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Residents walk through misters during a heat wave in Phoenix, Arizona, on July 20.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 1, 2023

How urban heat islands add to the misery of heat waves

While grass or soil absorb less heat, asphalt and concrete can absorb as much as 95% of the sun's energy then send it back into the atmosphere.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 2, 2023

Sushi chain drops suit against teen over prank video

“The customer has admitted his responsibility and we have reached a settlement with reasonable details that are acceptable to us,” a spokesperson said.
New revelations about dreams and creativity could move people toward more balance, giving sleep and even naps much needed respectability.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 20, 2023

Want to be more creative? Try dream-hacking

New scientific methods are helping researchers understand how dreams can boost brainpower.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Aug 6, 2023

Japan’s enduring ‘sound of summer’

Composer Yuji Koseki probably did not imagine that his career would become intertwined with Japan’s most popular sporting event.
Superconductors are materials that exhibit no electrical resistance and eliminate magnetic fields. South Korean researchers think they may have created a compound that achieves that at room-temperature.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 8, 2023

LK-99 and the desperation for scientific discovery

The new room-temperature superconductor LK-99 could change the world. Or not.
As synonymous with summer as fireworks and sweltering temperatures, mosquitoes are ubiquitous in Japan. However, will rising temperatures lead more dangerous species of the bug to call Japan home?
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife / Longform
Aug 7, 2023

The mosquito: Summer’s unwelcome little bloodsucker

An outbreak of dengue in Yoyogi Park nine years ago could be a sign of things to come if the wrong mosquito makes it into Japan.
A year of restraint in investments has helped SoftBank regain its financial footing, accumulating a cash pile of almost ¥6 trillion.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 9, 2023

SoftBank begins making investments again but ‘timidly with fear’

A year of restraint in investments has helped SoftBank regain its financial footing, accumulating a cash pile of almost ¥6 trillion.
Shohei Ohtani's free agency is expected to be among the wildest pursuits of a player in baseball history.
BASEBALL
Aug 9, 2023

Angels hoping to stay in the Shohei Ohtani business

Whether the two-way phenom remains an Angel for two more months, or the rest of his career, is an open question.
Policemen stand guard outside the hospital where presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio was taken after being shot at a rally in Quito on Wednesday. Mr. Villavicencio, a 59-year-old journalist, was one of eight candidates in the Aug. 20 presidential election.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Aug 10, 2023

Ecuador presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio assassinated

A suspect in the crime later died of injuries sustained in a shoot-out. The violence injured nine others, including a candidate for the legislature.
PODCAST / deep dive
Aug 10, 2023

Why is modernizing Japan so darn tough?

Reporter Gabriele Ninivaggi joins us to break down how Japan’s digitalization hiccups risk exposing how backward things are.
Whether it is a hot summer or a cold winter, humans spend 90% of their time inside and there is little evidence that seasonal changes affect COVID-19 transmission significantly. 
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 10, 2023

COVID-19’s summer resurgence resists easy answers

Be wary of anyone with a pat explanation for why COVID-19 waves rise and fall.
Chinese leaders seem to believe the country has a narrow window of opportunity to achieve global preeminence before unfavorable demographic and geopolitical trends catch up with it.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 15, 2023

China’s dangerous secrets

China's secretive approach to projects and activities, including its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, should be a significant concern.
Reader opinions have been mixed on Haruki Murakami's latest novel, “The City and Its Uncertain Walls.”
CULTURE / Books
Aug 20, 2023

Haruki Murakami’s latest has readers and reviewers perplexed

Following the arrival of the renowned author’s first full-length novel in six years, critics and readers have been left scratching their heads.
Manchester Crown Court, the venue for the trial of Lucy Letby, who was found guilty of murdering seven newborn babies and trying to kill another six.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Aug 19, 2023

'I am evil': British nurse guilty of murdering seven newborn babies

Lucy Letby, 33, was convicted of killing five baby boys and two baby girls and attacking other newborns.
JAPAN / History
Aug 21, 2023

Colorized photos of 1923 Tokyo quake to be displayed

The photos of the 1923 disaster will be displayed as part of an exhibition set to start at the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo on Sept. 1.
A construction site in Dubai, where workers often face temperatures up to 45 degrees Celsius
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 23, 2023

As temperatures climb, millions more people face food insecurity

A recent study shows that extreme heat leads to an impossible conundrum for many workers: Risk your health to earn a living, or go hungry.
Crowds packed the Mountain Stage at Summer Sonic for Yoasobi’s set on Saturday and went wild when the J-pop duo played the opening notes of “Idol.”
CULTURE / Music
Aug 25, 2023

