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JAPAN
Dec 31, 2001

Japan Times Readership Survey results

More than 90 percent of respondents to The Japan Times Readership Survey conducted in July rated our paper's news coverage favorably, both domestic and foreign.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 13, 2018

The Orwellian danger of Facebook

Is Mark Zuckerberg really in control of Facebook? Or is he a sorcerer's apprentice that cannot handle the invention?
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jun 7, 2022

Jan. 6 hearings aim to catch America's attention with prime-time TV debut

The televised hearings into the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol will need to produce show-stopping moments to grab a divided, distracted nation that has largely moved on.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 11, 2020

High crimes against journalism and decency

Jeffrey Goldberg's insane 'Trump called troops suckers' piece is a new low.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Oct 14, 2012

Why stem-cell science thrives in Japan

It's easy to take for granted the epic scale of what some scientists are attempting these days. When the news broke a couple of weeks ago that Japanese scientists had turned normal cells from a mouse into eggs, and then fertilized them and seen them develop into baby mice, I thought it was pretty cool....
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Oct 2, 2011

Satoshi Kamata: Rebel spirit writ large

Monday, Sept. 19, was Respect for the Aged Day in Japan. But on that sweltering national holiday, it wasn't the heat that that drew tens of thousands of people to Meiji Park in central Tokyo, but their concerns for all the nation's citizens, and others, who may face a threat from nuclear power.
EDITORIALS
May 14, 2000

The rites of spring

Anyone poking about in newspapers or on the Internet lately might have come across a couple of essays expressing a view that seems to pop up seductively in public discourse whenever the weather turns warm. Like a view of cool woods from the window of a stuffy classroom in spring, this idea offers the...
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 9, 2021

North Korea's Kim oversees first military parade since Biden's swearing-in

The parade, which did not reveal any new weapons systems, was apparently directed at a domestic audience with an aim of boosting morale amid the battle against the coronavirus.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 5, 2021

Years of unheeded warnings. Then the subway crash Mexico City had feared.

Ever since it opened nearly a decade ago, the newest Mexico City subway line had been plagued with structural weaknesses that led engineers to warn of potential accidents.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 25, 2020

Lockdowns haven’t proved they’re worth the havoc

The U.S. survived the 1968 pandemic without shutting down society, and there isn't much evidence that shutdowns are truly effective this time.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Dec 17, 2016

Scientific discoveries inspire amid a turbulent 2016

A number of the notable science stories of the past year are, quite literally, out of this world.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Dec 14, 2013

2013: A year to clone in Japanese science

In a year when the science news in Japan is still dominated by Fukushima, there have also been plenty of inspirational stories. For this final column of 2013, I have picked a few of my favorites.
CULTURE / Books
Jun 17, 2007

The passion, excesses and fun of Edo — in color

JAPANESE POPULAR PRINTS by Rebecca Salter. London: A & C Black, 2006, 208 pp., 221 illustrations, £30 (paper) "Japanese Popular Prints" is an entertaining, surprising and unique journey through the popular culture of the most colorful period in Japanese history. Some may already be familiar with...
Japan Times
WORLD
Oct 27, 2022

Iranian security forces 'open fire' as thousands mourn Mahsa Amini

Despite heightened security measures, columns of mourners had poured into Saqez in the western Kurdistan province to pay tribute.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 14, 2022

Russia says flagship of Black Sea fleet badly damaged by blast

Ukraine warned late on Wednesday that Russia was ramping up efforts in the South and East as it seeks full control of Mariupol.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
May 23, 2021

Cold weather in China kills 21 in ultramarathon, sparking outrage

Twenty-one people were killed when extremely cold weather struck during an ultramarathon in rugged Gansu province in northwestern China, sparking public outrage on Sunday over the lack of contingency planning.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 11, 2021

Russian troop movements and talk of intervention cause jitters in Ukraine

Russia has amassed more troops on the Ukrainian border than at any time since 2014. Western governments are asking: Why now?
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Apr 3, 2021

Police officer killed in vehicle attack on U.S. Capitol

The suspect in the attack had reportedly struggled with drug use and paranoia and his family worried about his mental state.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Mar 30, 2020

We live in neither East nor West

With COVID-19 pulling the world apart, it's the people, from healthworkers to thoughtful neighbors that can bring it back together.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 24, 2018

Religion and politics; hopes and disappointments

What a confused and frightened world needs from spiritual leaders is perception, wisdom and illumination, not the same old damaging socialist message from the 1970s.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Dec 16, 2017

Showa's not giving up without a fight

The government has decided that the 31st year of Heisei will end with the abdication of Emperor Akihito 120 days into 2019, on April 30. Then on May 1, Crown Prince Naruhito will become emperor and a new nengō (name of the period of reign) will be announced.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Nov 19, 2016

Manipulating the brain to hasten learning

For some athletes, success has come from a dedication to practice and the repetition of a particular routine. Baseball icon Ichiro Suzuki or English soccer star David Beckham are two examples that immediately spring to mind.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Aug 20, 2016

The gene that may benefit sumo giants

Samoa, with its string of beautiful islands and coral atolls in the South Pacific, is attracting more than just tourists these days. Scientists are heading there, too. The nation holds the uneviable position of being No. 1 in the world for obesity. Among Samoan men, 80 percent are either overweight or...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
May 16, 2015

Language of science key to wisdom

Today I'm going to try something a little different — at first, anyway. First, let me tell you a bit about my job.
JAPAN / OBITUARY
Mar 31, 2015

Obituary: Jane D. Rees

Longtime columnist for The Japan Times and other publications Jane Rees passed away on March 12 at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. She was 95.
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 12, 2015

Ceasefire agreed on for eastern Ukraine

The leaders of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine have agreed on a deal to end fighting in eastern Ukraine, participants at the summit talks said on Thursday.
Debris lies around damaged houses the morning after a tornado touched down in Florissant, Missouri, on Saturday.
WORLD
Mar 16, 2025

At least 33 dead as tornadoes ravage central U.S.

Local news showed roofs torn off homes and large trucks overturned, as forecasters warned of more tornadoes to come this weekend.
Rescue personnel work at the site of a building that collapsed following a strong earthquake, in Bangkok on Saturday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 30, 2025

In Bangkok, grim vigils as people seek word of relatives at collapsed building

Eight bodies were recovered from the scene Friday but only one Saturday.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.