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JAPAN
Jan 1, 2014

The most viewed news stories of 2013

On first impression, the news stories most read online in 2013 paint a fairly gloomy picture, a mix of loneliness, darkness and tragedy. However, you can also see readers' penchant for science and fantasy, even if Atlantis was not actually discovered. May there be plenty of good news in 2014!
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 31, 2013

Toyoda says car industry must be more aggressive

The auto industry must take the initiative to be more competitive until the benefits of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's deflation-busting economic policies are fully felt, according to Akio Toyoda, chairman of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Dec 31, 2013

Cork: Meals start from the wine list at this L'As spinoff

As we gallop into 2014, how better to start this Year of the Horse than with a toast? Sake may be traditional on this auspicious day, but wine is just fine — as long as the setting is as bright and shiny as this brave new year, and if there's great food to match. Cork fits the bill perfectly.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 31, 2013

Failed predictions: President Romney, Pope Dolores

Humanity's faith in predictions was tested around this time a year ago when the floods, famines and other disasters predicted by the end of the ancient Maya calendar failed to materialize.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 31, 2013

Red Bull Music Academy grad Mr. Beatnick has tips for the Class of '14

Londoner Nick Wilson took part in one of the early editions of the Red Bull Music Academy (RBMA) in Cape Town in 2003. The ensuing years have seen him heavily involved in the city's underground scene, whether it is producing genre-hopping electronic music as Mr Beatnick or writing for publications such...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Dec 30, 2013

In Fukushima, abandoned pets are multiplying

'Sterilization is the most practical and humane way to curb the growing population of feral animals, and research backs this up,' says Hiro Yamasaki of the Animal Rescue System in Shirakawa, Fukushima Prefecture. 'Unfortunately, our clinic is the only one providing this kind of service. The local vets and bureaucrats have not responded adequately to the situation. Something had to be done.'
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 29, 2013

So much for nau: What will we say next?

The end of the year is always a good time to reflect on what is, was and will be. With regard to language, one of the most stimulating things I have recently read in this respect was from an article in the journal Nihongogaku (日本語学) about a study in which Japanese university students were asked...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Dec 29, 2013

Education in 2013: an 'A' for ambition, but Japan will have to do better

Will 2014 be the year we start to see a genuinely forward-thinking, globalized outlook for education in Japan? The rapidly changing global economy, regional tensions and shrinking population suggest huge challenges await the country's youth on their emergence into the job market in the coming years.
EDITORIALS
Dec 29, 2013

Drones getting closer to home

Japanese should not assume that remotely controlled unmanned aerial vehicles for military purposes, otherwise known as drones, are being used only in remote parts of the world.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2013

Conceding it's best avoided, Aso refuses to rule out fresh extra budget

While saying it is best if such a move is not made, Finance Minister Taro Aso refused to rule out the possibility an extra budget will be needed again next year to support the economy.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 29, 2013

IMF may upgrade growth forecast

The International Monetary Fund may upgrade its growth forecast for Japan, although the nation must start fiscal and structural reforms in 2014, IMF First Deputy Managing Director David Lipton was cited as saying in an interview in the Financial Times.
CULTURE / Books
Dec 28, 2013

Epicenters of death

This study of the Great Kanto Earthquake by scholar Charles Schencking, begins not as you might expect, with the cataclysmic temblor of 1923, but with the Great East Japan Earthquake of March 11, 2011. In this latter event, optimism was predicated on the assumption that swift and decisive action would...
EDITORIALS
Dec 28, 2013

Year of ups and downs for Japan

Japan in 2013 was besieged by problems in politics, business and society even while several key events helped to rekindle a sense of confidence in Japan.
Japan Times
BASEBALL
Dec 28, 2013

The Batting Stance Guy waxes poetic on Youkilis, NPB

Kevin Youkilis' batting stance is, shall we say, a little different than most.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Dec 28, 2013

After Abe Yasukuni jaunt, all eyes on Xi

Chinese President Xi Jinping's reaction to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to Yasukuni Shrine will determine whether Asia's top two economies come closer to a hostile incident.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Dec 27, 2013

For a healthy, successful 2014

Figure Skating / ICE TIME
Dec 27, 2013

Mao must let the triple axel go for shot at gold in Sochi

Enough already. It is time for two-time world champion Mao Asada to give up the triple axel.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / JAPANESE KITCHEN
Dec 26, 2013

Start a tasty new kitchen tradition this New Year's

We're entering the most traditional time of year in Japan in food terms, starting on New Year's Eve and through the New Year's holiday period, when families gather to dine on osechi delicacies and bowls of symbolic soba noodles. That doesn't mean that there's no room for other kinds of foods, though....
BUSINESS
Dec 26, 2013

Daiwa Real Estate plans health REIT

Daiwa Real Estate Asset Management Co., a unit of the nation's second-largest brokerage, will set up a health-care real estate investment trust that will own nursing homes and hospitals in the world's fastest-aging society.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Dec 26, 2013

Budget limits trim NASA's plans for big projects

The Cassini spacecraft is in splendid shape as it circles Saturn. Conceived in the 1980s and launched in 1997, Cassini arrived at the gas-giant planet in 2004 and has continued to deliver stunning images of the jewel of the solar system.

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami