4 OCTOBER 2020
Japan to double coronavirus checks at major airports to 20,000 daily
The government will double the daily number of airport checks for the coronavirus to about 20,000 following the recent relaxation of entry restrictions, health minister Norihisa Tamura said Saturday. (Japan Times)
Japan science body asks PM Suga to retract member appointment rejection
Japan's science council which makes policy recommendations to the government sent a letter to Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Saturday asking him to explain his recent refusal to appoint some of the body's nominees as new members. (Kyodo)
First weekend for Tokyo in "Go To" campaign
This is the first weekend since trips to or from Tokyo have been included in the government's nation-wide tourism stimulus campaign, "Go To Travel". The initiative offers large subsidies to tourists to help support the pandemic-hit economy. (NHK)
Honda to leave Formula One
Honda Motor says it is withdrawing from Formula One. The carmaker will stop providing power units at the end of the 2021 season as the Japanese company pivots to a focus on green energy. (NHK)
Tokyo schoolboy assumes other boy’s identity for 6 months; attends classes at top high school
Kaisei High School, located in Tokyo’s Nishi Nippori neighborhood, is a very respected academic institute. Its major claim to fame is that for 39 years and counting it has sent more students to the University of Tokyo, Japan’s most prestigious university, than any other high school in the country. (Japan Today)
WEATHER
FEATURED BLOG
Tokyo Public Parks are Prepared for the Next Natural Disaster
Given Japan's susceptibility to natural disasters such as earthquakes and hurricanes, landscape architects and urban engineers have been quietly re-designing public parks to function as evacuation areas. And many of these design tweaks a...
SOCIETY
Oct 04
Shoplifters in Japan taking advantage of wider use of reusable bags to conceal goods
Supermarkets in Japan are having a hard time combating an increasing number of shoplifters who use their reusable shopping bags to conceal unpaid goods. (Japan Times)
Oct 04
Japan's mascot competition ends after nine years
The winner of this year's annual mascot competition will be hoping they attract as much international attention for the prize as Kumamoto Prefecture's Kumamon black bear-like mascot did after winning the inaugural event in 2011. The competition wraps up for the final time after nine years on Sunday. (Japan Times)
Oct 04
Rice harvested in Fukushima's tsunami-hit area
Rice was harvested in the coastal areas of Namie Town, Fukushima Prefecture for the first time since the 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster. (NHK)
Oct 02
Man suspected in fatal stabbing of ex-girlfriend ‘wanted to get back together’
A 35-year-old man in custody over the alleged fatal stabbing of his former girlfriend this week has told police that he carried out the crime after she refused to get back together with him, reports TBS News (Oct. 1). (tokyoreporter.com)
Oct 02
Japanese actress Satomi Ishihara set to marry within the year
Popular Japanese actress Satomi Ishihara is set to marry her non-celebrity boyfriend within the year, her agency said Thursday. (Kyodo)
[more society news…]
BUSINESS
Oct 03
Top Japan business lobby sets 40% goal for female managers
Japan's most powerful business lobby will actively urge companies to put women in more than 40% of management posts by 2030 as part of its growth strategy due out soon. (Nikkei)
Oct 02
TSE closes without problems after shutdown
Trading resumed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Friday after it was halted by a technical glitch for all of Thursday. The session ended without any disruptions. (NHK)
Oct 02
TSE under fire for poor communication after system crash
The Tokyo Stock Exchange was the target of criticism Thursday for failing to disclose information and leaving retail investors in the dark after a system failure caused the bourse to shut down an entire day of trading for the first time. (Nikkei)
Oct 01
TSE outage halts trading
The Tokyo Stock Exchange says it's suspended all trading due to technical problems. It says the source of the issue is not immediately clear. (NHK)
Oct 01
Rakuten offers discount 5G in win for Suga's price-cut push
Japanese billionaire Hiroshi Mikitani's e-commerce group Rakuten on Wednesday announced it will offer an unlimited 5G wireless data plan for roughly half the price of the country's top three mobile providers, in a move that could trigger discounts across the industry. (Nikkei)
[more business news…]
POLITICS
Oct 04
Japan science body asks PM Suga to retract member appointment rejection
Japan's science council which makes policy recommendations to the government sent a letter to Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Saturday asking him to explain his recent refusal to appoint some of the body's nominees as new members. (Kyodo)
