Search - life

 
 
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Jan 13, 2016

As Okinawa confronts dioxin, Vietnam offers lessons

Health monitoring and safety measures are urged as U.S. military denials fly in the face of mounting evidence of contamination on the island.
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Jan 13, 2016

Mothers want a word with the LDP's old guard over paternity leave slap-down

After LDP bigwigs took a young politician to task over his intention to take paternity leave, mothers vent their anger.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 13, 2016

'Paddington': Can the 'other bear' crack the Japanese market?

'I can't pinpoint the exact reason, but Paddington remains a somewhat distant character for me." So wrote teddy bear aficionado Satomi Terakawa in an email interview. Terakawa harbors a lifelong love for stuffed toy bears, and spent 15 years designing and making teddy bears for a toy boutique in Ginza....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 13, 2016

Pink and Gray not just an idol film

No one likes spoilers, right? But in some films a major plot twist comes so early that the choice is to either mention it or write an entire review consisting of little more than winks and nods. For example, in Nobuhiko Obayashi's "Exchange Students" ("Tenkosei," 1982) a teenage boy and girl — spoiler...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle
Jan 13, 2016

A golden year for aging stars in film

A while back we heard that 50 is the new 30, but Hollywood has gone beyond that, as a whole new reserve corps of talent is emerging to tell us that 70 is the new 35, and that at 60 you're a mere baby.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / ADVANCES IN PROGRESS
Jan 11, 2016

Japan moves to develop homegrown GPS

With the proliferation of smartphones and other devices, the use of GPS — the global positioning system — has become ubiquitous. From pinpointing one's location to getting directions online, satellite-based navigation is driving the interactive use of online maps.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 11, 2016

Japan's newest adults ponder politics on Coming-of-Age Day

Monday marked Coming-of-Age Day, bringing with it the usual festivities that saw Japan's 20-year-olds celebrate their newfound adulthood — each in their own way.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 11, 2016

'Be strong and keep believing,' says the Trivago girl with the gift of the gab

Many foreign celebrities here speak Japanese to a high level, yet when it comes to pronunciation and intonation, few sound as accomplished as Natalie Emmons.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 11, 2016

Can the Republican Party survive its civil war?

The clash of values and policies among Republicans goes beyond Donald Trump.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 11, 2016

Nostalgia versus prospects

The old days aren't as good as people remember, while the future won't be as bad as people fear.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 11, 2016

Thai king leaves hospital, for outing since admission last year

Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej left hospital on Monday to visit his Bangkok palace, his first such outing since he was admitted last year.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LAW OF THE LAND
Jan 10, 2016

A year in the life of Japan's Supreme Court

Grand rulings hogged the headlines in 2015 while the Petty Benches sweated the small stuff and big issues were kicked down the line.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jan 10, 2016

Treaty obligations and severity of crime key in extradition cases

Although the number of fugitives extradited from Japan is small, this does not mean that the crime concerned has to be particularly grave for an extradition to go ahead.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 10, 2016

How the Saudi king benefits from cleric's death

By beheading of Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr, Saudi King Salman is sending a message to adversaries at home and abroad.
EDITORIALS
Jan 10, 2016

Reforming mobile phone rate plans

The nation's three big mobile phone providers are finally coming under pressure to make their rate plans more fair and easier to understand.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 10, 2016

Trump backers supporting 'hateful rhetoric,' woman ejected from South Carolina rally says

A U.S. Muslim woman who was ejected from a Donald Trump rally in South Carolina while engaging in a silent protest said Saturday she wanted to make the Republican presidential candidate's backers recognize they are supporting "hateful rhetoric."
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 9, 2016

Different-names ruling leaves door open to possibility of same-sex marriages

While the Supreme Court ruling said there is nothing unconstitutional about compelling married couples to register under one name, they didn't expressly limit marriage to a man and a woman.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design / ON: FASHION
Jan 9, 2016

Avatar models, Sanrio menswear and disheveled clothing — fashion at its oddest

Louis Vuitton is being struck by Lightning
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jan 9, 2016

The Making of Asian America: A History

In 1922, a Japanese immigrant to the United States named Takao Ozawa applied for citizenship with the U.S. Supreme Court. Having lived in America for almost 30 years, Ozawa was fluent in English and an active Christian, assuring the court that his skin was "white in color" and that he wished to "return...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jan 9, 2016

Pacific Burn

Who's killing off members of Kyoto's artistic Nobuki family, and why? First a son is murdered on a visit to Napa, California; then a sniper nearly succeeds in gunning down the father, a famous artist. After the younger son and his fiance are thrown off a precipice in Kyoto, the sole daughter — an anti-nuclear...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Jan 8, 2016

Disappearing-father drama; Swindling in Osaka; CM of the week: Bandai Namco

Osaka is the setting for the bittersweet two-hour drama "Saiko no Oyako" ("The Best Mother and Child"; TBS, Sun., 9 p.m.), which stars Naomi Fujiyama as a single mother raising a daughter, played by Riisa Naka, who has just graduated from university with a degree in architecture but is having trouble...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 8, 2016

Why North Korea's latest blast isn't a game-changer

Ultimately, North Korea's latest nuclear test is a status-quo event.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 8, 2016

Prep for China's two-child consumption engine

China's abolition of its one-child policy is going to have a profound impact on the country's economy.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 8, 2016

French financial prosecutor opens inquiry into Le Pen's wealth

The French financial prosecutor's office announced on Thursday it has launched a preliminary investigation into far-right leader Marine Le Pen and her father Jean-Marie Le Pen on suspicions that they misrepresented their wealth.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health / FOCUS
Jan 8, 2016

Tracing the origin of North Korea's nuclear weapons program

The godfathers of North Korea's nuclear weapons program were an elderly trio: a nuclear physicist, a military general and a broker with contacts in Pakistan.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past