Japan

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Greenpeace Ship Scatters Japanese Whalers

Hunt for 1,000 whales disrupted in sea chase

(Newser) - The Greenpeace pursuit of Japanese whaling ships continued yesterday after a ship operated by the environmental group earlier chased down and scattered a fleet of six Japanese whaling vessels in the waters off Antarctica. The Japanese fleet plans to hunt down 1,000 whales in what operators call a "...

Risky Showdown Looms as Eco-Ships Near Whalers

High noon on high seas as rival vessels battle to save mammoth creatures

(Newser) - Fears of a deadly battle increased yesterday as a Greenpeace ship began to close in on a Japanese whaling fleet intending to kill 1,000 whales. Also steaming through the Southern Ocean off Antarctica was a far more militant "eco ship," planning to ram the whaling vessels. "...

Japan Eyes Internet Crackdown
Japan Eyes Internet Crackdown
Jan 4, 2008 12:45 PM CST

Japan Eyes Internet Crackdown

Tough new proposals protect children, copyrights

(Newser) - Japan has taken a relaxed approach to controlling the Internet in the past, but the government is planning to ratchet up regulation, Ars Technica reports. The communications ministry is looking at ways to bring web and mobile content in line with heavily regulated traditional media. Concerns are high about libelous...

Hello Kitty to Purr for Young Men, Too

Company will make girl-friendly product line palatable for teen boys

(Newser) - Will boys really say “Hello Kitty”? The company behind the sugary-sweet product line thinks so. Japan’s Sanrio Co. says it will plaster the cuddly cat on T-shirts, bags, watches, and other products for males. “We think Hello Kitty is accepted by young men as a design...

Fukuda in China to Thaw Frosty Relations

After strain, Japanese PM's charm offensive delights Beijing

(Newser) - Yasuo Fukuda is in Beijing, where the Japanese PM is hoping to solidify improved relations between two countries with a troubled past.  In contrast to his two predecessors, Fukuda is a pro-Asian leader; as he reminds his Chinese hosts, his own father brought in the Japan-China peace treaty 29...

Electronics Giants Join Forces
Electronics Giants Join Forces
Dec 26, 2007 7:08 AM CST

Electronics Giants Join Forces

Panasonic, Hitachi, and Canon announce tie-up

(Newser) - Hitachi, Canon, and Panasonic have announced plans to work to together in moving flat-panel display technology forward, PC World reports. Competition is heating up in the industry, and the companies hope the alliance will accelerate development time. The firms will work together on LCD displays and organic light emitting diode...

Tree That Survived A-Bomb Sees 70th Christmas

Japanese family kept tree through calamities

(Newser) - A Japanese soldier's Christmas tree has stayed with his family through dark times, and even survived the atomic bomb that killed his brother in Nagasaki. This year marks the 70th Christmas that Warren Nobuaki Iwatake has put up the fragile, three-foot tree, which he calls "a shining light, because...

Will Japan Flip for the iPhone?
Will Japan Flip for the iPhone?
Dec 21, 2007 11:36 AM CST

Will Japan Flip for the iPhone?

Tech-savvy nation may not be all that jazzed about Apple's bells and whistles

(Newser) - Japan’s tech-savvy market may be a tough sell for Apple’s iPhone, which will face more competition from handset makers there than it has anywhere else in the world, reports BusinessWeek. The market already has phones that send e-mail, browse the Internet, and, more important, are compatible with newer...

Japan Backs Down on Whaling
Japan Backs Down on Whaling
Dec 21, 2007 7:35 AM CST

Japan Backs Down on Whaling

Australian pressure leads Tokyo to call off humpback hunt

(Newser) - In its first-ever turnaround on whaling, the Japanese government has dropped its plans to hunt humpbacks. The about-face is a victory for Kevin Rudd, the new Australian prime minister, who had objected strenuously and ordered a patrol of the humpback hunt. Tokyo said, however, that the fleet currently en route...

Apple Plays the Field in Japan
Apple Plays the Field in Japan
Dec 18, 2007 10:34 PM CST

Apple Plays the Field in Japan

Seeks exclusive partner for iPhones

(Newser) - Apple wants to bring the iPhone to Japan to compete with some of the most futuristic phones around, but it's being choosy in its search for a partner, Reuters reports. Apple is in talks with DoCoMo and Softbank, the country's biggest and third-biggest mobile operators respectively, but they're both wary...

