The Thunderstorm and Wind Gods of Japan
Summary
This activity includes a PowerPoint slide show (or PDF version) of a special topic lecture and in-class handout for students. Students listen to a lecture, then answer questions on the handout, either individually or in small groups. This presentation was developed for teaching weather concepts to general education or non-science students.
Folklore and mythology are not proper history or science fact, however there is a reasonable basis for why regional culture myths persist. There are interesting meteorological analogies within Japan's religious allegory. Japan's Shinto religion holds Raijin as a god of lightning storms, and Fujin as a god of windstorms and cyclones. These sky deities were depicted as demonic, destructive forces of nature in traditional Japanese art, iconography and cultural landscapes. Myths such as Raijin's penchant for eating the navels of children, or why Fujin's skin is green, were used to illustrate principles of meteorology. The pedagogy further explains and prompts students to understand why Japanese painters of the Edo Period depicted lightning flashes as red in color, even though lightning does not usually appear that way. The presentation and student discussion also includes weather phenomenon such as gust fronts, nitrogen fixation by lightning, cyclonic winds, and others.
Outcomes: Introductory meteorology or physical geography students will reinforce their meteorological understanding, by relating atmospheric concepts to Japanese culture.
Key words: Meteorology, Japan, Thunderstorms, Tornados, Cyclones
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Context
Audience
Introductory, general education Meteorology, Earth Science or Geography course for non-majors.
Also used in a graduate-level science education course for graduate students and teachers in local schools.
Skills and concepts that students must have mastered
An understanding of basic weather phenomenon that one encounters in everyday life. Basics of thunderstorms and cyclones.
A basic appreciation of Japanese culture is desired.
How the activity is situated in the course
Presented as a "special topic not in the textbook".
In Geography, the final topic in Physical Geography, Weather and Climate. Just before starting the Cultural Geography section of the course.
Goals
Content/concepts goals for this activity
Lightning, thunder formation. Gust fronts. Sun angle and sky color. Lightning Flowers. Flash flooding. Lightning safety. Tornados and waterspouts. Tornado scale. Monsoon winds. Easterly winds.
Higher order thinking skills goals for this activity
Formulation of hypotheses and synthesis of ideas:
For example, "Why lightning is red" is open to discussion. There is no one, single answer. It leaves room for more research and explanation.
Students must navigate the perspective of another culture.
Other skills goals for this activity
The questions may be utilized in groups.
This is the introductory exercise in a multi-part educational series "Meteorology and Myth"
Description and Teaching Materials
Some of this, and other portions of my "Meteorology and Myth" series. is featured on my personal education blog website.
https://mapleforestricepaddy.wordpress.com/
The Thunderstorm and Wind Gods of Japan ( 120MB Sep16 22)
The Thunderstorm and Wind Gods of Japan (Acrobat (PDF) 16.7MB Sep16 22)
STUDENT HANDOUT FOR The Thunderstorm and Wind Gods of Japan (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 121kB Sep16 22)
The Thunderstorm and Wind Gods of Japan (MP4 Video 1515.4MB Sep16 22)
Teaching Notes and Tips
The slides are intended to be read. I add a lot of commentary when I present in person however.
The PowerPoint file is large. It has a lot of animations.
The PDF file is easier for computers to process, but one loses the animations.
Certain slides may be deleted for particularly sensitive students. These may be deleted.
Assessment
How much the in-class handout/exercise is filled in by the student.
Alternatively, students may discuss answers in groups.
Teachers can gauge how well students can verbally answer the questions.
Also, the number of students who talk to me after class expressing interest, can be surprising.
References and Resources
YouTube link of the slide show is here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O51Q7-QPOfE
Discussion questions are in the description.