NewsRelease

Graduation Message from President Ikenoue

2020/03/24 published

March 24, 2020

Graduation Message from President Ikenoue

The graduation ceremony for the University of Miyazaki, scheduled to be held at the Phoenix Seagaia Resort, regrettably was canceled this year due to the risk posed by the novel coronavirus. I had hoped to directly address the graduates, their family members, and other persons involved at the ceremony, but because of its cancellation I am conveying my thoughts in this message instead.

This year 1,000 students received a bachelor's degree from the University of Miyazaki. In particular, this was the first round of graduates from our Faculty of Regional Innovation, which has 91 graduates. We are also bestowing diplomas to the 216 students who completed master's courses at our university and the 28 students who completed doctoral courses, as well as 5 students who completed the special livestock course. In total, the University of Miyazaki is bestowing degrees upon 1,249 students. Let me take this opportunity to extend my warmest congratulations to each and every one of our new graduates.

As all of you are about to enter on the next phase of your lives, this is an ideal moment to reflect on the achievements of great individuals from the past. Since we are in Miyazaki, I would like to take this opportunity to introduce the physician Kanehiro Takaki, who is one of the three great figures to have been born in our prefecture, along with the diplomat Jutaro Komura and the tanka poet Bokusui Wakayama.

Takaki was born in Miyazaki City in 1849. He studied Western medicine under the British doctor William Willis and interned at St. Thomas's Hospital Medical School in London. After returning to Japan, he was appointed the commissioner of medical officers in the Japanese navy. During his time in the navy, Takaki conducted research to prevent the disease beriberi (Thiamine deficiency), which was the cause of death among many military personnel at the time.

Following his intuitive idea that diet was a contributing factor to the disease, Takaki conducted a study where he altered the usual food rations aboard a ship on a training mission, and then compared the current cases of beriberi to past cases that occurred during identical training missions. Through his study, Takaki proved that diversifying the food rations to include more wheat in rice dramatically reduced cases of beriberi.

History remembers Takaki as one of the pioneers of modern medicine in Japan, and his method of testing a hypothesis through a tightly controlled study remains the foundation of medical research today. In addition, his contribution to the field of medical training for doctors and nurses continues to bear fruit. His spirit lives

on in Japan at the Jikei University School of Medicine, which he founded. Just a few weeks ago, on March 3, the University of Miyazaki entered a new educational and research partnership with Jikei University School of Medicine that will include various activities such as dispatching students for clinical training and joint academic symposiums.

Later in life, Takaki played a vital role in restoring and expanding the Miyazaki Jingu shrine as its executive director. Under his leadership, the shrine began to hold an annual festival that continues to this day as one of the most important local events. However, although Takaki was known in Miyazaki for his role regarding the shrine and its festival, his medical achievements were less well known locally than they were overseas in England and elsewhere. Thankfully, this situation has changed in recent years, due in part to the installation of statues of Takaki in Miyazaki Culture Park and within the lobby of the Miyazaki Prefectural Medical Association.

I think there is much that we can learn from the example of Takaki's life. The starting point of his research was a serious problem facing people in his immediate surroundings. Based on his desire to solve this "local" problem, he arrived at a solution that benefited people around the world. In this sense, I think that his research approach perfectly encapsulates the spirit of our own university, whose slogan is: "Look at the world, start with the community."

As you embark now on your future paths in life, I hope that many of you will bear in mind the example of Takaki and his patient and courageous work that changed the world.

With warmest congratulations,

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Tsuyomu Ikenoue
President
University of Miyazaki


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