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August 15, 2024
 

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Tomoko Otake

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Tomoko Otake
Tomoko Otake is a senior writer with a strong interest in health, medical and social issues. A native of Nara Prefecture, she obtained an M.A. in journalism from The University of Montana.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
May 15, 2017
Medical big data to be pooled for disease research and drug development in Japan
Last month a bill aimed at facilitating medical research through the use of patient records stored at medical institutions cleared the Diet.
JAPAN / Society
May 11, 2017
Labor ministry names and shames businesses that exploit workers despite warnings
In a first, the labor ministry publishes the names of 334 “black companies” warned about excessive overtime or other violations online, including Dentsu, Panasonic and Japan Post.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / A MATTER OF HEALTH
May 10, 2017
Yamagata town to test using dogs to detect cancers
Dogs are not only loving companions. They could also be our most reliable weapon against cancer.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
May 5, 2017
Professor examines Lolita complex by first looking at his own experience
Lolita complex, the sexual attraction to young, pubescent girls, is woven into the fabric of everyday life in Japan. Turn on the TV and you'll see group after group of scantily-clad teenage and preteen girls singing or dancing to music. Peek in any bookstore and you'll find a section of photo books featuring...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / A MATTER OF HEALTH
May 3, 2017
Developer taps power of design to create dementia-friendly housing in Setagaya
Despite all the talk about the swelling ranks of people with dementia in Japan and what to do with them, there has been little discussion so far about housing designs that meet their needs.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / A MATTER OF HEALTH
Apr 26, 2017
Todai-linked venture developing technology for speedy home flu test
Every winter, people running a fever and complaining of muscle pain swarm the nation's clinics, suspecting one thing: the flu.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / A MATTER OF HEALTH
Apr 19, 2017
Language barriers at Japanese medical institutions put foreign patients at risk: expert
Here's a little-known, unnerving truth about health care in Japan: for non-Japanese, the death rate is higher than that for Japanese.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 12, 2017
JAL and ANA say overbooking violence would never happen in Japan
The violent video of a passenger being forcibly removed from an overbooked United Airlines flight on Sunday has gone viral around the world, including in Japan, sparking outcry and concern that a similar incident could happen here.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / A MATTER OF HEALTH
Apr 12, 2017
Tottori venture touts simulated patient for budding medical professionals
It looks and feels like a real person. It can cough, has a gag reflex and will even cry “ouch!” if handled roughly.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Apr 10, 2017
Japan's population projected to plunge to 88 million by 2065
The population of Japan is expected to plunge to 88.08 million in 2065, a roughly 30 percent fall from the 2015 level, according to a government-affiliated research institute.
Japan Times
JAPAN / GENERATIONAL CHANGE
Apr 10, 2017
Robotics whiz envisions prosthetic limbs for all
A high school teacher in a black coat enters the classroom. "Good morning," he says to the students before starting his lecture, with his right hand busily scribbling something on a blackboard and his left holding a physics textbook.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / A MATTER OF HEALTH
Apr 5, 2017
When it comes to health info, online 'fake news' can have serious repercussions
A recent "fake news" scandal involving IT giant DeNA Co. shows how quickly bogus health information can make the rounds online.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Mar 29, 2017
Families of 'karoshi' victims lambaste overtime cap recommendations as legalizing unhealthy working hours
Families of people who have died from overwork blasted a report adopted Tuesday by a government labor reform panel, saying its call for creating a monthly overtime cap of 100 hours could effectively legalize long working hours at the expense of workers' health.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Mar 24, 2017
Entrepreneurs use their diseases as springboard for business success
Despite calls for diversity in the workplace and "work-style reforms" being debated in the government, Japan has yet to come up with a way to fully utilize the talent of all who wish to work, especially those with rare and incurable diseases.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Mar 24, 2017
Kyoto University professor does the math and finds that sperm swim to a beat
We know that the upshot of sex between a man and a woman is more than 50 million sperm racing to reach one egg, though exactly how sperm swim through a woman’s body and how just one survives the journey to fertilize an egg is full of mystery.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 13, 2017
Huge number of articles on DeNA info websites found to have plagiarism, copyright issues
A three-month probe uncovers problems with around 20,000 articles uploaded on 10 health and lifestyle information websites run by DeNA Co.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 9, 2017
Patent authority rules against Nintendo, lets go-kart firm keep MariCar trademark
The Japan Patent Office in January dismissed an objection filed by Nintendo Co. over the MariCar trademark registered by a Tokyo-based go-kart service company, it was learned Thursday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / FOCUS
Mar 8, 2017
New guidelines tackle misuse of antibiotics amid rise of superbugs
Public health officials have begun tackling the misuse and overuse of antibiotics, as the prevalence of superbugs, or bacteria resistant to antibiotics, reaches alarming levels worldwide.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Feb 27, 2017
Tax break for OTC drugs seeks to get Japanese managing their health, not swarming clinics
Buying medicine at a drugstore can now save you taxes.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Feb 24, 2017
20% of Tokyo's children from impoverished households: survey
A fifth of the children in the capital are from households in dire financial straits struggling to survive, a survey finds.
Japan to revise consumption tax exemption for overseas tourists
Tourists walk through Nakamise shopping street near Sensoji Temple in Tokyo in April
Japan's tourism industry hit by cancellations after megaquake alert
A beach closed due to a megaquake alert in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, from Friday to Thursday.
Focus shifts to incoming typhoon as Tropical Storm Maria dissipates
Newly formed Tropical Storm Ampil, which is forecast to approach eastern Japan this weekend, is seen on the left side of this satellite image.
Kishida to step down in September in bid to show ‘LDP has changed’
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
Publisher finds surprise audience after translating history textbooks
Yamakawa Shuppansha president Takeshi Nozawa holds the publisher's textbook on Japanese history — used in high schools across Japan — alongside the new English version in Tokyo on May 23.
Economic security is about strengthening and sustaining growth, former minister says
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi says changes in the international balance of power, along with deepening economic interdependence, have led some countries to attempt to use their economic power to impose their will on others.
Ice bandanas, convenience store breaks: Running under Japan’s summer sun
Blistering heat is becoming a fixture of summer in Japan, but a few tweaks to your routine can make your outdoor runs bearable — if not enjoyable — until cooler temperatures return.
Japan issued its first-ever megaquake alert. What does that mean?
Naoshi Hirata (center), chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
France brings down the curtain on its Olympic party with Tom Cruise and Leon Marchand
Fireworks are set off during the closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics at Stade de France in Saint-Denis on Sunday.

Podcast

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

Longform

Sociologist Gracia Liu-Farrer argues that even though immigration doesn't figure into Japan's autobiography, it is more of a self-perception than a reality.
In search of the ‘Japanese dream’
By Thu-Huong Ha

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