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This is a list of computer software, audio CDs, books, and magazines which are available in the Foreign Language Center,
to be used in the FLC by students enrolled in Japanese classes at Mission College.
COMPUTER SOFTWARE
Rosetta Stone CD-ROMs: Levels 1 and 2
Rosetta Stone is a language study program. It covers topics of grammar, vocabulary, and sentence structure with interactive exercises and a recording feature which allows students to compare their oral responses to the native speaker to check for proper pronunciation and intonation.
Japanese: Talk Now! CD-ROM
Talk Now! is designed for beginners who want to start learning a new language as soon as possible. Handy for business and pleasure, Talk Now! introduces the essential vocabulary needed to successfully communicate in Japanese.
Japanese World Talk CD-ROM
Japanese World Talk builds on the fundamentals of Talk Now!, taking you to the next linguistic level with intermediate activities, added dictation and a recording section. Topics covered include the calendar, building sentences, asking directions, and using numbers.
Human Japanese CD-ROM
Human Japanese takes the stress out of language learning by presenting lessons in easy-to-follow, everyday language. Human Japanese explains key linguistic terms before introducing them in the lessons. Since the Japanese language uses sounds not found in English, Human Japanese allows you to hear over 1,600 different recordings of individual words and entire sentences, ensuring that you develop correct pronunciation. Begin your basic studies in written Japanese by utilizing detailed drawings that show the correct formation of characters, stroke by stroke. Finally, test your progress with the interactive games and quizzes.
Jquick Trans CD-ROM
Jquick Trans combines several Japanese dictionaries, a translator, study guide, and kanji reference source. The dictionaries contain over a quarter-million words and are divided by category for easy reference, with an accompanying pop-up reference source of 6,300+ kanji characters. Type in the English word and you are presented with all the corresponding characters. This translation function allows you to interpret entire sentences and paragraphs, while the study guide creates study lists and flashcards for maximum retention. Jquick Trans also supports Japanese fonts to display on English systems, on-line chatting with other Japanese speakers, and an accessible and fast word-and-phrase translator to use while surfing the web or studying.
GeoRunner CD-ROM
GeoRunner is a world geography game. It provides a fun way to learn geography and interesting facts about the continents, oceans, countries, and geographic landmarks of the world. The object of the game is to search the world for hidden keys to free the main character, Blit. The game has 15 stages of difficulty with seven different areas of the world in each stage, for a total of 105 levels of play.
World Book Encyclopedia CD-ROM
These CDs contain all the information found in the volumes of the 2003 World Book Encyclopedia.
AUDIO CDs
KODO: The One-Earth Tour Special -- Kodo is an ensemble of Japanese performance artists who play traditional, and more contemporary, Japanese drum music. This concert DVD highlights 12 of their pieces.
(1) Kiyari-Miyake: Traditional, (2) O-daiko: Yoshikazu Fujimoto, (3) O-daiko: Mitsuru Ishizuka, (4) O-daiku: Tomohiro Mitome, (5) Yatai-Bayashi: Traditional, (6) Okesa: Traditional, (7) Kenbai: Traditional, (8) Tomoe, (9) Furyu: Traditional, (10) Hyoshigi - Kono Mine no, (11) Sado e, (12) ENCORE
BOOKS
NOTE: These books are for student use while in the Foreign Language Center.
Please do not write in these books and do not remove them from the center.
Geisha: A Living Tradition, by Kyoko Aihara, describes the lives and traditions of the female entertainers -- geisha -- who work in the ancient teahouses of Japan. The book presents every aspect of the often harsh lives of these remarkable women: their elaborate dress, hair, and make-up, the ceremonies and rituals, their accomplishment in traditional artistic skills, and their relationship with men and the outside world.
A Guide to Reading and Writing Japanese compiled by Florence Sakade. This comprehensive guide to kanji, the Japanese writing system, contains the 1,006 Essential characters, the 1,945 General Use characters, compounds and derivatives, katagana and hiragana syllabaries, stroke counts, and a full range of readings and English definitions.
A Guide to the Gardens of Kyoto, by Marc Treib and Ron Herman, provides both practical information and theoretical insights into the design of the Japanese garden.
Handbook of Japanese Art
How to Do Business in Japan
An Introduction to Haiku
Japan Unveiled: Understanding Japanese Body Culture, by Dominique Buisson, describes the traditional Japanese awareness of the body as a part of Nature. It explores images which have been stereotyped by the Western world and explains the tradition behind these images, including full-body tattoos and the time-honored clothing for Samurai, Sumo wrestlers, geisha, and Kabuki artists.
Japanese Art
Japanese Business Pioneers, by Dr. Kazuyoshi Kamioka, looks at the lives of the men who founded and established the corporate empires of major Japanese companies which have won world-wide recognition.
Japanese for All Occasions
Japanese Manners & Ethics in Business
The Japanese Mind
Japanese Mythology
Japanese Patterns of Behavior
Japanese Theatre, by Fabion Bowers, presents a full historical account for Westerners of the theatre arts that have flourished for centuries in Japan.
The Japanese Way: Aspects of Behavior, Attitudes, and Customs of the Japanese, by Noriko Takada and Rita L. Lampkin, is a handy guide to understanding how people from every corner of Japan think, do business, and act in their daily lives. Organized alphabetically for ease of use, The Japanese Way provides an explanation of the varied ways in which the Japanese people celebrate holidays, interect with one another, resolve daily problems, and view and deal with the outside world -- as well as illuminating the rich and varied historical traditions that have shaped the modern culture of Asia's most progressive nation.
Kodansha Kanji Learner's Dictionary meets the practical needs of beginning and intermediate students learning the Kanji characters used in writing Japanese.
Learning to Bow: Inside the Heart of Japan, by Bruce Feiler, has been heralded as one of the funniest, liveliest, and most insightful books ever written about the clash of cultures between America and Japan. With warmth and candor, Feiler recounts the year he spent as a teacher in a small rural town in Japan. Beginning with a ritual outdoor bath and culminating in an all-night trek to the top of Mt. Fiji, Feiler teaches his students about American culture, while they teach him everything from how to properly address an envelope to how to date a Japanese girl.
101 Japanese Idioms
Oxford Starter Japanese Dictionary is designed to give readers a comprehensive introduction to Japanese, covering the vocabulary learners need in their first years of study and giving unique guidance to the grammar and usage of the language.
The Practical Guide to Japanese Signs, Part One, by Tae Moriyama, helps to familiarize the reader with the Chinese characters that are of the most immediate importance for anyone living or traveling in Japan. It explains how to "decode" the signs that are likely to be encountered by tourists and residents alike.
Success Stories: How Eleven of Japan's Most Interesting Businesses Came to Be, by Leonard Koren, reveals how eleven successful Japanese companies made it in one of the most competitive environments in the world.
Shinto: The Kami Way, by Sokyo Ono, is an introduction to Shinto, the indigenous faith of the Japanese people. The book presents the symbolism, exotic rites and ceremonies, the colorful festivals, and the mystic atmosphere of the shrines.
Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar contains accurate and concise grammar explanations in dictionary format.
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