Reference | FYI May 21, 2013

Fukushima No. 1 can't keep its head above tainted water

by Reiji Yoshida

More than two years into the triple-meltdown crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 power plant, workers continue to wage a desperate battle to keep the stricken reactors cool while trying to contain the 400 tons of radioactive water produced by the process each day.

Reference | SO WHAT THE HECK IS THAT May 21, 2013

Postal symbol

by Alice Gordenker

Dear Alice, This may seem like a stupid question, or too trivial a subject for you, but what the heck is the symbol that precedes the post code on every piece of domestic mail I receive here in Japan? I’m sure you know what ...

Reference | Q&A May 15, 2013

Monju: Generating only misfortune

by Jun Hongo

The troubled Monju prototype fast-breeder reactor made headlines again when the Nuclear Regulation Authority said it apparently plans to ensure the facility remains idled after announcing that the Japan Atomic Energy Agency failed to properly inspect some 10,000 components, including critical ones. Following are ...

Reference | FYI May 14, 2013

New thugs on block sidestep the usual suspects

by Tomohiro Osaki

Japan’s underworld, namely the “boryokudan” (gangster organizations) better known as yakuza, have been targeted with crackdowns in recent years focused on cutting their funding and expanding their criminal liability. But a new type of thug appears to be acting with impunity by operating in ...

Reference | Q&A May 10, 2013

How signs of a 'lost continent' came into JAMSTEC's underwater view

by Masaaki Kameda

The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology and the Brazilian government announced Tuesday the discovery of a large mass of granite on the seafloor near Rio de Janero — a landmark finding that suggests a continent may have once existed there.

Reference | FYI May 8, 2013

Spring fever hits workers, students hard after Golden Week

by Masaaki Kameda

It’s now a month since freshmen, finally freed from the stressful life of studying to pass rigorous university entrance exams, began their new lives at their new schools. April was also when newly hired workers began working at companies, gently easing into their new ...

Reference | FYI Apr 30, 2013

People's award: glittering honor or political tool?

by Kazuaki Nagata

The People's Honor Award, bestowed on those who have made tremendous achievements in their careers, has often drawn criticism for its vague nomination criteria and opaque selection process.

Reference | FYI Apr 23, 2013

Is legislation weighty enough to rebalance election system?

by Ayako Mie

While the Cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe enjoys high support rates, hovering around 70 percent, its very legitimacy is being questioned. More than a dozen high courts have handed down rulings confirming that vote-value disparities tainted the Dec. 16 general election that returned ...

Reference | FYI Apr 16, 2013

Startups find there's financing in numbers

by Hiroko Nakata

In a country where a stubbornly stagnant economy has turned the adventurous away from high-risk investment, fundraising has become one of the highest hurdles a startup can overcome.

Reference | SO WHAT THE HECK IS THAT Apr 16, 2013

The 5 p.m. bell

by Alice Gordenker

Dear Alice, I live in a medium-size city in Saitama Prefecture and am puzzled by a speaker system mounted on a huge pole right outside my apartment. Every evening at 5 p.m., music plays from the speakers for 20 or 30 seconds and then ...

Reference | FYI Apr 9, 2013

Foreign trainee system said still plagued by rights abuses

by Masami Ito

Last month, a Chinese trainee went on a stabbing rampage at a Hiroshima Prefecture seafood company where he worked, killing the president and an employee and wounding six others. The man had been a trainee at the oyster-processing plant as part of a government-authorized ...

Reference | FYI Apr 2, 2013

Resurgent rubella raises fetus threat

by Mizuho Aoki

The rubella epidemic is spreading quickly, particularly in the Kanto region. Usually limited to developing countries, the disease, also known as German measles, poses a threat to pregnant women as it can cause disorders in fetuses, including hearing impairments, cardiac disease and cataracts. Rubella ...