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ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
May 6, 2012

Small fry spawn big dreams

The Shinano, at 374 km the country's longest river, empties into the Sea of Japan at Niigata City. Salmon still migrate back from the open ocean to this river of their birth to breed and die, but a few decades ago they would arrive to spawn not only in the main river but also in its many tributaries,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 4, 2012

'Kantori Garu (Country Girl)'

The first time I went to Kyoto, in the mid-1970s, I thought I was in the middle of the biggest school excursion in the country. Thousands of kids from all over Japan were milling about in shopping districts and on temple grounds, and a foreigner such as I was still a sight rare enough for dozens of them...
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
May 3, 2012

Bus driver salaries inversely proportional to risk involved

Cheaper bus fares means higher stress factor for drivers
Reader Mail
May 3, 2012

Feeling deregulation's effects

Let me make a brief comment about the Bloomberg article by Jared Diamond, titled "Three reasons why Japan's economic pain is worsening," which ran in The Japan Times on April 28.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 30, 2012

Urban safari in the concrete jungle reveals Tokyo wildlife

Tokyo is a city of many things, but "nature"? Not exactly a word that most associate with the metropolis. When it comes to the city's animal life, most Tokyoites think meiwaku dōbutsu (迷惑動物, pests) rather than yasei-dōbutsu (野生動物, wildlife), associating animal encounters with mischievous...
Reader Mail
Apr 29, 2012

Give all energy-savers a break

Regarding the April 26 Jiji article "Government to roll out new energy-efficiency system for homes": In the future most energy- efficient homes will be located far from downtown urban centers simply because land prices are more affordable the farther you move away from the congested and highly commercial...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Apr 29, 2012

Kamakura's historic 'flowering garden'

When I meander through the gardens of Zuisen-ji Temple, I'm always reminded of a particular haiku by the 17th-century poet Matsuo Basho, which goes: Fading temple bell / The fragrance of flowers strikes / At evening.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Apr 29, 2012

Yokohama's Burrell the total package

Justin Burrell embodies the best attributes of professional sports.
JAPAN
Apr 27, 2012

METI official talks up Oi reactor restart in Fukui

A visiting official from the industry ministry on Thursday apologized to the town of Oi, Fukui Prefecture, over the government's failure to create a new nuclear watchdog by April 1, but stressed that the town's idled atomic reactors have passed all the requisite safety tests to resume operations.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Apr 26, 2012

The strangely beautiful art of Chen Man

Echoing the Pan-Asian theme of this year's Art Fair Tokyo, which was held earlier this month, Shibuya's shop-based Diesel Gallery is hosting a free exhibition of the visually striking work of Chen Man, a young Chinese artist.
CULTURE / Art
Apr 26, 2012

The strangely beautiful art of Chen Man

Echoing the Pan-Asian theme of this year's Art Fair Tokyo, which was held earlier this month, Shibuya's shop-based Diesel Gallery is hosting a free exhibition of the visually striking work of Chen Man, a young Chinese artist.
Japan Times
LIFE
Apr 22, 2012

Past and present on Route 66

"Ah, there's nothing like a Polish sausage smothered with jalapenos to settle a queasy stomach," I said to my skeptical traveling companion Bob Allen, adding a squirt of mustard for good luck and taking a humongous bite.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Apr 22, 2012

Matsumoto in May means 'crafts '

England gave the world the Windsor chair, but it was the city of Matsumoto in central Nagano Prefecture that reinvented it for Japan.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Apr 20, 2012

Hokkaido's diverse cuisine recognized by Michelin

Hiroshi Nakamichi dreamed of becoming a great one-star restaurateur when he went to Lyon, France, with a Michelin guide in his hands, to work at Michelin-starred restaurants. More than 30 years later, his dream came more than true when his "bible" gave three stars to his Sapporo-based French restaurant...
LIFE / Digital / TECH_JAPAN
Apr 18, 2012

Why good Wi-Fi is so hard to find in Japan

Friends visiting Japan often ask me why there are no, or very few, Wi-Fi hotspots available at hotels and cafes in Tokyo. They mention that in their countries, many places offer free Wi-Fi for guests — often it is completely open, or you simply need to ask the staff for the password.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Apr 17, 2012

Bread and becquerels: a year of living dangerously

My New Year's resolution back in January was to survive this year, and many more to come, which means keeping myself and my family as far from harm's way as possible.
Japan Times
Reference / SO WHAT THE HECK IS THAT
Apr 17, 2012

Pampered pets

Dear Alice,Don't you think it's time you did a column on the crazy pet products and services available in Japan? I can't believe the lengths some dog owners go to — dressing their pets in frilly clothes, pushing them around in baby carriages and taking them into cafes. My wife says I'm crazy but I...
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Apr 16, 2012

Outlet malls another American concept that may not work in Japan

The craze for auto-centered outlet malls may have stalled before it even began.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Apr 15, 2012

Papa is an idol; marriage and memory loss; CM of the week: Takara Shuzo

Last month, pop idol Jin Akanishi was punished by his agency, Johnny's & Associates, for getting married without telling them. Another Johnny's idol, Ryo Nishikido, of the group Kanjani 8, has his handlers' blessing in the new series "Papa-doru" ("Papa Idol"; TBS, Thurs., 9 p.m.), which, though fiction,...
Reader Mail
Apr 15, 2012

Too soon to the back burner

Regarding Takamitsu Sawa's April 10 article, "Energy conservation is key": I agree that more conservation is of utmost importance, but I don't see Japanese companies, the Japanese government and the Japanese people doing much.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / TECH_JAPAN
Apr 11, 2012

Capture your ideas any which way with these USB peripherals

Over the last five years or so, the USB drive has eliminated the need to cart around expensive disks of varying sizes that don't hold much data, or burn endless CDRs, making life a lot more convenient for computer users everywhere. Recently, the storage and connection format has seen some impressive...
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Apr 8, 2012

New York fashion gurus applaud 'second-tier' Tokyo

As part of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo, Dr. Joyce F. Brown, president of the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York City, and Dr. Valerie Steele, director and chief curator of The Museum at FIT — and curator of the groundbreaking "Japan Fashion Now" exhibition there in 2010/11 — visited...
Japan Times
LIFE
Apr 8, 2012

Fashion Week Tokyo escapes comfort zone

In what was the second season of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo since the German car-maker crucially stepped in as lead sponsor when government funding dried up last year, 37 brands presented their collections for the 2012-13 fall/winter season from March 18 to 23.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Apr 8, 2012

21st-century schizoid menswear

Never before has the creative schism at the heart of Japanese menswear been more evident than during the recent Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Apr 6, 2012

Exhibition tells a cute tale of kawaii culture

When you hear the term "kawaii" (cute) what do you think of? Hello Kitty? Domo-kun? Everyone has their own idea of what makes something kawaii, what they might not know is the origin of Japan's particular brand of cuteness.
LIFE / Digital / TECH_JAPAN
Apr 4, 2012

Could video-game consoles disappear into the cloud forever?

A new PlayStation. A new Xbox. A new Wii. The last one is definitely happening with the upcoming Wii U and the others are no doubt being prepped for high-profile "reveals." But what about a future with no consoles? None at all.

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