熊本地震−7 2017.4.14

新年度のご挨拶  -地震から１年  　2017.4.14

あの地震から1年が経ちます。発生研の内部は窓やエレベーター、階段を含めて、この３月でほぼ復旧し、ほとんどの機器も原状に復帰しました。外壁の修復にはこれから足場を組んで11月までかかりますが、研究には支障ありません。復旧に尽力いただいた方々、ご支援いただいた全国の皆様に深く感謝いたします。

ひどい災害でした。200名を越す亡くなられた方々のご冥福をお祈りいたします。4000回を越える余震も辛いものでした。発生研も建物と研究機器には大きな損傷を被りましたが、人的被害は少なく、研究サンプルやマウスも大部分が維持されました。毎日顔を合わせて相談し、一緒に復旧作業する中で、発生研メンバーの結束はこれまで以上に堅いものになりました。ラボ間の交流を促進するために、月１回の情報交換会を始めましたし、８月には阿蘇で数年ぶりの合宿（リトリート）を開催します。阿蘇に向かう道路は工事が進んでいますが、それも含めて熊本の復旧を実感しつつ、研究交流したいと思います。国際化・産学連携の促進を目指してグローカルサイエンス推進施設を設置しますし、医学部・薬学部の研究施設と連携して研究を進められる共同体制の話し合いも始まっています。さらに来年１月には国内外から著名な研究者を招聘して国際シンポジウムを開催します。発生研の復活をアピールしつつ、次の展開に向けた国際的な人材のネットワークを作っていければと考えています。

研究機器の固定も進んでいます。実例を写真付きでまとめましたので、研究者の方は是非ご覧ください。高価な機器は、床と壁に固定した実験台の上に、ベルトで締め付けるように固定します。費用で悩むなら、せめて滑り止めシートを敷いてください。安価だし、すぐできます（何もやらないよりずっとマシです）。大切なデータが入っている自分のパソコンも、しっかり固定してください。また緊急時に刻々と変化する状況を全員がリアルタイムで共有できるように、発生研のメンバーの誰からでも全員に伝えられるメールアドレスを開設しました。これを普段から使うことで緊急時に備えることにします。非常用の水や毛布も1階に準備しました。地震はどこで起きるかわかりません。我々の経験を公開することで、少しでも次の被害を少なくすることができればと願っています。

あの地震は確かに自分の人生で一番の踏ん張りどころだったと思います。それを皆さんのご協力で乗り越えたことで、少し肩の力が抜けたような気がします。競争とか名誉欲、嫉妬心などの余計な憑きものが落ちて、自分の大切な家族や仲間がみな健康で、それぞれがやりたいことに集中できること、それが本当の幸せなのだと思えるようになりました。これからサイエンスを益々楽しめそうです。発生研で育ち、巣立っていく若手研究者の皆さんのためにも、これまで以上に素晴らしい環境を整備したいと思います。発生研を内外から支援していただいているすべての皆様に深く感謝いたします。今後ともよろしくお願いいたします。

熊本大学発生医学研究所　所長
西中村　隆一

New Fiscal Year’s Greeting
– One Year After the Earthquake – (Apr 14, 2017)

One year has passed since we felt the massive earthquakes here in Kumamoto. In March the IMEG building, including windows, elevators, and stairs, was almost fully restored, and most of our research equipment has returned to normal working conditions. Repairs to the outer wall have begun and are scheduled to be completed in November. Fortunately, I am happy to report that there are no problems plaguing our research. I would like to express my deepest appreciation to the people who helped with the restoration, and to all the people who supported us along the way.

It was a terrible disaster with over 4000 painful aftershocks. I pray for the souls of the more than 200 who died as a direct result of the earthquakes. IMEG suffered major damage to the facility and research equipment. Thankfully, the human cost was minimal and most of our research samples were safe and sound. I have found that consulting face-to-face every day and working together to restore our laboratories has strengthened the unity of our IMEG members more than ever. To further promote interaction between our laboratories, we began holding information exchange meetings once a month, and we plan on having an employee retreat in August at Mt. Aso. It is my hope that when we see that the road to recovery in Aso is well underway, we will be able to understand just how far we have come, be inspired to deepen our personal and professional relationships, and to further our combined research goals. We are now setting up a Global Science Promotion Facility with the aim of promoting internationalization and industry-academia collaboration, and discussions have begun on the implementation of a joint system where the research facilities of IMEG, the Faculty of Medicine, and the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences can advance collaborative research. Furthermore, in January of next year, we will host an international symposium and invite prominent researchers from home and abroad. We hope the symposium will show off the revival of IMEG and help create a network of international talent for the next expansion.

Stabilization efforts to prevent research equipment from being damaged in the event of another earthquake are progressing nicely. Several images of stabilized items from around the institute are posted in the link above. (Please take a moment to view them if you haven’t already.) We strongly urge everyone to tightly fasten expensive equipment to a laboratory stand that is fixed to both the floor and wall. If cost is prohibitive, at least put down a nonslip sheet. It is cheap, can be installed quickly, and is better than nothing. Also be sure to firmly fix any computer that may contain important data. We created an e-mail address for all IMEG members, which allows for real-time information sharing to easily communicate with other members during any volatile emergency situation. No one knows when or where the next disaster will occur, but we have at least prepared for quick dissemination of information during an emergency. Hopefully, by sharing information and experiences amongst each other, we will be able to reduce the damage caused by the next disaster.

Last year’s earthquake was by far the hardest thing I have had to overcome in my life. I was able to surmount it only with everyone’s cooperation, and now I can finally relax. I realized that true happiness was found once over-competitiveness, lack of honor, greed, and jealousy disappeared, and all family members and colleagues were healthy and able to concentrate on what they really wanted to do. I am now certain that I will be able to enjoy science once again. For young researchers “growing up” in IMEG, I hope that our combined passion for science will result in continuous improvements to our research environment.
We deeply appreciate everyone who has shown support for IMEG, domestic and foreign. Thank you very much!

Director, IMEG, Kumamoto University

Ryuichi Nishinakamura