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ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
Sep 20, 2001

Giant umbellifer stalks northern Japan

Towering above the surrounding lush summer herb growth stands the hollow-stemmed monster known locally as Ezo nyuu and to botanists as Angelica ursina. These pearl-headed plants appear at the height of summer, a potent reminder that the longest days are past and that, despite the heat, autumn is not...
JAPAN
Sep 20, 2001

Obituary: Mami Yonemori

Mami Yonemori, a former TV anchorwoman who later formed the trio known as Dora, died of an undisclosed cause earlier this month, acquaintances said Wednesday. She was 34.
BUSINESS
Sep 20, 2001

Marubeni joins fuel cell committee

Major trading house Marubeni Corp. said Wednesday it has joined a corporate committee set up last November by two other Japanese trading houses and a Canadian firm to promote fuel cell-powered cars in Japan.
ENVIRONMENT
Sep 20, 2001

Cranes make a song and dance about it

CHENGDU, China -- Japan and China share an age-old love for cranes. In recent years there have been many exchanges and co-operative projects between these countries, working toward the protection of cranes.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Sep 20, 2001

Almost like a hippo

In "The Origin of Species," Darwin describes how black bears in North America often swim "for hours with widely open mouth, thus catching, almost like a whale, insects in the water." Darwin was making a hypothetical point about how evolution might work -- the swimming bear, he suggested, might be the...
BUSINESS
Sep 20, 2001

LDP panel sets schedule on tax reform

Senior officials on the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's tax panel agreed Wednesday to compile a proposal for securities tax reforms by early October.
JAPAN
Sep 20, 2001

Bad-debt panel issues guidelines on waivers

A joint panel of the nation's banking and business circles finalized on Wednesday a set of guidelines under which troubled corporate borrowers can ask for debt forgiveness.
BUSINESS
Sep 20, 2001

Mitsubishi Electric to ax jobs in wake of global IT slump

In a bid to cope with the slumping demand for information technology products, Mitsubishi Electric Corp. on Wednesday announced a midterm business plan that calls for cutting 2,000 jobs by the end of March 2003 and considering the possibility of a tieup in the cell phone business.
JAPAN
Sep 20, 2001

Japan judge grills Fujimori for Peru

Japan has sent a report to Peru on the questioning of deposed Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori as a witness in the corruption case of his former intelligence chief Vladimiro Montesinos, according to diplomatic sources.
BUSINESS
Sep 20, 2001

Public sector seen as jobs key

Government and labor union leaders agreed Wednesday on the need to create additional jobs in the public sector to prevent the record-high unemployment rate from rising even further.
JAPAN
Sep 20, 2001

Credit union execs in papers probe

Executives of Tokyo Shogin, a credit union that mainly serves Korean residents in Japan, shredded a considerable number of documents shortly before the association's collapse Dec. 16, sources close to the case said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Sep 20, 2001

Toto, Matsushita unit form alliance

Sanitary earthenware manufacturer Toto Ltd. and building materials maker Matsushita Electric Works Ltd. said Wednesday they have agreed to form a comprehensive alliance in the housing and building markets.
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Sep 20, 2001

Higanbana (spider lily)

BUSINESS
Sep 20, 2001

Itochu, Nissho Iwai team up on steelworks in Indonesia

Itochu Corp. and Nissho Iwai Corp. said Wednesday they have agreed to integrate their steel-processing operations in Indonesia in an effort to improve production efficiency.
CULTURE / Film
Sep 19, 2001

Pixels can't really tell the whole story

Final Fantasy Rating: * * * Director: Hironobu Sakaguchi Running time: 106 minutes Language: English Now showing
BASEBALL / MLB
Sep 19, 2001

History still on hold as Buffs righty sizzles

OSAKA -- Hisashi Iwakuma fired a two-hitter as the Kintetsu Buffaloes scored a key 5-0 victory over the Seibu Lions at the Osaka Dome on Tuesday night, boosting their lead in the Pacific League to 11/2 games, and keeping the dream of going worst to first in just one season alive.
JAPAN
Sep 19, 2001

Bomb threats to top hotels spook Nikkei

The Nikkei stock average closed higher Tuesday but lost about 100 points in the last three minutes of trading after bomb threats were made against two top hotels in Tokyo. Police later determined the threats were pranks.
MORE SPORTS
Sep 19, 2001

Former yokozuna sees limited action in football debut

Masaru Hanada, better known as former yokozuna Wakanohana, made his X League debut Monday night on a very limited basis as the Onward Skylarks struggled to beat the Lions 14-7 at the Tokyo Dome in Central Division football action.
JAPAN
Sep 19, 2001

Princess has pregnancy checkup

The Crown Princess, accompanied by the Crown Prince, visited the Imperial Household Hospital on Tuesday for her fourth checkup since her pregnancy was announced in May.
MORE SPORTS
Sep 19, 2001

Ai gives Tokyo tournament a lift

Ai Sugiyama gave the troubled Toyota Princess Cup a cheer Tuesday when the Japanese No. 1 beat eighth seed Cristina Torrens-Valero of Spain 6-1, 6-2 in a first-round singles match at Ariake Colosseum.
CULTURE / Film
Sep 19, 2001

Tinseltown, meet Chinatown

Rush Hour 2 Rating: * * * Director: Brett Ratner Running time: 90 minutes Language: English Now showing
BUSINESS
Sep 19, 2001

Matsushima to reduce coal output

Matsushima Coal Mining Co., operator of one of the nation's two remaining coal mines, has told authorities it plans to cut its annual output of 1.2 million tons to 400,000 tons, company sources said Tuesday.
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Sep 19, 2001

Dave Holland Quintet: 'Not for Nothin' '

On their third release, "Not for Nothin'," The Dave Holland Quintet picks up exactly where last year's "Prime Directive" left off -- with more compelling modern jazz.
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Sep 19, 2001

Stereolab: 'Sound Dust'

With a musical foundation in German progressive rock and political roots in the playful tradition of the Situationists, Stereolab is as avant-garde as they come.
CULTURE / Art
Sep 19, 2001

Lights fantastic in styles old and new

Four Japanese artists working in four different mediums are together holding an exhibition of 62 lamps Sept. 20-29 at the Akasaka Yu Gallery in Tokyo's Minato Ward.
CULTURE / Music
Sep 19, 2001

They'll do it theeeeeeir way

Girl bands . . . you've gotta love them.
CULTURE / Music / J-POPSICLE
Sep 19, 2001

Prepared for blastoff

The title of British pub-rocker Nick Lowe's 1978 album "Pure Pop for Now People" aptly describes the sound of Tokyo-based band The Cymbals. The trio's music is bright, intelligent, catchy and easy on the ears -- but with enough of a rock punch to avoid saccharine overkill.
BUSINESS
Sep 19, 2001

Government loan collector to get funding boost

The three parties in the ruling coalition approved a proposal Tuesday to give the state-run Resolution and Collection Corp. more public funds to buy bad loans, Financial Services Minister Hakuo Yanagisawa said.

Longform

After the asset-price bubble crash of the early 1990s, employment at a Japanese company was no longer necessarily for life. As a result, a new generation is less willing to endure a toxic work culture —life’s too short, after all.
How Japan's youth are slowly changing the country's work ethic