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Suicide is as popular in Japan these days as it ever was and it’s no secret that Japan has one of the highest suicide rates among the developed nations of the world. Just what brings a person to commit such an act of violence upon him or herself remains a mystery to most of us. Yet, in Japan, suicide seems to be part of the culture. Indeed, before the Meiji period was ushered in, samurai warriors often took their own lives to avoid disgrace or show loyalty. Even now, in modern times, many Japanese see the suicide solution as the best way out during difficult periods.

Suicide in Japan spans the range of all ages. 70-somethings still hurl themselves in front of trains while elementary school students hang themselves in bathroom stalls or leap from school rooftops. Now, a new trend has emerged; Since the beginning of the year there have been 27 suicide deaths by Hydrogen Sulfide gas in 26 separate cases. The latest case involves a couple who inhaled the deadly gas in their family car in the garage of their Kitakyushu home. In several of the incidents, family members living in the same home as the person who committed suicide were overcome by the gas, and in one case, the mother of the deceased was left in a coma due to her exposure to the gas.

In Japan, there are suicide and murder trends that blow up for a short time and then fade away only to be replaced by other disturbing ones. It’s easy to see that news reporting on the latest trend of suicide by gas has compounded the problem; Indeed, there have already been several incidents this week. Does the news media bear some responsibility in this? Do I for writing this article?

Some readers may recall the bullied-youth suicide trend that reached its peak in 2006. Many claimed that overreporting of the issue bred new incidents. There was talk about how knowing that there is a strong tendency for people to follow trends in this country requires extra care in how such cases are reported. But, was it just another trend? Or, is there something deeply ingrained in the culture that allows so many to come to such a dark conclusion.  How is it that a young child of 9 or 10 years comes to the point where he or she can see no other way out of trouble but death? Sure, there is bullying in schools here, just like anywhere else in the world. And, many young ones do feel the pressure from parents and authority figures to succeed while often being unable to live up to the expectations that have been attached to their lives. But why such a final decision? Whatever happened to “the sun’ll come out tomorrow?”

Tales of suicide pervade both classic and modern Japanese literature. In Norwegian Wood (Noruwei no mori - ノルウェイの森) by Haruki Murakami, the main character moves through a life where some of the closest people around him commit this final, irreversible act. Yet, the focus of the story is not suicide at all. The fact that suicide surrounds the main character seems more as if it’s something that many Japanese are faced with.

Of course, these days the official word on suicide is “bad.” Families of those who dive onto train tracks to be run over by oncoming trains are handed the bill for the clean-up of whatever mess comes about as a result of the death plunge. Yet, the high suicide rate persists. One case last year involved a custodian at a university who got fed up with something and in the middle of the workday, knocked off early and did a half gainer out of a third-story window. Unfortunately, she landed on a young student and critically injured her as well. In another incident, a woman in Ikebukuro jumped from the top of a department store building and took out a salaryman on the way down, killing him. These two incidents weren’t the only two of their kind. Beyond that, the number of murder-suicides last year involving parents dispatching their children and other loved ones before finishing themselves off is almost too disturbing to mention. When people commit suicide here, they often really fuck things up for other people.  To be honest, it’s not the fact that so many people in Japan decide to kill themselves every year that disturbs me so much, it’s the fact that so many of them have no problem with taking others out in the process. I guess it should come as no surprise, right? I mean, if a person is so far gone that his or her life has lost all meaning, he/she is probably incapable of attaching much meaning to the lives of others.

Hopefully, the suicide-by-gas trend will die out soon (no pun intended) and the coming summer won’t turn out to be as brutal as it’s shaping up to be.

Update: A Tochigi man gassed himself to death today (April 19th).  He made the Hydrogen Sulfide gas from detergents mixed while sitting in his car.
Another Update: A woman, who fatally gassed herself with Hydrogen Sulfide was found dead Monday (April 21st) in Fukuoka. Wonder where she got the idea from.
And yet, another update: In 2 separate cases, 2 people committed suicide today (April 22nd) by using hydrogen sulfide gas.
Biggest Update Yet!: A 14-year-old girl in Konan, Kochi did herself in with Hydrogen Sulfide gas on Thursday (April 24th), but the worst part is, get this: 14 neighbors were hospitalized due to exposure to the deadly gas. Are you starting to wonder if you won’t wake up tomorrow because of the actions of these selfish turds?
Posh Update: A man at the Peninsula Hotel, a luxury hotel in Tokyo, tried to do himself in with hydrogen sulfide gas today (April 24th). While he was unsuccessful, the entire floor of the hotel had to be evacuated.
Friday Update: 2 men in their 30s and 1 man in his 50s did the suicide-by-gas thing on Friday, April 25th.

