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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
Nov 16, 2016
Japan government panel halves price of cancer drug Opdivo
In an unprecedented move, the official price of the drug is slashed amid fears that widespread use could drain state coffers.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 10, 2016
President Trump: Japanese-Americans, Japanese in U.S. weigh in
People of Japanese ancestry speak up about their impressions of President-elect Donald Trump.
JAPAN
Oct 31, 2016
Record 5,803 foreign trainees went missing in Japan last year
Observers say this is another sign that the technical intern program — long criticized by rights groups at home and abroad as akin to slavery — is seriously flawed.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 27, 2016
Tokyu Corp. attracts backlash with 'makeup etiquette' video
The Japanese-language video starts with a provocative line: “Women in the city are all beautiful. But they are ugly to see, at times.”
JAPAN
Oct 19, 2016
Is the party over? Spending by overseas visitors drops for first time in 19 quarters
Figures show foreign tourists spent u00a5971.7 billion from July to September period, down 2.9 percent from the same time last year.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 19, 2016
Tokyo residents' petition prompts reconsideration of plan to fell trees
Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward will reconsider plans to cut down 37 trees lining a street ahead of the 2020 Olympics, officials said Wednesday, after local residents blasted the plan in a petition.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 16, 2016
Plan to cut down historic trees in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward faces local opposition
Plans to cut down 300 ginkgo and platanus trees in central Tokyo ahead of the 2020 Olympics sparks an online opposition campaign seeking to prevent them from being felled.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 12, 2016
Todai biomedical research fraud probe seen pointing to wider misconduct
The so-called STAP scandal of 2014 unleashed the power of anonymous online whistleblowers, who exposed falsified data in what had been hailed as groundbreaking stem cell research by the Riken institute and brought down its star scientist, Haruko Obokata.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Oct 12, 2016
In setback for female empowerment, Tokyo court rejects teacher's bid to use maiden name at work
The Tokyo District Court dismisses a case by a recently married woman on the grounds that the practice is not customary.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 11, 2016
Shiseido app adds makeup to faces on video conferences
...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Oct 7, 2016
1 in 4 firms in Japan say workers log over 80 overtime hours a month
The nation's first white paper on “karoshi” finds nearly a quarter of companies have employees that are seriously overworked.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Sep 27, 2016
Amid charges of sexism, city in Kyushu pulls video promoting local eels
A promotional YouTube video made by the city of Shibushi, Kagoshima Prefecture, featuring a young woman in a swimsuit who morphs into an eel has been pulled following a public outcry that it was sexist.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Sep 26, 2016
Plan to fix day care crunch belies decades of pent-up demand
The shortage of day care facilities is a long-standing issue in Japan, where the ranks of working mothers keep swelling, both out of choice and necessity.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Sep 14, 2016
Expensive drugs threaten to sink Japan's health care system
An aging population is not the only cause of headache for policymakers trying to keep the nation's medical costs down — now they have "superexpensive" drugs to deal with.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Sep 10, 2016
Is Japan waking up to the menace of stalking?
Health professionals are trying to be more proactive in rehabilitating stalkers before their actions escalate to something more sinister.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Aug 25, 2016
Infant deaths underscore accountability gaps in Japan's nurseries
When Yuki Kai went to pick up her 14-month-old son, Kento, from a nursery in Tokyo after his nap time, she found him dead.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 16, 2016
'Pokemon Go'-like app allows living to plan missives from beyond the grave
Now that the explosive popularity of "Pokemon Go" has brought augmented reality technology within the reach of ordinary people, a tombstone company in Chiba Prefecture is taking it beyond the grave.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 12, 2016
In safety push, Nissan turns camera on hot car interiors
In a parked, unmanned car, the cap on a plastic soda bottle pops off and the cola fizzes out. A plastic toy puppy sags and topples over. A chocolate bar and gummy candies melt into slime.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 11, 2016
IBM big data used for rapid diagnosis of rare leukemia case in Japan
In a possible first in Japan, doctors have used artificial intelligence to diagnose a rare type of leukemia and identify life-saving therapy far faster than if they had examined the genetic data manually.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 10, 2016
A third of Japan unaware of Mountain Day as holiday makes its debut
Nearly a third of people have never heard of Mountain Day, according to a new survey, as the newest official public holiday is set to be celebrated for the first time on Thursday.
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.
Japan fuels U.S. LNG boom even as climate targets and impacts loom
Flaring at the Cameron LNG export terminal in Hackberry, Louisiana. Flaring, a common sight at LNG plants, is a controlled burning of gas for reasons ranging from depressurizing equipment to disposing of gas that can’t be used. The practice is a "waste of money" and negatively impacts climate change and human health, says the International Energy Agency.

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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