Mie Entrance Social Studies cheat sheet

Japan's 47 prefectures group into 8 regions (Hokkaido, Tohoku, Kanto, Chubu, Kinki, Chugoku, Shikoku, Kyushu-Okinawa); the 4 main islands north to south are Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu.

Climate: Pacific side (omote-Nihon) gets summer rain and typhoons; Sea of Japan side (ura-Nihon) gets heavy winter snow from northwest monsoon winds crossing the warm Tsushima Current.

Hokkaido is subarctic (taiga, permafrost-free but cold); Okinawa is subtropical (coral reefs, mango and sugarcane); most of Honshu is temperate humid with four seasons.

Rivers are short and steep: large drop ratio gives rapid flow, little navigation, and high hydroelectric and flood-control value; Tone, Shinano, and Ishikari are major rivers.

Agriculture: rice paddies dominate flat plains (Kanto, Nobi, Echigo); Hokkaido leads in dairy, wheat, potatoes, and sugar beet; Kanto plain leads in vegetables for urban markets.

Industry belts: Keihin (Tokyo-Yokohama), Hanshin (Osaka-Kobe), Chukyo (Nagoya, Toyota), plus Setouchi and Kitakyushu; shift toward high-tech and precision clusters in Kyushu (silicon island).

Population: about 124 million, aging fast (over 29% aged 65+); Tokyo metropolitan area holds roughly 37 million people, the world's largest urban agglomeration.

Map skills: contour lines closer together mean steeper slope; scale 1:25,000 means 1 cm = 250 m; latitude/longitude gives absolute location, GIS layers give overlay analysis.

Trade: Japan imports energy and raw materials (Middle East oil, Australian iron ore and coal) and exports machinery, automobiles, and electronic components.

Period order: Jomon, Yayoi, Kofun, Asuka, Nara, Heian, Kamakura, Muromachi, Azuchi-Momoyama, Edo, Meiji, Taisho, Showa, Heisei, Reiwa.

Key dates: 645 Taika Reform (centralized ritsuryo state), 710 Nara capital, 794 Heian capital, 1192 Kamakura shogunate, 1603 Edo shogunate, 1868 Meiji Restoration.

Edo sakoku: limited foreign contact through Nagasaki (Dutch and Chinese) and Tsushima (Korea); Commodore Perry's 1853 arrival led to the 1854 Kanagawa Treaty and opening of ports.

Meiji reforms: haihan-chiken (1871) replaced domains with prefectures; conscription (1873), land-tax reform (1873), and industrial promotion (shokusan kogyo) built a modern state.

Imperial expansion: Sino-Japanese War 1894-95 (Treaty of Shimonoseki), Russo-Japanese War 1904-05 (Treaty of Portsmouth), annexation of Korea 1910, Manchurian Incident 1931.

WWII: Pearl Harbor attack December 1941; atomic bombs Hiroshima and Nagasaki August 1945; surrender signed September 2, 1945 aboard USS Missouri.

Postwar: 1947 Constitution and Fundamental Law of Education; 1951 San Francisco Peace Treaty effective 1952; 1964 Tokyo Olympics and Shinkansen symbolize high-growth era.

Contemporary: 1973 oil shock shifted to energy-saving industry; 1985 Plaza Accord strengthened the yen; 1991 bubble collapse led to the 'lost decades' of low growth and deflation.

Constitution of Japan: three principles are popular sovereignty, fundamental human rights, and pacifism (Article 9 renounces war and war potential).

Separation of powers: Diet is the sole lawmaking body; Cabinet is responsible to the Diet; courts exercise judicial power with an independent Supreme Court.

Bicameral Diet: House of Representatives (465 members, 4-year term, can be dissolved) and House of Councillors (248 members, 6-year term, half elected every 3 years).

Fundamental rights include equality (Art. 14), freedom of thought and conscience (Art. 19), and the right to live (Art. 25); rights may be restricted only for public welfare.

Electoral system: House of Representatives mixes single-member districts with proportional representation; voting age is 18 (lowered from 20 in 2016).

Economy: Japan is a market economy with a small government share; the Bank of Japan sets monetary policy and targets 2% inflation; consumption tax is 10% (reduced 8% on food).

International relations: Japan joined the UN in 1956, relies on the Japan-US Security Treaty (1960), and is a member of the G7, OECD, and WTO.

Local government: 47 prefectures and municipalities have directly elected governors, mayors, and assemblies; the central government grants local allocation tax to equalize finances.

Line graph reading: read axis units first; slope = rate of change; a steep fall means a large decrease per unit of time, not necessarily a large absolute value.

Bar and pie charts: pie slices total 100%; to compare absolute sizes across years use bar or line charts, since pie charts show shares, not totals.

Population pyramid: broad base means high birth rate and young population; narrow base with wide top means aging and low fertility.

Map overlay: combine a population-density map with a flood-hazard map to identify risk areas; GIS layers can be switched on and off for comparison.

Data reliability: check sample size, survey year, and source; a small sample gives wide error margins, and older data may not describe current conditions.

Correlation versus causation: two variables rising together does not prove one causes the other; look for a plausible mechanism or controlled comparison.

Scale conversion: on a 1:50,000 map, 1 cm = 500 m; on 1:25,000, 1 cm = 250 m; measure with a ruler then multiply by the scale denominator.

Rate calculation: percentage change = (new value − old value) ÷ old value × 100; a fall from 500 to 400 is a 20% decrease, not 25%.

Source evaluation: distinguish primary sources (diaries, official records) from secondary sources (textbooks, later histories) and note the author's purpose and date.