THE HISTORY OF JAPAN

Japan (official name, Nihon or Nippon Koku, Japan), constitutional

monarchy located in East Asia, comprising four large islands, as well as
Ryky islands and more than 1,000 adjacent smaller islands. It is
bordered to the north by the Ojotsk Sea, to the east by the Pacific Ocean,
to the south by the Pacific Ocean and the East China Sea, and to the west
by the Strait of Korea and the Sea of Japan (East Sea). The Japanese islands
extend in an irregular arc from the island of Sakhalin (belonging to Russia)
to the island of Formosa (Taiwan). Japan itself consists of the large islands
of Hokkaid, the most northerly, Honsh, the main island, Shikoku, and
Kysh, the southernmost. Together, these islands have a total area of
about 362,000 km; adding the numerous small islands nearby, the
extension of Japan is 377,837 km. Tokyo is the capital and largest city of
the country.
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) occupied the Kuril Islands,
located north of Hokkaid and known by the name of Chishimaretto
during Japanese hegemony, at the end of World War II according to the
agreement reached at the Yalta Conference in 1945. Japan's unconditional
surrender to the Allies on September 2, 1945, the Japanese Empire
controlled, in addition to what is now Japan and the Kuril Islands, an area
of approximately 1,651,100 km2, encompassing Korea, Formosa, Dongbei
Pingyuan ( Manchuria), the leased territory of Guangdong (Kwangtung),
the Pescadores Islands, Karafuto (the southern half of Sakhalin), as well as
the Marshall Islands, the Mariana Islands (except Guam, United States
possession) and the Carolinas Islands, Japanese mandate since the Treaty
of Versailles of 1919, after World War I.
The islands of Japan are the tops of a huge chain of mountains that
originally formed part of the Asian continent, from which it separated
during the Cenozoic. The main island, Honsh, with an elongated and
narrow form, has a maximum width of 241 km and a length of about 1,000
km; no point in Japan is more than 161 km from the sea. The coast of
Japan is very large in proportion to the surface of the islands and totals,
with its multiple bays and accidents, some 29,751 km. The Pacific coast is
very rugged, due to the erosive action of the tides and the strong coastal
storms. The west coast of Kysh, in the East China Sea, is the most erratic

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sector of the Japanese coast. On the east coast, north of Tokyo, there are
some navigable inlets, but the best bays and ports of Japan are to the
south. Between Honsh, Shikoku and Kysh is Seto-Naikai or Inland Sea,
dotted with islands and connected to the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of
Japan (East Sea) by three narrow straits through which rarely occur the
ocean storms. The west coast of the islands of Japan, in the Sea of Japan
(East Sea), where there are almost no tides, is relatively straight and
measures less than 4,830 km; the only major accidents in this coastal area
are the Wakasa and Toyama bays in Honsh.
Japan has a landscape of high mountains and deep valleys, with many
small plains. Due to the alternating sequence of mountain and valley and
to that the majority of the soil is rocky, it is estimated that only 12.9% of
the Japanese territory is cultivated.
Earthquakes are frequent in Japan. One study showed that seismic
disturbances, especially of a minor nature, occurred more than three
times a day. Geological research has shown that under the continuous
impact of these disturbances the west coast of the Japanese islands is
settling, while the Pacific coast is rising. The eastern coasts are exposed to
major earthquakes affecting large areas and are usually accompanied by
large tsunamis; it appears that these waves begin near the northeastern
coast of Honsh, where it is believed that a gigantic sea crater exists at
more than 8,000 m depth. The most catastrophic earthquake in Japanese
history took place in 1923; its epicenter was located in the bay of Sagami
and affected to Tokyo and Yokohama causing 150,000 victims. In 1995 the
port city of Kbe was affected by an earthquake that caused 5,000
casualties.
Japan's most important natural resources are primarily agricultural.
Although arable land is limited, Japan has one of the largest world
production per area planted and the country produces 71% of its food.
The great potential of Japan's hydroelectric power has developed to a
large extent, but mineral resources are limited; the country imports most
of the minerals it needs.

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https://es.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090825203524AAo
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VOCABULARY
Great: Genial
Frequent: Frecuente
South: Sur
Mountains: Montaas
Comprising: Comprendiendo
Itself: Ella misma
Adding: Aadiendo
Seismic: Ssmica
Narrow: Estrecho

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 THE ECONOMY OF JAPAN

Japan's economy is the third largest in the world, behind the United States
and China. Cooperation between the government and industries, the
Japanese custom of hard work and mastery of technology have led Japan
to the economic success it enjoys today in less than half a century.

The strategic sectors of the Japanese economy, as it is widely known, are

manufactured goods and technology, especially vehicles, electronics and
the steel industry. However, agriculture in Japan is quite inefficient,
according to current standards, and receives many subsidies from the
state. The finance sector is developing a lot at present due largely to its
currency, the yen which is the third most traded after the US dollar and
the euro.

After 40 years of steady and sometimes spectacular economic growth, the

Japanese economy did not grow significantly during the 1990s, a situation
reversed since 2003, a year in which the economy has grown significantly
again. It can be said that the Japanese economy has undoubtedly been the
economic phenomenon of the second half of the twentieth century. This
success was the result of a thorough control of imports, a very high
investment in the interior and a very aggressive export policy led by the
powerful Ministry of International Trade and Industry. The result is a gross
domestic product of over US $ 5 trillion and a positive trade balance of
more than US $ 100 billion. Japan's main trading partners are the United
States, China, Malaysia, Thailand, South Korea, Germany and the other
member states of the European Union. Japan is the second country with
greater equity of income per capita.

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Notable features of the Japanese economy include a strong unity between
producers, manufacturers and distributors, gathered in groups known as
keiretsu; the strong business and shunt guilds and the guarantee of life-
long employment for the majority of workers. Many of these
characteristics have deteriorated over the years.

In July 2006 interbank interest rates rose 0.25% after 6 years with no rises.

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Situation of the Japanese Economy in the Present

Japan is in a different environment now than it faced in previous crises. It
is under pressure from the outside to open its economy. Japan now has
responsibilities to the world, it is expected that in the midst of an Asian
crisis and global economic crisis fulfill its role, to reactivate its economy
and so the rest of the world.
Japan now also has structural problems in its economy. For example, the
aging population (and this means young declining workforce, and more
non-working people to sustain). Japan is looking for a new model to
follow, a paradigm to follow. Until now he has always been trying, as the
Meiji Restoration motto said: "reach, surpass the West." Now that he has
done so in many fields, he does not have a model, a path to follow.

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https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jap%C3%B3Economy

VOCABULARY
Environment: Medio ambiente
Pressure: Presin
Thorough: Completo
Features: Caractersticas
Income: Ingresos
Widely: Ampliamente
Known: Conocido
Success: xito
However: Sin embargo

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