Summer Sonic closes out the season with one hot party

Asian artists NewJeans, Gen Hoshino, Awich and Babymetal drew impressive crowds at the summer festival despite the overbearing heat.
Matt Daniels of the Buffalo Bills Wheelchair Football Team moves with the ball during a scrimmage against the Cleveland Browns Adaptive Sports team in Cleveland on Aug. 5, 2023.
MORE SPORTS
Aug 24, 2023

Wheelchair football provides camaraderie amid metal-on-metal clashes

Dawson Broad was instantly drawn to wheelchair football after attending a game in Buffalo.
Eiko Higuchi at her microphone production station at Sony Taiyo
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 25, 2023

A tiny factory is handcrafting mics for Justin Bieber and Dr. Dre

Sony Taiyo, a Sony Group subsidiary, is designed to give people with disabilities a fair chance in the workplace.
Koenji-based dance troupe Tengu-ren performs at an Awa odori event in Tokyo's Kagurazaka neighborhood a month before the Koenji Awa Odori.
CULTURE / Longform
Aug 26, 2023

The party returns to Koenji

While the COVID-19 pandemic put a temporary pause to one of Tokyo’s biggest festivals, its dancers never stopped practicing their steps.
Sheep rest under a starry night in Pontimia Pasture in the Swiss Alps.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Aug 25, 2023

Crying wolf to save livestock and their predator

Preservation groups have hailed the return of wolves, seeing it as a sign of a healthier ecosystem. But breeders decry soaring attacks on livestock.
Pictured in his Kyoto kitchen, Alain Ducasse has the largest collection of Michelin stars of any chef alive — not that he puts much stock in such accolades.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Sep 3, 2023

Alain Ducasse: ‘The Kyoto customer wants refinement’

The world’s most Michelin-starred chef sees those stars as a “reward” instead of an “objective.”
South Africa's Siya Kolisi takes selfies with fans after a practice session in Corsica on Aug. 29.
MORE SPORTS
Sep 1, 2023

Springbok icon Siya Kolisi defies odds to return in time for World Cup

Siya Kolisi rose from a hungry and impoverished childhood to become 'an international rugby icon.'
India's ambitious space program blasted off Saturday on a four-month voyage to the center of the solar system, a week after the country's successful unmanned moon landing.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Sep 3, 2023

After moon landing, India launches rocket to study the sun

A week after a historic moon landing, India aims to expand its space presence with a solar probe that will study solar winds and their earthly impact.
Argentina's forward Lionel Messi celebrates after the Qatar 2022 World Cup final match against France in Lusail, Qatar, on Dec. 18.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 6, 2023

Messi back as 2026 World Cup qualifiers kick off

Nine months ago, Messi crowned his glittering career by leading Argentina to a World Cup crown in Qatar.
Mohamed Sebbagh, 66, stands in front of his destroyed house on Sunday, in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake, in Amizmiz, Morocco.
WORLD / Society
Sep 11, 2023

Morocco survivors seek aid as earthquake toll passes 2,100

Relief workers face the challenge of reaching hard-hit villages in the High Atlas, where settlements are often remote and where many houses crumbled.
Shuhei Abe, founder of Sparx Group, is seeking to put his ideas into action with a so-called engagement fund to invest in well-run but undervalued Japanese businesses.
BUSINESS
Sep 11, 2023

Buffett spurs Japan activist pioneer to seek $2 billion for fund

Shuhei Abe is seeking to put his ideas into action with a so-called engagement fund to invest in well-run but undervalued Japanese businesses.
Chinese President Xi Jinping at the BRICS summit in South Africa on Aug. 23
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 14, 2023

What does Xi really mean? Chinese diplomacy’s true intentions

Decoding the true meaning behind Xi Jinping's words, and his silences, reveals an increasingly isolated China.
Monkey D. Luffy (Inaki Godoy), a young wannabe pirate who leads a crew of misfits driven by personal missions, is defined by his ability to stretch his body, making him elastic and indestructible in every way.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Sep 16, 2023

‘One Piece’: Netflix tries to translate the anime magic (again)

Based on a remarkably endurable manga and anime franchise, the live-action series may satisfy fans, but most of the personality of the original is gone.
Soldiers hold flags as they speak in front of destroyed buildings in Klishchiivka, Ukraine, in a screen grab taken from a social media video released on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 18, 2023

Ukraine recaptures eastern village near Bakhmut

Recent gains have been among the most significant in Ukraine's counteroffensive, which began in June.

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes