Techie gifts for creative kids

Digital | ON: TECH

Techie gifts for creative kids

by Chiho Komoriya

It's the festive season and whether you take Christmas day off or not in Japan, kids will still be excited about Santa. This month introduces a few next-generation techy toys that are great for children but will probably be fun for the parents, too.

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Debate over Japan's extinct wolf grows

Environment

Debate over Japan's extinct wolf grows

by Alex Martin

An unidentified animal howl recorded in the Okuchichibu mountains bears a strong resemblance to a wolf howl, according to an analysis of audio samples provided by Hiroshi Yagi, an independent researcher who has been working to prove the existence of the officially extinct Japanese ...

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The 79-meter Turkish frigate Ertugrul in Istanbul (top) before its final voyage in 1890 when, after a "friendship call" to Yokohama, it was dashed to pieces in a typhoon off the coast of Oshima Island (above), leading to the loss of most of its crew and its commander (center, in photo, below) who had posed with his officers for this now-water-damaged photo (below) that was washed ashore after the disaster.

Japan’s tragic ‘Titanic of Turkey’

by Winifred Bird

The jagged rocks off Oshima Island break the surface of the ocean like so many knives strewn across the shallow water. Even on a calm day, they are a menacing reminder of the maze of reefs that surround this island in the Pacific just off the coast of Kushimoto, Wakayama Prefecture, in central Ho...

The prison inside: Japan’s hikikomori lack relationships, not physical spaces

by Andrew McKirdy

Fifty-three-year-old Kenji Yamase doesn't fit the traditional image of a hikikomori, but then perceptions of Japan's social recluses are changing. "People think of hikikomori as being lazy young people with personality problems who stay in their rooms all the time playing video games," says Ya...

Keeping it pure: Look for 十割そば (jūwari soba, 100 percent or pure soba) at the supermarket if you're searching for gluten-free options.

The language involved with a gluten-free diet in Japan

by Samantha Seghers

I love 和食 (washoku, Japanese food). I love the tastes, textures and the sheer number of fresh ingredients I don't get at home, the mindfulness in food production and preparation, and the nose-to-tail eating style that saves on food waste. Needless to say, I was devastated to find that I feel...

Sukayu Onsen, Aomori Prefecture

Last splash: Immodest Japanese tradition of mixed bathing may be on the verge of extinction

by James Hadfield

In June last year, visitors to the Shiobara hot-spring resort in Tochigi Prefecture were greeted by a notice informing them that one of the area's top attractions was now off-limits. Fudo no Yu, an outdoor bath nestled alongside a secluded forest trail, had been closed indefinitely "due to repeat...

A very Japanese ingredient: A jar of neatly labeled shoyu kōji (a mixture of soy sauce and rice that has been inoculated with the mold Aspergillus oryzae) and shio kōji (salt kōji) ready for use in soups, marinades or dressings.

The fermentation power of kōji, Japanese food’s secret ingredient

by Momoko Nakamura

If Japanese food culture were pared down to just three fundamental elements, one might argue that it would be rice, fermentation and the four seasons. The one ingredient that embodies the three is kome kōji (rice that has been inoculated with kōji, the mold Aspergillus oryzae). Koji Tanaka — h...