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Makoto Nakae, a researcher of swallowtail butterflies
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Dec 9, 2024

New museum set to bring butterflies of the world to Fukushima

The collection includes Japan’s only display of an extinct butterfly species native to South America.
The PlayStation 5 on display during the annual Tokyo Game Show in September. PlayStation was Sony's first foray into the world of video games when it hit the shelves in Japan on Dec. 3, 1994.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 2, 2024

PlayStation at 30: How Sony's gray box conquered gaming

The PlayStation became a legend, selling more than 102 million units and positioning Sony as a heavyweight in a hugely lucrative sector.
A 40-year-old house in the city of Fukuoka that has been renovated by Katitas, a company that buys up secondhand houses for resale. The company retained the house's original wooden ceilings and window frames to preserve the property's vintage look.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Dec 9, 2024

As demand rises for abandoned houses, so do cases of hidden defects

Industry experts recommend prospective buyers conduct thorough inspections before concluding transactions for akiya.
The Cultural Affairs Agency in the city of Kyoto
JAPAN
Dec 4, 2024

Japan to use AI to tackle online manga and anime piracy

The Cultural Affairs Agency's plan will have AI scour the web for sites pirating manga books and anime, using an image and text detection system.
ChatGPT’s advanced voice mode is able to seamlessly go back-and-forth between languages with live, human-sounding responses and minimal errors.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 4, 2024

ChatGPT is now a creepy cultural chameleon

This uncanny tool that can speak 50 languages with human-like candor has the potential to forever change how people around the world interact with AI.
Paul McCartney's new coin references the psychedelic "magic piano" featured in the 1967 "Magical Mystery Tour" film.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Dec 6, 2024

Beatles legend Paul McCartney stars in new U.K. coin collection

The 82-year-old musician helped design the coins, which nod to the psychedelic "magic piano" featured in the 1967 "Magical Mystery Tour" film.
Alexandre Pantoja at a news conference in Rio de Janeiro in May
MORE SPORTS
Dec 6, 2024

Newcomer Kai Asakura aims to dethrone Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 310

Asakura, a 31-year-old from Japan, is a two-time Rizin bantamweight champion.
Insurance tycoon Douw Steyn’s 250 million rand home overlooks the luxury residential estate bearing his name near Johannesburg, South Africa.
BUSINESS
Dec 9, 2024

Luxury estates for the rich are a booming business in South Africa

Despite a 20% decline in South Africa’s millionaire population over the past decade, it remains a hub for the continent’s high-net-worth individuals.
Students at Hiroshima University’s School of Dentistry offer silent prayers for the donors of bodies before they practice anatomy on the cadavers in late October.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Regional Voices: Chugoku
Dec 16, 2024

In death, body donors become silent teachers for medical students

Practical training on cadavers significantly increases the understanding of the human body, says one professor.
Mindy Kailing announces the nominees for the 82nd Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills on Monday.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Dec 10, 2024

'Emilia Perez,' 'The Brutalist' lead Golden Globe film nominations

Representing Japan at the awards will be "Shogun," with three nods for acting and one for best TV drama.
Al Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo in action with Al Ittihad's Abdulrahman in a Saudi Pro League match in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Friday
SOCCER
Dec 10, 2024

'Humanizing' Saudi soccer': Netflix show paves way for World Cup

The series depicts how the Saudi Pro League has been transformed by the arrival of global stars.
Tiger Woods and his son Charlie Woods walk off the seventh green during a practice round for the U.S. Open golf tournament in Pinehurst, North Carolina, on June 11.
MORE SPORTS / Golf
Dec 11, 2024

Tiger and Charlie Woods set to compete in next week's PNC

"Playing together is something we look forward to," said Tiger Woods.
The East Japan Railway Shinjuku Station in Tokyo. Within the next 10 years, JR East will develop automated walk-through gate technology so that passengers can enter the train platform without having to tap their Suica card or phone on the ticket gates.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 11, 2024

JR East announces 10-year plan to drastically overhaul Suica

Dubbed the "Suica Renaissance," the plan involves redesigned ticket gates, new payment features and a subscription service.
AE3803 (Mei Nagano, left) and U-1146 (Takeru Satoh) are the red and white blood cell protagonists of “Cells at Work!,” Hideki Takeuchi’s quirky film about the human body.
CULTURE / Film
Dec 12, 2024

‘Cells at Work!’: Cellular shenanigans make for a fantastic voyage

Spirited performances by Mei Nagano and Takeru Satoh bolster Hideki Takeuchi’s quirky and stylish film.
Shiro Yamanaka, head of Uber Japan (right), introduces the Uber Teens service during a news conference in Tokyo Wednesday.
JAPAN
Dec 12, 2024

Uber Japan launches taxi service for teenagers

Uber Teens can provide parents with real-time location data and audio recordings from taxis.
On Dec. 11, Universal Studios Japan officially unveiled its new Donkey Kong Country area, putting the iconic character in the spotlight for the first time in a while.
LIFE / Travel
Dec 12, 2024

USJ’s new Donkey Kong Country is a barrel of fun

Mine Cart Madness is the area’s only ride, but there are shops and snacking options as well as chances to meet costumed characters from the iconic series.
In a year of anime hits, Kiyotaka Oshiyama’s “Look Back” stood out from the bunch.
CULTURE / Film / 2024 in Review
Dec 13, 2024

Big franchises and bold voices dominated anime in 2024

In a year of major box-office hits such as “Conan” and “Haikyu!!,” smaller animators used nontraditional tools to stand out from the rest.
Shohei Ohtani's prowress on the diamond translated into an outsized influence on Japan's consumer trends this year.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Dec 13, 2024

The year that Shohei Ohtani achieved 'yokozuna' status … in the market

To qualify as a genuine "hitto" (hit), a product or service must harness some new concept or technology in a manner that significantly impacts the marketplace.
Gucci’s newest boutique bar is moody, chic and delightfully louche.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Kanpai Culture
Dec 15, 2024

From Florence to Osaka, Gucci’s newest concept bar oozes style

Gucci Giardino Osaka carves out its own identity through a fusion of Italian and Japanese influences set against the backdrop of the city’s fast-paced, urban landscape.
A boy who came to watch the launch of Space One's Kairos rocket in Nachikatsuura, Wakayama Prefecture, on Sunday shows his disappointment after the liftoff was postponed again.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Dec 15, 2024

Japanese firm Space One postpones rocket launch again

Sunday's postponement was due to strong winds, according to the Tokyo-based company, which aims to launch 30 satellites annually by the 2030s.
Crystal Smith, the elected chief of the Haisla people, stands on the shoreline of the Douglas Channel in Kitamaat, British Columbia, Canada, on Oct. 1.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Dec 15, 2024

Indigenous people in Canada weigh costs of a gas windfall

The promise of billions of dollars of gas investment has renewed a generations-old debate over Indigenous identity and environmental stewardship.
Satoyo Kojika, who has run a barbershop inside the parliament building for more than half a century
JAPAN / Politics / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Dec 23, 2024

Woman who ran a parliament barbershop for half a century retires

The shop has been run by Satoyo Kojika, 85, a native of the village of Kawauchi in Fukushima Prefecture.
Thimphu TechPark building in Thimphu, Bhutan, on Oct. 17
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 16, 2024

Secret to AI profitability is hiring a lot more doctorates

Nagging questions persist about whether AI will actually prove useful enough for businesses around the world to pay up for it.
Tomoko Yamashita, head of the NPO that runs Park. Youth & Books & Design, says she wants to make the facility a place where older teens can feel secure.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Dec 23, 2024

New facility offers truant high school students a place to feel at home

Himitsukichi, a nonprofit group, has renovated an old, vacant house to turn it into a site for older teens.
Jay Rubin’s new translation of Haruki Murakami’s “End of the World and Hard-Boiled Wonderland,” in part set in a walled city where inhabitants’ shadows are forcibly removed, speaks to the author’s quirky, exhaustive attention to detail when rendering his imaginative world on the page.
CULTURE / Books
Dec 16, 2024

Jay Rubin takes us back to Haruki Murakami's world

A new translation of “End of the World and Hard-Boiled Wonderland” brings the fan favorite closer to the original Japanese text.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Papua New Guinea leader James Marape address a news conference in Sydney on Dec. 12.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 17, 2024

Australia shows how smart diplomacy is done

Recent deals reflect the laser focus the Australian government is devoting to its closest neighbors and a bureaucratic reorganization that translates into action.
Tsuyako Shimabukuro (front, second from left), head of the Eguchi community association in the town of Chatan, Okinawa Prefecture, and other community leaders discuss their efforts along with members of the prefectural association of families of missing persons with dementia.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Dec 30, 2024

Okinawa communities battle a rise in missing elderly with dementia

In the prefecture, 118 such cases were reported to the police last year.
Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Evil Does Not Exist,” released in Japanese theaters in April, sharply dramatizes the clash between rural and urban values. The film won five awards at the 2023 Venice Film Festival, including the second-place Silver Lion prize.
CULTURE / Film / 2024 in Review
Dec 20, 2024

A year of Oscar wins and a quiet push for diversity

International collaborations and indie risk-takers steered the film industry in a fresh direction in 2024.
When chef Yoshihiro Kitagawa returned to his hometown of Matsusaka to open Shibousai Kitagawa in 2015, he chose a tranquil location on the rural fringe of the city.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Destination Restaurants
Dec 22, 2024

Shibousai Kitagawa: Creative Chinese in the home of Matsusaka wagyu

Alongside the superlative array of vegetable appetizers, a focal point at Shibousai Kitagawa is the revered local Matsusaka wagyu.
Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the murder of UnitedHealth Group executive Brian Thompson, arrives at a helicopter pad after being extradited from Pennsylvania to New York on Thursday.
WORLD
Dec 21, 2024

Luigi Mangione’s 15-day path from New York to Altoona McDonald’s

Details from charging documents, court proceedings and news conferences show a troubled young man.

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