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July 17, 2024
 

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Philip Brasor
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Mar 13, 2012
Electric cars aren't just for driving any more
Electric vehicles now being touted as batteries on wheels.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Mar 11, 2012
Public wary of official optimism
Ambition can sometimes be measured by the amount of deference paid to the established order, so the recently published book "Genpatsu Kiki to Todai Waho," which irreverently analyzes the "parlance of the University of Tokyo" as it was utilized during the early days of the nuclear crisis in Fukushima,...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Mar 10, 2012
The eel deal: Sky's the limit for unagi prices
The shortage of baby eels is suddenly being felt at the restaurant level.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Mar 9, 2012
Japan prepares to commemorate Tohoku tragedy
This Sunday is the first anniversary of the earthquake and tsunami that devastated the coastline of northeastern Japan and killed more than 15,000 people.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Mar 7, 2012
Money isn't everything for renters…or is it?
When you rent in Tokyo, it's best to start with lower expectations.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Mar 6, 2012
Don't judge a house by its exterior
The house stood out among its neighbors: not because of its box shape or the tall ham-radio tower planted in the parking space, but because of its bold two-tone exterior of wine red interrupted by sections of gray. The company that built it keeps costs down by not erecting model homes, so the salesman...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Mar 4, 2012
Japan's lonely people: Where do they all belong?
In recent weeks, three cases of kodokushi, or "lonely deaths," have been covered extensively in the news. One involved a Saitama Prefecture family of three whose bodies were found in their apartment several months after the electricity and gas were turned off for nonpayment. Police assumed they had starved....
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Mar 2, 2012
Civil servants are different, especially when it comes to social security
Two proposals for improving pension schemes seem dead in the water.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Feb 26, 2012
Job-seeking comedy avoids real issues
In 2004, novelist Ryu Murakami published "13-sai no Hello Work," a job guide for 13-year-olds, though most of the copies were bought by adults. The book did not offer practical advice, but rather job descriptions in all lines of work, from engineer to prostitute, in order to give readers an idea of what...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 24, 2012
Yearly statistics put recession into slightly better focus
If it's February, it's time for the government to release its yearly economic statistics.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 20, 2012
Beware of bureaucrats bearing student loans
The government is giving more and more loans to students who can't afford them.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Feb 19, 2012
Feeding tube politics an awkward subject
On Feb. 6, Nobuteru Ishihara, secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party, recounted on a BS Asahi talk show a visit he recently made to a medical facility where patients were hooked up to gastric feeding tubes, or irō. He said it reminded him of the 1979 science fiction-horror movie "Alien,"...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 17, 2012
So how much do politicians' secretaries make?
Lawmakers' publicly paid secretaries can make a lot of money.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 14, 2012
Economists think about soaking the rich, a little
The government could solve its deficit problems if it taxed savings.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Feb 12, 2012
Swindlers continue to scam the elderly out of their savings
Recently, my partner renewed her drivers license and was waiting in line to pay her fee. The clerk asked the elderly man waiting in front of her if he wanted to join the Japan Traffic Safety Association for an additional fee. She rattled off a memorized spiel, and after the intimidated old man assented...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 10, 2012
Automatic dishwashers: the square peg in the round hole of Japanese kitchens
Dishwashers remain a difficult sell in Japan, even to people who already own one.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 7, 2012
Hospitals redefine the meaning of 'weekend getaway'
Government wants patients to wait until Monday to start hospital stays.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Feb 5, 2012
Todai calls for change, but will others follow?
Spring approaches, and the thoughts of the media, which like nothing better than the warm comfort of a predictable news cycle, turn to education. Students are wrapping up the scholastic year and some are taking tests that will determine their lives. Last year, reporters got a bonus; That story about...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 3, 2012
Are poorer families succumbing to the American lifestyle?
Low income families increasingly falling victim to bad health habits.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 29, 2012
Disaster adds tension to year-in-the-life TV
Fuji TV's Sunday afternoon documentary series "The Non-Fiction" usually covers individuals over long periods of time. "The Old Man and Radiation," aired in two parts on Jan. 15 and 22, was about Toshihiko Kawamoto, an 80-year-old former carpenter who moved from Tokyo to the wilds of Fukushima Prefecture...
Who needs AI when you have Hatsune Miku?
Over the first six months of 2024, a handful of songs using Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku’s voice have enjoyed widespread attention, underlining a global interest in the character and the technology she represents.
Yen’s woes seem too big for even a BOJ hike this month to solve
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
China’s economic growth comes in worse than expected
Pedestrians in the Wangfujing shopping area in Beijing on July 11, 2024. China's economic growth in the second quarter was lower than forecast, adding pressure on Chinese leaders to lift confidence at the Chinese Communist Party's third plenum this week.
Kansai airports to increase takeoff and landing slots ahead of Osaka Expo
Kansai International Airport in Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture. The upper limit on the number of takeoff and landing slots at the airport as well as Kobe Airport in Hyogo Prefecture will be raised in spring next year ahead of the 2025 World Exposition in Osaka.
Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

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