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JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Mar 27, 2003

Gambling on dopamine

Paul Newman's character in the 1967 movie "Cool Hand Luke" earns his eponymous nickname by bluffing wildly in a poker game, winning with a hand that amounts to nothing. "Yeah, well," he mumbles, "Sometimes nuthin' can be a real cool hand."
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / GARDEN PATHS
Mar 27, 2003

A garden is born

After a cool March, the first warm days of spring are working their magic, and people are eagerly waiting for cherry trees to fill with blossoms.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Mar 27, 2003

Fears over U.S. environmental ambush

Considering that the United States spends more for its military than any other nation on the planet, you might imagine the Pentagon taking a few extra steps to protect the environment -- but you'd be wrong.
BUSINESS
Mar 27, 2003

FSA considers nationalizing weak banks

The Financial Services Agency will consider effectively nationalizing banks that have received public funds if a bank's earnings fall substantially short of its preset target, FSA sources said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Mar 27, 2003

Yeltsin to soak up Japan culture

Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin will make a weeklong visit to Japan beginning Monday, and he is likely to boast his improved health while here by eating well and taking in a hot spring resort.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / JET STREAM
Mar 27, 2003

Hitachi's friendly face

A 19th-century merry-go-round has been restored recently in the city of Orleans, 130 km south of Paris, thanks to the efforts of former JET Clarisse Carl. It is something her two children, ages 8 and 5, are proud of. But for Carl, an assistant to the president of Hitachi Europe, it is just one of her...
JAPAN
Mar 27, 2003

'Sokaiya' payments result in suspended prison terms

The Tokyo District Court gave four former officials of consumer credit firm Nippon Shinpan Co. suspended prison terms Wednesday for paying a "sokaiya" racketeer to ensure its shareholders' meetings were not disrupted.
CULTURE / Books / THE BOOK REPORT
Mar 27, 2003

Libraries under attack

Are public libraries stealing the livelihoods of Japanese authors? So say writers and publishers as the number of books borrowed climbs while sales of books and magazines steadily decline.
BUSINESS
Mar 27, 2003

JAL to slash flights due to Iraq war

Japan Airlines System Corp., suffering from reduced demand due to the war in Iraq, will slash the number of international flights, sources said Wednesday.
LIFE / Digital / NETWISE
Mar 27, 2003

Heading off spam at the pass

It's been just over a year since my personal e-mail account started getting upwards of 20 junk mails a day and I ditched it for a new, spam-free one. I created another -- simple enough when you have your own domain -- but found in mere months that I was right back where I started. Even taking great care...
LIFE / Digital
Mar 27, 2003

Getting to know you

The following are some of the main resources used to harvest e-mail addresses:
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Mar 27, 2003

Black salamander

* Japanese name: Kuro sansho uo * Scientific name: Hynobius nigrescens * Description: Salamanders are considered primitive amphibians in comparison to frogs and toads. Like all amphibians, however, salamanders spend their lives in two entirely different states. The larvae are aquatic, breathing water...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 27, 2003

Songwriting lawmaker blazes maverick policy trail

On Feb. 18, the day before his latest CD was set to hit store shelves, lawmaker Ichita Yamamoto met Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi at his official residence in order to hand him a copy of "Kaikaku no Uta" ("Song for Reform").
JAPAN
Mar 27, 2003

Health boom spurs proliferation of oxygen units

With the domestic market for health products continuing to expand rapidly, appliance vendors are now marketing a range of home-use oxygen units.
ENVIRONMENT
Mar 27, 2003

Indigenous peoples speak up for nature

"In my community," says Roy Laifungbam of the Meitei people in northern India, "water is part of our daily ritual worship, as well as our annual spring festival. And this relationship is totally disregarded when you talk about water as a commodity."
EDITORIALS
Mar 26, 2003

Mystery disease raises new fears

The outbreak of a mysterious respiratory disease has set off alarms worldwide. Hundreds of individuals have been affected by the malady, which can result, if untreated, in death. Its rapid spread has reignited concern about the dangers of bioterrorist attacks. Although there is no evidence to suggest...
BUSINESS
Mar 26, 2003

Department store sales slide 0.5%

Department store sales fell 0.5 percent on a same-store basis in February from a year earlier for the 11th consecutive monthly decline, the Japan Department Stores Association said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2003

Disputed isles are target of new lawmaker group

A nonpartisan group of Diet lawmakers met Tuesday to mark the establishment of a parliamentary league seeking the speedy return of the four Russian-held islands off Hokkaido and more contact with their residents.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2003

Transsexual begins process to run for ward assembly

A transsexual presented candidacy documents Tuesday to an election administration committee for a preliminary check, a major hurdle in her bid to run for the assembly in Setagaya Ward, Tokyo.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2003

Complainants over ODA dam double

A further 3,900 residents of Indonesia's Sumatra Island on Friday will add their names to a lawsuit targeting the legitimacy of Japanese overseas aid, their lawyer said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Mar 26, 2003

Supermarket sales continue to fall

Supermarkets sales fell 1.4 percent in February from a year earlier on a same-store basis to 1.042 trillion yen, down for the eighth straight month, the Japan Chain Stores Association said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Mar 26, 2003

Fourth Haneda runway seen as potential boon

The transport ministry estimates that a planned fourth runway at Tokyo's Haneda airport will add 1.2 trillion yen to the economy of the metropolitan area the year it is completed, ministry officials said Tuesday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 26, 2003

New BOJ team moves to stabilize financial system, quiet politicians

The Bank of Japan decided Tuesday to expand its purchases of banks' stockholdings by 50 percent to 3 trillion yen, a move calculated to help banks weather declines in share prices and to quiet some politicians.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2003

Correspondents' NPO chief concerned over media freedom

As war correspondents make the most of their opportunity to cover the fighting in Iraq, the president of the nonprofit organization Reporters Without Borders voiced concern Tuesday over their safety and the extent to which freedom of the press is respected.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji