Breif 2: Research

My word for this research brief is WAYMARK

What is a way mark?

Waymarking is the posting of waymarks, which are signs placed along a route to help travelers follow the route. They may be intended for travelers on foot, on a bicycle, on a horse, in a vehicle or in any mode of transportation. The inuksuk was an early type of waymark. Milestones, common in Europe, are also a form of way mark.

As a short exercise to start as a table we passed our word round to see what other peoples ideas were on the word, I found this useful and here is some of the ideas I got back:

forest markings 

paths

orientation

sun

moss on trees

hiking 

treasure hunt

cubs 

scouts

wood carvings

communication

symbols 

maps

rural walking 

travel

nature 

foot prints 

animal tracks 

One suggestion that I researched into is the suicide forrest in Japan.

The Aokigahara Forest is the most popular site for suicides in Japan. After the novel Kuroi Jukai was published, in which a young lover commits suicide in the forest, people started taking their own lives there at a rate of 50 to 100 deaths a year. The site holds so many bodies that the Yakuza pays homeless people to sneak into the forest and rob the corpses. The authorities sweep for bodies only on an annual basis, as the forest sits at the base of Mt. Fuji and is too dense to patrol more frequently.

It is nicknamed the 'sea of trees' this is relevant because if the person is unsure whether they want to end their life they take tape with them and wrap it round the trees so they don't get lost in the forrest and can find their way out. Children are told not to go in the forrest as it is highly dangerous. Some people decide to camp as they are confused and are having bad thoughts. If you follow the tape you will find a body. All over the forest there is signs to try and persuade suicide people not to commit, it says things like 'Your life is a precious gift from your parents, please think of your parents siblings and children. Don't keep it to yourself, talk about your troubles.' 

There are many things I can look into with this topic:

Orienteering

- quick decisions

- both physical and mental 

- first practiced in the military 

Signs 

- hospitals 

- road

- toilet 

- fire exits 

Travel 

- journeys

-everyday 

- routine 

Types of travel 

- car 

- plane 

- train 

- bus