Search - culture

 
 
An online army of Chinese nationalists have taken it upon themselves to punish perceived insults to the country — including from some of China’s leading business figures.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 27, 2024

Why are China’s nationalists attacking the country’s heroes?

Many of the grievances seem to be fueled by discontent over China’s economic malaise, potentially making it harder for authorities to quell public anger.
A mural showing Dodgers player Shohei Ohtani is seen on the side of the Miyako Hotel in Little Tokyo, downtown Los Angeles, on Thursday. The mural is by artist Robert Vargas and is 46 meters tall.
BASEBALL / MLB
Apr 1, 2024

Ohtani’s arrival brings hope and nostalgia home to Little Tokyo

In Los Angeles, home to one of the nation’s oldest Japanese American enclaves, rooting for the Dodgers is a cherished tradition.
Reindeer that belong to Sami herder Nils Mathis Sara, 65, run in a winter pasture near Geadgebarjavri up on the Finnmark plateau, Norway, last month.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Apr 3, 2024

Reindeer herders battle power line needed for Norway's climate goal

The conflict illustrates the difficult choices countries must make to cut greenhouse gas emissions and power future growth.
In an emergency move, Bob Iger returned to Disney in November 2022, just 11 months after retiring, to rescue the company from his hand-picked successor as CEO, Bob Chapek.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 4, 2024

Hunt for Disney CEO Bob Iger's successor kicks into high gear

Board members are seeking to reassure investors that they are taking the matter of succession seriously, having extended Iger's retirement date five times.
If it's too hot to do much (and the costs for air conditioning continue to surge) during the day, it might be time to consider shifting the bulk of our activities to cooler nighttime hours.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Apr 6, 2024

A solution for scorching days: Do everything at night.

Working night shifts, however, comes with a host of health problems, increasing the risk of diabetes, heart disease and even cancer.
Migrant workers from Tajikistan in an apartment shared by 18 people in Moscow in May 2020. The main suspects in the deadly assault are from Tajikistan. Now many other Tajiks, who fill jobs in Russia’s wartime economy, are being deported and harassed.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 6, 2024

In Moscow attack, a handful of suspects but 1 million Tajiks under suspicion

Many Tajiks who fill jobs in Russia’s wartime economy are being deported and harassed.
"Great Japan History Briefing Session, the 15th Empress Jingu." Expedition in Korea. The legendary Empress Jingu setting foot in Korea. Painting by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi in 1880.
JAPAN / History / The Living Past
Apr 18, 2024

What would Sigmund Freud have thought of Japan’s largely peaceful history?

In an exchange of letters, Albert Einstein and Sigmund Freud discussed human nature when it comes to why people go to war. How does Japan fit in?
Police officers stand guard in front of the entrance to the venue of the so-called Palestine Conference in Berlin on April 12. Anger over Israeli aggression in Gaza is growing in the U.S. and in other parts of the world, including in the West.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 26, 2024

The world cannot just cancel Palestine

Germany and other Western governments are appropriating cancel culture to stop demonstrations against Israeli aggression, using antisemitism as a shield.
A human tooth discovered at Taforalt Cave in Morocco. Isotopic analysis has uncovered unexpected dietary habits among preagricultural communities in the country.
WORLD / Science & Health
Apr 30, 2024

New study offers insight into what people ate before agriculture

Chemical markers in the bones and teeth from the remains of seven individuals were analyzed, along with several isolated teeth, dating back 15,000 years.
Researcher Mercury Wong holds a rice plant on April 1.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Apr 30, 2024

Hong Kong team plants seeds to safeguard legacy grains

Scientists and farmers in Hong Kong are tending to local varieties of grain they say could be an important food source in the face of climate change.
Laforet Harajuku, which celebrated its 45th anniversary last year, has been a witness to the district's evolution over the years.
BUSINESS
May 2, 2024

Harajuku strives to reclaim its former glory — and surpass it

Stakeholders are pulling out all the stops to restore the creative energy of the Tokyo district known for setting fashion trends in its heyday.
Diane Severin Nguyen’s film, “In Her Time (Iris’s Version),” 2023-24, about a young actress struggling with her role in a (fictional) movie about the Nanjing Massacre, is on display at the Whitney Biennial at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York. Artificial intelligence and the "rhetoric around gender and authenticity” were themes in this year's show.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 2, 2024

The winner-take-all economy is ruining art, too

The value of art is not just a matter of taste. To appeal to collectors, artists require the approval of the establishment.
French President Emmanuel Macron warns of existential threats to Europe from Russia, China and the U.S.
COMMENTARY / World
May 6, 2024

Is this Macron's moment to shine?

