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JAPAN / Politics
Apr 18, 2017

Tokyo prefers to meet Pence, keep trade hardliner Ross at arm's length in economic talks: official

Japan wants to keep Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross out of an economic dialogue with the U.S. as it seeks to avoid disputes with the Trump administration over a weaker yen and trade imbalance, according to a Japanese official who asked not to be identified.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Apr 17, 2017

Shizuoka firm promises good luck in every cup of its green tea

A tea wholesale store based in the city of Makinohara, Shizuoka Prefecture, has developed a technology to ensure a tea stem floats vertically — an omen of good fortune widely believed by Japanese.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FUKUSHIMA FILE
Apr 16, 2017

Fukushima firm plants seeds of revitalization in bid to rebuild Lake Fujinuma area

Aiming to return the area around Lake Fujinuma in Sukagawa, Fukushima Prefecture, to its former glory in the aftermath of the March 2011 disasters, a group of local citizens has launched a company to try to turn the area into a top spot for hydrangea hunters.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 12, 2017

United won't use police to remove overbooked passengers, CEO says

United Airlines will no longer use law enforcement officers to remove passengers from overbooked flights after global outrage erupted over a video showing a passenger dragged from one of its planes in Chicago.
Japan Times
JAPAN / OKINAWA BEAT
Apr 12, 2017

Naha firm to open miniature model theme park in Okinawa featuring tourist sites around the world

A company based in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, is aiming to open a theme park in the prefecture around 2022 featuring exhibitions of famous cities around the world using miniature models.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Apr 10, 2017

Chubu-based firms set up Silicon Valley hubs to tap local tech expertise

Okaya & Co. Ltd., a Nagoya-based trading company for iron and steel, is set to open an office in Silicon Valley in California in the hope of teaming up with tech-savvy ventures there.
JAPAN
Apr 6, 2017

Japan's latest English-proficiency scores disappoint

Japan's plan to improve English proficiency scores with mandatory classes flops as the latest round of testing shows that students are either regressing or making minor progress.
Japan Times
JAPAN / GASTECH JAPAN 2017
Apr 4, 2017

Unlocking LNG's potential

A global network of professional firms offering audit, tax and advisory services, KPMG member companies have successfully supported clients in handling business issues and major risks in the oil and gas sectors. The following is an excerpt of discussions on liquefied natural gas (LNG) and its future...
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Apr 3, 2017

Treatment for mentally ill elusive at Japan's medical prisons

When a 21-year-old woman was sentenced to life in prison on March 24 for killing an elderly woman, the Nagoya District Court acknowledged that the defendant's mental illness — a developmental and bipolar disorder — was part of the reason for the heinous crime and that she should be treated in a medical...
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 1, 2017

We once listened to the Beatles; now we eat beetles

Since the 1960s and '70s, food has replaced music's centrality to American culture.
WORLD
Apr 1, 2017

Congressional rollback of internet privacy rules will be template for undoing net neutrality

Tuesday's decision by the U.S. Congress to invalidate internet privacy rules from the Obama administration has set off a bit of a firestorm. The change, which will allow service providers like AT&T and Verizon to collect and sell customers' information without their permission, prompted ad campaigns...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 29, 2017

Participation in discussions on global issues essential

The Japan Times had the privilege of welcoming William Hiroyuki Saito, a special advisor to the Cabinet Office on cybersecurity to a lecture held at The Japan Times' Nifco Hall on March 13.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Mar 27, 2017

Japan's schools working to upgrade, Westernize lavatories

Dirty, smelly, dark, scary and broken are the five adjectives most commonly used to describe toilets in Japan's public schools.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Mar 20, 2017

Nagoya dye house looks abroad to keep traditional black in fashion

A dye house in Nagoya that specializes in kuro montsukizome, the dyeing of black-crested formal kimono that has been practiced since the Edo Period (1603 to 1868), is working on selling stoles and T-shirts that make use of the same technology.
JAPAN / FUKUSHIMA FILE
Mar 19, 2017

Fukushima fishermen fight release of tainted water as tritium standoff continues

On Feb. 25, against a clear sky, fishing boats bearing colorful banners used to signal a rich haul returned to their home port of Ukedo in the town of Namie, Fukushima Prefecture. Cheers erupted as the boats, which had taken refuge in Minamisoma in the wake of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Mar 18, 2017

The Japan tabloid guide to health and happiness

An alien first encountering Japan's weekly tabloid magazines might conclude he has come to Earth in a nation of inquisitive hypochondriacs.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 14, 2017

U.S. Vice President Pence to tour Asia next month amid security crises

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence will visit Japan and Indonesia as part of an Asian tour next month, sources said on Monday, amid concerns the Trump administration is rolling back Barack Obama's "pivot to Asia."
JAPAN
Mar 13, 2017

Huge number of articles on DeNA info websites found to have plagiarism, copyright issues

A three-month probe uncovers problems with around 20,000 articles uploaded on 10 health and lifestyle information websites run by DeNA Co.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Mar 13, 2017

Nagoya venture taps researcher's reagent to make quick work of synthesizing proteins

A Nagoya-based venture has started selling a reagent that allows researchers to significantly reduce the time needed to synthesize proteins, supporting the development of medicines including one that can control the growth of cancer cells.
Japan Times
JAPAN / OKINAWA BEAT
Mar 9, 2017

Taiwan auto parts firm leads way in Okinawa business push

The Taiwanese boss of an auto component-maker in the Okinawan city of Uruma is confident that his decision to come to the island prefecture was the right one.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Mar 6, 2017

Locals seek to preserve Nagoya park's wartime radio broadcast tower

One of few surviving "radio towers" that were built before and during World War II has been gaining local attention in Nagoya, prompting residents to push for the important legacy to be preserved.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Mar 4, 2017

Japan's magazines get misty-eyed over Showa Era brothels

Commencing with the death of Emperor Taisho on Christmas Day, 1926, the Showa Era ran for 62 years and two weeks, ending with the death of Emperor Hirohito (posthumously referred to as Emperor Showa) at the age of 87 on Jan. 7, 1989.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Mar 4, 2017

Trump aides' bid to plug leaks creates unease among some civil servants

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin used his first senior staff meeting last month to tell his aides he would not tolerate leaks to the news media, three sources familiar with the matter said.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Feb 27, 2017

Nagoya ad startup uses bonus boost to discourage overtime

An online advertising startup has adopted a unique method to achieve zero overtime in its workplace by paying a higher bonus to employees who have reduced their work hours after quitting time, a move likely to draw attention as more Japanese try to achieve a better work-life balance.

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight