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Japan Times
JAPAN / Beyond Tokyo
Jul 26, 2019

In pursuit of a sustainable society, Nagano turns to AI to help craft policy

When times are good, there is less political pressure at the local level anywhere to be economically efficient or carefully scrutinize predictions that a new public works project or expensive industrial or tourism promotion scheme will lead to prosperity in 20 or 30 years.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2019

Five things to know about the scandal enveloping top Japanese comedy agency Yoshimoto Kogyo

From one channel to the next, almost every comedy and variety show on Japanese TV features personalities from entertainment powerhouse Yoshimoto Kogyo Co.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 26, 2019

Groups representing Tasmania's Aboriginal communities divided over new place-naming policy

The sandstone rock shelters on Tasmania's Mount Wellington were built by indigenous tribes thousands of years ago, but it was only in 2014 that the mountain started officially being called by its indigenous name, Kunanyi.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 25, 2019

In digital era, Chelsea's tie-up with Yokohama Rubber blazes new trail in Japan

For Chelsea supporters, the club's iconic blue uniform represents 114 years of history, dozens of domestic and continental trophies and a reputation as one of English soccer's established giants.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage / CULTURE NOTES
Jul 25, 2019

Bringing opera to Tokyo 2020

Among the many absurdist opera stories in existence, nothing is more preposterous than the happy ending generally used for Giacomo Puccini's final opera "Turandot," in which Princess Turandot suddenly accepts Prince Calaf's wooing right after the suicide of Liu, a slave, as if her death was nothing....
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Jul 24, 2019

Organizers celebrate one year ahead of Olympic and Paralympic Games opening ceremony

The yearlong countdown to the opening ceremony for the 2020 Games was marked with IOC President Thomas Bach commending the progress Tokyo has made in preparing for the event.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / The Big Questions
Jul 21, 2019

A diplomat's ever-evolving role in a technological age

Peruvian Ambassador to Japan Harold Forsyth considers food a distinctive feature of his country.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jul 20, 2019

'Night in the American Village': Touching base with the women of Okinawa

Akemi Johnson's 'Night in the American Village' is a meticulously researched volume on the intersection of cultures, the divides of power and gender, and on the politics and people behind the overseas American military presence.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / Kateigaho International Japan Edition
Jul 20, 2019

Ryo: The form and function of tenugui hand towels

As yukata (light cotton kimono) became common streetwear among Edoites, cotton tenugui hand towels likewise became a fashionable 'must' accessory.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 20, 2019

Apollo 11's achievement still dazzles

Apollo 11 was a final flaring of American postwar confidence and pride.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Jul 20, 2019

Kyoto Animation: A unique force in Japan's anime industry

It took Kyoto Animation Co. almost 40 years to establish itself as one of the leading animation production studios in the country.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / B. League / B. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Jul 18, 2019

Former Olympiacos assistant Christos Marmarinos named Storks bench boss

The Nishinomiya Storks on Tuesday appointed veteran Greek coach Christos Marmarinos as their new bench boss.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Jul 18, 2019

The inclusivity of quidditch produces pure magic on the field

The players kneel at the ready, six to a side, staring down their opponents from across a verdant field.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 17, 2019

'Tokyo Ghoul "S"': A college, a cafe and a cannibal

Big pop-culture franchises generate movie sequels as naturally as chickens lay eggs.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jul 17, 2019

South African musician Johnny Clegg, vocal white foe of apartheid, dead at 66

South African singer and songwriter Johnny Clegg, one of the few white artists to openly confront the apartheid government in the late 1970s and 1980s, died on Tuesday aged 66, his agent said.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 16, 2019

'Hiroshi Kobatake: Called by Wood'

July 20-Sept. 8
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health / FOCUS
Jul 16, 2019

Not going anywhere: How to handle the world's growing trash problem

The stench of curdled milk wafted from a shipping container of waste at Malaysia's Port Klang as Environment Minister Yeo Bee Yin told a group of journalists in May she would send the maggot-infested rubbish back where it came from.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / CHILD'S PLAY
Jul 14, 2019

H.C. Andersen Park: Once upon a time, in a land not so far away

Take the kids on a fairy-tale trip to H.C. Andersen Park in Chiba Prefecture, where Denmark's most celebrated writer lives on in playgrounds, workshops and recreations of Danish village life.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 14, 2019

Hone the skills of Japanese youth to shoulder burdens of the 21st century

Japan is a land of opportunities for young people if they have the right skills.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 13, 2019

Asylum-seekers in Japan are stuck in bureaucratic limbo

At the end of June, a Nigerian man in his 40s died at an immigration detention center in Nagasaki. According to a support group, the man had been on a hunger strike to protest his lengthy confinement, which had continued for more than three years. The detention center has yet to reveal the cause of his...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Jul 13, 2019

Hive of activity: Tapping into the buzz of backyard beekeeping in Japan

The importance of bees to Japan's agricultural sector certainly isn't lost on domestic hobbyists.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jul 13, 2019

Working harder in a bid to save labor is proving exhausting

The utopia of utopias is "Utopia" by Sir Thomas More (1478-1535). Its best feature is leisure. There are no idle nobles; everyone works. A burden shared is a burden lightened. Utopians "do not wear themselves out with perpetual toil from morning to night, as if they were beasts of burden." They work...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / Kateigaho International Japan Edition
Jul 13, 2019

Ryo: Traditional uchiwa fans say 'summer'

There's no doubt about it — a colorful yukata (light cotton kimono) accessorized with a flat uchiwa fan says “summer.”
BUSINESS
Jul 12, 2019

Laid-off expat bankers struggle to find new jobs in high-cost Hong Kong

For years, Hong Kong was a hotspot with plum jobs for overseas bankers as global firms hired aggressively. But many recently laid-off bankers in the city are finding that cost-cutting and a demand for Mandarin speakers have diminished the opportunities for expats in Asia's financial hub.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 11, 2019

In Japan, the business of watching whales is far larger than the business of hunting them

People packed the decks of the whale-watching boat, screaming in joy as a pod of orcas put on a show: splashing tails at each other, rolling over and leaping out of the water.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jul 10, 2019

Johnny Kitagawa: The mogul who defined and controlled Japan's entertainment industry

Few in the history of Japan's entertainment industry have wielded more power than talent manager Johnny Kitagawa.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 10, 2019

'Tourism': Not quite the trip of a lifetime

Taking a pleasure trip abroad used to be a big, once-in-a-lifetime event for the average Japanese. The No. 1 dream destination was Hawaii, since it was seen as glamorous and exotic, yet safe and familiar. A view of Diamond Head out the hotel window and miso ramen on the restaurant menu, in kanji yet....
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Jul 10, 2019

Decades on, justice still eludes interned Japanese Canadians and their kin

More than 70 years after racism and wartime hysteria devastated their community, Japanese Canadians are still fighting for justice.

Longform

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.
Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat