★★★★★ 5.0
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Institute of Science Tokyo
This university is less than one year old but has been teaching students for 143 years! You're standing at the Institute of Science Tokyo, which officially opened on October 1st, 2024 - making it younger than you - but it's actually made from two ancient schools that merged together like scientific LEGO blocks. The Tokyo Institute of Technology part started way back in 1881 with just TWO tiny departments, and get this - the whole campus had to pack up and move here to Ookayama in Meguro after the massive 1923 earthquake literally shook them out of their old home! Look around at these modern research buildings - they're sitting on land that became a emergency new home for thousands of students almost exactly 100 years ago. That tall Centennial Hall behind you took 13 years of planning and fundraising just to celebrate the school's 100th birthday, but now it's witnessing the birth of something completely new - Japan's newest science powerhouse that's somehow also one of its oldest!
Did You Know?
- The Institute of Science Tokyo was born from a historic merger between two of Japan’s most prestigious universities—Tokyo Institute of Technology (founded in 1881) and Tokyo Medical and Dental University (established in 1928)—officially launching on October 1, 2024, as a new powerhouse in science, engineering, medicine, and dentistry, reflecting Japan’s commitment to advancing both human wellbeing and technological innovation.
- Science Tokyo’s main campus in Ookayama, Meguro, is not only a hub for cutting-edge research but also a place where architectural history meets modernity: the original Tokyo Institute of Technology campus was relocated here after the devastating 1923 Great Kantō earthquake destroyed its former site, symbolizing resilience and renewal in Japanese academic history.
- Families and children visiting Science Tokyo can discover a fun scientific legacy: researchers here were the first in the world to synthesize vitamin B2 by hand, enabling industrial production, and also developed enzyme-containing detergents thanks to the discovery of alkaline enzymes—everyday products that trace their origins to pioneering work at this institution.