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A farmer plants seedlings in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan’s self sufficiency rate for rice is nearly 100%, compared with 38% for food overall, on a calorie basis.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Apr 28, 2024

Climate change, chalky grains and the risks for Japan’s rice farmers

As Japan’s rice farmers prepare for a new planting season, many will be hoping that this summer brings a reprieve from 2023’s brutal weather conditions.
LDP Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi (center) speaks to reporters as election strategy committee chair Yuko Obuchi (left) and Deputy Secretary-General Hiroshi Kajiyama look on at party's headquarters in Tokyo on Sunday night.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 28, 2024

Main opposition CDP sweeps three Lower House by-elections in blow to LDP

The results were seen as a setback for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and could accelerate talks within the LDP about his political future.
At the State Department, an eight-person group informally known as "the firm” is taking steps to help embattled nations when China responds to political disputes with what the U.S. and its allies call "economic coercion."
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 29, 2024

U.S. ‘firm’ steps in when China is seen as a bully, not a partner

At the U.S. State Department, an eight-person group is taking steps to help nations when China responds to political disputes with "economic coercion."
Australia's Flynn Southam (left) and Elijah Winnington celebrate after winning gold in the men's 4x200-meter freestyle relay final at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, on Aug. 1, 2022.
OLYMPICS / Swimming
Apr 29, 2024

Australian swimmers to use China doping scandal as 'fuel' for Paris Olympics

Flynn Southam added to his voice to a chorus of leading swimmers who find the Chinese case hard to swallow.
The Exchange Square complex, which houses the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, in Hong Kong on March 14. Dealmakers say a lot more than words is needed to revive Hong Kong’s weakest IPO market since the global financial crisis.
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 29, 2024

China’s new plan to boost Hong Kong IPOs faces major hurdles

Pipeline of IPOs expected to remain feeble while valuations are low, China’s economic outlook is poor, and foreign investors remain distrustful of Beijing.
Visitors check a Tesla Model 3 car next to a Model Y displayed at a showroom of the U.S. electric-vehicle maker in Beijing on Feb. 4.
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 29, 2024

Tesla clears key regulatory hurdles for self-driving in China

Tesla is said to have reached an agreement with Baidu to use the Chinese tech giant's mapping license for data collection.
Former two-time WNBA MVP Candace Parker announced her retirement on Sunday.
BASKETBALL
Apr 29, 2024

Women's basketball great Candace Parker retires

The 38-year-old power forward, who posted her decision on Instagram, was a two-time WNBA Most Valuable Player.
The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan's Natsumi Sakai (center) celebrates with other CDP officials and supporters on Sunday in Tokyo's Koto Ward after being announced as the winner of the Tokyo No. 15 district by-election.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 29, 2024

Election trouncing a blow to Kishida, but snap election unlikely

The PM might order a Cabinet reshuffle and make leadership changes within the LDP to boost his popularity ahead of the party's presidential election.
Red Bull Racing driver Sergio Perez speaks during a news conference in Shanghai on April 21.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Apr 30, 2024

Red Bull should stick with Perez, says Szafnauer

Perez's contract runs out at the end of the season, and the 34-year-old faces an uncertain future.
Britain topped the cycling medals table at the Tokyo Games in 2021, winning seven medals, including three golds.
OLYMPICS / Cycling
Apr 30, 2024

British Cycling confident new track bike will deliver more gold

British Cycling has prided itself on delivering state-of-the-art kit, including bikes and clothing, to its riders.
TikTok raised eyebrows last month when it mobilized users to petition against a potential ban, demonstrating its influence on Americans.
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 30, 2024

TikTok and Tesla just the start of U.S.-China clash over Big Data

Data security is again taking center stage in the intensifying rivalry between the U.S. and China.
This combination of photos shows the cooling tower of the Emile Huchet coal-fired power station undergoing demolition in Saint-Avold, northeastern France, in February.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Apr 30, 2024

G7 reportedly agrees end date for coal-fired power plants

The meeting in Turin is the first big political session since the world pledged at the U.N.'s COP28 climate summit in December.
Despite being a major player in industries like technology and manufacturing, South Korea's defense exports have historically lagged behind.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 25, 2024

South Korea’s cheap weapons still won’t sell themselves

Despite being a major player in industries like technology and manufacturing, South Korea's defense exports have historically lagged behind.
Children hold cork sheets to cover them from the sun while walking along a street during a countrywide heat wave in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on Sunday.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
May 1, 2024

Extreme heat is closing schools, widening learning gaps worldwide

Many countries experiencing heat waves are torn between closing schools or leaving them open, both of which negatively affect children's learning.
U.S. President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak deliver remarks on the AUKUS partnership, after a trilateral meeting, at Naval Base Point Loma in San Diego, California, on March 13, 2023.
WORLD / Politics
May 1, 2024

U.S. reduces arms licensing burden for U.K. and Australia to boost AUKUS

The U.S. State Department unveiled its proposal to reduce licensing requirements for transferring military equipment as part of the AUKUS defense project.
Masayuki Fukasawa (left), chief editor of Diario Brasil Nippou, and Kimiko Aso, of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, in Sao Paulo in April
JAPAN / Society
May 1, 2024

