Tokyo Confidential
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Top 10 Tokyo Confidential Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Tokyo Confidential episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Tokyo Confidential for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Tokyo Confidential episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
How one Canadian's mistake almost botched the Japanese instrument of surrender at the end of WWII
Tokyo Confidential
04/02/22 • 3 min
September 2nd – known to history as VJ Day – marks the signing on-board the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay of Japan's formal surrender. Under the watchful eye of the 31-star American flag that had accompanied Matthew Perry and his Black Ships into that same bay in 1853, the ceremony was brief and solemn as Allied and Japanese representatives signed the two copies of the instrument of surrender.
Amidst the solemnity of the occasion, however, came an unusual historical footnote courtesy of the Canadian representative, Colonel Lawrence Moore Cosgrave. When signing the Japanese copy, Col. Cosgrave – perhaps owing to blindness in one eye – placed his scrawl below the line reserved for the Canadian signature and instead signed on the line of the French representative.
Each subsequent delegate eventually signed on the next available – if incorrect – line; the final delegate from New Zealand simply signing his name in a blank space underneath the others, his signature line having been commandeered by the Dutch.
When the Japanese delegation protested – could they accept a botched surrender document? – Douglas MacArthur's famously brusque chief of staff General Richard Sutherland scratched out the now-incorrect list of Allied delegates and handwrote the correct titles under each signature, adding his initials to each correction to forestall further protest. The Japanese were then dismissed from the USS Missouri with a short "Now it's all fine" from Gen. Sutherland.
It was a quirky end to an otherwise dark chapter of human history. Canada's contribution to the historical blooper reel can be seen by the public at Japan's Edo-Tokyo Museum, where the surrender document remains on display. The Allied copy of the document, it should be noted, was signed without incident.
The WWII plot to dye Mt. Fuji black
Tokyo Confidential
02/07/22 • 5 min
IN THE WANING MONTHS OF World War II, as the likelihood of a land invasion of the Japanese home islands loomed, the United States’ Joint Intelligence Center, Pacific Ocean Areas (JICPOA) instituted a new psychological warfare unit under the command of Colonel Dana Johnston.
That Mt. Fuji would then become a physical target of Allied psy-ops is not surprising. As detailed in a declassified 1945 memo from Col. Johnston to JICPOA’s commanding officer, General Joseph Twitty, the proposed operation would “give Fujiyama with some color other than that seasonably endowed by nature.”
In other words, the plan called for the marshaling of considerable manpower and equipment to dye Mt. Fuji black.
01/31/22 • 17 min
Parts I and II of our look at the psychology that goes in to the planning and operation of Japanese rail stations, combined into a single episode.
Lost and Found and Returned
Tokyo Confidential
03/10/22 • 9 min
Phones left in taxis. Briefcases forgotten under train seats. Dropped wallets, abandoned umbrellas, misplaced purses. Japan’s 126 million residents lose a vast number of personal items every year. But a remarkably high percentage of them are returned to their rightful owners.
This week we explore the factors driving Japan’s efficient lost-and-found system, and its uncanny ability to reunite owners with lost property.
Special thanks to CityLab, who originally published an article on which this episode is based; and to the anonymous person in Takasaki, Japan who once turned in my wallet to the police
Kokura: The Japanese town that twice escaped atomic destruction
Tokyo Confidential
08/08/22 • 8 min
In the closing days of 1945, the Japanese town of Kokura escaped atomic destruction not once, but twice, due to fortunate turns in weather.
The Disappearance, Return, and Disappearance of Trash Cans in Japan
Tokyo Confidential
02/16/22 • 8 min
Apologies for the delay in this week's episode! A last minute re-record was needed
to add in some information newly reported this week in Japanese media.
For two decades, it was the lament of inexperienced visitors to Japan: Where are all the trash cans? It’s a cruel trick, in a way: In a country with innumerable vending machines, there’s often nowhere to put one’s wrappers or empty bottles.
Public waste bins and garbage cans were largely removed from Japanese cities following the 1995 sarin gas attacks, forcing residents to adopt some of the world’s more disciplined waste disposal techniques.
Gradually, however, trash cans made their return to Japanese public spaces.
The return, it would seem, may be short-lived. In February 2022, it was reported that Tokyo Metro removed all 239 trash cans in its stations across the capital, following a similar move by the Seibu Railway Company.
For its part, however, JR East has announced that it has no plans to remove trash cans from its stations.
The Amazing Psychology of Japan's rail stations (Part I)
Tokyo Confidential
01/25/22 • 10 min
It takes more than physical engineering for Japan's rail stations to carry out the smooth transport of some 13 billion passenger trips each year.
Rail station design is a master class in "Nudge Theory" at work, perhaps most notably through the use of strategically placed blue LED light panels along station platforms.
What might look like a bug zapper is actually a clever means of substantially reducing suicide attempts from station platforms.
Join us as we travel to Osaka to speak with the university researcher who first explored the relationship between blue lights and suicide reduction in Japan.
Why Japan's rail workers can't stop pointing at things
Tokyo Confidential
01/01/22 • 8 min
Take a train in any Japanese city and it is impossible to miss: rail employees in crisp uniforms pointing smartly at an array of buttons, knobs and dials.
It is "shisa kanko" - pointing-and-calling - an industrial safety technique that, despite its odd appearance, is known to reduce workplace errors by up to 85%.
Join us as we investigate this fascinating practice and speak with industrial safety experts in Japan on the effectiveness of pointing-and-calling.
This episode is based on an earlier article that originally appeared in Atlas Obscura.
Welcome to Tokyo Confidential
Tokyo Confidential
01/01/22 • 3 min
Tokyo Confidential is a weekly podcast examining the lesser-seen history, culture and trains of the world's most interesting city.
Based on articles in the New York Times, CityLab, Globe and Mail, Atlas Obscura and other publications, each episode features original research as well as interviews with subject matter experts.
Meet our team in this introductory episode, and get a feel for what Tokyo Confidential will cover in upcoming episodes.
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FAQ
How many episodes does Tokyo Confidential have?
Tokyo Confidential currently has 15 episodes available.
What topics does Tokyo Confidential cover?
The podcast is about Culture, Places & Travel, Society & Culture, Japan, History, Psychology, Podcasts, Japanese, Technology and Travel.
What is the most popular episode on Tokyo Confidential?
The episode title 'The Disappearance, Return, and Disappearance of Trash Cans in Japan' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Tokyo Confidential?
The average episode length on Tokyo Confidential is 8 minutes.
How often are episodes of Tokyo Confidential released?
Episodes of Tokyo Confidential are typically released every 9 days, 4 hours.
When was the first episode of Tokyo Confidential?
The first episode of Tokyo Confidential was released on Jan 1, 2022.
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