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July 17, 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
LIFE / Lifestyle
Oct 23, 2012
Doctors discuss a face-lift for Japan's plastic surgery societies
Though it's hardly talked about in public, cosmetic surgery appears to be an increasingly popular option in Japan for people trying to enhance their looks and defy the signs of aging.
Japan Times
LIFE
Oct 14, 2012
Farmer plows own antiradiation furrow
At the end of March 2011, a few weeks after the Great East Japan Earthquake, 20 rice farmers affiliated to J-Rap, an agricultural distribution company in Sukagawa, central Fukushima Prefecture, got together to assess the situation.
Japan Times
LIFE
Oct 14, 2012
Food co-op sues Tepco over soiled reputation
...
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Sep 28, 2012
Yokohama garden goes for seasonal ambience during five-day moon-viewing event
Cool evening breezes are a sign that autumn is here. For five days beginning Friday, Sankeien, a Japanese garden in Yokohama is encouraging visitors to engage in a seasonal pastime: tsukimi (moon-viewing).
Japan Times
LIFE
Sep 23, 2012
Hip-hop zooms into schools
The CD player is switched on and a mellow male voice singing a pop tune fills the hot and humid school gymnasium, seeming to soften its ambience like a breath of fresh air.
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Sep 16, 2012
Lover of detail strives to keep a kimono-dyeing art alive
As an expert dyer of Edo-komon-style kimonos whose repeated, especially intricate patterns are often so tiny as to be almost microscopic, Emika Iwashita is a mistress of subtlety and the tiniest detail.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Sep 6, 2012
Play challenges woman's role by examining the life of poet Kanoko Okamoto
Can an artist justify her pursuit of extra-marital affairs for the sake of maintaining her artistic inspiration? Can a woman's husband and her son nurture an amicable, trusting relationship with her young lover living in their house?
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Aug 19, 2012
Politics taint Ahn Sehong's 'comfort women' photo exhibition
Visitors to a photo exhibition would not typically be asked to open their bags or walk through a metal detector before entering the exhibition site. Nor would they expect to catch the inquisitive gazes of various plainclothes police officers lurking in the crowd once inside.
Japan Times
LIFE
Aug 12, 2012
Queen Elizabeth engineering prize seeks innovation for easing life's hardships
...
Japan Times
LIFE
Aug 12, 2012
Professor aspires toward the perfect prosthetic design
"Functionality and aesthetics can co-exist."
Japan Times
LIFE
Aug 12, 2012
Japan's Paralympians overcome adversity by leaps, bounds and innovative design
When Oscar Pistorius made his dramatic debut in the men's 400-meter race in London last Saturday — becoming the first double amputee to compete alongside able-bodied athletes in Olympics history — some people might have wondered if the South African's artificial legs gave him a competitive...
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Aug 10, 2012
Hello Kitty designer Yuko Yamaguchi shows off character's artistic side
Hello Kitty, the superstar feline character created by Sanrio Co. 38 years ago, has gained fans across generations, with products featuring her likeness selling in 109 countries. The Hello Kitty Art Exhibition, which started Thursday in Osaka, tries to explain the secret of its appeal through the eyes...
Japan Times
LIFE
Aug 5, 2012
Restoration of temple 'harder than building it'
The year was 1735, and on the plains of Menuma in present-day Saitama Prefecture, master builder Hayashi Masakiyo was going from village to village assembling a group of top-class carpenters, engravers, painters and other artisans.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Aug 5, 2012
David Atkinson: Ancient Japan captures money man's interest
David Atkinson was still in his 20s when he rose to fame as a Japan-based banking analyst with the U.S. investment bank Salomon Brothers, prior to him moving to Goldman Sachs.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jul 27, 2012
Sisi stars in new exhibition
More than a century after her death, Austria's Empress Elisabeth (1837-1898) has built a big fan base in Japan.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Jul 22, 2012
Power spots and prehistory in beautiful Aomori Prefecture
The government of Aomori Prefecture which straddles the whole of the northern end of Japan's main island of Honshu — and is best known as the nation's apple capital — broke new ground in its tourism promotion campaign late last year, when it announced it would start selling the prefecture...
LIFE
Jul 1, 2012
Disabled women speak out on discrimination
Being a woman in Japan often comes with a variety of challenges, but when you are a woman with disabilities here, the scale of hardships you must endure can be overwhelming.
CULTURE / Music
Jun 21, 2012
Music industry wins a battle as antidownloading bill gets some teeth
A bill aimed at penalizing Internet users for downloading pirated music and video files passed the Diet on Wednesday, despite criticism from some Internet personalities and legal experts that the move is hasty and too harsh.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jun 8, 2012
'Doraemon' bully Gian to get a party
Fujiko F. Fujio Museum in Kawasaki, which is dedicated to the late creator of the "Doraemon" manga series, is celebrating the birthday of that series' "bully" character, Gian, on June 15.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
May 29, 2012
Japan's house of the rising sun
What will our lifestyles be like in the future? An international group of students at Chiba University plan to explore the possibilities with their proposal for a next-generation solar house, a futuristic mix of new technology and traditional ways of life in Japan.
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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