Don't want 'work e-mails' and 'clients' phone calls' ruin your vacation? Mongolia is the place you should go!

So how to unplug? Those that don't should head to the Gobi Desert and Alaskan wilderness, two destinations where coverage is still minimal. While cellphone companies service parts of Mongolia, the country is mostly without a signal, including at the Three Camel Lodge in the Gurvansaikhan National Park. The lodge serves as a base camp from which to explore the foothills of the Gobi-Altai Mountains and nearby sand dunes. Guests, who are also without wireless Internet, stay in traditional, furnished felt tents used by nomadic herders.

A Deloitte survey showed that one-third of business travelers checked and replied to work e-mails and voice mails while on vacation!

It's getting harder to escape the blinking light of one's BlackBerry while on vacation. The handheld device is now supported in 135 countries and available from over 350 carriers and channels.

Travelers might also be surprised to hear cellphones ring in the Yosemite Valley, Galapagos Islands and even on Mount Everest. Not only are these remote destinations now rigged for basic cellphone service, wireless Internet is available at local hotels and resorts.

That's not so good for those seeking a reprieve from the daily grind.

Just 10 years ago, finding an area untouched by widespread digital technology was easy. But growing demand for cellphone coverage and wireless Internet access in even the most far-flung locales has changed that. Now those seeking a vacation from work and technology are left with two choices:

travel far out of range or practice self-restraint.

World's 8 Ultimate Unplugged Vacations:

While two cellphone companies service parts of Mongolia, the country is mostly without a signal, including at the Three Camel Lodge in the Gurvansaikhan National Park. The lodge serves as a base camp from which to explore the foothills of the Gobi-Altai Mountains and nearby sand dunes. Guests, who are also without wireless Internet, stay in traditional, furnished felt tents used by nomadic herders.

For more information, visit www.threecamellodge.com.

2. Ultima Thule Lodge (Alaska)

The Ultima Thule Lodge is located in the Alaskan Wrangell Mountains, which is out of cellphone range. Guests spend their time discovering glaciers, admiring the northern lights and viewing the wilderness by small plane. At the end of the day, visitors retire to rustic cabins and can relax in the wood-fired sauna.

For more information, visit www.ultimathulelodge.com.

3. Ksar Massa (Morocco)

A luxurious spa hotel run by British company in:spa, Ksar Massa is set on a stretch of isolated beach in the Souss-Massa National Park, an hour away from the port of Agadir in Morocco. Rooms are decorated in traditional Moroccan style with ocean views and come without Internet, phones or televisions. The week-long package includes all meals, nutrition consultations, yoga and exercise sessions and massages, as well as trips into the neighboring bird sanctuary. There is also a swimming pool overlooking the sea.

For more information, visit www.inspa-retreats.com.

4. Ngala Private Game Reserve (South Africa)

Part of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World group, this private game lodge in South Africa features six luxury tented suits, all with their own bathrooms, outdoor showers and a pool overlooking the Timbavati River in the Kruger National Park. There is no phone and Internet access. Guests are offered massages and daily trips into the sanctuary to view game and birds, as well as dinners in the bush. For an even more luxurious experience there is a suite set in a secluded part of the camp with its own private swimming pool and a sun deck overlooking a water hole and private garden.

For more information, visit www.slh.com.

5. Hotelito Desconocido (Mexico)

With no phone, Internet or electricity, the resort in Mexico's Playon de Mismaloya Nature Reserve is made up of 30 palafitos, or bungalows, built on stilts on a 40-mile stretch of beach, and lies within one of Mexico's largest turtle reserves. There is no electricity, phone or Internet access, and at night the resort is illuminated by candlelight. Guests enjoy includes a spa with a cold water Jacuzzi and swimming pool, and activities include horse riding, fishing, sailing as well as tours to watch turtle nesting. Rooms include a private terrace and bathroom with open-air shower, while the suites come with hammocks and private gardens; one has a panoramic tower.

For more information, visit www.slh.com.

6. Mille Etoiles (France)

Guests of this 14-tent encampment, which lies within a forest set above the Ardeche river gorge in the Rhone Alpes region of France, stay in yurts, the traditional homes of Mongolian nomads. Labastide de Virac, a small village with a 15th-century chateau is a small drive away. Though there is mobile phone reception, there is no Internet connection, and only solar power in the luxury tents, which are made of oak and covered in natural canvas, and come with their own private deck and hammock. Showers are communal, and a shared kitchen and on-site restaurant are available.

