In 1964, two events epitomized Japan's spectacular recovery and growth after World War II. One was the Tokyo Olympics, starting on October 10 of that year. The other was the opening of the Tōkaidō Shinkansen, a high-speed railway system connecting Tokyo and Osaka. Also known as the bullet train, it started operation on October 1, just in time for the Olympics. It later grew into the network of shinkansen covering most areas of Japan. Christopher Hood, Director of the Cardiff Japanese Studies Center, Cardiff University, has conducted a historical and sociological study of this transportation infrastructure. Hood's overall argument is that “the shinkansen has become a symbol of Japan,” and that “the way it was established, [the way] the network has developed, how it is operated, and even the way it looks reflect many different aspects of Japanese society” (p. 1).
