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Former U.S. President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, speaks during an interview at a conference for Black journalists in Chicago on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 2, 2024

Trump faces backlash over comments on Harris' racial identity

Donald Trump's comments came as he attacked Kamala Harris during a combative interaction with African American journalists in Chicago.
Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina reviews an honor guard during her visit to Thailand, in Bangkok on April 26.
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 5, 2024

Sheikh Hasina's record under fresh scrutiny as Bangladesh unrest deepens

Mass protests that began as student-led rallies against civil service job quotas have morphed into some of the worst unrest under the prime minister's 15-year tenure.
Students inside a clean room of a college of technology in Kumamoto Prefecture. The Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association started holding special classes at colleges of technology to attract more people to the semiconductor industry.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 5, 2024

Japan chip industry talent race heats up

Job opportunities have expanded notably in Kyushu and Hokkaido.
People pray at the Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima to mark the anniversary of the dropping of the A-bomb in 1945. Over half a century on, the global framework to stop nuclear weapons proliferation needs a serious rethink.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 5, 2024

What stands in the way of a nuclear weapon-free world?

Almost 80 years after the A-bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, the world is still far from abolishing nuclear weapons due to a crumbling of the nonproliferation architecture.
Japan's Yuki Ishikawa cheers during the match on Monday.
OLYMPICS / Volleyball
Aug 6, 2024

Heartbreak for Japan's volleyball team after narrow loss to Italy

Japan started off strong, winning the first two sets thanks to rock solid defense, but couldn't close out the Italians.
Athletes who are part of the Refugee Olympic Team participate in the Parade of Nations on the River Seine during the opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics on July 26.
OLYMPICS
Aug 6, 2024

Refugee Olympic Team representing displaced people and making its mark in Paris

The refugee team, which first competed at the 2016 Games, will walk away from the Paris Olympics with one medal and potentially more.
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar looks on as Hamas supporters take part in an anti-Israel rally in Gaza City on Oct. 1, 2022.
WORLD
Aug 7, 2024

Hamas names Oct. 7 mastermind Sinwar as their new leader

For Israel, Yahya Sinwar's appointment confirms Hamas as a foe dedicated to its destruction.
Yahya Sinwar, head of the political wing of the Palestinian Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip, in Gaza City in April 2022.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 8, 2024

Israel vows to eliminate new Hamas leader as Gaza war drags on

Israel's army chief Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said they would "find him (Yahya Sinwar), attack him" and force Hamas to find another leader.
The Intel Corporation logo at a temporary office during the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, in 2022
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 8, 2024

How spurning OpenAI set chip giant Intel behind in the AI marketplace

OpenAI went on to launch the groundbreaking ChatGPT in 2022 and is now reportedly valued at about $80 billion.
A charging cable is connected to a Hyundai electric vehicle at the 2022 Busan International Motor Show in Busan, South Korea, on July 14, 2022.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 8, 2024

Seoul EV explosion sparks safety fears, prompting charging rethink

Over 700 people were evacuated and 23 hospitalized after an unplugged electric Mercedes-Benz sedan caught fire in a Seoul underground parking lot.
Akari Fujinami celebrates her Olympic gold medal alongside her father and coach, Toshikazu, in Paris on Thursday.
OLYMPICS / Wrestling
Aug 9, 2024

Perseverance and a father's guidance: Akari Fujinami's journey to gold

Fujinami, who entered the Games with a 130-0 record, achieved her long-awaited Olympics victory after overcoming an injury she suffered in March.
Nomura Orient International Securities, Nomura Holdings' Shanghai-based joint venture brokerage, lost 184.5 million yuan ($26 million) in 2023, marking the fourth straight year of losses since its launch.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 9, 2024

Nomura’s former China business head leaves after years of losses

Sun Dongqing joined Shenzhen-based East Asia Qianhai Securities this month, according to registration records.
Sociologist Gracia Liu-Farrer argues that even though immigration doesn't figure into Japan's autobiography, it is more of a self-perception than a reality.
COMMUNITY / Issues / Longform
Aug 9, 2024

In search of the ‘Japanese dream’

You've likely heard of the American dream. In Japan, where no such concept exists, immigrants forge their own ideals.
Sebastian Coe, the president of World Athletics, says the sport has moved beyond Usain Bolt with a fresh crop of new stars.
OLYMPICS / Athletics
Aug 12, 2024

New athletes filling void left by Bolt, athletics chief Sebastian Coe says

Talk since Bolt's retirement has always been about who might step into his shoes, but Coe insisted the narrative wasn't just about one athlete alone to fill the void.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida meets with Chinese leader Xi Jinping at a summit in Bangkok in November 2022. Despite Japan-China relations stagnating in recent years, Xi's administration presents some interesting opportunities for an overture between the two countries.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
Aug 12, 2024

Will Japan and China’s relations continue to stagnate?

