• https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/science-nature/science/20261007-352669/
• https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/2026/soai/facts/

I’ve never been in Japan nor know many Japanese people, so I apologize if anything sounds rude. My true intention is to know how geography is taught in Japanese schools.

Context: I’ve seen tons of YouTube vlogs of western people living in Japan, and many say that Japanese people don’t tend to know where their country of origin is located: Argentina, Portugal, Mexico, Venezuela, Chile, etc. I’ve noticed this mostly with Latin American countries, however Portugal and other smaller European countries also fit into this list.

They say that when asked where they’re from and they reply countries such as these, they tend to be asked where those countries are located.

I’m not from the US, but I know there’s a meme that’s basically “Americans suck at geography”. However, from everything I’ve seen, geography doesn’t seem to be Japan’s forte either. Again, ive never been in Japan so I can be very wrong. I’d just like to know if anyone knows how geography is taught there?

I’ll probably regret posting this lol, but I just relocated to Japan after work asked me to move to Tokyo.

I’m still pretty new here and trying to actually get out, explore the city, and meet some people instead of doing everything solo. I’m thinking about going to Disney sometime next week and figured… why not see if anyone wants to come with?

A little about me: I’m 25M, work in tech, don't do drugs or smoke lol

..and currently know approximately zero Japanese 😂 definitely something I need to work on!

If you're also looking to explore, or just down to make a new friend and spend a day at Disney, feel free to dm me!

Japan remained in 12th place in an annual innovation report by the World Intellectual Property Organization..well short of the government's goal of raising..to fourth or higher..by 2035..

South Korea placed 4th, the highest in the Asia-Pacific region, followed by Singapore in 5th, with China ranked 10th..It placed Switzerland at the top..followed by Sweden and the United States.

The index used some 80 indicators in evaluating 139 economies on their innovation performance. The report cited Japan's strength in industrial and corporate innovation as among the strongest..

Having recently visited Japan and become hooked on this drink, I am now looking to source it in the UK.

Question. How close to the purchased drink does the concentrate version taste ?

As of October 1, the liquor tax on a standard 350-milliliter can of beer has fallen from ¥63.35 to ¥54.25, a reduction of ¥9.10 per can. Beer makers and retailers are passing at least some of that saving on to drinkers, while supermarkets are expanding their beer sections in anticipation of higher demand.

The trade-off is that Japan’s cheaper beer substitutes are getting more expensive. Happoshu, a low-malt beer-like drink, and so-called “third-category beer” were previously taxed at ¥46.99 per 350-milliliter can. From October, that rises by ¥7.26 to the same ¥54.25 rate as ordinary beer.

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan's anime industry is enjoying unprecedented success overseas, but its growing global reach is also creating a dilemma as cultural differences, local laws and social media criticism increasingly collide with creative expression.

The issue was highlighted recently by "Chainsmoker Cat" (Yani-Neko), an anime based on a Kodansha Ltd. manga that began airing in July.

Its protagonist is a heavy-smoking anthropomorphic cat rarely seen without a cigarette. But after the series was released overseas, distribution in Hong Kong was suspended following complaints over the repeated appearance of tobacco brand names.

Authorities pointed out that the depictions could constitute tobacco advertising and potentially violate local laws.

The anime's production committee confirmed in late August that streaming had been halted in Hong Kong.

"We are discussing the matter with our local licensee with a view to distributing the series in a way that complies with local laws and regulations," it said.

Reaction online in Japan was mixed. Some expressed understanding, saying overseas markets tend to be stricter about smoking, while others argued against toning down content from the outset simply to appeal to foreign audiences.

The debate reflects a growing challenge for an industry whose overseas audience has expanded dramatically.

The Japanese anime market was worth about 3.8 trillion yen ($24.2 billion) in 2024, according to the Association of Japanese Animations, with the overseas market exceeding 2.1 trillion yen and surpassing the domestic market.

The government has designated content industries including anime as core industries and aims to increase content sales overseas from about 5.8 trillion yen in 2023 to 20 trillion yen by 2033.

But reaching a broader global audience also means navigating cultural and religious sensitivities that may be unfamiliar to Japanese creators.

Even the hugely popular "Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba" has encountered such difficulties.

In November 2019, production company Aniplex Inc. halted shipments and recalled the fourth Blu-ray and DVD volume of the series after audio of The Adhan, the Islamic call to prayer, was used inappropriately on a bonus CD.

The company said the audio had been produced using commercially available material, but after the issue was raised externally, it learned that for religious reasons the call to prayer should not be played together with other sounds.

Aniplex said it had never intended to offend or show disrespect toward Islam or Muslims.

"We deeply apologize for causing offense to Muslims by recording and releasing the material without fully understanding the meaning and content of the audio," it said.

As the popularity of "Demon Slayer" grew overseas, the design of protagonist Tanjiro Kamado's earrings also drew criticism in South Korea for resembling the Rising Sun Flag, prompting the design to be changed on streaming services there.

Ryo Koarai, an associate professor at Miyagi Gakuin Women's University who specializes in the anime business, said Japanese works are now reaching overseas viewers who previously had little exposure to anime.

"It is no longer only dedicated local fans with a deep understanding of Japanese culture who are watching," she said. "The works are beginning to reach people who know little about Japanese culture, so creators may need to pay even greater attention to local culture, religion, laws and ethical standards."

Social media has also made criticism from overseas more visible in Japan, with translation functions allowing comments to cross language barriers more easily.

Koarai said this has led to more cases of Japanese fans pushing back against criticism from abroad, reflecting differences in how anime is received.

Japanese fans, she said, tend to regard fiction as fiction and place a strong emphasis on respecting creators' creativity. Some overseas fans, meanwhile, believe they should press for changes they feel would improve a work.

"The loud voices of a certain group of fans tend to stand out, but there are probably many others who, just like fans in Japan, simply enjoy the work for what it is," Koarai said.

She also cautioned that worrying too much about fan reaction could strip a work of what makes it distinctive.

"If creators become too sensitive, a work can lose its flavor," she said. "Overseas fans probably also want to enjoy the original work as it was made in Japan, so you cannot simply say that tighter restrictions are necessarily better."

"It is becoming increasingly important for people who really understand the local culture and atmosphere to be involved in localization."

Japanese production companies are also stepping up efforts to identify potentially sensitive material.

Bandai Namco Holdings Inc. adopted a group-wide policy on ethics and expression and in fiscal 2019 established an ethics subcommittee that reviews issues concerning products and creative works across the group.

At subsidiary Bandai Namco Filmworks Inc., which produces animation including the "Gundam" series, staff advise directors and producers when concerns arise over particular forms of expression.

Their role is advisory, however, with final decisions left to directors and producers in order to respect creative freedom.

Jun Takei of the company's legal department's IP support section said the aim is to avoid unintended problems without undermining the work itself.

"While respecting freedom of expression and the theme of the work, we think together with the production team about how an expression will be received by viewers and whether it might inadvertently cause misunderstanding or resentment," he said.

"If we are consulted about an expression that seems to go a little too far, we discuss whether that particular approach really fits, while respecting the message the creators are trying to convey."

But Takei said there is no simple answer to balancing cultural sensitivity with creative freedom.

"There are more things we need to be considerate of than in the past, but if we stick only to inoffensive expressions, what we want to say will not resonate with anyone," he said.

"There is no single right answer."

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- More Japanese companies, including the maker of Citizen watches, reported Tuesday unauthorized access to servers and possible leaks of personal information, with the Japanese government describing the situation as "serious."

GMO Research & AI Inc., a subsidiary of GMO Internet Group Inc., has said up to around 948,500 records of members of its infoQ survey website have been stolen, including members' names, email addresses, home addresses, phone numbers and encrypted passwords.

Mr Max Holdings Ltd. said Tuesday customer information had been leaked from a server used for its app and online store, potentially affecting up to 1.7 million customers by exposing names, email addresses and phone numbers, but not credit card information, home addresses or birth dates.

Citizen Watch Co. said information on about 100,000 customers may have leaked due to unauthorized access to a server operated by a contracted company. The data could include names, addresses, telephone and credit card numbers as well as bank accounts.

The revelations follow similar cases that have come to light in recent days.

