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April 04, 2025
 

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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
Jun 25, 2016
Science Council to make clear position on lifting military-linked research ban by early next year
A committee of 15 academics with the Science Council of Japan held a meeting on whether to revise its long-held stance to never engage in military research.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 23, 2016
Family's pain over 2006 Yokosuka murder reflects desire for SOFA rethink
Justice has been a long time coming for Masanori Yamazaki, whose common-law wife was murdered by a drunk U.S. sailor in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, 10 years ago, in an unprovoked assault.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT
Jun 19, 2016
Japanese researchers take artificial intelligence toward the final frontier: creativity
It was a dark, overcast day, with clouds hovering low.
JAPAN / Media
Jun 17, 2016
Minor’s death sentence sees Japan media split on anonymity rule
The debate centers on whether to name a man who lost an appeal against a death sentence for a 2010 double murder.
JAPAN
Jun 8, 2016
Android version of literary giant Natsume Soseki to return to alma mater to lecture
An android version of the noted scribe is slated to visit Nishogakusha University next year and deliver lectures.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 3, 2016
Case of missing boy receives mix of sympathy and criticism from residents, experts
Japan let out a sigh of relief Friday after a 7-year-old Hokkaido boy was found alive following an intensive six-day search by hundreds of police, firefighters and Self-Defense Force troops.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 2, 2016
Obama reworked Hiroshima speech many times in bid to find right balance
U.S. president's top speechwriter says Obama worked hard to make sure it was 'a broad reflection on what we must learn from history.'
JAPAN
Jun 1, 2016
On streets of Tokyo, opinion divided over tax-hike delay
Passers-by polled by reporters in Tokyo on Wednesday were split over the prospect of another delay to the consumption tax hike.
JAPAN
May 30, 2016
Science Council of Japan considers overturning long-held opposition to military research
The nation's largest and most powerful group of scientists has started discussing lifting its decades-old ban on defense-related research as the government seeks more collaboration with civilians in the development of weapons technology.
JAPAN / Science & Health
May 24, 2016
In first interview since '14, scandal-hit Obokata says she has received job offers from U.S., Germany
Disgraced scientist Haruko Obokata says she has received offers from American and German scientists to continue her research.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 18, 2016
Foreign tourist numbers top record for second straight month in Japan
The number of foreign visitors to Japan in April hit a single-month record of 2.08 million, topping the 2 million mark for the second month in a row, the Japan National Tourism Organization announced Wednesday.
JAPAN
May 11, 2016
Tokyo's governor becomes embroiled in fresh public funding scandal
Yoichi Masuzoe once again finds himself mired in ignominy, this time over a possible violation of political funding laws.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 6, 2016
Sex assault likely at evacuation centers, groups warn
Support groups in Kumamoto raise the alarm about sexual assault as the lack of privacy in evacuation shelters gives rise to risky safety conditions.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
May 6, 2016
250,000 Japanese engaged in 'double care' of children, adult family members: survey
An estimated 253,000 people are currently shouldering the double burden of raising children while also caring for sick or elderly family members, a recent survey by the Cabinet Office has found.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
May 2, 2016
New law bans bias against people with disabilities, but shortcomings exist, say experts
On April 1, a new law aimed at advancing the rights of people with disabilities took effect explicitly banning discrimination against them and requiring government bodies and private-sector businesses to pay greater attention to their needs.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
May 1, 2016
App to let men test sperm count at home
Infertility is a growing concern in rapidly depopulating Japan. But it is often seen as a women's problem, even though both sexes can be to blame.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 27, 2016
Untimely call of nature leads to inspiration for pocket toilet-time monitor
Business ideas are often hatched in unlikely places. But for Atsushi Nakanishi, an epiphany could not have hit him at a worse time.
JAPAN
Apr 21, 2016
'Hometown donation' system emerges as effective way to help quake victims
Amid a flurry of fundraising and charity projects launched in the wake of last week's deadly earthquakes in Kumamoto and Oita prefectures, the "hometown tax donation system" is gaining attention as a way of getting money directly to affected municipalities.
JAPAN
Apr 19, 2016
'Economy-class syndrome' concerns grow as Kyushu quake toll rises to 47
One woman has died and at least 23 others are suspected of suffering from so-called economy-class syndrome after evacuating from their homes in Kumamoto Prefecture.
JAPAN / Q&A
Apr 18, 2016
Questions and answers: The Kumamoto earthquakes
The series of huge earthquakes and aftershocks that have been rattling wide parts of Kumamoto and Oita prefectures since Thursday have raised fears that other regions in the nation might be struck by similar jolts in the near future.
As ‘Buy Canadian’ grows, more U.S. firms say retailers turning away products
Empty shelves with "Buy Canadian Instead" signs are seen in the American Whiskey section of the BC Liquor in Vancouver, British Columbia, on March 10.
U.S. tourist arrested after bringing a handgun into Japan
Hyogo police believe the handgun a U.S. tourist inadvertently brought into Japan slipped through security procedures at Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture.
Trump unveils 10% global tariff, with Japan levy set at 24%
Trump tosses a MAGA hat to the crowd during an event in which he unveiled new tariffs in the White House on Wednesday.
Meiji says sayonara to bottled milk, a staple of Japan's bathhouses
Meiji bottled milk lined up in a fridge at Kosugiyu, a bathhouse in Tokyo. The sticker urges patrons to enjoy the milk one last time before it’s gone.
Japan’s leader didn’t read the job description
Prime Minister and ruling Liberal Democratic Party leader Shigeru Ishiba is facing a political funding scandal that has damaged his reputation and sparked speculation that internal efforts to remove him are underway.
Haruki Murakami TV adaptation revisits 30 years of watershed moments
Though Haruki Murakami's trademark whiff of offbeat existentialism is threaded throughout NHK's "After the Quake," the final episode — conceived as a sequel to the story "Super-Frog Saves Tokyo" — is the most stylized, featuring an anthropomorphic talking frog (voiced by Non) and his erstwhile associate Katagiri (Koichi Sato).
Nintendo to launch the Switch 2 on June 5
The controllers for the Switch 2 will attach to the console magnetically rather than sliding on rails as with the original device.
A new human trafficking trend emerges from Myanmar scam centers
Victims of scam centers who were tricked or trafficked into working in Myanmar gather at a compound inside KK Park, a fraud center on the country's border with Thailand, after a multinational crackdown in February.
Meiji says sayonara to bottled milk, a staple of Japan's bathhouses
Meiji bottled milk lined up in a fridge at Kosugiyu, a bathhouse in Tokyo. The sticker urges patrons to enjoy the milk one last time before it’s gone.
A Canadian made a weekend trip to Costco a Japanese pastime
Under the watchful eye of Ken Theriault, Costco representative director and Japan country manager, the American membership-model wholesaler has flourished in Japan.

Podcast

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

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone.
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan
By Johan Brooks

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