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Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Jun 8, 2017

Moroccan fossils shake up understanding of human origins

The understanding of human origins was turned on its head on Wednesday with the announcement of the discovery of fossils unearthed on a Moroccan hillside that are about 100,000 years older than any other known remains of our species, Homo sapiens.
SOCCER / World cup
Jun 7, 2017

Japan warms up for World Cup qualifier with draw against Syria

Japan limbered up for next week's World Cup qualifier against Iraq with a 1-1 draw with Syria in a friendly on Wednesday night.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Jun 4, 2017

Parking the car can drive you crazy

In the 1990s when we rented an old house in Saitama Prefecture, we needed a parking space since we had a car at the time. There was none on the property and so we talked the landlord into tearing down a decrepit prefabricated storage shed that stood next to the house. He did, and then, at our own expense,...
JAPAN
Jun 4, 2017

Tackling signs in Japan that you're not welcome

Some Japanese businesses post signs barring foreign people from entering. What can you do about it?
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 4, 2017

Say goodbye to left and right and hello to digitalization

The concept of the state as a sort of ruling elite, or of 'the people' as the toiling masses, is beginning to melt away under the impact of digitization.
JAPAN / History / JAPAN TIMES GONE BY
Jun 3, 2017

Japan Times 1967: 'New "James Bond" film drawing huge crowds'

Despite the unfavorable publicity it received during its filming in Japan last year, Eon Films' 'You Only Live Twice,' the latest of the 'James Bond' series, is drawing the biggest crowds since 'Thunderball,' another Bond released in December 1965
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jun 2, 2017

Putin lauds Trump, hints patriotic Russians may have been involved in hacking foreign elections

Russian President Vladimir Putin said he likes guys like Donald Trump who speak their mind and dangled the possibility that patriotic Russians could have been involved in hacking during foreign elections.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
May 30, 2017

Cozy ties between the police and pachinko industry

With the legalization of casinso in Japan around the corner, the police are desparately trying to defend their own sphere of interest.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
May 30, 2017

Finding the drama without words

"Not everything can be explained in words. Everyone draws a different nuance from the word 'love,' for example," says 50-year-old Shuji Onodera. "Yet through dance I've discovered a special beauty beyond words."
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
May 28, 2017

When too many things 'spark joy,' it's a Wonderwall life

Masamichi Katayama, founder of interior design firm Wonderwall, describes the importance of accumulating and keeping objects and artworks in life — even if you have more than 500 of them.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / OSAKA RESTAURANTS
May 27, 2017

Kunsei Lover Fumo: where food is better smoked

At Kunsei Lover Fumo, smoking — of the food, that is — is so desirable that it appears twice in the name of the restaurant, first in Japanese (kunsei) and then in Italian (fumo).
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 23, 2017

Kaikei: the name behind the gods

Kamakura Period (1185-1333) Buddhist sculptures often come down to us under the individual names of makers (when known) though they were often fashioned in workshops by multiple hands. A significant 13th-century work would employ a dozen or so team members and assistants and draw on multiple specialists....
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
May 22, 2017

Tanka help Japanese express emotions

Tanka are one of the oldest forms of poetry in the world with a 1,300-year history.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / BLACK EYE
May 21, 2017

Having trouble wrapping your head around Japan? Help with mental health is at hand

Black Eye speaks with professionals trained to offer guidance to those struggling to cope with a new environment.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 19, 2017

Do you want to be a cyborg?

Billionaire tech entrepreneur Elon Musk is convinced that enhancing human intelligence and memory is our species' only alternative to elimination by our own super-intelligent inventions.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / COMMUNITY CHEST
May 17, 2017

Thirty years of JET: countless treasured memories and priceless gaffes

Past participants in the Japan Exchange and Teaching Programme recall their most memorable experiences, from the inspiring to the excruciating.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 17, 2017

Takeda scores a KO in 'Poetry Angel'

In last week's review of Yuya Ishii's "The Tokyo Night Sky Is Always the Densest Shade of Blue," I wrote that poetry-based Japanese films are rare — but here seems to be another: Toshimitsu Iizuka's "Poetry Angel." One more example and I'll have a trend.
COMMENTARY / World
May 16, 2017

Why U.S. should get used to the North's ICBMs

The sooner the U.S. accepts that a North Korean ICBM capability is a reality, the sooner it can focus on how to deal with the North Korean problem more comprehensively, moving beyond mere security.
COMMENTARY / World
May 16, 2017

Can the emerging Sino-U.S. coalition stop Kim's game?

The coordinated efforts by the U.S. and China offers the best bet to secure peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and allow the two Koreas to coexist.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 16, 2017

Music schools to sue Japan's largest copyright collection group over plan to collect fees

The school operators said they would file a lawsuit with the Tokyo District Court as early as July, a representative told The Japan Times.
JAPAN / Society
May 13, 2017

In Fukushima, a land where few return

The evacuation orders for most of the village of Iitate have been lifted. But where are the people?
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 10, 2017

Opinions aren't split on Shyamalan's comeback

I've always had a soft spot for M. Night Shyamalan, even despite the fact that he has made a total of two truly successful films — "The Sixth Sense" (1999) and "Unbreakable" (2000) — over the course of his over-20-year career. The rest of his work has ranged from mildly disappointing to somewhat...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
May 10, 2017

Moon win puts allies' approach to North Korea in doubt, but drastic policy shift unlikely, experts say

With Wednesday's election of liberal candidate Moon Jae-in as South Korea's new president, all eyes are on whether he will stick to his campaign promise of pursuing rapprochement with Pyongyang.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
May 9, 2017

Step aside, Siri: A new AI-powered assistant is in town, and she's kawaii

When Siri is asked whether she has a boyfriend, the iPhone's digital assistant is usually quick to deflect the question with a quip about drones always trying to pick her up.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
May 6, 2017

Corporate zombies need 'rich brains'

Japan has lost something. That's a stark but uncontroversial statement. Few whose memory goes back a generation or more will disagree. Controversy arises when the talk turns to what was lost; when, how and why it was lost; whether the nation is the better or worse for having lost it; and, if the former,...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / BACKSTREET STORIES
May 5, 2017

Pineapple cakes, pirouettes and petals in Aoyama

The one time of year I'm happy to linger in Aoyama Cemetery is when the venerable rows of old cherry trees growing around the gravestones blossom. Before heading there, though, I decide to first get in the mood with a bit of personal spring renewal.

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.