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COMMENTARY / World
Jan 21, 2016

The bill for China's flawed ascent is coming due

The Chinese government's contract with its 1.4 billion subjects is that it will deliver prosperity and they will be obedient. But how much longer can this deal continue?
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 28, 2015

Trump's machismo may not work against Hillary

Donald Trump's macho posturing has taken him to the top of the GOP's presidential contenders, but that tactic could backfire on him if he employs it against Hillary Clinton.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Nov 25, 2015

Geckos' amazing wall-walking talent lies in unique keratin genes

Geckos boast one of the most impressive talents of any animal: the ability to scamper up a smooth wall or across a ceiling with ease. How do they do it? Well, it is all in the genes.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 23, 2015

An unlikely partnership between women blooms in 'Rasen Ginga'

A fresh, incisive take on a common if little-filmed type of relationship, especially in hierarchy-loving Japan.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 22, 2015

Australia's pantomime democracy

The Australian public is fed up with the political circus of recent years, and wants adults back in charge of the major parties.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Aug 29, 2015

Trump's 'yellow peril' jibes break with GOP script

In his recent Rolling Stone essay, Matt Taibbi immortalizes the race for the Republican Party presidential nomination, as a freaky spectacle that is "like watching 17 platypuses try to mount the queen of England. You can't tear your eyes away from it."
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / THE HIGH GROUNDS
Jul 31, 2015

High-tech iced coffee cools the summer heat

As the Japanese summer reaches its sweltering zenith, a steamy cup of coffee in the morning no longer seems quite so inviting. It's time to drop your inhibitions, and reach for some ice.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jul 9, 2015

Guinea ex-junta leader indicted over stadium massacre

Guinean authorities have indicted former military leader Moussa Dadis Camara over a massacre at a stadium in the capital in 2009 in which soldiers are accused of killing at least 157 people, a spokesman for his party said on Thursday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 8, 2015

China stocks nosedive as regulator warns of 'panic'

Chinese stocks dived on Wednesday, as the country's securities regulator warned investors were in the grip of "panic sentiment" and the market showed signs of freezing up as companies scrambled to escape the rout by having their shares suspended.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 8, 2015

The avalanche of cringe in 'Force Majeur'

When a crisis hits, it's hard to say how any of us will react. Tomas (Johannes Bah Kuhnke), a handsome alpha-male type, has managed to drag himself away from work to join his family on a skiing trip in the French Alps. The first day of the holiday passes without incident, but on the second, their lunch...
BUSINESS
Jun 30, 2015

Greece may find it easier to close banks than reopen them

Capital controls imposed in Greece are likely to stay in place for months and its banks may need billions of euros of new capital or even face nationalization under a lengthy financial rebuilding, industry sources said.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2015

Meet Shabani, the new alpha male role model

Photos and videos of Shabani, a male Western Lowland Gorilla currently living at the Higashiyama Zoo in Nagoya, are going viral. A look at what people are saying suggests that his charm goes deeper than just his good looks. Here are some highlights of this new social media sensation.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 16, 2015

Heads of Ebola-hit nations meet Obama

President Barack Obama met with the presidents of Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia at the White House on Wednesday to pledge more U.S. support for the nations hardest-hit by the Ebola virus.
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 18, 2015

Guinea Ebola cases rise; three doctors infected

Guinea has suffered a setback in its fight against Ebola with a rash of new cases, including three doctors infected by the virus, with officials blaming weak surveillance and a failure to follow safety procedures.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 12, 2015

Honda bets that Chinese tastes will prevail in Japan, too

Honda Motor Co. designed the Jade minivan with the extended Chinese family in mind, appealing to the preference for space to carry relatives. The automaker is pitching the same car to Japanese consumers with a twist.
EDITORIALS
Jan 24, 2015

Kepler still studying the skies

NASA's Kepler spacecraft, launched in 2009, continues to troll for planets in the Milky Way galaxy. Early this month, scientists announced it had made its 1,000th find.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / ADVANCES IN PROGRESS
Jan 11, 2015

AIST brings mind-reading technology closer to reality

Communicating via brain waves, by merely thinking, may seem like a notion out of the world of science fiction, but it would be a dream come true for people who are physically unable to express themselves.
COMMUNITY / Voices / COMMUNITY CHEST
Jan 1, 2015

Readers' letters: Roppongi, Ferguson, 'Massan,' Julien Blanc and more

Some emails received in response to Community articles at the tail end of 2014.
Reader Mail
Dec 24, 2014

The Christian message in Japan

Michael Hoffman's The Living Past article on Dec. 20, titled "Christian missionaries find Japan a tough nut to crack," gives a well-researched history of Japan's first encounter with the Christian faith 400 to 500 years ago, but says little of what has been happening since then. There is much to be encouraged...
WORLD
Dec 18, 2014

Spy freed by Cuba ID'd key Cuban agents in U.S. government: top intel chief

A Cuban national freed from prison by the Cuban government provided "critical assistance" to United States agencies in exposing Cuban agents who had infiltrated the U.S. government, the U.S. Director of National Intelligence's office said on Wednesday.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Dec 1, 2014

Ebola rages in Sierra Leone as U.N. misses goals for curbing cases

The United Nations has probably missed targets it set for curbing West Africa's Ebola epidemic, as new infections surge in Sierra Leone.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Nov 19, 2014

San Francisco's huff with Hashimoto over 'comfort women' reveals double standards

San Francisco's reaction to Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto's comments about 'comfort women' says much about equality between nations, about how we judge each other through cultural lenses and blinders, and how we have to keep finding ways to address grievances from our past.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 29, 2014

Dracula Untold: 'Never before has Dracula wielded power on such a grand scale'

Here's the thing about vampires: They're not only cool to begin with but they are also afforded endless opportunities to further their coolness. This is where they differ significantly from werewolves and Frankenstein's monster. I mean, if proms and singles' parties were held in the realm of paranormal...
WORLD / Science & Health
Oct 15, 2014

West Africa to see up to 10,000 Ebola cases a week by Dec. 1: WHO

The number of new Ebola cases in three West African nations may jump to between 5,000 and 10,000 a week by Dec. 1 as the deadly viral infection spreads, the World Health Organization said.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language
Sep 29, 2014

'Nihon danshi’ continue to look on as stockings get stronger

Just so you know, it's a bad time to be male in Japan. Even my brothers say the supermacho, sports-obsessed, chauvinist faux-samurai kanchigai (勘違い, have it all wrong). They say that society is so hard on men that if they were given the choice between a man or woman's life, "onna-no hōga ii (女の方がいい,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Sep 17, 2014

Tokyo Ballet's 'Don Quixote' revels in its Russian roots

From its inception, the ballet "Don Quixote" has been a global collaboration.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Aug 22, 2014

Africa tightens Ebola travel curbs as affected countries face food shortages

African countries tightened travel curbs on Thursday in an effort to contain the Ebola outbreak, ignoring World Health Organization warnings that such measures could heighten shortages of food and basic supplies in affected areas.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Aug 21, 2014

Liberian police shoot to disperse Ebola quarantine protest; virus deaths reach 1,350

Police in the Liberian capital Monrovia fired live rounds and teargas on Wednesday to disperse a stone-throwing crowd trying to break an Ebola quarantine imposed on their neighborhood, as the death toll from the epidemic in West Africa hit 1,350.
WORLD
Jul 24, 2014

Ukraine rebel commander acknowledges fighters had BUK missile

A powerful Ukrainian rebel leader has confirmed that pro-Russian separatists had an anti-aircraft missile of the type Washington says was used to shoot down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 and it could have originated in Russia.

Longform

Wealthier women in the prewar era had been the targets of various media-related health campaigns that mistakenly encouraged them to avoid everything from riding bicycles to reading novels when their monthly cycles came around.
Menstruation in Japan: Breaking the silence, slowly