A large part of the basic groundwork for Japanese chemistry was established in the Meiji era beginning at the end of the 19 th century as the result of the educational and scientific contributions of German chemists in Japan and Japanese chemists who studied in Germany. Although the development of Japanese chemistry was considerably diminished by the world wars, further development was successfully realized during the latter half of the last century thanks to the dedication of succeeding generations, in Japan as in Germany. The fact that eight Nobel Prize winners in chemistry 1) appeared in Japan after 1980 reflects the steady development of...