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July 22, 2025
 

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Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Aug 5, 2017

'Chinese Script: History, Characters, Calligraphy': Exploring the roots of kanji

From bone shards to swipe keyboards, "Chinese Script: History, Characters, Calligraphy" is a brief but absorbing crash course on the origins and evolution of China's writing system that tackles a range of topics beyond language.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jul 23, 2017

Gift and inheritance tax reforms leave more of Japan's foreign residents liable

A reader writes to Lifelines about Japan's recently introduced inheritance tax law, which he calls 'one of the most punitive in the world.'
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 16, 2017

Former Chongqing party chief and Chinese Politburo member under probe, report says

Sun Zhengcai, the former Communist Party chief of the Chinese city of Chongqing, is under investigation by authorities, the Wall Street Journal has reported, citing people it didn't identify.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 26, 2017

Asking questions to the Japanese internet

The website Yahoo! u77e5u6075u888b (Chiebukuro, literally 'bag of knowledge') is a great resource for language learners and for anyone interested in observing Japanese interact online.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jun 19, 2017

At Aichi pharmacy chain, seniors get to work at their own pace

Starting this fall, Sugi Pharmacy Co., headquartered in Obu, Aichi Prefecture, will offer seniors a new type of job contract in order to help its older employees keep fitter for longer as well as address the company's manpower shortage.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / NBA / HOOP SCOOP
Jun 7, 2017

Nets star Lopez relishes chance to travel globe

Brook Lopez dunks and rebounds basketballs for a living, and — ouch! — collides with fellow 2-meter behemoths in the lane. So when the grind of the 82-game season comes to a halt, the Brooklyn Nets center is eager to take it easy.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 4, 2017

Say goodbye to left and right and hello to digitalization

The concept of the state as a sort of ruling elite, or of 'the people' as the toiling masses, is beginning to melt away under the impact of digitization.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 12, 2017

Is the sun setting on the U.S. imperium?

U.S. policy on Asia seems adrift under the Trump administration.
Reader Mail
May 12, 2017

Kingston errs on 'comfort women'

Jeff Kingston's Counterpoint columns in the April 16 and 23 editions regarding the "comfort women" issue contain clearly erroneous assertions and could lead to misunderstanding among readers. I would like to share several points that the author failed to mention or erroneously presented in his articles....
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Apr 1, 2017

Hayashi: Ponder the sound of one man slurping

The ticket machine at the door to Hayashi looks more like a Zen riddle than a method of ordering noodles.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Mar 18, 2017

Darwin specimens showcase evolution for first time in Tokyo exhibition

Charles Darwin certainly did not consider it a sin to kill a mockingbird. The 19th-century English biologist killed many of the birds whilst on board the HMS Beagle survey ship as he traveled around the world. The specimens are more important than you might think and you can see a number of them at "Treasures...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 28, 2017

Why Dutch sentiment has turned against immigrants

Soon after she moved into her new neighborhood, Ijburg, on the eastern outskirts of Amsterdam, in 2005, Xandra Lammers started a blog about it. Ijburg is a curious place, an architectural wonder, built in the middle of a lake on reclaimed land and partly on water. She still keeps the blog alive, but...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Feb 18, 2017

'Moving Zen' and the modern samurai

"Be true to the thought of the moment and avoid distraction. Other than continuing to exert yourself, enter into nothing else, but go to the extent of living single thought by single thought."
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 14, 2017

How I'll know it's time to flee the United States

If you're not scared of Donald Trump, you're not paying attention.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Feb 4, 2017

New housing options get smaller in the city

Last month this column discussed how lack of city planning in the suburbs had led to an over-supply of new housing that exacerbated the well-publicized vacant-home problem. It should be noted, however, that populations in suburbs throughout Japan are declining — some slowly, others rather rapidly....
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Jan 14, 2017

Curtain call: Examining the evolution of Japan's humble 'noren'

The shōtengai (shopping street) in Katsuyama, a rural hamlet located on the banks of the Asahi River in Okayama Prefecture, wouldn't look completely out of place in a Richard Scarry picture book for young children.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Jan 14, 2017

Recalling the ins and outs of our memory

In the Harry Potter films, Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore shows the young wizard memories that he keeps in glass vessels. The franchise portrays memories as things that possess a physical structure that can be moved around. Although they appear to look like wispy bits of fluff, they are given...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Jan 8, 2017

Japan's human rights issues fared better in 2016

Welcome back to JBC's annual countdown of the top issues as they affected Non-Japanese (NJ) residents of Japan. We had some brighter spots this year than in previous years, because Japan's government has been so embarrassed by hate speech toward Japan's minorities that they did something about it. Read...
Japan Times
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Jan 6, 2017

Winning F.A. Cup not high on priority list for many

It is F.A. Cup third-round weekend or, as English Premier League clubs call it, a chance to rest the top stars.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Dec 17, 2016

Scientific discoveries inspire amid a turbulent 2016

A number of the notable science stories of the past year are, quite literally, out of this world.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Nov 29, 2016

Cannons thunder as thousands mourn Castro in Havana

Galvanized by a 21-gun salute that thundered across Havana, tens of thousands of Cubans paid final respects on Monday to Fidel Castro, who led a leftist revolution, ruled for half a century and resisted the United States throughout the Cold War.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Nov 19, 2016

Manipulating the brain to hasten learning

For some athletes, success has come from a dedication to practice and the repetition of a particular routine. Baseball icon Ichiro Suzuki or English soccer star David Beckham are two examples that immediately spring to mind.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 7, 2016

Populism thrives off the automation revolution

The world is on the verge of massive change on the scale of the Industrial Revolution.
Japan Times
SPORTS / MAN ABOUT SPORTS
Nov 1, 2016

San Diego, Chargers hold special place in writer's heart

San Diego may lose its NFL Chargers. And because MAS considers himself an honorary San Diegan, he is despondent over that possibility. Why? Well, it's a long but — MAS hopes — interesting story. So, here goes.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 17, 2016

How do I struggle with katakana? Let me count the ways

The fuss over the use of the 'shin' katakana in the 'Shin Godzilla' film's title highlights the mystery that surrounds this often-frustrating syllabary.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Oct 15, 2016

Space exploration and human evolution

Can we become a multiplanetary species? There have been several spectacular announcements along these lines recently. Both SpaceX founder Elon Musk and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos have unveiled ambitious plans and tested rockets. Now aerospace multinational Boeing has ramped up its plans to get to Mars....
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 3, 2016

The antibiotic apocalypse

The overuse of antibiotics in agriculture and health care is leading to an alarming rise in bacterial resistance.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 30, 2016

Europe must act in Aleppo because it can

Will Europe surrender what remains of its soul in Aleppo, or will it stop the killing?
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Sep 17, 2016

Did Japan fudge the truth about whaling?

If you've been following the tragic farce that is Japan's official stance on whaling, you'll know that the arguments made by the country's Institute for Cetacean Research (ICR) to try and justify the hunting of whales have been soundly rejected. Japan maintains it needs to kill whales as part of a scientific...
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Aug 20, 2016

The gene that may benefit sumo giants

Samoa, with its string of beautiful islands and coral atolls in the South Pacific, is attracting more than just tourists these days. Scientists are heading there, too. The nation holds the uneviable position of being No. 1 in the world for obesity. Among Samoan men, 80 percent are either overweight or...
Japan ruling bloc loses majority in Upper House after election drubbing
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who serves concurrently as president of the Liberal Democratic Party, leaves at the party's headquarters following announcement of Upper House election result projections in Tokyo early Monday.
‘Japanese First’ Sanseito emerges as powerful force after Upper House poll
Sanseito leader Sohei Kamiya in Tokyo on Sunday night
Foreign residents closely follow Japan's election and party pledges
A police officer walks past posters of Liberal Democratic Party candidates, as well as one showing Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, outside the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Sunday. As Japan’s foreign population continues to rise, one of the talking points during Sunday’s election was how the country should deal with the increase of international residents.
Japan’s top brands get tied up in the great sunscreen debate
A coral reef in Okinawa in July 2022. Some jurisdictions around the world have moved to ban certain sunscreens in a bid to protect coral reefs, but some say the impact on reefs is far from clear.
Voters in Tokyo reflect shifting political views across Japan
Pedestrians walk in front of an election notice board displaying posters of candidates in Tokyo on Sunday.
Japan’s top brands get tied up in the great sunscreen debate
A coral reef in Okinawa in July 2022. Some jurisdictions around the world have moved to ban certain sunscreens in a bid to protect coral reefs, but some say the impact on reefs is far from clear.
Pentagon looks to unleash ‘military drone dominance’
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth hosts a drone demonstration at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, on July 10.
‘Noto Democracy’ and the slow work of civic change
Yukio Iokibe’s “Noto Democracy" centers on Motoyuki Takii, a former junior high school teacher who publishes a handwritten newspaper every month to encourage the residents of Anamizu, Ishikawa Prefecture, to engage in local politics.
In microbes we trust: Embracing the nature of fermented food
You don't need an oven to make Kenji Morimoto's easy and delicious Miso Sticky Toffee Crepe Cake.
Touring the Silk Road — without leaving Tokyo
One of the entrances to Pao Compound, a nine-story Silk Road-inspired complex in Tokyo's Higashinakano neighborhood

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

In 2020, 38% of all households were single-person. That figure is projected to rise to 44.3% by 2050.
The rise of AI companionship in a lonely Japan
By Alex K.T. Martin

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