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The head of an official inquiry into the deadly collapse of a Bangladesh factory complex said the building’s owner was the “main culprit” for the disaster because he violated construction codes. The cave-in of the eight-story Rana Plaza outside the capital last month killed ...
Throughout most of Japan, June is the rainy season. While all that rainfall is great for rice paddies so that we can have delicious new harvest rice in the fall, it makes it a rather dull month for seasonal produce: The summer’s bounty of ...
“I was stopped by two men in a government-registered vehicle, blindfolded and dragged off the street. They took me away to a house in a place I did not know. I was forced into a room with blood all over the walls and floor, ...
Claude Regy says the team at the Shizuoka Performing Arts Center (SPAC) threw him the “best birthday party ever” when he arrived in Japan just days after the actual May 1 occasion. The 90-year-old French director is hoping for an even better birthday gift, ...
As far as debuts go, Shohei Otani's delivered. The celebrated rookie pitched fairly well on Thursday night, and though he finished outside the decision, he left the mound with the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters well within striking distance of the Tokyo Yakult Swallows.
For Kenzo Moriguchi's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
KYOTO — The term “internationalization” has come into everyday use in the last decade, but Japanese people still face language barriers when it comes to implementing the concept behind the word. A new attempt at Seibo Gakuin Elementary School in Kyoto’s Fushimi Ward, however, ...
Although the Kaiyukan Aquarium is located right on Osaka Bay, it is truly a case of “water, water everywhere, ne’er any drop to drink” for the 39,000 fish and 580 species of other sea creatures kept there in 15 large tanks. The aquarium in ...
KOBE — The opening earlier this month of a new museum of literature in Hyogo Prefecture was marked by the usual ceremonial pomp. But unlike other institutions, visitors to this new museum don’t need to have a map, know the nearest station or a ...
OSAKA — The planned relocation to central Osaka of the National Museum of Art from the Expo ’70 Commemoration Park in Suita, Osaka Prefecture, has drawn no public protest, but for some people it stirs deep emotions about one of their most memorable events ...
OSAKA — A new sensor developed by Sanyo Electric Co. could help people with sleep apnea, and may eventually regulate the environment in which one sleeps. The sensor can measure the heart rate and number of breaths sleeping people take, without using special devices ...
OSAKA — Rieko Ueda started her own business a year ago and expects it to turn a profit early next year, and yet part of her wishes it will someday go bankrupt. Failure of the growing business — sales are increasing every month and ...
OSAKA — Sheep graze as children watch or pet them — a sight reminiscent of a farm or zoo. Such a scene, however, might become more common on riverbanks here as the animals are used as an alternative to lawn mowers. In a trial ...
OSAKA — Times have changed from the days when young girls were eager to get a dark tan and be called “ganguro,” or “black-faced.” The latest beauty trend is to be as white as possible, setting the stage for myriad ultraviolet-ray-blocking products lining drug ...
NARA — Since the days of Prince Shotoku in the early seventh century, Japanese have been encouraged to respect “wa,” or harmony in a group. So it is no surprise that when people go to a bar with colleagues or friends, they often feel ...
HIGASHI-OSAKA, Osaka Pref. — While audio read-out software has made it easier for blind people to access text-based information on computers, graphics have remained a hurdle. But a new device installed earlier this month at the Osaka Prefectural Central Library allows blind PC users ...
KASHIHARA, Nara Pref. — A three-footed crow may seem a mysterious idea to say the least, or downright weird to be more blunt. But as a prelude to the World Cup soccer finals cohosted by Japan and South Korea, items bearing images of the ...
SUITA, Osaka Pref. — South Korea may never have felt closer to Japan than it has this year. Not only are the two nations cohosting the World Cup later this year, but a three-day tour to Seoul nowadays costs less than 30,000 yen, and ...