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Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 13, 2017

Blue Sky Books is a literary treasure trove

Aozora Bunko is an electric internet library that contains works of literature in the public domain.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Nov 11, 2017

On the quest for the holy grail for as long as we live

Is death inevitable? True, everyone born before Aug. 4, 1900, has proved mortal (the world's oldest-known living person, a Japanese woman named Nabi Tajima, was born on that date). But the past is only an imperfect guide to the future, as the effervescent present is ceaselessly teaching us.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Nov 11, 2017

Kenny Fries: From memoir to mortality and impermanence

When asked about his affection for Pikachu, American author Kenny Fries breaks into laughter. No, he says in an interview via Skype, the iconic Pokemon character had nothing to do with his decision to come to Japan. He came initially because, after applying for various fellowships, he was awarded the...
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 11, 2017

Couch surfers should compete in Olympics

While the idea of handing out medals for pushing buttons may sound ludicrous to many, it's an overdue development.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 10, 2017

Rape and sexual harassment cut across gender

In the United States, one out of 10 rape victims is male.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 10, 2017

For Japan's casinos to work, keep the yakuza out and deal with problem drinking: experts

As the nation debates how to establish and operate casinos via integrated resorts, it must take measures to keep the yakuza out and manage not only problem gambling but also develop a responsible drinking policy for the casino floor, a group of U.S. experts said in two new reports.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 6, 2017

Asia-Pacific democracies' new entente

By pursuing cooperation, the Indo-Pacific's democratic powers can thwart China's effort to establish itself as the hegemon of an illiberal regional order.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 6, 2017

Japan is at the center of Asia's women problem

It's high time that Japan, and Asia generally, turned today's embarrassing gender dynamics into an economic opportunity for tomorrow.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 4, 2017

World's recycling crisis is Japan's opportunity

There's treasure to be found in the world's trash.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 3, 2017

Grief-stricken families of Japanese abducted by North Korea pin hopes on Trump

Takuya Yokota vividly remembers clutching a flashlight and running to the ocean with his mother and twin brother to look for his older sister in the dark, shouting her name.
WORLD
Nov 1, 2017

Millions of girls forced into sex yet only 1 in 100 seek help, U.N. says

At least 15 million teenage girls worldwide have been forced into sex — often by partners, relatives or friends — yet only 1 in 100 sought help, the United Nations said on Wednesday.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 1, 2017

Xi's new power won't stop dissent

The Chinese president's choice to strengthen authoritarian rule rather than loosen it will prove to be a large error, for himself, his country and beyond.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 31, 2017

From furaryman to 'Nige-haji'

To encourage more young people to start families, Japan must create an environment in which mothers can work and men do more to help out around the home.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 31, 2017

Coronation of Xi is a wakeup call for Abe and Trump

With most roads leading to Beijing these days, Tokyo and Washington would be wise to devise ways to fight strength with economic strength.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 29, 2017

Xi's new strength obscures China's internal risks

Xi Jinping's new strength and power helps obscure China's internal risks, including the fundamental challenge of how to avoid a political hard landing.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Oct 28, 2017

Limit the damage on office battlefields

What a nest of vipers an office is! Tens, hundreds, thousands of people, supposedly united in a common enterprise — yet if looks could kill, how many would make it alive through the day?
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Oct 28, 2017

Tsukiji races to exterminate rat infestation before fish market relocation

As the Tokyo Metropolitan Government works with industry groups to finalize the date for relocating the famed Tsukiji fish market next year, it is also mulling how to exterminate the hordes of rats infesting the current location.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 25, 2017

Look for Tehran to emerge dominant in post-IS Middle East

The changing balance of power in the Middle East threatens to leave the U.S. on the sidelines.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 24, 2017

Game makers deploy deep-learning AI algorithms to keep players coming back for more

In today's game industry, titles like "Clash Royale" and "Pokemon Go" are free for most people to enjoy because there's a small number of players who pay for extras, like special weapons or more lives. Game developers have to strike a delicate balance in this free-to-play model between drawing the masses...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 23, 2017

Abe, post-election, faces a new Trump problem

The odds of Japan getting advantageous terms in direct talks with a U.S. president who's torn up myriad deals since January are tiny.
Japan Times
CULTURE / CULTURE SMASH
Oct 22, 2017

Anime tourism invites overseas fans to join festivities

Yuwaku Onsen is a 1,300-year-old hot-springs resort tucked between mountains along the Asano River south of Kanazawa. Ten mid-size traditional inns line its slim main street, leading to a small hillside shrine and a man-made pond.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 22, 2017

Why admitting girls into the Boy Scouts feels weird

Girls in the Boy Scouts makes almost as much sense as allowing Republicans to vote in a Democratic primary.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Oct 21, 2017

Koto player Azumi Yamano revels in space and atmosphere

'The koto is a plucked string instrument in which the sound and music really reflect the player.'
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 21, 2017

Electric carmakers have an Africa problem

Volkswagen's recent failure to lock in the price of cobalt for five years points to a serious problem with the optimistic projections of an electric vehicle revolution.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 20, 2017

Researchers analyze Kuroda's facial microexpressions to predict central bank policy moves

For decades, economists have tried to guess central bank policy direction by studying subtle changes in official language — now, researchers are finding new clues on policy, not in the words of central bankers but in their faces.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 19, 2017

A new front opens in Asia's water war

In a water-stressed Asia, taming China's hegemonic ambition is now the biggest strategic challenge.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 17, 2017

The Kobe Steel fiasco tells a much bigger story

The Kobe Steel scandal offers insights into why more Japanese households aren't feeling the benefits of today's 2.5 percent growth.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Oct 17, 2017

Sino-Japanese rivalry deepens as Abe and Xi look set to consolidate grips on power

Asia's two biggest economies both have their most powerful leaders in decades — and neither one has much incentive to mend a relationship that has long been volatile.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / NEWS IN NIHONGO
Oct 16, 2017

British novelist Kazuo Ishiguro wins Nobel Prize in literature

The Swedish Academy is awarding this year's Nobel Prize in literature to Nagasaki-born British novelist Kazuo Ishiguro.

Longform

A man offers prayers at Hebikubo Shrine in Tokyo's Shinagawa Ward. The shrine is one of several across the country dedicated to the snake.
Shed your skin and reinvent yourself in the Year of the Snake