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December 22, 2024
 

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Matt Alt
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Sep 23, 2020
[Bonus episode] The making of the Walkman
This episode is based around an extract from the audiobook of 'Pure Invention.' We join in the middle of chapter 5, which is all about the invention of the Walkman.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Jul 15, 2020
Episode 57: Has Japan's pop culture conquered the world?
From the karaoke machine and the Walkman to Hello Kitty and the Game Boy, Japan's cultural influence can be felt almost everywhere.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
May 21, 2020
Episode 50: How the 'murder hornet' got its name
The Asian giant hornet is common to Japan and regularly terrorizes the country's residents during the summer months. So how did end up being known as the 'murder hornet'?
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Mar 24, 2018
Good libations: Examining the evolution of Japan's rich cocktail culture
The art of the cocktail is indisputably non-Japanese. The word itself is old American slang for a pick-me-up, referring in modern parlance to any mixed drink containing liquor and at least one other ingredient. Even if you aren't a drinker, chances are you can name quite a few: the martini, the Manhattan,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Jul 16, 2016
Ultraman: Ultracool at 50
Ultraman has been defending humanity against monsters and aliens for half a century. We examine the superhero's enduring legacy.
CULTURE / Books
Feb 15, 2014
Miyuki Miyabe's latest puts the history in Japanese horror
Better known for her crime and fantasy writing abroad, precious few of the prolific Miyuki Miyabe's tales of terror have actually made it into the English language. Haikasoru's publication of "Apparitions: Ghosts of Old Edo" addresses this oversight. Capably translated by Daniel Huddleston, this collection...
Japan Times
CULTURE
Jan 9, 2014
Will Cool Japan finally heat up in 2014?
After years of talk, 2013 marked a watershed moment in the government's Cool Japan campaign. Which begs the question: Is Japan cool?
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 15, 2013
Dōmo arigatō, giant robotto
My name is Matt, and I have a problem: I'm a grown man who thinks way too much about giant robots.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 21, 2013
Summer brings out the creepy crawlies
Now that the tsuyu (梅雨, rainy season) has ended and the dreaded heat has descended upon the city, most of us have taken refuge indoors, camped out in front of the eakon (エアコン, air-conditioning) in a desperate attempt to wick away some of summer's sticky mushiatsusa (蒸し暑さ, humidity)....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Aug 17, 2012
The art of making monsters
Good news for monster fans: Not one, not two, but three separate tokusatsu exhibitions are stomping their way through downtown Tokyo as you read these words.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 30, 2012
Urban safari in the concrete jungle reveals Tokyo wildlife
Tokyo is a city of many things, but "nature"? Not exactly a word that most associate with the metropolis. When it comes to the city's animal life, most Tokyoites think meiwaku dōbutsu (迷惑動物, pests) rather than yasei-dōbutsu (野生動物, wildlife), associating animal encounters with mischievous...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 31, 2011
This Halloween watch out for yūrei of all kinds
Urameshiyā! (うらめしやぁ！)
Nippon Steel alleges undue White House influence on doomed deal review
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the economy at the Brookings Institution in Washington on Dec. 10.
Record 78% of people in Japan feel anxious, government survey finds
The public opinion survey on people's lives, conducted by the Cabinet Office, found that 28.1% of respondents think that their standard of living is at a lower-middle level among the general public — the highest percentage to give that response in 35 years.
Police raided suspect's home to arrest him after fatal Kitakyushu stabbing
Broken window glass is seen at Masanori Hirabaru's house in Kitakyushu's Kokuraminami Ward.
Taiwan lawmakers brawl over bills that would 'damage democracy'
Lawmakers from the Democratic Progressive Party and opposition party Kuomintang brawl in parliament in Taipei on Friday.
Mother hopes for reunion with daughter ensnared by Tokyo host clubs
The Kabukicho district in Tokyo, where the daughter of a woman in her 60s fell deeply into the host club culture.
Casual workouts, cool living, ‘complete’ food: Japan’s health trends of 2024
In 2024, efficiency trumped effort among Japan's fitness-focused aspirants.
The mighty Mekong River's growing plastic problem
A group of elephant keepers in Chiang Saen, Thailand, remove plastic waste from the Ruak River, a tributary of the Mekong River, as a pair of Asian elephants bathe behind them.
Japanese officials inspect Yokota Air Base over PFAS concerns
The Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo in September 2019. An inspection of the base by Japanese government officials on Friday came amid public pressure to investigate suspected links between the use of PFAS-containing firefighting foam by the U.S. base and contamination of soil and groundwater in western Tokyo.
Crime numbers rise in Japan for second straight year
A police officer stands in front of the residence of a man alleged to have stabbed two junior high school students in Kitakyushu.
A year of Oscar wins and a quiet push for diversity
Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Evil Does Not Exist,” released in Japanese theaters in April, sharply dramatizes the clash between rural and urban values. The film won five awards at the 2023 Venice Film Festival, including the second-place Silver Lion prize.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Yasuyuki Yoshida stirs a brew in a fermentation tank at his brewery in Hakusan.
The quake that shook Noto's sake brewing tradition
By Alex K.T. Martin

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