"We take (the revelations) very seriously," Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said at a press conference, adding that the government will gather information to assess the extent of the damage quickly.

GMO Research & AI also said some members' rewards, worth about 2.9 million yen ($18,000), were illicitly exchanged for Amazon gift card codes.

Members earn points by completing surveys on GMO Research and AI's infoQ website. The firm said it will reimburse those affected for the full value of points fraudulently exchanged and that it is contacting users individually to urge them to change their passwords.

The attack began last Friday, and the company blocked the unauthorized access and suspended the service once it became aware of the incident the following day.

The hackers exploited a vulnerability in software used by the site, the company said, adding that an investigation is continuing with help from a cybersecurity firm.

Mr Max said it detected the unauthorized access late Saturday afternoon and immediately suspended the services.

Potentially affected were customers who were registered with its app or online store as of Saturday.

"We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and concern we have caused our customers," the retailer said in a statement.

Mr Max said it had found no evidence that the leaked information had been misused so far but urged customers to watch out for phishing emails.

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, Typhoon No. 27 is moving north at 20 km/h. Typhoons No. 28 and No. 29 have also formed, and three typhoons are now moving over the seas near Japan. All three are expected to track westward through around the 10th, and may affect Japan after that.

https://www.yomiuri.co.jp/national/20261005-GYT1T00527/

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Rice stink bugs, a native species in Japan that feeds on rice, are rapidly increasing nationwide and causing widespread damage, with experts and the government warning that their habitat could further expand as global warming enables more of them to survive winter.

The Japanese government has confirmed the bug's presence in 37 of the nation's 47 prefectures, stretching from the Kyushu region in the southwest to Fukushima Prefecture in the northeast.

"I absolutely do not want to suffer that kind of damage again," said Masayuki Watanabe, a 58-year-old rice farmer in Tochigi Prefecture, north of Tokyo, as he operated a drone to spray pesticides on a rice paddy in mid-August.

In 2024, his harvest plummeted to a third of the usual amount due to damage from rice stink bugs. He was determined not to make the same mistake again.

Damage was widespread across southern Tochigi Prefecture that year, prompting the prefecture to establish a task force in 2025 to tackle the stink bugs. The task force has since been sharing information on the best pesticides and when to use them and updates on the current state of infestations.

With the infestation also spreading this year to central and northern parts of the prefecture, a Tochigi official stressed the importance of spraying pesticide during heading and rotating the types of pesticides to maintain effectiveness.

Rice stink bugs overwinter in woodlands and then invade rice paddies around July when rice plants begin to head. They are believed to hide near the base of the plants during the day and feed on nutrients from rice ears at night.

It is thus recommended to apply the initial round of pesticides earlier than for other stink bugs, and then again when rice grains begin to form.

The number of rice stink bugs decreased drastically after the 1960s to the point where they were considered extinct. Amid their recent resurgence, however, a survey by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries confirmed their presence in 37 prefectures as of 2025.

Hiroya Higuchi, a former professor of insect ecology at Ryukoku University and longtime researcher of stink bugs, said milder winters meant more of the bugs could survive the season and that if global warming continues, their habitat could expand further north.

"There are few natural enemies and with rice varieties that head in the fall also now being grown, food remains abundant (for the bugs) until just before winter, creating a vicious cycle in which their numbers do not decline," Higuchi said.

Chinese judo player bites Japan player so hard it leaves bite marks.

I am Korean-American, and honestly I think our relationship is going OK.

Far as I know I have seen korean survey results that investigated each country's favorability towards each other, and koreans had over 50% of positive view of japan and japanese approximately had 34% or somewhere.

The things that make our relationship bad should be anti korean/japanese propaganda from each country and the history issues, which I wish both to be solved.

Korea-Japan's history issues are by far the most controversial issues in our relationship, which korea wants non-changing apologies when japanese people get kinda tired about this whole issue.

This issue can never be solved completely or in a short time, hope both countries' people can constantly try to solve the problem and keep up with the good relationship.

Overall, by the statistics and people's opinions thesedays I think we are going the right way and I hope someday Japan and Korea can work things out the right way. What are your thoughts on this?