(To and Through Tokyo; click to enlarge.)"Give thy Rewards to Another"
Look around. You see many industrial products around you. To let them function, you need electricity. But, it is not 1950's or 1960's anymore. Those appliances must be intelligently controlled.
Jet planes, cars, TVs, computers, and cellular phones must be intelligently controlled. Even power generation plants must be intelligently controlled using many technologies which are embodied through various electronic devices.
All the modern equipment is controlled by a small computer chip inside it. The computer chip is called microcomputer (microprocessor).
Of course, there are other types of semiconductor devices Korean makers, Taiwanese makers, and Chinese makers are good at mass-producing.
But, the core of the electric and electronic devices is the microcomputer (microprocessor), since it functions with a CPU, software, and memory inside it.
High quality of this modern life and society is based on mankind's invention of the microcomputer (microprocessor).
But, who produces it most? It is Japan.
Even to save energy in using electric or electronic equipment, you have to control functions of the equipment intelligently. You desperately need microcomputers for energy saving and preventing unnecessary emission of CO2 in addition to realizing complicated and high-quality functions.
To fight the global warming, you need microcomputers (microprocessors). And Japan is the No.1 country in this technology.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microprocessor
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The Roman Empire was supported by coins and troops. These are two major pillars that separated the Empire from any other nations with more longer history and culturally richer background.
And, the coins allowed the Empire to recruit and maintain soldiers who served the Empire for the salary paid in the form of coins. This scheme is rather modern than of antiquity.
The Empire must have learnt how to buy service of soldiers as well as engineers.
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Pay
From the time of Gaius Marius onwards, legionaries received 225 denarii a year; this basic rate remained unchanged until Domitian, who increased it to 300 denarii. In spite of the steady inflation during the 2nd century, there was no further rise until the time of Septimius Severus, who increased it to 500 denarii a year. However, the soldiers did not receive all the money in cash. From their pay was deducted the money spent by the state for clothing and feeding each soldier, therefore the net salary was not very high.
All legionary soldiers would also receive a sizeable sum of money on the completion of their term of service: 3000 denarii from the time of Augustus and/or a plot of good farmland (good land was in much demand). Later, under Caracalla, the praemia increased to 5000 denarii.
...
Roman military equipment, particularly armour, was far more ubiquitous and heavy, especially in the late Republican / Early Imperial era, than that of most of their opponents. Soldiers equipped with shields, helmets and highly effective body armor had a major advantage over warriors protected, in many cases, with nothing other than their shields, particularly in a prolonged engagement.
Roman engineering skills were second to none in the ancient world, and their mastery of both offensive and defensive siege warfare, specifically the construction and investiture of fortifications, was another major advantage for the Roman Legions.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_legion
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In history, there are only two cases that a nation has not equipped itself with military in proportion to its economic base and technological level.
The first is the Sumerian kingdom of more than 4000 years ago in Mesopotamia.
The second is Japan of today.
(To be continued...)
(I once heard this song. I did not want to listen to it again. But, there it was. Ce n'est pas à l'Empire romain, mais aussi pour l'Empire du Japon, jeune femme.
http://www.fukuchan.ac/music/j-mt/senyu.html )
Dan 5:13 Then was Daniel brought in before the king. And the king spake and said unto Daniel, Art thou that Daniel, which art of the children of the captivity of Judah, whom the king my father brought out of Jewry?
Dan 5:14 I have even heard of thee, that the spirit of the gods is in thee, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom is found in thee.
Dan 5:15 And now the wise men, the astrologers, have been brought in before me, that they should read this writing, and make known unto me the interpretation thereof: but they could not shew the interpretation of the thing:
Dan 5:16 And I have heard of thee, that thou canst make interpretations, and dissolve doubts: now if thou canst read the writing, and make known to me the interpretation thereof, thou shalt be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about thy neck, and shalt be the third ruler in the kingdom.
Dan 5:17 Then Daniel answered and said before the king, Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another; yet I will read the writing unto the king, and make known to him the interpretation.