The Tokyo Times

Fugitive penguin suffers from conjunctivitis

Mon, 28 May 2012 09:12:22 +0000

The penguin that escaped three months ago from a Tokyo sea park and was recaptured last week suffers from conjunctivitis, also known as pink eye, apparently due to the polluted waters of Tokyo Bay where he had lately been living. The Humboldt penguin was captured on Thursday. The next day, he was diagnosed by a [...]

The Tokyo Times

Japan minister visits nuke plant amid safety worry

Mon, 28 May 2012 00:57:36 +0000

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s environment and nuclear minister visited the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant on Saturday to inspect a spent fuel pool at the center of safety concerns and said it appeared to have been properly reinforced. The visit by Goshi Hosono, apparently aimed at demonstrating the safety of the facility, came amid [...]

The Tokyo Times

Japan minister says he didn’t deliberately mislead on nuke danger

Mon, 28 May 2012 00:48:03 +0000

TOKYO (AP) — The chief government spokesman during Japan’s nuclear crisis testified Sunday that he did not deliberately mislead the public about the extent of the accident. Trade and industry minister Yukio Edano told a parliamentary investigative panel that the government did not fully understand the damage at the Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant after a [...]

The Tokyo Times

Japan and Russia seek to set base on the moon

Sun, 27 May 2012 09:05:38 +0000

Japan and Russia have expressed at the Global Space Exploration Conference, held in Washington, a common goal of exploring the moon in a new way. “We are looking at the moon as our next target for human exploration,” said Yuichi Yamaura, an associate executive director at JAXA, the Japanese Space Agency. Russia, which has similar [...]

The Tokyo Times

Yu Darvish’s success makes MLB dream of China

Sun, 27 May 2012 09:05:08 +0000

Yu Darvish’s move to the Major League Baseball (MLB) and his spectacular debut have sparked the interest Japanese show to the U.S. league, but the feeling is not exactly mutual. Even if the transfer of the Japanese pitcher has been a good marketing move, pushing up T-shirt sales and increasing the number of Japanese tourists [...]

The Tokyo Times

Japan’s major banks down-graded by rating agency

Sun, 27 May 2012 09:04:44 +0000

Rating agency Fitch has announced a downgrade of Japan’s major banks, reflecting the government’s reduced flexibility to provide financial assistance if the banks needed it. Fitch has placed the major Japanese banks on rating watch negative, for a possible downgrade. The main reason for the government’s reduced ability to provide support to the banks comes [...]

The Tokyo Times

Weak demand in China and Europe hurts Japanese exports

Sat, 26 May 2012 03:53:05 +0000

A drop in shipments to China and Western Europe has affected Japan’s export numbers for April, which scored a less than forecast 7.9 percent increase compared to same month of the previous year. Most analysts had forecast levels around 12 percent, especially as the comparison basis is April 2011, when the economy was strongly affected [...]

The Tokyo Times

NTT DoCoMo plans migration to faster network

Sat, 26 May 2012 03:52:38 +0000

Japan’s mobile operator NTT DoCoMo announced it intends to invest nearly $2 billion in the migration to a superior quality network, destined to support services for 3.9-generation phones. The company said it is planning to apply for a license for the 700 megahertz spectrum, for high-speed mobile services. NTT is in competition with its smaller [...]

The Tokyo Times

Super Mario Bros. author wins award from Spain

Fri, 25 May 2012 05:44:12 +0000

MADRID (AP) — Japan’s Shigeru Miyamoto, considered the father of the modern video game, has been awarded Spain’s Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities. Miyamoto, 59, is the author of the Mario Bros. series that has become one of the most marketed video game sagas in history. Asturias award organizers praised Miyamoto, saying [...]

The Tokyo Times

UN: Fukushima workers’ deaths not from radiation

Fri, 25 May 2012 05:39:28 +0000

VIENNA (AP) — A year after an earthquake and tsunami triggered the Fukushima disaster, a United Nations agency preparing a report on the health effects says none of the six former reactor workers who have died since the catastrophe perished due to the effects of radiation. The U.N. Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic [...]

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