Japan

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American Is Japan's First Foreign Ninja

Chris O'Neill back-flipped his way to coolest gig ever

(Newser) - It's yet another first in the odd field of American ninja-dom: A tourism panel in the Japanese prefecture of Aichi has named American Chris O'Neill as the first foreign ninja to find paid work in Japan. The 29-year-old, who lives in Tokyo, was one of 235 people to...

Earth to $273M Satellite: What Happened to You?

Japan tries reconnecting with Hitomi

(Newser) - Japan has sort of lost something—a $273M satellite just launched to monitor X-rays coming from galaxy clusters and black holes, Discovery News reports. "We're taking the situation seriously," says Saku Tsuneta, a senior official at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). "We know approximately where...

Cops: Tokyo Man Held Girl Captive 2 Years

He was arrested a day after she escaped

(Newser) - On March 10, 2014, a Japanese mother found a note in her mailbox. "Don't look for me," it read. The handwriting was that of her daughter, who essentially vanished on that day. The last sighting of the teen had been outside her home a few hours earlier,...

Japan Kills 333 Whales in the Name of 'Science'

Many of the females were pregnant

(Newser) - Japanese whalers sailed to the Antarctic in December with the goal of killing 333 minke whales . Discover reports they returned Thursday having met that goal. Japan signed on to an international moratorium banning whale hunting in 1986 but has since been taking advantage of a loophole that allows killing whales...

To Live Longer, Eat Like the Japanese

 To Live Longer, 
 Eat Like the 
 Japanese 
NEW STUDY
Mar 23, 2016 8:19 AM CDT

To Live Longer, Eat Like the Japanese

Diet of fish, veggies, soy, could mean lower risk of death

(Newser) - Go ahead and indulge your sushi habit: A new study finds a Japanese diet of fish, rice, seaweed, and sake could add years to your life. Not only does following Japan's dietary guidelines result in a 15% lower total mortality rate, but it also lowers one's risk of...

Professional Ninjas Wanted, Apply Today

Japan is making childhood dreams come true

(Newser) - Japan is about to make some childhood dreams come true. That's because the country's Aichi prefecture is currently hiring six full-time ninjas, Quartz reports. According to the BBC , a neighboring prefecture has a highly successful ninja museum, and Aichi wants to bring in tourists of its own. The...

Japan Prays on 5th Anniversary of Tsunami

Parts of ravaged coast are coming back to life

(Newser) - Japanese gathered in Tokyo and along the country's ravaged northeast coast to observe a moment of silence at 2:46pm Friday, exactly five years after a magnitude-9.0 earthquake struck offshore and triggered a devastating tsunami that killed more than 18,000 people. Some teared up as they held...

School: Shoddy Records Caused Student's Suicide

Japan junior high student killed himself after false shoplifting charge

(Newser) - A junior high school principal appeared before a school assembly Wednesday to apologize not only for its role in a student's suicide but also for fibbing about what had happened afterward, the Japan Times reports. The 15-year-old took his own life on Dec. 8 after his parents found out...

'Suicide Forest' Gets Another Look

Aokigahara Forest has long been a suicide destination in Japan

(Newser) - Shoes are piled neatly by the entrance, cars are abandoned in a square nearby, and bodies can be found hanging within. Long a subject of public fascination, Japan's "suicide forest" is now the inspiration for a new horror film—and gets a fresh look from Australia's News...

China Deploys Missiles to Disputed Island

Satellite images show missile launchers, radar on Woody Island

(Newser) - Countries including Taiwan and Japan are speaking out against China after the country apparently deployed an advanced surface-to-air missile system to a contested island in the South China Sea. Satellite images taken Sunday, first published by Fox News , appear to show two batteries of eight missile launchers and a radar...

Actor Killed by Prop Samurai Sword

Tokyo cops aren't sure if it was an accident or murder

(Newser) - Police in Tokyo are investigating a bizarre incident that sounds like a plot rejected by a detective show for being too clichéd. NBC News reports that 33-year-old theater actor Daigo Kashino died on Monday after a 28-inch replica samurai sword pierced his belly while he was practicing for a...

Japan May Ditch Old Symbol Over Swastika Confusion

The 'manji' identifies Buddhist temples on maps

(Newser) - As Japan gears up to host the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and caters to a surging influx of foreign visitors, the country faces a cultural dilemma: Should it stop identifying Buddhist temples on maps with the traditional "manji" symbol that is often confused with a Nazi swastika? The symbol, from...

Spooky Tale in Japan: 'Ghost' Taxi Passengers Near Tsunami

Taxi drivers swear they had eerie encounters

(Newser) - When a Japanese college student started corresponding with taxi drivers in Ishinomaki in Miyagi prefecture for her senior sociology thesis, some became irritated, while others pretended they didn't hear her, Asahi Shimbun reports. But seven out of 100 drivers actually answered Yuka Kudo's odd question—"Did you...

Japan to Spend $107M on Tiny, Remote Island

The move could spark territory dispute with China

(Newser) - A tiny island in the Pacific Ocean about 1,000 miles south of Tokyo is about to get a pricey makeover courtesy of Japan. It's all about allowing Japan to stake its claim to oil, rare metals, and lucrative fishing in the area around Okinotorishima, reports the Guardian . Japan...

Robot Farm to Churn Out 30K Heads of Lettuce a Day

Our automated overlords will be up and running by next year

(Newser) - "Robot-obsessed Japan" is how Phys.org describes a country bent on automation, and its latest agricultural efforts seem to back that claim up. The world's first robot-run farm will be up and running by mid-2017, Kyoto-based Spread has announced, and it plans to churn out 30,000 heads...

Oldest Man Dies After 112 Years of 'Not Overdoing It'

Yasutaro Koide said the secret was not smoking, drinking

(Newser) - The world's oldest man has died in Tokyo at the age of 112, two months short of his 113th birthday. Yasutaro Koide was born on March 13, 1903, and said his secret to a long life was not to overdo it, or drink or smoke. A native of Nagoya,...

Japanese Politician Hammered Over Decision to Take Paternity Leave

'Paternity leave is for workers. Lawmakers are not workers'

(Newser) - When his child is born sometime in the coming weeks, Kensuke Miyazaki will become the first Japanese politician to take paternity leave, the BBC reports. It's been an unpopular decision, to say the least. "Does he realize that if a lawmaker goes on paternity leave, his voters' voice...

New Year's Tuna Sells for $118K

80-year-old Tokyo tradition is about to change

(Newser) - It's among the biggest of Japan's many New Year holiday rituals: Early on Tuesday, a huge, glistening tuna was auctioned for 14 million yen, around $118,000, at Tokyo's 80-year-old Tsukiji market. Sushi restaurateur Kiyoshi Kimura has prevailed in most of the recent new year auctions, and...

Giant 'Sea Monster' Finally Surfaces

12-foot squid gets ogled in Japan's Toyama Bay

(Newser) - Huge sea creatures steeped in ancient lore don't often hang out by the shore with spectators—but one did in Japan this Christmas Eve. People on a pier in Toyama Bay saw a giant squid swim up near the surface, slip under boats, and tangle harmlessly with a local...

Issue of WWII Sex Slaves May Be 'Finally Resolved'

But the wording of Japan, S. Korea's deal is a little vague

(Newser) - South Korea and Japan say they've reached a deal to resolve a disturbing legacy of World War II—the issue of sex slaves, or "comfort women," forced to work in Japanese brothels for soldiers. An estimated 200,000 women, many of them Korean, were forced to take...

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