Park by bus from Makomanai subway station. If you go bycar, you have to pay 500 yen for parking a regular-sized car and1200 yen
for a full-sized car. Sapporo Art Park costs 700 yen for adults but is free
for children junior high school age and younger. Yoshiki Fukushima

6

No.8

Tech Talk

Cellphones

These days, having a cellphone is routine among young people,
even elementary school students. They bring them and go out
everywhere. However, is it OK to bring them to school or in class?
On this point we have a lot of opinions.
Some people are in favor of this point. First, cellphones can beused as a way to prevent crime. Some cellphones have GPSfunctions, so parents are able to know where their children are.
Also, if you haveaccidents or something,
you can connect withs o m e o n e yo u k n ow.
Second, you can use theInternet, so you canresearch anything you
want to. If you forget to
do homework, you can

The E-Book
The E-book is one of the best symbols of modern American
culture. Recently, many people in the world as well as many
Americans use E-books. In Japan, 2010 is called “Denshi Shoseki
Gannen” (The first year of electronic books), and many Japanesepeople were attracted by E-books in those days. However, I'm sureit all started from a part of American culture. In other words, it
was E-books made in America such as iPad and Kindle that many
Japanese people were attracted by. Moreover, many people in
America use E-books to read newspapers as well as books. This
report explains how American people use E-books, and the reason
why E-books are made.
I think E-books were born in America because America is alarge country. Despite being such a big country, the number ofbookstores in America is similar to that in Japan. In Japan, people
can go to bookstores easily when they want books, because there
are some bookstores nearby. However, it's difficult for some people
who live in America to go to bookstores because bookstores are too
far away. E-books made it possible for them to buy the books
which they wanted to read easily without going to any bookstores.
That's why some types of electronic books were made in America
and many people in America use electronic books. Therefore, I'msure one of the reasons many Americans use E-books has
something to do with such a vast land area.
It seems that the popularity of E-books in America is related to
the letters of the English alphabet. As you know, there are the 26
letters in the English alphabet. The number of letters is much fewer
than that of Japanese. Japanese includes thousands of Chinesecharacters, which are called Kanji, so the number of letters ofJapanese is so heavy. Moreover, the letters of English are much

LUNCHTIME SPEAKING

Winter 2011

post it by cellphone. In addition, you can read news sites andwatch TV, so you can get a lot of information.
You might think having a cellphone is a good thing, but somepeople have the opposite opinion. First, children can't concentrateon studying. If they get E-mail during class, they feel that they
have to reply soon, so they try to send E-mail under the desk even
if they were studing hard before they got the mail. Second,
cellphones are made for only one person to use. They have somegames, social networks, YouTube, and so on. You enjoy using it by
yourself, so you aren't able to share. School is a social place, so
students should communicate with each other. The third problem
is malicious bullying on the Internet or by E-mail. Someone might
write bad things about a person on the site. It's hard for teenagers,
and there are some cases that some of them are not able to come toschool because of these things.
In conclusion, cellphones are very useful, so they enrich ourlives, but also have dangerous points. For example, children can't
distinguish a safe site and dangerous site. They should wait to havethem till they become an adult, and also they should concentrateon studying during classes. Therefore, they shouldn't bringcellphones to school.
Nanaho Oki

simpler than that of Japanese. As you can see, many Chinesecharacters are so complicated. For these reasons, English is more
appropriate than the other letters such as Japanese and Chinese
because of the minimal data volume and ease of display. That's why
the shape and number of characters are so important for E-books.
Actually, Amazon, which is a US-based multinational electroniccommerce company, announced that E-book sales by Amazon
overtook paper books on May 19th. I'm sure that this data shows
many people, mainly American people, use E-books such as
Kindle. Moreover, recently, it seems that some Americans havestarted to use it to read newspapers. In short, not only publishingfirms, but also newspaper companies have no other choice but tosell them through E-books. Surely, they don't have to deliver theirnewspapers every morning if they let their subscribers read thenewspapers by E-book. Also, it is great for the environment due tothe fact that they don't have to use paper and ink. That's why
E-books are loved not only by readers, but also publishers.
For all of these reasons, E-books are truly the best example ofmodern American culture. The reason why many Americans use
E-books isn't just that they have a weakness for things that are new.
The reasons are related to some American culture such as the letters ofEnglish, the land area, and technology. Compared with the amount ofsales in America, E-books won't be abigger seller though people around theworld use E-books. Someday, E-books
will be used as textbooks by many
students, due to the fact that they areeco-friendly. It's certain that mostpeople on Earth will use E-books toread and study many things.
Daiki Hisamatsu

