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The incumbent prime minister Hatoyama and his new government have been working to pass legislation that will place a 100-yen tax on each and every pack of cigarettes sold in Japan.  I was shocked this wasn't done 10 years ago.  Japan has a major problem with smoking addiction, and here are some possible reasons why:

They're Cheap
A pack of cigs cost about 300 yen ($3 US).  That's an awesome deal compared to a place like Singapore, where they are around $12 US a pack.  Most industrialized nations tax the crap out of cigarettes to promote a healthier, non-smoking population while boosting tax revenue.  As I'm sure many

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Just as living with LA traffic day after day made me hate cars, living with central Tokyo's population density makes me hate people.  Tokyo is so crowded with people that even an uncomplicated excursion is exhausting.  Train stations, shopping malls, cafes, restaurants, bars--people ooze out of every possible orifice.  Over the years of living in one of the most crowded cities in the world, I've developed certain skills and tendencies to cope.  Some of them are embarrassing, but all of them greatly relieve the annoyance caused by living under such people pressure.  Consider this advice on becoming a Tokyo hermit if you happen to share in my frustrations.  Consider it me-deprecating entertainment if you do not.

Stay At Home
The most easily-executed is to

I learned in my psychology classes that memory is most deeply encoded when associated with concrete imagery.  That is, memories are strongest when they appeal to all the senses and can readily recreate an imaginable scene or context.  Rote memorization (e.g. reviewing flashcards over and over) is considered a weak encoding technique because it relies solely on repetition to encode memory.  Herein lies the problem with remembering new vocabulary, especially new vocabulary in a second language.  Is there some way to study it using "stronger" memory encoding techniques?  Rote flashcards are boring and don't work very well.  The memory of them is literally gone in a flash.

Mnemonic Devices
Mnemonic devices are

Being an IT guy and a student of Japanese, I'm expectedly a fan of using software to study.  I've tried just about every type of Japanese learning software there is, so here I've compiled a list of my favorites:

The Rosetta Stone (PC / Mac) - www.rosettastone.com
The Rosetta Stone is the Ferrari of language learning software.  It's fun and extremely interactive, engaging all the senses to maximize retention.  It's automatic lesson review feature quizzes like a real teacher, and it's the only software I've ever found that supports voice recognition, making speaking practice possible.  It's by far the software that