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CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Jun 10, 2000

The pure and silent voices of Shino

Shino pottery, so pure and calm, has since its birth in the late 16th century tugged at the heartstrings of the Japanese. A Shino chawan (tea bowl) figured prominently in Yasunari Kawabata's masterpiece novel, "A Thousand Cranes." There is a divine presence in the best of Shino wares. When one gazes...
JAPAN
Jun 10, 2000

Japan to register expo bid in August

Japan will register its bid to host the 2005 World Exposition in Aichi Prefecture with an international expo body by late August, International Trade and Industry Minister Takashi Fukaya said Friday.
CULTURE / Music
Jun 10, 2000

A thick Kyoto sound, with all the right elements

"Thick," "intense," "heavy." These are the words people use to describe the new "Kyoto sound." The Kyoto band Elements is at the forefront of this movement, shown by the sellout sales of their latest recording, "Singular Sky," upon its release last month.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 2000

Mori unveils IT aid plan to visiting ASEAN leaders

Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori has unveiled a new assistance program to promote the use of information technology in Southeast Asia as part of Japan's efforts to focus on the IT issue at the Okinawa Group of Eight summit, a Foreign Ministry official said.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 2000

Tiles suggest Todaiji precursor

OSAKA — Researchers have recently discovered fragments of roof tiles within the grounds of Todaiji Temple in Nara that suggest the existence of another temple dating back to the early eighth century.
COMMUNITY
Jun 8, 2000

Pageants losing face with public

Mari Nishihama, 20, a native of Oshima, an island located 100 km south of Tokyo, had always lived a peaceful, if somewhat uneventful, life in the small tourist resort town. But all that suddenly changed last fall, when town celebrities voted the local bank clerk Miss Oshima 2000.
COMMUNITY
Jun 8, 2000

A mouthful of Crazy English goes down very well in Japan

Li Yang seems an unlikely proselytizer for internationalism through English language study. Not only is he not a native speaker of English, but prior to last week he had never even set foot outside of mainland China.
COMMENTARY
Jun 8, 2000

Hope for the two Koreas

All eyes will focus next week on Pyongyang for the June 12-14 historic summit between South Korean President Kim Dae Jung and his North Korean counterpart, Kim Jong Il. Last week's surprise visit to Beijing by the reclusive North Korean leader has added to the drama. While these events provide cause...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 8, 2000

Russian women turn to the Net for love and a life abroad

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia -- Yelena Sokolova was in a deep depression after she divorced her husband, and some friends decided to lift her spirits. They scanned a picture of her and placed it with a personal ad on an Internet site for those seeking marriage.
JAPAN
Jun 7, 2000

Windswept town realizes gusts can be a clean money-spinner

TOMAMAE, Hokkaido — They tower above the ocean on bluffs and farmland, spinning like otherworldly contraptions misplaced on Hokkaido's bucolic coast. But the livestock don't seem to mind.
LIFE / Travel
Jun 7, 2000

A magical world of wonder on the urban fringes

Hotaru (fireflies) are one of nature's smaller, yet sublime occurrences. The tiny, 15-mm-long bugs live only two weeks after hatching, but are blessed with phosphorescent rear ends which make clusters of them a captivating sight on summer nights. Their almost-fluorescent glow also ensures the continuation...
JAPAN
Jun 7, 2000

Drag racing finds new meaning with plow horses

ASAHIKAWA, Hokkaido — Skirting a fresh pile of manure, I settle in behind the well-muscled, veiny flanks of a Banei racehorse.
LIFE / Travel / NATURE TRAVEL
Jun 7, 2000

Irrational tomatoes and criminal turnips

What do Abraham Lincoln, Dark Purple Beefsteak, a Giant Belgian and the Earl of Edgecombe have in common?
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Jun 7, 2000

Chip off the new block

Bill Gates has argued throughout the U.S. government's antitrust suit against his company that Microsoft had to be aggressive because the slightest hesitation or complacency would jeopardize its status. Technology is moving so fast, he claims, that his empire could collapse tomorrow.
JAPAN
Jun 6, 2000

Mori denies that 'kokutai' carries Imperial connotations

Gaffe-prone Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori on Monday defended his use of the term "kokutai," which referred to a national polity centering on the Emperor before and during World War II, and said he has no plans to retract it.
JAPAN
Jun 6, 2000

U.S. mulling Net tax, adviser to Bush says

Visiting Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore, a special adviser on information technology to Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush, suggested Monday that the United States may introduce some kind of Internet taxation.
BUSINESS
Jun 6, 2000

Failed LTCB reopens itself as Shinsei Bank

The Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan relaunched itself as Shinsei Bank on Monday, about 19 months after it collapsed and was placed under state control.
JAPAN
Jun 6, 2000

U.N. to ask food makers to list amounts

A U.N. panel on standards for food safety and labeling plans to ask makers to print data on the percentages by weight of certain ingredients in prepackaged foods on labels attached to the products, nongovernment organization sources said.
CULTURE / Music / FUZZY LOGIC
Jun 6, 2000

Super Furries, Eels, Bentley signed up for summer of fun

Super Furry Animals -- "Mwng" (Placid Casual) Their warped imaginations proffer a bent reality, a Dali-like melting pot of madness; they adorn their album covers with exotic monstrosities that are both cute and menacing. They are totally fuzzy. They are the Super Furry Animals, they don't play by the...
COMMENTARY
Jun 6, 2000

Korean challenges for Japan

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori and South Korean President Kim Dae Jung agreed in their talks in Seoul May 29 that the two nations should coordinate their policies toward North Korea. Mori and Kim also concurred that the North-South Korea summit in Pyongyang, which begins June 12, and the ongoing...
CULTURE / Stage
Jun 6, 2000

Inspecting society's 'little people'

Ever since the first performance of Nikolai Gogol's "The Inspector" took place on April 19, 1836, Russia and the world have been fascinated by Khlestakov, a character in the play who poses as a government inspector and gets away with murder.
CULTURE / Stage
Jun 4, 2000

Chinese ballet master comes in from the cold

It was too off-the-wall to resist: the chance to meet a Chinese ballet master from Alaska. So we arranged to meet in front of Tokyo's Yotsuya Station (not as easy as it sounds, since he is newly arrived and a stranger to Japan) and find him somewhere to eat. Luckily there was a Chinese restaurant right...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 4, 2000

An alignment with India? Think again

According to recent reports, some Japanese officials are attracted by the idea of an alignment with India against China. India, they say, occupies an important position astride Japan's sea routes to the Persian Gulf. They note that India is the world's largest democracy, so Japan can work with it on...
BUSINESS
Jun 3, 2000

Alternatives to nuclear energy limited: OECD head

Japan must pursue a realistic approach toward nuclear power for the sake of energy security while simultaneously enhancing regulatory mechanisms to prevent accidents, according to a senior official of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
JAPAN
Jun 3, 2000

Sakurauchi to retire from politics

Former House of Representatives speaker and Liberal Democratic Party member Yoshio Sakurauchi has decided to retire from politics after complying with a request that he not be listed on the ballot for the upcoming Lower House election.
OLYMPICS
Jun 3, 2000

Mizuno plans to dump ads featuring Chiba

Sporting goods manufacturer Mizuno said Thursday that it will not use swimmer Suzu Chiba in commercials it plans to air before the Olympics since the freestyle swimmer was left off the Japanese national team for the Sydney Games in September.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji