Search - 2004

 
 
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jan 18, 2005

Hurting Japan's hungry

'We got kicked out of Sumida park three times for delivering food. I went to talk to the people in Taito-ku ward office and basically (it) came down to, 'well, you just can't deliver food here anymore,' " says Charles McJilton, executive director of Second Harvest Japan.
EDITORIALS
Jan 17, 2005

Research to ameliorate disaster

Jan. 17 marks the 10th anniversary of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, which took the lives of more than 6,400 people. In the past decade, Japan's earthquake countermeasures have changed enormously. Its earthquake observation system has become more sophisticated. Together with general observation...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 16, 2005

Diplo throws funky DIY marketing into the mix

"The goal is to expose the artist." Wesley Pentz is on the phone from Hawaii, explaining how he publicizes up-and-coming hip-hop talent. "It's basically putting promotion and marketing in your own hands," he explains. Contrary to what you may think, Pentz is not a record executive; he's a DJ with a passion...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jan 16, 2005

A fleeting visit rich with eastern symbolism

KNOWING THE EAST, by Paul Claudel, translated by James Lawler. Princeton University Press, 2004, 138 pp., $17.95 (paper). The Catholic poet Paul Claudel (1868-1955) first came to what was then known as the Far East in 1895 and at once began writing down his impressions. In 1900 he gathered them into...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jan 16, 2005

Bridge between Japan and Britain

Until World War II, Japanese language and culture were studied at few institutions outside Japan, and only a small number of scholars specialized in Japanese studies. Among the independent organizations devoted to promoting an understanding of Japan, its history and culture, two traced their origins...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jan 15, 2005

Student summit: food safety a growing concern

While his two brothers followed their father into local government service, Akimi Fujimoto took a different path. "My father had two working lives, as a government official and helping my mother farm our land in Niigata. There was no way I ever wanted a desk job."
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Jan 14, 2005

Morientes fired up to join Liverpool

LONDON -- Last summer Liverpool sold Michael Owen to Real Madrid for £8 million, the England striker becoming the third choice behind Raul and Ronaldo at Bernabeu Stadium.
JAPAN
Jan 14, 2005

NPA considers sex-offender tracking system

The National Police Agency set up a team Thursday to discuss creation of a system under which police would be able to keep track of convicted sex criminals.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jan 13, 2005

Yanks' Matsui happy to have Johnson on board

New York Yankees outfielder Hideki Matsui said on Wednesday he believes the team will benefit from the moxie of southpaw veteran Randy Johnson, who joined the American League club in a trade and signed a two-year, $32 million contract extension.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jan 13, 2005

Jakuemon: A man for the ladies

NAKAMURA JAKUEMON IV: The Art of Onnagata Acting, by Rei Sasaguchi, photos by Yutaka Umemura, Akira Iwata, Fumio Watanabe. Designed and published by Rei Sasaguchi, 2004, 116 pp., 3000 yen (cloth). This very interesting, beautifully designed book is an essay on the art of onnagata, the kabuki actor playing...
LIFE / Lifestyle / ON THE BOOK TRAIL
Jan 13, 2005

"The Time Wreccas," "Winnie's Magic Wand"

"The Time Wreccas," Val Tyler, Puffin Books; 2005; 338 pp. Children's fiction these days is so all-knowing, so cynical, even, that possibly only a first-time writer can bring back to it the naivete that it has all but lost. Perhaps Val Tyler, author of "The Time Wreccas" has not noticed how popular...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 12, 2005

Balancing act

Singer-songwriters are the half-breeds of pop music. Evolved from Bob Dylan's navel-gazing spawn, they lead hyphenated existences because each half of their calling is considered insupportable without the other. Though many are accomplished vocalists, what distinguishes them as singers doesn't always...
Rugby
Jan 11, 2005

Kintetsu, IBM relegated from Top League

The Top League championship may well have been decided on the last weekend of 2004 -- Toshiba Brave Lupus 38-12 victory over archrival Suntory Sungoliath on Saturday simply being the icing on the cake -- but there was still plenty to play for in the four games played on Monday.
SUMO
Jan 11, 2005

Asashoryu rolls as Kaio stumbles

Ozeki Kaio's fresh bid for promotion to yokozuna suffered a hammer blow Monday after he was handed a shock defeat by Kotonowaka on the second day of the New Year Grand Sumo Tournament.
JAPAN
Jan 11, 2005

Palestinians to receive more funds

Japan will extend an additional $60 million in financial and humanitarian aid to the Palestinian Authority following the weekend election to choose a new Palestinian leader, officials said Monday.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jan 11, 2005

Habitat destruction, work gear and photos

A distressing end to 2004 . . . off to a resilient and positive start in 2005.
Rugby
Jan 10, 2005

Waseda reclaims rugby title from Kanto

The 41st University Rugby Football Championship final was the fourth time in a row that Waseda University has taken on Kanto Gakuin University and this year it was Waseda that walked away with the silverware following its 31-19 win at Tokyo's National Stadium on Sunday.
SUMO
Jan 9, 2005

Kaio still has shot at promotion

Will ozeki Kaio finally claim the yokozuna prize that has slipped through his fingers more times than he cares to remember?
JAPAN
Jan 9, 2005

Settlement in blue LED patent suit could reach 1.5 billion yen

Nichia Corp. and former researcher Shuji Nakamura are negotiating a settlement worth ¥500 million  to ¥1.5 billion over their high-profile dispute on the patent for the blue light-emitting diode, according to sources familiar with the lawsuit.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Jan 9, 2005

Keiko Sakai: Conundrum Iraq

One year ago this month, an advance team from Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) arrived in Iraq on a mission -- so the Japanese public was told -- to help rebuild the wartorn country. The rest of the main contingent of 600 troops soon followed.
JAPAN
Jan 8, 2005

Snitches not so keen to share their names

Almost all of the people who have accessed a Justice Ministry Web site where they can report "suspicious" foreigners have done so anonymously, Amnesty International Japan said Friday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 8, 2005

China's Yasukuni ire 'puzzles' Japanese

For Tokyo native Mie Kondo, 31, Yasukuni Shrine is no more than a scenic area she used to visit with her family and a sightseeing spot to which she still likes taking visitors.
JAPAN
Jan 7, 2005

Postal privatization, budget issues await Diet on Jan. 21

The Diet will convene Jan. 21 for this year's ordinary session, which is scheduled to run through June 19, the government said Thursday.
JAPAN
Jan 7, 2005

Underground economy expected to boom

"No money and you're dead" is essentially what yakuza characters in novels and comic books say, and they mean that literally.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Jan 6, 2005

Golden Eagles unveil 'classic' new uniforms

Going with a traditional look, Pacific League newcomers the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles revealed their new uniforms on Wednesday.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?