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Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Nov 16, 2001

Stink bug

* Japanese name: Kusagikamemushi * Scientific name: Halyomorpha halys * Description: Most people call all insects "bugs," but strictly speaking, only one order of insect, those with piercing mouthparts, are true bugs -- the stink bug is one of them. It belongs to a family called shieldbugs, because...
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

European historians give textbook tips

German, Polish, and French historians who have been working on compiling history textbooks that draw on the perspectives of both sides of the former warring nations stressed Thursday the importance of dialogue between the countries involved.
BUSINESS
Nov 16, 2001

Mitsubishi Heavy cuts interim losses

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. said Thursday that aggressive cost-cutting measures sharply reduced group net losses in the first half of fiscal 2001.
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

Satellite may fall anywhere

A Japanese satellite that stopped operating in 1998 will probably enter the atmosphere and fall to Earth between Nov. 31 to Dec. 10, the National Space Development Agency of Japan has announced.
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

Ministry urges companies to report greenhouse gas emissions

The Environment Ministry proposed Thursday establishing a mechanism to encourage companies to publicize their greenhouse gas emissions and a system of neutral third parties to evaluate and check reported emissions.
LIFE / Lifestyle / JET STREAM
Nov 16, 2001

Coming to Japan with his eyes wide shut

Omar Karlin would be blind today if it weren't for that crazy, half-baked business scheme of his.
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

Problems in U.S. delay replacement of weather satellite

The launch of an advanced multifunctional satellite scheduled for February 2003 will be put off by a few months due to production delays at its U.S. maker, government officials said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Nov 16, 2001

Mitsubishi sees its operating profits climb

Mitsubishi Corp. said Thursday its group operating profits climbed 63.5 percent to 35.75 billion yen in the fiscal first half to Sept. 30 on the strength of robust earnings in its energy business and a weak yen.
EDITORIALS
Nov 16, 2001

The nuclear shadow lightens

The world took a giant step toward disarmament this week when U.S. President George W. Bush and his Russian counterpart, President Vladimir Putin, agreed to slash their nuclear arsenals. The deep cuts were the most significant outcome of a three-day summit that seems to herald a new era in relations...
LIFE / Lifestyle / MATTER OF COURSE
Nov 16, 2001

Sewing and cookery aren't just for the girls

On a recent observation day at the Japanese public elementary school that my children attend, I wandered into unfamiliar territory. I saw a mother entering a classroom I had never noticed. I followed her in and got quite a surprise.
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

NPA instructs local cops not to get trigger-happy

The National Police Agency has instructed prefectural police nationwide in charge of training and education to ensure their officers do not overuse their service revolvers.
BUSINESS
Nov 16, 2001

Koizumi gives WTO accord his blessing

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Thursday welcomed the previous day's accord by World Trade Organization trade ministers to launch new multilateral trade negotiations.
EDITORIALS
Nov 15, 2001

Australia opts for stability

Australian voters opted for stability and continuity last weekend when they gave Prime Minister John Howard a third term in office. Although the margin of victory was greater than expected, Mr. Howard's Liberal-National coalition government only picked up a few seats in Parliament. Moreover, the policies...
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

Ichiro helps Sky Perfect cut losses

Sky Perfect Communications Inc., operator of the Sky PerfecTV digital broadcasting service, said Wednesday it incurred a consolidated net loss of 4.64 billion yen in the first half of this business year, compared with a loss of 15.89 billion yen a year earlier.
JAPAN
Nov 15, 2001

Expatriates in Japan uneasy over Northern Alliance advance

Many Afghans residing in Japan distrust the Northern Alliance and do not support its recent seizure of Kabul.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

Japan ranks low in productivity

Japan ranked 19th in terms of productivity in 1999 among the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's 28 industrialized members, up only one place from the previous year, a think tank said Wednesday.
JAPAN / INTERNATIONAL RATIONALE
Nov 15, 2001

Automakers steering toward financial markets

As the nation's banking sector continues to struggle with bad debts and falling stock prices, major automakers from Japan, Europe and the United States are seeking to expand the scale and scope of their financial businesses here.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

MMC logs first-half loss, optimistic for end of year

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. said Wednesday it suffered 31.49 billion yen in consolidated net losses in the first half of the business year, but predicted it will break even for the full year through March 31.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

Current account surplus falls 23.5% in first half to 5.2 trillion yen

The nation's current account surplus during the first half of fiscal 2001 declined 23.5 percent from a year earlier to 5.19 trillion yen, marking the second consecutive fall in the broadest measure of trade, the Finance Ministry said Wednesday in a preliminary report.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

Casio Computer to delete 3,000 jobs

Casio Computer Co. said Wednesday it will chop 3,000 jobs, about 17 percent of its group workforce, by March, after falling into the red in the first half of the business year.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

Cabinet Office says economy going down

The government on Wednesday downgraded its diagnosis of the Japanese economy's health for the seventh time this year, as the effects of the September terrorist attacks in the United States began to be felt.
JAPAN
Nov 15, 2001

University probes accident at cosmic ray laboratory

The University of Tokyo is conducting an investigation into a major accident that occurred Monday at its Super-Kamiokande cosmic ray research facility in Gifu Prefecture, where the groundbreaking discovery that neutrinos have mass was made in 1998.
COMMENTARY
Nov 15, 2001

Legacy of 'jihad' may linger

ISLAMABAD -- Chants of "jihad" (holy war) have repeatedly resonated on the streets of Pakistan in the weeks following Washington's decision to launch military attacks on Afghanistan.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

Trader Mitsui's profits slip 2.7%

Mitsui & Co. said Wednesday its consolidated net profit in the business first half fell 2.7 percent from a year earlier to 23.42 billion yen on slumping sales of petroleum, gases and chemicals.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

Bankruptcies hit postbubble high

The nation's prolonged recession forced more small and midsize firms into bankruptcy in October, with the number of failures surging 11.7 percent from a year earlier to 1,911, the worst since the nation's asset-inflated bubble economy burst a decade ago, a credit research firm said Wednesday.

Longform

Sociologist Gracia Liu-Farrer argues that even through immigration doesn't figure into Japan's autobiography, it is more of a self-perception than a reality.
In search of the ‘Japanese dream’