A social experiment exhibit utilizing unused space at Sendai Station, “Otoshibumi – AI-woven letter-writing,” will be held from October 25th to 27th.
Academimic LLC Press Release: October 22, 2025 A social experiment exhibition, “Otoshibumi – AI-woven Letters,” will be held from October 25th to 27th, utilizing unused space at Sendai Station. AI will turn your words into letters.
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/147858/6/147858-6-93597435df7dfca61cb0c63253cf12ac-3900×2754.jpg
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/147858/6/147858-6-cc5f33117d605ecbe164ceacff744e04-3900×2235.png https://img.youtube.com/vi/ZLoPILxAVkw/sddefault.jpg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLoPILxAVkw ■Implementation overview Period: October 25th (Sat) – October 27th (Monday), 2025 Time: 10:00 – 18:00 Venue: Sendai Station, near the central concourse entrance/exit 1 Fee: Free
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/147858/6/147858-6-6f7da197ae0757f7155ed576c2671a4d-852×268.jpg ■ About the interactive exhibit “Death Bubble – AI-woven Letters” The leaf-rolling beetle is a beetle that carefully rolls up leaves to encase its eggs, then drops them to the ground. This unique behavior was once called “otoshi-bumi” (a type of writing that conveys feelings that cannot be conveyed directly), and has been likened to the act of quietly conveying feelings that cannot be conveyed directly. This work, “Lateral Weevil – AI-woven Letters,” is an experiential installation inspired by this leaf-rolling behavior. When visitors write a short phrase on a piece of paper, the text is reconstructed using image recognition and AI and projected onto the wall as leaf-shaped text. As the phrase gradually rolls up in the video, it changes shape and meaning, eventually converging into a short “single word” and disappearing. By combining AI technology and visual expression, this exhibition allows visitors to visually experience the process of word transformation. By overlapping the ecology of insects with the human act of “communication,” this installation attempts to reexamine the relationship between language and life from a new perspective.
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/147858/6/147858-6-2d49626588bb8e3a4e03ee92c6a8ac68-1885×2700.jpg ■Comments
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/147858/6/147858-6-561be5d4e7b6228536843eaabf415b4b-366×366.png Tohoku University Graduate School of Life Sciences, Department of Ecological Development and Adaptation Science Ecological Dynamics Course Specially Appointed Assistant Professor Chisato Kobayashi “The act of leaf-rolling by leaf weevils is a process that has developed through their relationship with the environment. I strongly believe in the significance of passing on to the next generation a sense of wonder, the ability to appreciate the wonders of nature all around us.” Focusing on “insects that process plants,” such as leaf weevils and leafcutter bees, I conduct research and disseminate information on their intricate processing behavior, viewing it as a “reciprocal process between living organisms and the environment.”
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/147858/6/147858-6-81d05f3438814c4a82893ad5fc940986-366×363.jpg Tohoku University COI-NEXT Nature-Positive Development Society Realization Project Science Communicator Yosuke Ueda “Just as the human culture of otoshibumi is connected to the names of insects, human culture and nature have a deep connection. I hope this initiative will provide an opportunity to reflect not only on feelings for others, but also on feelings toward nature.” A science
communicator who connects society and science. He is particularly committed to creating spaces for dialogue regarding environmental issues and the relationship between humans and living things. ■ About Ki Sci Iki
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/147858/6/147858-6-2c4aebd45187d8c2c8ccf07279373a91-2232×1252.png “Ki Sci Iki” is a public space and research art project jointly promoted by Nikken Sekkei Research Institute and Academimic, utilizing unused urban spaces. In recent years, cities have become home to numerous unused spaces that, while not yet fully functional, hold great potential as venues for citizen sensibility and new forms of interaction. Nikken Sekkei Research Institute is conducting a social experiment to unearth these underutilized public spaces with great potential and create new value for cities. This project aims to share the knowledge and perspectives of research institutions with the city through art, creating opportunities for citizens to encounter “research gateways” in their daily lives. “Otoshibumi” is the first such attempt, a work inspired by research at Tohoku University and installed in the public space of Sendai Station. The project depicts new relationships—the intersection of research and art, the city and its citizens, and nature and technology—set against the backdrop of the city of Sendai. ■ Production Team Organizer/Project Concept: Nikken Sekkei Research Institute Planning/Direction: Academimic Research Supervision: Chisato Kobayashi (Project Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University) Co-Planning: Yosuke Ueda (Tohoku University COI-NEXT Center for Nature-Positive Development) Produced by: Tatsuya Mori, Shotaro Mimura (Visionary Lab from Araya Inc.) ■Nikken Sekkei Research Institute Ltd. Nikken Sekkei Research Institute, a think tank within the Nikken Group, aims to realize sustainable architecture and urban development, providing research, planning, and consulting services across the entire range of architecture and urban lifestyles. In recent years, we have been collaborating with a wide range of universities, research institutes, and companies both in Japan and abroad to engage in policy proposals and research activities. (URL)
https://www.nikken-ri.com/about/index.html
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/147858/6/147858-6-160e87e07aecc422e519153f7dc4f585-409×152.jpg ■Tohoku University COI-NEXT Center for Nature-Positive Development This center was established at the Tohoku University Graduate School of Life Sciences as the “Nature Positive Development Society Realization Center (NP Center)” under the COI-NEXT program, which aims to establish a hub for industry-government-academia collaboration to solve social issues. Based on the concept of “nature positivity,” which aims to reverse the deterioration of nature, the center works to visualize the value of nature and create businesses related to natural capital, aiming for a nature-positive development society in which people and nature nurture each other. (URL)
https://www.naturepositive-hub.jp/
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/147858/6/147858-6-5ec6cd52f9f45bba3f2281fa714de713-342×287.jpg ■Visionary Lab from ARAYA Visionary The Lab is an organization that uses the concept of “Giving shape to fantasy” to create experiences of scenes from everyday life that could become a reality in the future, using cutting-edge technologies, including technologies currently in the research and development stage. Through these experiences, the Lab communicates its impressions and technical challenges, and
collaborates with a variety of people, including researchers, engineers, artists, and companies, to deliver new experiences to many people through events and products. (URL) https://vl.araya.org/
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/147858/6/147858-6-70d82009f769430914b5f188c7eabbdb-519×293.jpg ■Academimic LLC A creative label that aims to combine research and pop culture. He expresses the emotional imagination born from his research in a variety of media, including novels, music, and film, creating new experiences that lie somewhere between fiction and non-fiction. (URL) https://academimic.com/
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