Kuchikomi
Bears in the news a lot but what about marauding monkeys?
“Bears! Bears! You switch on the news and it’s nothing but bears! What about monkeys?” What’s the scourge of preference? The warpath widens, the enemies list lengthens, the human enemy an old story, bears newer, monkeys the latest, under-reported, says Spa (Dec. 16-23) as it seeks to redress the balance.… Read
China shoots itself in foot with current sanctions against Japan
"Lifting a rock only to drop it on one's own foot" is a well known Chinese aphorism that's roughly equivalent to the English expression of shooting oneself in the foot. On November 7, Japan's new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, had been asked during a Lower House budget committee session about how Japan would respond… Read
'Fraud' should be word of the year in Japan: It’s more endemic than ever
Fake news. Fake world. Everything’s fake, everyone’s fake, even some warnings against fakes are fake – maybe this one. Probably not, since it will offer you nothing and ask for nothing. Still, you never know. “Fraud” should be the word of the year. It’s more endemic than ever, warns Josei… Read
Humans vs AI -- which will come out on top?
In an effort to keep up with fast-moving events in the world of AI, Weekly Playboy (Dec 22) has a five-part special report titled "Dispatches from the front lines of the 'final battle' between humankind and artificial intelligence." The second section focused on ways that AI is being incorporated into… Read
Constant watching of short online videos: What it does to your brain
The brain is a delicate instrument. And yet we’re so rude to it. We give more attention to muscle tone, skin care, hairstyle. The brain is taken for granted. It’ll live, we seem to think – is it what the brain thinks? – on whatever we feed it. And so… Read
'Death cafe' events give young and old alike a venue for airing concerns
"I'm terrified of getting dementia. If it comes to the point that I appear shameful, I'd prefer to die before my mind goes." A busy rookie reporter for Shukan Gendai (Dec 8), still in his 20s, happened to visit his family home in Kansai, and heard those words from his… Read
Today's 'weak men' feel threatened by rising female power and independence
How the male has fallen! From a long way up it’s a long way down. The pride a man could once take simply in being a man is no more – good riddance to it say most women and many men but it’s a loss all the same, and a… Read
Professor blasts women's mags over 'condescending,' 'overly intrusive' and 'shallow' coverage of young royals
Yohei Mori, a professor at Seijo University, clearly holds women's weekly magazines in low esteem -- particularly as concerns their recent coverage of younger members of the imperial family. Writing in Sunday Mainichi (Nov 30), he cites an article in Josei Seven's issue of Nov 27 that gave an account… Read
An estimated 80,000 people a year go missing in Japan
“No job, no money, debts, debts… what to do? Borrow from X to pay back Y? Make excuses, beg for mercy, plead for time? Good luck! Declare bankruptcy? Forms, procedures, arrangements. Hell with it. No, there’s only one way out: Slip into a hole and vanish.” Eight years ago “Hideki Nishida”… Read
Should Japan be worried over China's surge in patents?
The number of patents registered in a country is one benchmark of its scientific acumen and economic vitality. Around 1979, when Harvard Professor Ezra Vogel made the New York Times' bestseller list with "Japan as Number One," some Americans were feeling discomfort in seeing the annual number of patents registered… Read