Underlying all the problems that Europe faces in a new age of geopolitical, economic and climate insecurity is a crisis in leadership.
Her, a self-described feminist bar in Shanghai, on March 15. Women in Shanghai gather in bars, salons and bookstores to reclaim their identities as the country’s leader calls for China to adopt a “childbearing culture.”
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
May 7, 2024

In China, ruled by men, women quietly find a powerful voice

Women in Shanghai gather to reclaim their identities as the country’s leader calls for China to adopt a “childbearing culture.”
Visitors in Macau on May 2. More than a year since China reopened its borders, some 63% of its residents say they’re ready to return to exploring the world, according to a survey published on April 24.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 7, 2024

China’s thrifty travelers show consumer confidence is weak

While more traveled over the five-day Labor Day break in comparison with 2019, each of them spent less on average.
Sony employees simulate the physical sensations of pregnancy at the company’s headquarters in Tokyo in February. The simple power of numbers can begin to remake workplace cultures, but many Japanese women still struggle to balance their careers with domestic obligations.
JAPAN / Society
May 8, 2024

It took decades, but Japan’s working women are making progress

Employers have taken steps to change a male-dominated workplace culture. But women still struggle to balance their careers with domestic obligations.
Hanagasa Ondo folk song performers from Yamagata Prefecture take part in the Japan Parade held in Manhattan on Saturday.
JAPAN
May 12, 2024

New York hosts a Japan Parade

About 100 groups took part in the event where parade-watchers were able to enjoy traditional Japanese culture and food.
Ground Self-Defense Force soldiers participate in a seminar to prevent harassment at the GSDF's Camp Asaka in Tokyo on April 16.
JAPAN / FOCUS
May 13, 2024

Japan's military needs more women. But it's still failing on harassment.

Nine months after the Defense Ministry pledged to take drastic measures, it has no plans to implement a national system for reviewing training standards.
From the outside, the light-brown complex that is Fuchu Prison in western Tokyo could easily be mistaken for a city hall.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
May 19, 2024

Fuchu Prison adapting to foreign prisoners

The penitentiary houses the biggest population of foreign prisoners in Japan, and as such is taking measures to accommodate them in terms of language, culture, food and lifestyle.
Water tanks used to cultivate seaweed on land by Three Lines in Uwajima, Ehime Prefecture
JAPAN / Science & Health / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Jun 3, 2024

Poor seaweed harvest prompts Kyushu University team to look toward land

The team has found some success with on-land farming, although increasing production yields for commercialization remains a challenge.
Mourners attend the state funeral for President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian and others in Tehran on Wedneday.
WORLD / Politics
May 26, 2024

Calls, search parties, drones: 17 hours to find Iran’s president

As a frenzied quest began for the fallen helicopter of President Ebrahim Raisi, Iran moved to control possible threats from abroad and unrest at home.
Entrepreneur Lee Hee-tae at his office in Seoul. Lee had planned South Korea's largest sex festival in April, but the two-day event was banned by authorities following a backlash by local rights groups.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
May 30, 2024

Pervert or pioneer? The entrepreneur trying to get South Korea into porn

The South Korean adult content industry produces around 2,000 adult movies a year, compared with Tokyo's 2,000 a day $36.5-billion-dollar behemoth.
Kenji Iikura (right), head chef at Akasaka Tantei, and manager Hibiki Kitazawa pose with Okinawan cuisine served at the restaurant in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Jun 17, 2024

How a Michelin-star Okinawan restaurant made a V-shaped recovery

A return to its roots — and Okinawan flavors — struck a chord with new and returning customers.
Tokyo has proved to be an attractive destination for Chinese entrepreneurs in recent times, away from the challenges hitting the economy at home.
BUSINESS
Jun 16, 2024

Chinese entrepreneurs bet on Japan

A Chinese-language MBA program has been catering to those seeking opportunities in Tokyo.
A tourist from the U.S. (second right) sings karaoke as "mama" Kuri Awaji (left) waves a glow stick at her bar Kuriyakko in Tokyo.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 13, 2024

Tourists get taste of old Japan at hidden 'snack bars'

Snack bars are cozy, retro establishments often crammed into small buildings and equipped with karaoke systems that echo late into the night.
A statue of Santoku Taneda stands at Hofu Station in Hofu, Yamagata Prefecture,  where the Zen monk was born in 1882.
JAPAN / History / The Living Past
Jun 14, 2024

The joy of Zen — Part 2: Poetry

Ryokan and Santoka lived in different times, connected by a knack for words but polar opposites when it came to the monk's life they both chose.
Professor Hong Jin-kee poses with a bowl containing pink "meaty rice" at the Yonsei University in Seoul, where a team of South Korean scientists are injecting cultured beef cells into individual grains of rice in a process they hope could revolutionize how the world eats.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Jun 17, 2024

'Meaty rice'? South Korean professor aims to change global protein

No animals were harmed in the creation of the dish, which looks like regular rice aside from its color.
Japan's men's and women's gymnastics teams pose for photos during a news conference to announce the team's uniforms for the 2024 Games.
OLYMPICS / Gymnastics
Jun 24, 2024

Leotard vs. unitard debate in gymnastics still raging ahead of Paris Olympics

The German gymnastics team took a stand against sexualization in the sport in 2021, but heading into Paris, the leotard is still very much in vogue in Japan and abroad.
People await the arrival of the Dalai Lama in New York on Sunday. The Tibetan spiritual leader is in the U.S. to undergo knee surgery.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 24, 2024

China must not choose the next Dalai Lama

The 14th Dalai Lama, who is in the U.S. to undergo knee surgery, should leave instructions to choose his successor, therefore delegitimizing any Beijing-anointed figure.
Cameras and lenses are displayed at Fujifilm Holdings headquarters in Tokyo on June 7.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 28, 2024

Fujifilm once struggled to sell cameras. Now, it can't keep up with demand.

Fujifilm is struggling to meet demand for the X100 camera, prized by young 20-something social media users for its looks and high-end functions.

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear