Search - japan

 
 
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jun 11, 2006

It's a mechanical kind of love

LOVING THE MACHINE: The Art and Science of Japanese Robots, by Timothy N. Hornyak. Tokyo/New York: Kodansha International, 2006, 160 pp., profusely illustrated, 2,800 yen (cloth). One of the most popular mysteries of 18th-century Europe was the Chess-playing Turk, a robot-like automaton that won all...
Japan Times
LIFE
Jun 11, 2006

Preparing for 'people's courts'

For more than 60 years since its last form of a jury system was suspended, Japan's courts have been the preserve of a largely unseen elite. Now, though, regular citizens are set to take part again too, and 'mock trials' like those popular in America may play a key role in preparing for this momentous...
SOCCER / World cup
Jun 9, 2006

Fans' 'Bonn' voyage builds before kickoff

Japan fans staying in Bonn unable to head to Munich for the opening game of the World Cup between Germany and Costa Rica on Friday won't be missing out on the carnival atmosphere.
EDITORIALS
Jun 9, 2006

Defense of the nonnuclear option

The nuclear genie cannot be put back in the bottle; the knowledge that yielded the nuclear bomb cannot be unlearned. That does not mean the world must merely accept the existence of such weapons of mass destruction (WMD), however. Rather, it requires more vigilance in halting their spread and more creative...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 9, 2006

Eye looks to tranquillity after his contrived chaos

"I don't really think I have any musicianship. I can't play any instruments. I have no technique. I really can't do anything. I have no professional skill at all. I'm also a crap DJ. I'm really not very deft! Really I'm crap . . . and I've been doing it for 10 years!" says Yamataka Eye, leader of the...
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jun 9, 2006

Journalists capture life through a lens

The monthly photojournalism magazine Days Japan is currently exhibiting award-winning images from its 2nd International Photojournalism Awards at the Konica Minolta Plaza in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The exhibition, titled "Living on Earth 2006," runs through June 19.
BUSINESS
Jun 9, 2006

Taiwan OKs cuts in size of big eye tuna fishing fleet

Taiwan has agreed to reduce the size of its big eye tuna boats by 41 percent to 280 vessels by the end of 2007 from 474 vessels in 2005 in response to the decline in big eye stocks worldwide, the Fisheries Agency announced Thursday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 6, 2006

Murakami arrested over insider trading

Outspoken investment fund manager Yoshiaki Murakami was arrested Monday for alleged insider trading linked to his investment fund's purchase of Nippon Broadcasting System Inc. shares between late 2004 and early 2005.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Jun 4, 2006

Everybody gets to be a detective this week in TBS's "Uranaishi Misuzu" and more

Everybody gets to be a detective this week. In "Uranaishi Misuzu: The Incident Beyond Fate" (TBS, Monday, 9 p.m.), it's one of those street fortune tellers you see parked outside of office buildings at night. Misuzu (Kumiko Okae), however, isn't your run-of-the-mill palm reader. She's one of the most...
JAPAN
Jun 3, 2006

LDP wants to allow military projects in space programs

A panel of the Liberal Democratic Party has drafted a bill that would allow Japan to use space for military purposes within the realm of self-defense, shifting from the current stance that space projects only have civilian roles, party officials said Friday.
JAPAN
May 31, 2006

Cabinet OKs U.S. realignment plan but is vague on specifics

The Cabinet adopted plans Tuesday to help pay for the U.S. military realignment in Japan, pledging to come up with steps to stimulate the economies of communities hosting bases and to take money out of the defense budget to finance the program.
JAPAN
May 31, 2006

Japanese ability eyed as visa requirement

A Justice Ministry panel discussing long-term policies for accepting foreigners in Japan proposed Tuesday that the government in principle require that foreign workers have a certain level of Japanese proficiency.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
May 30, 2006

Fitness for kicks and more

The yearly ritual of storing away our winter duds and unpacking skimpy summer styles often leads to a common conclusion: It's time to get into shape, and fast.
BUSINESS
May 30, 2006

World Bank chief Wolfowitz urges African trade, investment

World Bank Group President Paul Wolfowitz said Monday in Tokyo that Japan should play a larger role in promoting trade and investment in Africa, saying they were "more critical" to the continent than development aid.
BUSINESS
May 29, 2006

Japanese capitalism proved naysayers wrong, scholar says

Japan has successfully modified and reinforced its own economic model -- rather than surrendering to the American one -- while fighting its way out of the prolonged stagnation it got mired in when the bubble economy imploded in the early 1990s, an American scholar said at a recent seminar in Tokyo.
JAPAN
May 27, 2006

Law enacted to slim bureaucracy avoids 'amakudari,' DPJ charges

The Diet enacted key legislation Friday that lays out a timetable for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's efforts to reform and slim down the government over the next several years.
JAPAN
May 23, 2006

Importer's rare tortoises a labor of love

Before he heads off to work, Masakazu Utsunomiya has a unique daily ritual of tender loving care -- he bathes and feeds the rare Burmese starred tortoises he keeps in his modest Tokyo apartment and ensures their tanks' temperature is just right.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
May 23, 2006

Air con fury and posting

What? AH in Hokkaido wonders if I have been in Japan too long.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’