The other day, I took a Shinkansen bullet train for a business trip after a long interval as I worked from home 90 percent of my work hours. It was a new type of Shinkansen called N700S and its interior design struck me as innovative. Its ceiling was equipped with an indirect white LED lighting system with a camera window at its center; its baggage racks on both sides of the car were no-frills and easy to use; its walls gave an three-dimensional appearance as we experience in an airplane cabin; and its floor was designed to convey an image of a traditional dry landscape garden. Overall, the interior design was updated to create an impression of a hybrid of Japanese and Western styles. Free wi-fi was also available inside a car and a power outlet was installed at every seat, which apparently can meet the demand of today’s passengers. It was the first time that I got on a Shinkansen train designed with such advanced user friendliness. I had an impression that the world was constantly evolving even though it was hard for me to feel that way in my stay-at-home life. Talking about evolution, the coronavirus is also evolving to produce mutant strains though in a different way than industrial products.

When I happened to hear the news that the virus’s mutation occurs when it fails to copy its RNA, I thought it might well be called a devolution. But the fact is that the new variant’s infection capacity is so enormous that it’s on course to take the place of existing strains as the most infectious virus. It’s as if the virus has developed a bold strategy to mutate, albeit tentatively, before judging if the mutation will be suitable for its survival. These days, everything around us is constantly changing and once-ordinary lives are being replaced by new realities. In the face of changing circumstances, I would like to take advantage of them to embrace an ambitious yet enjoyable evolution in myself.

Yasuho Tashiro

Design Strategy Dept.

Senior Director