Japan and China have historically been at odds and relations have stagnated. This pattern can be broken by seizing the moment, one that offers some key opportunities.
Forest in the town of Kamishihoro, Hokkaido, which was designated as an advanced area for decarbonization in fiscal 2022.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Aug 12, 2024

Japan looks to farms in 'advanced decarbonization areas'

Example projects include "agrivoltaics" initiatives and those using livestock manure as a source of biogas.
U.S. President Donald Trump and SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on May 30, 2020
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 13, 2024

Musk scorns subsidies, but Tesla still lobbies for U.S. benefits

Despite Musk's gradual embrace of Trump, the company continues to lobby the U.S. and state governments for benefits championed by the Democratic Party.
The tradition of koromogae, which involves changing storage spaces for clothes according to the season, is becoming less common, largely due to the increasing adoption of Western-style closets that accommodate all clothing year-round.
BUSINESS
Aug 13, 2024

Mothball makers innovate amid shrinking market

The market has been diminishing as synthetic fibers, which are resistant to insect damage, have become widely used in clothing.
When water temperatures are high, particularly when they rise to 33 degrees Celsius or above, the difference between water and body temperatures is smaller, preventing heat from escaping into the water and increasing the risk of heatstroke.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 13, 2024

Heatstroke a risk even in swimming pools, Japanese experts warn

Experts say the body's ability to regulate temperature is compromised, especially when the water temperature is high.
The destruction left behind by the Borel Fire near Lake Isabella, California, on July 29
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 13, 2024

Wildfires are getting weirder. Case in point: 'firenados.'

Sometimes fire thunderstorms even create their own lightning, which spawns new blazes miles away.
An ambitious high school student (Gordon Maeda) devotes all his waking hours to making art in “Blue Period,” Kentaro Hagiwara’s live-action adaptation of an ongoing manga series of the same title.
CULTURE / Film
Aug 15, 2024

‘Blue Period’: Gordon Maeda paints a subtle picture of internal struggle

The actor’s performance as an ambitious student pursuing his dreams of being an artist is a highlight in this live-action adaptation of an ongoing manga series.
Lee Yi-yang
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 17, 2024

Taiwan names Lee Yi-yang as next de facto ambassador to Japan

Lee, the next head of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan, was a close aide to former Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian.
Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus salutes to the attendees before taking an oath to head of the interim Bangladesh government, in Dhaka on Aug. 8.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 19, 2024

Bangladesh's Yunus reassures on Rohingya refugees and garment exports

Muhammad Yunus again committed to hold free and fair elections "as soon as we can complete our mandate to carry out vital reforms" in the nation.
Former U.S. President Barack Obama waves after speaking on the second day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago on Tuesday night.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 21, 2024

Obama night at the DNC: Barack and Michelle rouse crowd for Harris

Obama has thrown his considerable political capital behind Harris as she seeks to make history herself on Nov. 5 as the first woman president.
The ability of Xi Jinping's government to control China's  industrial overcapacity crisis is limited, and stimulating domestic demand is difficult amid geopolitical tensions.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 21, 2024

Xi’s supply-side panacea has lost its magic

China’s excess capacity problem will have to fester until even its industry leaders call it quits. That may be some years away.
Japan coach Futoshi Ikeda consoles Fuka Nagano after their quarterfinal loss against the United States at the Paris Olympics on Aug. 3.
SOCCER
Aug 22, 2024

Nadeshiko Japan parts ways with coach Futoshi Ikeda

The 53-year-old led Nadeshiko Japan to the last eight at the Women's World Cup last year, but the team was unable to improve on that showing in Paris earlier this month.
An employee pulls a trolley containing boxes of LD Ultra-Slim cigarettes ready for shipping at the Japan Tobacco cigarette plant in the town of Senta in Serbia. JT Group is buying U.S. discount cigarette-maker Vector Group.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 22, 2024

JT Group plans to buy U.S. cigarette-maker Vector for ¥348.6 billion

The move will address a loss of anticipated growth due to Russia's war in Ukraine, and will boost Japan Tobacco's U.S. market share from 2.3% to about 8%.
The 2024 Kentaro Kaneko Award ceremony will be held Oct. 15 at the International House of Japan in Tokyo’s Minato Ward.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Aug 24, 2024

America-Japan Society announces recipients of 2024 Kentaro Kaneko Award

This year's Kentaro Kaneko Award celebrating achievements in furthering U.S.-Japan relations goes to a volunteer, an educator and a legendary musician.
Padres starting pitcher Yu Darvish is returning to the team after a three-month absence due to injury and a personal matter.
BASEBALL / MLB
Aug 24, 2024

Padres reinstate Yu Darvish from restricted list

A five-time All-Star, Darvish is 4-3 with a 3.20 ERA in 11 starts this season.
Emergency responders assist a man who collapsed during lengthy heat wave in Phoenix in July last year.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 24, 2024

Heat kills thousands in the U.S. every year. Why are the deaths so hard to track?

As heat waves become more frequent and intense, researchers and activists say the lack of effective tracking is leading to needless deaths.

Longform

A mushroom cloud from the atomic bombing on Hiroshima taken from a U.S. military aircraft on Aug. 6, 1945. Copying the photo without permission is prohibited.
80 years on, a Japanese American hibakusha recalls the day the bomb dropped