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BUSINESS
Aug 25, 2006

Wood chips to power 40,000 vehicles in biomass fuel initiative

The Environment Ministry said Thursday it will launch a project to mass produce environmentally friendly biomass fuel made from materials like wood chips to power about 40,000 motor vehicles annually in metropolitan areas.
BUSINESS
Aug 25, 2006

Sony Bank to acquire brokerage

Sony Bank said Thursday it will acquire Kaiyo Securities Co. based in Okinawa to launch Internet-based securities brokerage services in the first half of fiscal 2007.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Aug 24, 2006

Crafting the tea demon in Hagi

Psychologist Abraham Maslow (1908-1970), in his theory of self-actualization, said, "If you plan on being anything less than you are capable of being, you will probably be unhappy all the days of your life."
BASKETBALL
Aug 23, 2006

Role player Battier back with Brand, Coach K

SAPPORO -- One big difference between this Team USA compared to American teams in previous FIBA tournaments is that it has players who are devoted to dirty work, the thankless jobs that don't light up the scoreboard.
BASKETBALL
Aug 22, 2006

Japan downs Panama for first win at worlds

HIROSHIMA -- By now you know that Carlos Santana didn't record "Smooth" -- his chart-topping duet with Rob Thomas -- with the Japan National Basketball Team as his inspiration.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Aug 22, 2006

Let's dance

The end of bon (Aug. 13-15) brings with it a sense that summer is drawing to a close, even though the weather is still hot. Summer festivals in Tokyo cap the season -- reviving culture from the Edo Period (1603-1868), incorporating regional dancing, and even imitating foreign carnivals. Communities are...
BASKETBALL
Aug 21, 2006

Argentina cruises in romp of Lebanon

SENDAI -- Reserve forward Walter Hermann scored 23 points as Argentina grabbed the early lead in Group A on Sunday afternoon, scoring an easy 107-72 victory over Lebanon to improve to 2-0 in the first round of the FIBA World Championship.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 21, 2006

Can regional integration save Africa?

PRAGUE -- During the last quarter-century, global economic growth has soared, but Africa continued to lose ground. Indeed, the Continent's share of world exports fell from 4.6 percent in 1980 to 1.8 percent in 2000, and its share of world imports declined from 3.6 percent to 1.6 percent over the same...
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2006

Okinawa to get school backed by U.S. military

The Japanese and U.S. governments are working to establish an international school in Okinawa Prefecture that promotes English education among Japanese children with the help of the U.S. military.
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2006

Ex-lawmaker's former aide questioned over Mizutani scam

Prosecutors probing alleged tax evasion by engineering firm Mizutani Kensetsu Co. have questioned a former secretary to a retired Diet member who once served as a Cabinet minister and was a top executive of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, according to sources familiar with the investigation.
JAPAN
Aug 19, 2006

Aum sarin maker's death penalty upheld

," Tsuchiya's lawyers claimed in their concluding statement. But Shiraki dismissed that argument, saying Tsuchiya surely was aware that the chemicals he was synthesizing would be used to kill.
BUSINESS
Aug 19, 2006

Yahoo Japan to help bidders burned by jewelry firm's failure

Yahoo Japan Corp. said Friday it will compensate customers who successfully bid for products auctioned by an Osaka-based jewelry firm that has filed for bankruptcy.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Aug 19, 2006

TaoZen: synthesizing life practices of the sages

Masahiro Ouchi stands before a group of 30 assorted individuals in Be Yoga, a studio in Tokyo's Hiro-o (including five dishy-enough French men to make one English guy joke that among so many women he has never felt so disadvantaged) and introduces us to the essence of the spiritual and therapeutic practice...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Aug 19, 2006

Robert Neff

Think public spirit, think Robert Neff.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Aug 15, 2006

Must I pay to renew my lease?

Summer is a wonderful time to enjoy Japan. The mountains, the ocean, the beautiful "inaka" or countryside where time seems to have stopped. It's a good time also to thank God for the simple things that make life in Japan so special -- telephones that work, trains that run on time and people that bring...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Aug 12, 2006

World Family Club says it's OK to be different

Meet Mark Segerlund, happiness personified. With a house in Tokyo, a retreat on Chiba's Boso Peninsula that offers unparalleled sunsets over the Pacific, a dog that he dotes on and a job he adores with near equal passion, he says he is home, and this is not hard to believe.
JAPAN
Aug 11, 2006

Tokyo Tower likely to get culture status

With its days as a television broadcasting tower numbered, the company that owns Tokyo Tower wants to register it as state-designated cultural property, company officials said Thursday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / THE SECOND ROOM
Aug 11, 2006

Psychedelic radar 08.11

Mother: Aug. 13-15
BUSINESS
Aug 11, 2006

Award created to boost robot development

The government has established awards for robots that promise to be market leaders to encourage more research and development, and to increase demand for the machines, the industry ministry said Thursday.
EDITORIALS
Aug 10, 2006

Nagano bids maverick goodbye

Nagano voters on Sunday chose a steady and stable style of politics over maverick leadership often characterized by theatrics, confrontation and confusion. Gov. Yasuo Tanaka, a reform-minded ex-novelist, sought a third term but was defeated by Mr. Jin Murai, a former state minister for national disaster...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / NEW ART SEEN
Aug 10, 2006

A loving tribute at the Watari-um for a close friend

"Bye-Bye, Nam June Paik," the current exhibition at the Watari-Um Museum of Contemporary Art, is a loving tribute to an artist who has always been close to that Aoyama art space's heart.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 10, 2006

History strains Seoul ties: Ban

Abe to play a positive role by paying special attention to these issues in the future," Ban said in response to reporters' questions over whether the two discussed the territorial and Yasukuni disputes. In a separate news conference, Abe said the Yasukuni issue did not directly come up.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 10, 2006

Rape wielded as a weapon in Myanmar

LONDON -- Gender-based sexual violence obstructs peace and development, particularly when it is a weapon used by military dictatorships against their own peoples. Myanmar is now permeated by such state-sponsored violence. Systematic sexual violence became visible in Myanmar when the Shan Women's Action...
COMMENTARY
Aug 9, 2006

Beijing loath to cast the fate of elections in Hong Kong to the wind

HONG KONG -- With Hong Kong having entered its 10th year as a Chinese special administrative region, pressure is building on Beijing to honor its promise of allowing full democratization of this former British colony. Opinion surveys consistently show that the majority of Hong Kong residents want to...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Aug 9, 2006

Drone beetle Kanabun

* Scientific name: Rhomborrhina japonica * Description: Large, handsome and sturdy insects, drone beetles have distinctive antennae that end in a club that can be fanned out to form a leafy antenna with a large surface area -- the better to detect odors carried in the air. The beetles are around 4...
JAPAN
Aug 9, 2006

Center gives refugees reason for hope

has been commissioned by the government to provide followup (to refugees who have been recognized)," said Shin Ohara of RHQ. "I think all foreigners living in Japan face hurdles, but for refugees it is especially hard to be adopted into Japanese society for various reasons, including the language barrier." The...
BUSINESS
Aug 9, 2006

Report waffles on deflation's demise

The government equivocated Tuesday in its August economic report on whether deflation has ended, although for the second month in a row it did not mention the "D" word.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Aug 8, 2006

Japan media focus blurred on big issues

All the pain of the tragedy that has befallen their family is etched in the crumpled faces of Shigeru and Sakie Yokota.
BASKETBALL
Aug 6, 2006

Wily coach Pavlicevic building Japan team block by block

His shoes have trudged across countless hardwood courts from Spain to Japan.

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