Daoism, Confucianism and Buddhism talk at Carnegie Library West End branch, March 11.

The second talk in a three-part series on Comparative Religions of East Asia at the Carnegie Library West End will be held on March 11 on the topic of "Daoism, Confucianism and Buddhism":

The second lecture in our three part comparative religion series, hosted by Steve Joseph, will examine the themes, similarities and differences between Daoism, Confucianism and Buddhism. Each religion (or philosophy, if you prefer) exerted great influence over social, political and religious thought and practice throughout China, Korea and Japan. Learn about their origins, basic tenants and points of emphasis.

The event rusn from 1:00 to 2:00 pm and are free and open to the public. The West End branch is located at 47 Wabash Street (map).

6th Annual Tomodachi Festival: A Celebration of Japanese Culture, April 1 in Oakland.

The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh's Main Branch in Oakland will host the 6th annual Tomodachi Festival on Saturday, April 1.

Tomodachi is a Japanese word meaning “friends”. Help us celebrate the spirit of friendship through activities, art and food that showcase Japan, its people and rich history.

Activities include:

• Kamishibai storytelling, singing and dancing
• Origami Art
• Kimono try-ons
• Japanese inspired refreshments

The event runs from 2:00 to 5:00 pm in the Children's section of the library, and is free and open to the public. The library is located at 4400 Forbes Ave. in Oakland (map) and is accessible by buses 28X, 54, 61C, 61D, 67, 69, 71A, 71B, 71C, 71D, and 93.

7th annual Matsuri at CMU, April 11.

The Japanese Student Association at Carnegie Mellon University will present its 7th annual Matsuri on Tuesday, April 11. The spring matsuri (meaning festival in Japanese) benefits Minato Middle School in Ishinomaki city, which was destroyed by the March 11, 2011 tsunami. More information, from the festival's official site:

Originally a sacred ceremony of the Shinto belief, now a night full of street food, arcade games, and joyful performances, Matsuris are of great importance to the Japanese people, its culture and its traditions.

We wanted to share a snippet of this eventful festival here in Pittsburgh, right on the CMU campus. Come by to try a taste of Japanese street food, play some traditional Japanese games, and enjoy a range of performances from Japanese Taiko Drumming to Pop + Rock Fusions of Contemporary Japanese Music.

We have put in a lot of effort into authenticity; we purchase things online and ship them from Japan. We hand craft our booths to make it look like what you see on the streets in Japan. Enjoy the event to its fullest by paying attention to the small details!

We are also proud to annouce that 100% of the profits we make at this event will be donated to Minato Middle school in Ishinomaki, Japan. This school lost their whole campus due to the East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of March 11, 2011. Please read more about our cause here.

Admission is free and the event is open to the public at the rear of the Cohon University Center (map). Additional information is available at the Japanese Student Association's website.

Downtown's Yuzu Kitchen, Lawrenceville's Ki Ramen among NextPittsburgh's seven new restaurants to try this spring.

Yuzu Kitchen, coming soon to 409 Wood St. (via @yuzukitchenpgh).

NextPittsburgh's list of seven new restaurants to try this spring includes Yuzu Kitchen and Ki Ramen, coming soon to downtown and Lawrencville, respectively.

Located in the heart of the business district on Wood St., Yuzu Kitchen will feature ramen dishes, tapas-style appetizers and robata grill items. Robata (short for “robatayaki”) in Japanese cuisine is similar to food barbecued on skewers. The menu will feature food with influences from Japanese, Chinese and Korean cuisines.

. . .

A restaurant and bar with traditional ramen as its main focus, Ki Ramen will serve different broths with the unique twist of homemade noodles instead of what most ramen places use.

Chinese-Canadian movie Old Stone (老石), documentary The Eagle Huntress part of CMU International Film Festival in March and April.

The Carnegie Mellon International Film Festival recently announced its films for the 2017 "Faces of Identity" iteration, with the 2016 Chinese-Canadian film Old Stone (老石) and the documentary The Eagle Huntress as part of the line-up. Old Stone will play on March 30 and will feature a panel discussion, and The Eagle Huntress will play on April 6. The schedule is available online, though tickets for these two movies are not yet for sale.

Japanese for English speakers coming to Duolingo in May.

Buried at the bottom of a Tribune-Review article yesterday about the launch of a Swahili language course by the Pittsburgh-based Duolingo is an update on the status of Japanese lessons for English speakers:

[Director of business development at Duolingo Rogelio] Alvarez said East Asian languages have been the most challenging. Some, such as Mandarin Chinese, don't have an alphabet but use tones, which is challenging to teach. Demand for those languages, however, has pushed the company. Alvarez told the Trib that Duolingo expects to launch a Japanese course for English speakers in May in response to high demand.

Thai N' Noodle Outlet coming soon to Squirrel Hill.

Coming Soon signage recently went up for Thai N' Noodle Outlet at 5813 Forbes Ave. in Squirrel Hill (map), in what was most recently Sukhothai Bistro. That replaced Cool Ice Taipei, a Taiwanese food place, back in June 2014.

Sword Art Online The Movie: Ordinal Scale (劇場版 ソードアート・オンライン -オーディナル・スケール) in Pittsburgh, March 9.

The upcoming Japanese animated movie Sword Art Online The Movie: Ordinal Scale (劇場版 ソードアート・オンライン -オーディナル・スケール) will play at several Cinemark theaters throughout Pittsburgh and at the Hollywood Theater in Dormont on March 9, the date of its US premiere. The official site provides a plot summary of the movie, which opened in Japan in February:

In 2022, the world of virtual reality was upended by the arrival of a new invention from a genius programmer, Akihiko Kayaba, called NerveGear. It was the first full-dive system, and with it, came endless possibilities to VRMMORPGs.

In 2026, a new machine called the Augma is developed to compete against the NerveGear and its successor, the Amusphere. A next-gen wearable device, the Augma doesn't have a full-dive function like its predecessors. Instead, it uses Augmented Reality (AR) to get players into the game. It is safe, user-friendly and lets users play while they are conscious, making it an instant hit on the market. The most popular game on the system is "Ordinal Scale" (aka: OS), an ARMMORPG developed exclusively for the Augma.

Asuna and the gang have already been playing OS for a while, by the time Kirito decides to join them. They're about to find out that Ordinal Scale isn't all fun and games…

Tickets for the 8:15 pm show at the Hollywood Theater are available online. The theater is located at 1449 Potomac Ave. in Dormont (map), and is accessible by Pittsburgh's subway/LRT at a block south of Potomac Station.

The movie will have 8:00 pm screenings at five local Cinemark theaters: Pittsburgh Mills, North Hills, Robinson, Monroeville, and Monaca. Tickets for those are available online as well.

CMMI Institute hiring Chinese-speaking Quality Analyst.

Pittsburgh-based CMMI Institute is hiring a Chinese-speaking Quality Analyst. An excerpt of the job posting:

CMMI Institute is dedicated to elevating organizational performance through best-in-class solutions to real-world challenges. The Institute is the home of the Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) for Development, Services, and Acquisition; the People Capability Maturity Model; and the Data Management Maturity Model which are process improvement models that create high-performance, high-maturity cultures. The models are used in thousands of organizations worldwide to deliver business results that serve as differentiators in the global market.

Summary:

As a member of the Quality Department, analysts provide CMMI Model and appraisal Method support for certified professionals by conducting quality reviews on SCAMPI appraisals, CMMI course deliveries, certification renewals, permission to use intellectual property and ethics and compliance issues. The Quality Department is responsible for protecting the CMMI Brand; analysts must assess the nature of product or service issues and resolve basic and complex technical and support problems.

The full posting, and application instructions, is available at the CMMI website.

Shaolin Warriors at Byham Theater, March 21.

The Shaolin Warriors, a touring martial arts group from China, will perform in Pittsburgh on March 21, 2017. The Byham Theater summarizes (inadvertently revealing a copy-paste from another theater's site):

In this all-new, fully choreographed theatrical production, the Shaolin Warriors bring remarkable skill, stunning movement, and death-defying martial-arts prowess to the Byham Theater stage. The Kung Fu Masters of the Shaolin temple begin training at a very young age in mental and physical disciplines. They perfect the art of hand-to-hand and weapons combat, performing feats live on stage typically seen only in the movies

Tickets start at $25 and are available online. The theater is located at 101 6th St. in the Cultural District (map).