{"href":"https://api.simplecast.com/oembed?url=https%3A%2F%2Fthe-nordic-asia-podcast.simplecast.com%2Fepisodes%2Fthe-future-of-japanese-studies-xZiAUZ22","width":444,"version":"1.0","type":"rich","title":"The Future of Japanese Studies","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/cb128d90-f83c-4b59-b10e-b3318cf004ca/66782e5d-14b7-4c1f-bbd6-028d458d1965/nordicasiapodcastsmall.jpg","thumbnail_height":300,"provider_url":"https://simplecast.com","provider_name":"Simplecast","html":"","height":200,"description":"Does the rise of China mean that studying Japan is inexorably declining? Many students become interested in Japan because of popular culture, such manga and video games: is this a good or a bad thing? In an era of Google Translate and nifty smartphone apps, do people still need to spend years and years learning Japanese? What kind of problems do prevailing notions of methodological nationalism create for the study of Japan? And how can scholars of Japan best adapt to the rapidly-changing academic landscape?\nIn this wide-ranging conversation with NIAS Director Duncan McCargo, Aike P. Rots, an associate professor of Japan Studies at the University of Oslo, explains the thinking behind an engaging March 2022 keynote address he gave to a conference at Copenhagen Business School on the topic of ‘Japan and Japanese Studies in the Twenty-First Century’.\nAike Rots works on a variety of Asia-related issues, including religion, culture, biodiversity and the environment. He currently holds a European Research Council Starter Grant entitled ‘entitled ‘Whales of Power: Aquatic Mammals, Devotional Practices, and Environmental Change in Maritime East Asia’ .\nRead his short article on methodological nationalism in Japanese studies here:\nThe Nordic Asia Podcast is a collaboration sharing expertise on Asia across the Nordic region, brought to you by the Nordic Institute of Asian Studies (NIAS) based at the University of Copenhagen, along with our academic partners: the Centre for East Asian Studies at the University of Turku, and Asianettverket at the University of Oslo.\nWe aim to produce timely, topical and well-edited discussions of new research and developments about Asia.\nTranscripts of the Nordic Asia Podcasts: http://www.nias.ku.dk/nordic-asia-podcast\nAbout NIAS: www.nias.ku.dk"}