Brazil's last Japanese-language newspaper innovates to stay in print

Behind the difficulties facing Diario Brasil Nippou is declining numbers of subscribers, but the daily hopes to stay afloat by stressing its cultural role.
The Shimane Nuclear Power Plant in Matsue, Shimane Prefecture
JAPAN / Society
May 1, 2024

Chugoku Electric delays restart of nuclear reactor at Shimane plant

The No. 2 unit will be the first boiling-water reactor to be restarted in Japan since the 2011 accident at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong (left) and Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Richard Marles (third from left) escort South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul (second from left) and Defense Minister Shin Won-sik for a meeting of the two countries' foreign and defense ministers in Melbourne on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 1, 2024

South Korea discusses participating in AUKUS tech pillar

Talks over Seoul's inclusion in the defense technology pillar of the security pact come weeks after Japan also said it was in discussions to join.
U.S. President Joe Biden makes an appearance at an infrastructure construction project in Woodstock, New Hampshire, in November 2021.  Bridges and sewage systems may seem unglamorous, but common assets such as these will form the basis of economic growth for years to come.
COMMENTARY / World
May 1, 2024

The West’s new infrastructure imperative

A dim future awaits any society that allows its infrastructure to degrade and underinvests in new needs.
A World Anti-Doping Agency logo is seen at the WADA Symposium in Lausanne, Switzerland, on March 12, 2024.
MORE SPORTS
May 2, 2024

USADA slams WADA for making 'half-truths' in China doping case

WADA has been under fire since last month, when the New York Times reported 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for trimetazidine before the Tokyo Games.
Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology, which allowed customers to grab grocery items from a shelf and walk out of the store, is reportedly being phased out of its grocery stores.
COMMENTARY / World
May 2, 2024

Amazon's AI stores seemed too magical. And they were.

There are plenty more examples of companies that have failed to mention humans pulling the levers behind supposedly cutting-edge AI technology.
A double-hulled tanker sits docked in front of the Burnaby Refinery, near Vancouver. Natural gas is a key component of the city’s energy use.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
May 2, 2024

How sewage is helping along the energy transition

Capturing waste heat worldwide could prevent burning nearly 30 million barrels of oil daily or 650 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually.
Attendees at the Leap technology conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on March 6, 202. The oil-rich country is plowing money into glitzy events, computing power and artificial intelligence research, putting it in the middle of an escalating U.S.-China struggle for technological influence.
WORLD / Politics
May 2, 2024

‘To the future’: Saudi Arabia spends big to become an AI superpower

Saudi Arabia was long a financial spigot for tech, but is now building its own industry.
Forever Young, ridden by jockey Ryusei Sakai, runs during the UAE Derby in Dubai on March 30.
MORE SPORTS
May 3, 2024

Contenders prepare for 150th running of Kentucky Derby

Japanese-bred Forever Young, which starts from the 11th post, is a 10-1 contender.
Crew members check an SH-60K helicopter on the deck of the Maritime Self-Defense Force's Hyuga-class destroyer JS Ise during a three-day maritime exercise between the United States and Japan in the Philippine Sea on Jan. 31.
JAPAN
May 3, 2024

MSDF chopper crash likely caused by human factors

The accident off the Pacific island of Torishima on the night of April 20 left one crew member dead and seven other still missing.
Nomura Holdings and Mizuho Bank are hit by more than $100 million of potential losses related to All Blue Capital, raising questions about their monitoring of high-risk investment funds.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 3, 2024

Nomura and Mizuho face losses after fund’s failed trades

The size of the potential losses raises questions about the risk-management practices at two of Japan’s largest banks.
Jakob Ingebrigtsen runs during a Diamond League meet in Brussels on Sept. 8, 2023.
OLYMPICS
May 3, 2024

Jakob Ingebrigtsen expects Paris to be 'walk in the park' compared to Tokyo

Jakob Ingebrigtsen believes his 1,500-meter Olympic title defense will be a breeze as long as he avoids illness and injury on the road to Paris.
The Knicks' OG Anunoby reacts after making a 3-pointer against the Sixers during Game 6 of their first-round playoff series in Philadelphia.
BASKETBALL / NBA
May 3, 2024

Knicks and Pacers set up second-round clash in NBA playoffs

The Knicks and Pacers won their first-round playoff series on Thursday.
A Kayah woman and children carrying containers from a delivery of drinking water in Myanmar's eastern Kayah state.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 3, 2024

'Fuel for water?' Heat wave piles misery on Myanmar displaced

A heat wave that has sent the mercury in Myanmar to 48 degrees Celsius in some places has added to uncertainties of life in the camps.
World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus attends a news conference at WHO headquarters in Geneva in July 2020.
WORLD / Science & Health
May 4, 2024

'Get this done,' WHO chief urges pandemic accord talks

World Health Organization member states have spent the last two years drafting an international accord on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.

Longform

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