Bring your lunch and come and enjoy a chance to chat in English
12:10-12:35

No.8

7

Winter 2011

Accidents Happen
Accident
Last year, when I went to my part time job, I rode mybicycle. Then, I had a traffic accident on a crossing. I
crossed on the green light and from the other side the taxi
came to turn left so the taxi crashed into me!! I was
surprised but I wasn't injured. The taxi driver was evermore surprised than me and he called the police. The police
and taxi driver said to me “you should go to hospital
immediately!!” Although I thought I wasn't injured I
thought I should see a doctor. So, I went to hospital. At thehospital, the doctor asked me “Where have you hurt
yourself?” “ I don't feel any pain anywhere in me body.” I
answered.
The doctor frowned and said “So why did you comehere? I'm busy!! Go away!!” I wasn't satisfied with him.
Isamu Nagano

happening but after a few seconds I noticed that my rightarm was bent and broken. I could not believe it, or I did
not want to believe it. After that, I went to hospital byambulance. In the end, I stayed in hospital for about amonth. The operation was a success and after that, I left
hospital safely. But I can never do judo again now because I
am afraid of having another accident.
Naohiko Tamura

My Accident
When I was 5 years old, I cut the sole of my right foot. I
went camping in the mountain with my family. My father
and my mother set up tent. My mother said that I could go
to the playground. I decided to go there with my elder
sister. There was a small river in the playground. My sisterand I decided to play in the river. It was very fun. However,
my sister's face changed from smile to pale. I could notunderstand what happened. I looked at my foot and myright sole was bleeding so much. My sister took me to myparents. My mother patched my sole quickly. My sisterfound a piece to broken. She said that it was in the river. I
could not understand why my right sole was cut so badly. I
stepped on the broken glass. Fortunately, my right solehealed well soon. I can't believe people that throw away
glass in the river. These days, whenever I play in the river, I
wear shoes like sandals.
Marie Fujii

Accidents Happen
When I was ten years old, I nearly drowned. That day,the weather was nice, so I went to the sea with my family.
We arrived at the beach at about twelve o'clock. At first, we
pitched a tent, and I changed into my swimming trunks inthe tent. After that, I dived in the sea at once.
Suddenly, my older brother called me, but, as I wasapproaching him, I slipped in the water, and I nearlydrowned. My brother carried me to the shore. I felt sick,but he saved my life.
Shingo Kamikura

Accident
From the age of 10 to 17, I went to a private judo
school. Of course, I practiced hard to improve my skills.
One day, when I was practicing with someone, I injured myright arm. One of the instructors threw me down andstarted riding on top of me. I noticed I could not move myright arm and it was very painful. I did not know what was

S TAFF
Lookout,no.8
Editor-in-chief
Assistant Editors

Winter 2011◆◆◆

B.Bricklin Zeff
Patrick O'Brien◆◆◆
Publisher:
Faculty of Humanities
Hokkai-Gakuen University
Printed by i-Word◆◆◆
The views expressed in Lookout
belong to the individual contributors,
and do not necessarily reflect theviews of the editors or HGU.

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No.8

Winter 2011

We are on the lookout!

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
North-Sea Lookout is a place you can publish your own opinions about any topic that concerns you. If you want to write
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This issue shows the high level of writing in English achieved by Hokkai-Gakuen University students.
An ongoing interest of our writers is the international homestay and travel experience. In addition, pastissues have contained topics as varied as cooking rice and surfing the Internet.
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