For more information, visit www.canvaschic.com.

7. Tiamo Resort (South Andros)

This luxury eco-resort on the tiny Bahamian island of South Andros has no television or Internet access; though there is cellphone reception, owner Mike Harman says guests are encouraged not to use them, except in specially designated areas. The 11 beach bungalows are set on 12 acres, and built in traditional Caribbean style, some featuring a private beach side with hammocks and an open air shower. Hotel concierges are trained biologists and guests are offered trips to view the local habitat and wild life in the surrounding 125-acre nature preserve. Kayaking and sailing trips are also available.

For more information, visit www.tiamoresorts.com.

8. Amankora Gangtey Lodge (Bhutan)

At this luxury eight-suite lodge in Bhutan's Phobjika Valley, even the hotel manager has to drive four miles to check her e-mails. The valley is largely inhabited by shepherds and monadic yak-herders, and the property is without electricity, though the hotel has a generator. The communal dining and lounge area has floor to ceiling windows overlooking the mountains, and there are massage and yoga rooms available for guests. Gangtey itself has a working 16th-century monastery. The valley is part of Bhutan's Black Mountains National Park, which in winter is home to a flock of endangered black-necked cranes from Tibet.

For more information, visit www.amanresorts.com.

Leaving The Wired World

visitors may attend to small details, like asking the staff to fax an important paper, but most, says Andy Adams, the ranch's general manager, try to avoid spending their week-long vacation--which can cost up to $21,000 when renting a riverside cabin--on work.

Destinations like these, which offer either Internet or cellphone service, can actually aid executives in setting boundaries on vacation while remaining reachable. But they are increasingly harder to find, particularly as demand for cellphone and Internet service grows in places like China, India and Africa. Even once-isolated areas like Antarctica and the Australian outback now have cellphone or high-speed data service.

The key to unplugging is moderation and delegation. Adam Weissenberg, Deloitte's vice chairman and U.S. tourism recommends leaving a list of 10 people who can handle different tasks, hiring a savvy assistant who knows what merits interrupting your vacation and setting a limit on the number of times you check e-mail each day.

"If you let technology run your vacation," he says, "you can easily run into that trap of being [online] the whole time."

I like to consider myself of the geek culture but this pair of jeans may even be too strange for the likes of me. That didn't stop designer Erik De Nijs from creating a pair of trendy-looking jeans with a keyboard stitched right into their front! Once you stop gawking, please take a minute to consider the practical applications: never allow yourself to stop off at a keyboard-less computer and be unable to utilize it again!

The utility of these pants does not stop at the keyboard stitched across their front, no sir. Notice the mouse built in to the rear of the pants on a lanyard-like attachment- what easy access! It could double as a way to punish those pesky pick-pockets.

From my research, I can't tell how they interface with the computer. Nor can I understand how this concept could be anywhere even in the ballpark of comfortable. Some guy just got so fed up of having to carry a mouse, keyboard, and speakers along with his laptop. that he decided to do something about it, kudos to him. But really? A keyboard across the front of your britches? The next step is a shirt with an LCD monitor built-in to the chest.

I don't know about you, but I am involved with a woman. That, by definition means that whenever she and I go out together, I somehow end up holding her purse. I don't know what it is with women and their purses. My lady can't go anywhere without it, but then tries to dump it on me every chance she gets.

It would be ok, if her handbag was something manly or cool like a man purse or a hunting knife, but inevitably, it's something dainty with lots of sparkly things on it.

Waiting around at the mall this weekend bored out of my mind, I realized that I really I should be able to do something to make it more fun for a man to hold a woman's purse. I mean, if we men are going to end up holding the darn thing, shouldn't it be something we can have more fun with or at least not be mortified to be seen with?

So here are my picks for the 10 HandBags A Real Man Can Carry:

10. Ugly Toad Purse

If you have to carry a purse around, a good option to help a man maintain his dignity would be something ugly and slimy. And I think to myself, what's more guy that an ugly toad. If you are seen holding this little toadpurse around, it's sure to get a grin of appreciation from the other guys and perhaps a disgusted squeal from a lady or two. Plus, if you get really bored, you could walk around asking women to kiss your frog and try to turn it into a prince. (handbag here)

9. Decapitated Head in a Bag Purse

If you got to carry a purse around, holding something that looks like a decapitated head will not make you look like some fruity sissy. More likely, it's make you look like the slightly sick weirdo you really are. It sure is unlikely that anyone will laugh at your expense when you are walking around with a decapitated head

8. Give Yourself a Hand Purse

 If you have to carry a purse around, might as well have an extra hand handy in case you need to scratch your back or pick up the shopping bags from the floor. Unfortunately, this hand purse is not really made for some other things an extra hand could be used for when you're bored.