Oct 02
Suga rejects 6 as new science council members
Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide has refused to appoint six nominees as new members of a leading organization of Japanese scientists, prompting a call for the move to be retracted. (NHK)
Oct 01
Japan to beef up support for border islands
NHK has learned the Japanese government will likely boost economic aid for remote, inhabited islands close to the country's maritime borders. (NHK)
Oct 01
Japan's kingmaker quells rumors of early snap election
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is unlikely to call a snap election this year to solidify his political position, Toshihiro Nikai, secretary-general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, indicated to Nikkei. (Nikkei)
Sep 28
Suga, in Fukushima, vows to continue recovery efforts for 2011 disasters-hit areas
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga vowed Saturday to press forward with reconstruction efforts for areas devastated by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, as he visited the Fukushima nuclear power plant crippled by the disasters. (Japan Today)
[more politics news…]
EDUCATION
Oct 04
Multiple effects of alcohol
It can be said that for alcohol, some may have a high tolerance and others may need to control how much they consume. (newsonjapan.com)
Oct 04
Five online learning strategies to use
In recent years, online learning has become more and more popular. (newsonjapan.com)
Oct 03
Tokyo schoolboy assumes other boy’s identity for 6 months; attends classes at top high school
Kaisei High School, located in Tokyo’s Nishi Nippori neighborhood, is a very respected academic institute. Its major claim to fame is that for 39 years and counting it has sent more students to the University of Tokyo, Japan’s most prestigious university, than any other high school in the country. (Japan Today)
Sep 30
Some driver's license renewal lectures to go online
The National Police Agency plans to move safety lectures for certain driver’s license renewals online as part of the government’s push to digitalize administrative procedures and as a way to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, agency officials said Tuesday. (Japan Times)
Sep 30
Govt. to ask universities to help foreign students
Japan's education minister Hagiuda Koichi says he will ask universities to let foreign students attend extra classes to make up for lost opportunities to study because of the coronavirus pandemic. (NHK)
[more education news…]
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Oct 03
JAXA wants to build a fuel processing plant on the surface of the moon
Present-day life has had mixed results on delivering on the predictions past generations made about the future. We still don’t have flying cars, for example, but we do have a real-life giant, moving anime robot (and if we had to pick one of the two, personally, that’s the one we’d pick). (soranews24.com)
Oct 01
Survey: Some diseases raise COVID-19 death rate
A survey by a medical research center in Japan shows the fatality rate of people infected with the coronavirus is higher among those with chronic kidney or heart diseases. (NHK)
Sep 30
Hayabusa2's next next mission: small, rapidly spinning asteroid
Expectations are high for the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 after the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency announced earlier this month that an unexplored asteroid will be the new target for the unmanned probe. (Japan Times)
Sep 30
Food made by Japanese students to go to space
Astronauts staying at the International Space Station are set to get a taste of canned mackerel made by Japanese high school students. (NHK)
Sep 30
System keeps Shinkansen trains safe from floods
An operator of a bullet-train network in Japan has developed a computer system to keep trains safe from severe flooding. Officials at East Japan Railway say their technology ensures Shinkansen trains can be moved. (NHK)
[more sci-tech news…]
SPORTS
Oct 04
National athletics championships end
The Japan National Championships for track and field events ended on Saturday after three days of competition. (NHK)
Oct 04
Key online casino trends to watch out for in 2020
Online casino games have gained a lot of popularity in the last few years. (newsonjapan.com)
Oct 03
Honda to leave Formula One
Honda Motor says it is withdrawing from Formula One. The carmaker will stop providing power units at the end of the 2021 season as the Japanese company pivots to a focus on green energy. (NHK)
Sep 28
Shodai wins first sumo tournament title
The 28-year-old Shodai has won his first title in the Autumn Grand Sumo Tournament, with 13 wins and two losses. (NHK)
