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Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 12, 2015

Ketchup-maker Kagome hikes prices but fears consumers aren't ready to pay more

For Tokyo-based condiments maker Kagome, and perhaps for the government, the challenge of breaking with a decade and a half of deflation boils down to the price of a bottle of ketchup.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 11, 2015

American Sniper: 'a refusal to deal with the complexity of war'

Just about every Iraq war movie to date has bombed at the box office, and there's a reason for that: Like the war itself, most of those movies were bummers. Even "The Hurt Locker," which did well at the Oscars, had a lukewarm reception at the box office. But along comes director Clint Eastwood with "American...
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 11, 2015

Aid agencies see many more migrant deaths in Mediterranean amid curtailed patrols

Inadequate naval patrolling means ever more migrants from Africa and the Middle East will die trying to cross the Mediterranean, aid agencies warned on Tuesday, as Italy appealed for a "more vigorous" European response to tackle the crisis.
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 11, 2015

Parents of slain Islamic State hostage confirm U.S. woman's death

U.S. aid worker Kayla Mueller, held hostage by Islamic State militants for 18 months, is dead, her family said on Tuesday, but the circumstances were unclear and President Barack Obama vowed to hunt down the culprits.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS / TYSON-DOUGLAS SHOCKER REVISITED
Feb 10, 2015

Douglas reflects on Tyson fight 25 years later

The youngest heavyweight champion in history, making his 10th title defense, entered the fight with a 37-0 record and had never been knocked down during his pro career; Douglas was the 42-1 underdog. Tyson's reign ended 28 minutes, 22 seconds into the fight, at precisely 1:22 into the 10th round.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Feb 10, 2015

Riken serves Obokata, others with penalties; charges could follow

The research institution at the center of a scandal over faked work is putting most of the blame on scientist Haruko Obokata and to a lesser extent three of her former colleagues.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 10, 2015

Is Beijing getting ready for a currency war?

China is in all likelihood about to loosen monetary policy considerably to support economic growth.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Feb 10, 2015

Australia sub deal puts Abe in precarious position

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott survived a leadership challenge on Monday, but his last-minute pledge to allow an open tender on the construction of new submarines poses a challenge to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who must weigh the political risks of becoming more public about his ambition to tap...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 10, 2015

Quantum wins $20.5 million funding to build a rapid DNA sequencer

Quantum Biosystems Inc., an Osaka-based company developing a faster genome sequencer, has raised ¥2.4 billion in venture-capital funding from firms including Jafco Co., people with knowledge of the matter said.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Feb 7, 2015

Breaking down the barriers: Can Tokyo improve access for people with disabilities?

In the summer of 2020, Tokyo will once again host the Olympic and Paralympic Games. It's the first time the Paralympics will be hosted by a city for the second time.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Feb 7, 2015

Taking a critical look at the prison of history

Those who write about history do so at their peril. The difficulties are manifest: how to contribute anything meaningful, to be divergent but remain credible and to research the past without losing sight of the present.
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 7, 2015

Measles outbreak spurs new action in California, New Mexico

Students at all 10 campuses of the University of California will be required to be screened for tuberculosis and vaccinated for measles, mumps, rubella and other diseases under a new health plan set to take effect in 2017, the university said on Friday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Feb 7, 2015

For investors, a new game plan after U.S. jobs report

A blowout jobs report has changed the calculus for investors for what the Federal Reserve might do in coming months, resetting expectations for how markets might behave if the U.S. economy continues to strengthen even as global growth lags.
Figure Skating / ICE TIME
Feb 6, 2015

Orser says Hanyu back in training, working on quads

Brian Orser, the coach of 2014 Olympic and world champion Yuzuru Hanyu continues to be the best quote in the business.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Feb 6, 2015

Amputee women in Japan proudly step forward

Japan isn't the easiest place to live for people with disabilities. Buildings and transportation aren't always accessible; people are apt to regard disabilities as shameful; and a societal tendency to turn away from anything unpleasant makes it difficult to effect change. Nevertheless change is possible,...
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 6, 2015

Time for EU and U.S. to step back from Ukraine conflict

For the first time since 1990, nuclear war is considered a possibility, all because of the conflict in east Ukraine. The U.S. and its European allies have been the aggressors in this confrontation with Russia, and they are the ones who can call it off.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Feb 5, 2015

Ruben Pater: Current advancements in drone technology are worrying

Dutch artist Ruben Pater discusses drones and survival in the modern age:
Japan Times
JAPAN / AMBASSADOR VISIT
Feb 5, 2015

Spanish ambassador speaks of hopes for ties

Newly appointed Spanish Ambassador Gonzalo de Benito Secades said Thursday he hopes to enhance existing partnerships between Spain and Japan and build new ones.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Feb 5, 2015

India bets on U.S. aircraft carrier technology

India wants to use state-of-the-art U.S. technology to boost the range and potency of a planned aircraft carrier, defense sources said, a move that would tie their arms programs closer together and counter China's military influence in the region.
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 5, 2015

Vermont gas station attendant bequeaths millions to library, hospital

Perhaps the only clue that Ronald Read, a Vermont gas station attendant and janitor who died last year at age 92, had been quietly amassing an $8 million fortune was his habit of reading the Wall Street Journal, his friends and family say.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 5, 2015

Ebola cases on the rise for first time this year, WHO says

The number of new cases of Ebola rose in all three of West Africa's worst-hit countries last week, the World Health Organization said Wednesday, ending several weeks of encouraging declines across the region.
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 5, 2015

Two Cuban baseball players defect in Puerto Rico

Two Cuban baseball players defected in Puerto Rico, where a squad from their country is playing in the Caribbean Series against four other Latin American teams, Cuban sports officials said on Wednesday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Feb 4, 2015

Malakhov brings borscht to ballet

"In my free time when I'm not taking classes or conducting rehearsals, I like to go to theaters and museums — or just go shopping and visit different parts of the city," Vladimir Malakhov, The Tokyo Ballet's new artistic adviser explained during our recent Japan Times interview.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.