Japan Shoots Down Dummy US Missile

Japanese expanding missile defense systems with Yank help

(Newser) - A Japanese warship off Hawaii has shot down a US-made mock ballistic missile in flight over the Pacific Ocean, the BBC reports. The test, using a US-developed intercept missile, was the first of its kind by an American ally. Japan and the US stepped up their missile defense cooperation after...

'Rape of Nanking' Fresh, 70 Years Later

Massacre still colors Sino-Japan relations, informs China's identity

(Newser) - Seventy years have passed since the "Rape of Nanking," when Japanese soldiers brutally massacred as many as 300,000 Chinese civilians, but the effects of the trauma are still very much present in China and its relations with Japan. Memorializing the event plays a major role in cementing...

Japan Hosts Camera Phone Film Festival

48 tiny videos yield intimate close-ups from around the world

(Newser) - Featuring 48 judge-selected short movies, each of them shot using a camera phone, Japan's Pocket Film Festival marks the dawning of a new era in amateur film making. Without special effects or fancy camera-work, the pocket-flicks, like winners "Thumb Girl" and "Walkers," are all close-up and intimate...

Japan Blogs, But Politely
Japan Blogs, But Politely
Dec 7, 2007 11:09 AM CST

Japan Blogs, But Politely

Also profusely, briefly, anonymously, and nonconfrontationally

(Newser) - Japan's enormous blog culture is very different from its counterpart in the English-speaking world, reports the Washington Post. Japanese blogs have more and shorter posts, and they consist mostly of anonymous musings on life and personal experiences. The relentless criticism and self-aggrandizement of American and European bloggers shock many of...

Pearl Harbor Survivors Remember
Pearl Harbor Survivors Remember
Dec 7, 2007 10:10 AM CST

Pearl Harbor Survivors Remember

Shrinking ranks of vets, civilians recall attack on 66th anniversary

(Newser) - Pearl Harbor survivors will pause today to remember the attack that reshaped their lives—and the nation's—66 years ago today. The remembrances come as the ever-shrinking number of surviving vets wonder how Americans will remember their legacy, the LA Times reports. Says a historian: "When all of our...

Robots Could Care for Elderly
Robots Could Care for Elderly
Dec 6, 2007 6:29 PM CST

Robots Could Care for Elderly

Toyota unveils new technology aimed at targeting Japan's aging population

(Newser) - Toyota’s new robot can play the violin, and the car-maker hopes it could be used in the future to care for the elderly, AFP reports. The 5-foot-tall robot has 17 hand and arm joints, giving it enough dexterity to play an error-free “Pomp and Circumstance” today. Toyota wants...

In Japan, Robots Tackle the Dirty Work

As workforce shrinks, machines gain favor over immigrants

(Newser) - With the birthrate sinking and the government showing no inclination to loosen immigration restrictions, Japanese businesses are turning to science for help with the impending worker shortage. The London Times visits a Tokyo exhibition that showcases the possible answer: robots. "Robots do the D-work"--dirty, dangerous, and difficult--"that...

Japan to Pay Widow After Husband Dies of Overwork

Toyota employee on constant overtime

(Newser) - A Japanese court ruled today that the government must pay damages to the widow of a white-collar employee at Toyota who died from overwork, the AP reports. Kenichi Uchino had put in more than 80 hours of overtime per month for at least half a year before collapsing in his...

Fukuda Govt Roiled by Scandal
Fukuda Govt Roiled by Scandal
Nov 28, 2007 10:14 AM CST

Fukuda Govt Roiled by Scandal

Current finance minister tied to bribery bust of former defense honcho

(Newser) - In a growing corruption scandal, a former vice defense minister and his wife were arrested today over charges that he awarded contracts to companies that wined and dined him, the AP reports. Takemasa Moriya admits he enjoyed free golf trips and expensive dinners on the tab of the recently arrested...

Japan Sends Mixed Signals on Whale Hunt

It cites tradition but denies tribe's bid to fish for salmon

(Newser) - Japan has a ready defense for its internationally maligned whale hunt: Whaling is integral to Japanese culture, embedded in the country's traditional diet, literature, and religion. Yet this argument looks questionable in light of the Japanese government's refusal to allow indigenous people to continue their traditional salmon fishing, writes Bruce...

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