7. Chinese Take Out Handbag

7. Chinese Take Out Handbag

If you have to carry a purse, why not make carry a purse that looks like something you really love? Yum...chinese food! As you sit there impatiently waiting for your honey, you can stare at your Chinese Carry-Out Purse and start dreaming about the crispy orange beef and the fried dumplings you are going to have to treat yourself with for suffering through one more tedious shopping trip. What's great is that if you happen to see one of your buddies as you are carrying around this handbag, you could always just pretend its lunch. (handbag here)

6. Lethal Gold Gun Handbag

If you have to carry a purse around, you may as well carry something that makes you seem mysterious and perhaps, even a tad bit dangerous. Granted this little gold gun inside this pretty little purse is not going to scare off a gang of hoodlums, but it may be enough to help you preserve a tiny bit of male pride. You're toting around a gun after all

5. Play Air Guitar Purse

If you have to carry a purse around, you may as well be able to play a little air guitar and look sexy doing it. Hey, if rock stars can look sexy with a guitar, who says you can't look hot with a guitar purse. (handbag here)

4. Ridiculous Chicken Feet Purse

If you have to carry around a purse, why not carry something surprisingly ugly. If people are going to stare at your for carrying a purse, they may as well be staring at something worth looking at. This way, you can also serve to remind women of what happens to hens if they hen-peck their husbands a bit too much. (handbag here)

3. Life Size Dog Purse

If you have to carry a purse, you might as well carry around something that other women will love to touch and that arguably resembling man's best friend, the good old dog. A bag that looks like a good old dog that could bark and bite if real sure beats having to carry around some type of ridiculous looking teddy bear bag. (handbag here)

2. Computer Keyboard Bag

If you have to carry around a purse, it would be ok with most men to carry around something with a keyboard on it. I mean how sissy can anything with a computer keyboard on it be?(handbag here)

1. Football Shaped Purse

If you have to carry around a purse, you might as well carry one that a man would be comfortable carrying, like a football. What's great about this football purse is that it comes with handles, which I have to tell you would have been real convenient for a few of the games I have played in my life. See a buddy coming near you, just hide the handles and voila...you got a cool looking football to play with while you stare and smirk at your poor pathetic friend holding that ridiculous looking pink thing they call a handbag. How p-whipped is he! (handbag here )

So, these are the ten handbags I came up with. Can you suggest any that are better for the manly man like me?

I don't know about you, but when I get bored I feel like sleeping. This is what makes me the lazy person that I am. However, there is a solution! Creating art and making statements makes for a fun-filled day for everyone. Next time you're painfully bored, try making some of this art at home.

1. B-A-N-A-N-A-S

I don't like bananas that much because they rot too quickly. However, I can have fun drawing on them. So can you! And then you can pose them in strange situations and take pictures of them. (Source: funlol)

2. Make a Statement to Your Family and Friends (And Whoever Else Will Listen)

Australian artist Stelios Arcadious wanted to implant a third ear into his arm and spent 10 years searching for a surgeon willing to perform the operation. Well, looks like he found one! The ear was grown in a lab and implanted into his left forearm. He plans to get a microphone implanted to it that will connect to a bluetooth. Nothing like staying with the technology. (Source: dailymail )

A Canadian artist named Victoria Van Dyke showed up at an art gallery in Toronto one day with her chopped off little pinky toe in a jar. She asked for it to be shown in the gallery. The museum refused and called 911, fearful that they had a crazy person on their hands. (Source: arthistoryarchive)

Is that a toe in there?