Sep 27
Osaka Naomi on Time's '100 most influential' list
The US magazine Time has included tennis star Osaka Naomi on its list of the 100 most influential people for the second year in a row. (NHK)
[more sports news…]
TRAVEL
Oct 04
Japan to double coronavirus checks at major airports to 20,000 daily
The government will double the daily number of airport checks for the coronavirus to about 20,000 following the recent relaxation of entry restrictions, health minister Norihisa Tamura said Saturday. (Japan Times)
Oct 04
First weekend for Tokyo in "Go To" campaign
This is the first weekend since trips to or from Tokyo have been included in the government's nation-wide tourism stimulus campaign, "Go To Travel". The initiative offers large subsidies to tourists to help support the pandemic-hit economy. (NHK)
Oct 03
Niseko ski resorts to delay season’s opening amid lack of foreign visitors
A number of ski resorts in the popular Niseko area in northern Japan's Hokkaido are set to delay the start of their operations for this winter season due to the lack of foreign visitors amid the continued novel coronavirus pandemic. (Kyodo)
Oct 02
Tokyo included in 'Go To Travel' campaign
The Japanese government's "Go To Travel" campaign that is aimed at stimulating domestic tourism now includes Tokyo. (NHK)
Oct 02
'Go To Eat' dining-out campaign kicks off
Japan's "Go To Eat" program encouraging people to dine out kicked off on Thursday. The campaign focuses on supporting restaurants affected by the coronavirus pandemic. (NHK)
[more travel news…]
FEATURED BLOGS
Oct 3
Five new Pokémon manhole covers arrive in Tottori Prefecture, now with one in every municipality
That puts the new total of Pokéfuta in Japan at 110! Pokémon manhole covers have been slowly but steadily taking over Japan. Starting with just a few featuring Eevee in Kagoshima in 2018, then gradually progressing to taking over streets across ...
Oct 3
Virtual Tours of Kyoto Now Available on Amazon Explore
Explore Higashiyama & Nanzenji Temple with Amazon's New Interactive Livestreaming Service
Nanzenji Temple awaits your visit…
Disclosure: Links in this article to Amazon.com are affiliate links from which I may earn a commission. As an Amazon Ass...
Sep 28
GaijinPot’s Guide to Go To Travel
GaijinPot's Guide to Go To Travel
Japan's “Go To Travel” campaign kicked off in July despite the coronavirus showing no chill. The government sunk a whopping ¥1.35 trillion on the promotion to boost domestic tourism.
Unfortunately, they've done a pretty poor job explaining th...
Sep 26
Winners of Japan’s 2020 Laundromat of the Year Award
Around this time of year, a coveted prize is awarded within a niche industry in Japan: the Laundromat-of-the-Year-Award. It's presented at an industry fair in Tokyo known as the International Coin-Operated Laundry EXPO where excellence in laundrom...
Sep 26
Japanese “Ichiban Street” recreated at new shopping mall in China
Complete with a Japanese bus stop, Japanese road signs, a Japanese taxi, and a Japanese car park. In a lot of countries around the world you'll find Chinatowns filled with stores, food and decorative gates dedicated to China. So it's interesting ...
Sep 25
World’s smallest official Rubik’s Cube developed by Japanese companies
What it lacks in size it more than makes up for in price. Who doesn't have fond childhood memories of picking up a Rubik's Cube, solving one side, and then giving up for a year or so before bothering to attempt it again? However, there are also th...
Sep 25
Drag Shows You Can Watch Online from Japan
Drag shows from Japan you can Watch Online
Years will pass before we can unpackage the destruction coronavirus has caused, to both the health and economy of people worldwide. Not to be overlooked in this maelstrom is the impact on minority communities, who most often bear the brunt of cris...
Sep 25
Nara deer “addicted” to rice crackers, lose weight with no tourists to feed them
The coronavirus is affecting the health of Japan's deer population at Nara Park. The city of Nara in Nara prefecture is famous for its free-roaming deer population, who've been known to cross at pedestrian crossings and bow to tourists in Nara Pa...
Sep 25
8 New Vegan Foodie Options In Tokyo 2020
8 New Vegan Foodie Options In Tokyo 2020
For those of us living in Tokyo, we're a little more fortunate with more and more vegan options becoming available over the past couple years, especially with the postponed olympics coming up again next year.
So here are a few new vegan menu i...
Sep 25
Japanese cosplayer reveals how to take the perfect mirror selfie
Cosplay hack will have you looking taller and slimmer in all your photos. Nobody takes a selfie quite like a Japanese cosplayer. Over the years, they've shown us all sorts of tips for looking good in the frame, even though they might look ridiculo...