3. Make Art From Your Veggies

Now you can applaud your kids for playing with their food as you create these elaborate yet scary veggie sculptures. Caution: You may scare them out of eating healthy. Or give them nightmares. Or both. (Source: funfever)

4. Pull Out the Scotch Tape

Did you ever put scotch tape on your nostrils to pull them up and make you look like you have a pig nose? No? Well, me neither. Here are even more ways to have fun with scotch tape. (Source: ironicresult )

5. Bake a Cake

These make me want to dust off those baking supplies and bake a cake. Wait, I have a better idea. How about you bake one for me? (Source: englishrussia)

6. Make a Tire Sculpture

The next time you look at that massive pile of tires in your front yard, remember these sculptures and get to work. They can't be that hard to make. Looks like just a little duct tape and staples. (Source: fundumper )

7. Make a Pyramid of Spoons

I know many of you probably have 9,000 spoons laying around (I do), so why not make a sculpture out of them? After that get 9,000 boxes of cereal and you're all set to go. (Source: Trendhunter)

I wonder what would happen if I removed that one all the way at the bottom...

I think I finally found my prom dress

8. Clean Out Your Cupboards

Canstruction is a competition where people make sculptures out of cans that are later donated to food banks. When you're done making your entry into this year's Canstruction, donate it to your local food bank, because you aren't going to win anyway. (Source: myinterestingfiles)

9. Coin stacking

Instead of taking those coins to the bank, try stacking them into detailed sculptures. I wonder how long one of these would take. Someone has too much free time on their hands. (Source: hemmy)

10. Create Some Sexy Balloon Art

Guaranteed you will be the life of the party if you bring one of these. Don't worry about finding a date, now you can just inflate one in any position you like! Warning: Naked Balloon Man Ahead (Sources: commercialarchive, anythingbutdull )

"There is no scientific evidence available that can substantiate their claims at the moment," said Bruintjes, lead researcher of the Colorado-based National Center for Atmospheric Research's international weather-modification programs.

He remains confident about the potential of weather modification, which has long been hyped as a means of building water supplies and disrupting dangerous storms.

Bruintjes spoke Tuesday at an international meeting on weather modification in Westminster, Colorado. He and colleagues suggested that new computer technologies, weather satellites, Doppler radar and other advances may open an new era of human-modified weather.

Long History

Scientists have been trying to seed clouds and produce rain since the mid-1940s. During the Vietnam War, the U.S. military even tried to swamp the Ho Chi Minh Trail by producing torrential rains.

Military use of weather modification has since been banned by an international treaty since 1978.

China's ambitious Olympic plan is just a small part its weather modification program, the world's largest.

"They have about 30,000 people and some $100 million U.S. dollars a year invested in this field," Bruintjes said.

An array of rockets and anti-aircraft guns are used to "seed" clouds with particles to induce rainfall for the country's parched northern region.

Xinhua, China's state news agency, reports that years of such efforts have produced billions of tons of water.

More than 40 countries host cloud-seeding projects worldwide, targeted to benefit businesses from farms to ski resorts. But there is still no agreement on how well it works.

Quandary

Natural variability further confuses the issue because what works in one location, or during a certain season, may function entirely differently at another place and time.

Scientists use several methods to try to create rain or snow, but all need existing clouds to work.

The most common technique is to fill clouds with particles such as silver iodide that resemble the ice nuclei on which water accumulates to form precipitation.

The larger numbers of nuclei encourage more efficient growth of the larger crystals that will eventually fall as snowflakes or, if temperatures are higher, rain.

Another seeding technique employs particles such as potassium or sodium chloride, which attract salty water to build bigger raindrops.

The supersize droplets fall from the cloud more quickly and stimulate rain by colliding with existing smaller drops.

Some studies suggest that these methods can significantly boost precipitation.

"Under the right conditions we can increase snowfall," said Arlen Huggins, a Desert Research Institute scientist and director of the Nevada State Weather Modification Program.

"In some places we've seen increases of 10 to 15 percent."

Pollution Impact

"If you have driven your car this morning, you have been cloud seeding because of the particles emitted by your car," Bruintjes said.

Joe Golden is a senior research scientist at CIRES and the NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory.

"[The pollution effect] concerns us greatly," Golden said.

"In addition to whatever role greenhouse gases may play in global warming, it turns out that aerosol [particles] in the atmosphere that accompany pollution from coal-fired power plants and vehicles can impact rainfall and snowfall," he said.

(Related: "Asia Pollution Changing World's Weather, Scientists Say" [March 6, 2007].)

Constant seeding by pollution particles may actually decrease regional precipitation.

In North America, the effect appears strongest in mountain ranges such as the Sierra Nevadas, which lie downwind from large, smoggy cities.

Normal snowpack appears to have decreased in such regions, Golden noted.

Source: Nationalgeographic

DROPCLOCK is an aesthetically intriguing motion clock screensaver. Every minute of real time is numerically expressed with heavy Helvetica dropping into water in super slow-motion. Enjoy.