Tomoko Otake

Tokyo

Reporter at The Japan Times

A reporter at @japantimes. Interests: health/society/media. Views are mine. RTs/Likes no endorsements

Featured in: Favicon

japantimes.co.jp Favicon

stripes.com Favicon

einnews.com Favicon

staradvertiser.com Favicon

apjjf.org

unu.edu

asiatimes.com Favicon

nuclear-news.net Favicon

asiatoday.co Favicon

internazionale.it + 4 more

Articles

What comes after 100?

3 days ago | japantimes.co.jp | Tomoko Otake

Japan has one of the oldest populations on the planet, with women enjoying an average of 75.5 years of good health and men 72.6 years. Additionally, the country boasts more than 95,000 centenarians, a number expected to grow as people live longer. Yet, beyond the statistics lie individual stories. Each centenarian is a living testament to history, having witnessed world wars, a postwar economic miracle, the rise of computers and the internet, as well as profound societal change.
No concessions over food safety in Japan-U.S. talks, Ishiba says

3 weeks ago | foodsafety.einnews.com | Tomoko Otake

Tokyo – Japan will make no concession that could affect food safety in its tariff negotiations with the United States, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Sunday. "We will not concede over food safety. We must protect the safety of Japanese citizens," he said during a television program on NHK, showing a careful approach to the issue of agricultural market access.
China’s new bridge-forming barges offer new options for Taiwan invasion

1 month ago | cnas.org | Tomoko Otake |Gabriel Dominguez

If anyone was wondering what Chinese troops and armored vehicles disembarking onto Taiwan’s shores could potentially look like, then footage of drills in China’s southern Guangdong province showing barges equipped with interconnected landing bridges might provide a clue.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.

1 month ago | japantimes.co.jp | Tomoko Otake

On a flat expanse of reclaimed land in Osaka Bay, Japan has been busy preparing to stage a vision of the future. This Sunday, the gates to the 2025 World Expo will officially open on the human-made island of Yumeshima (which translates, perhaps a touch optimistically, as “Dream Island”), kicking off a six-month extravaganza featuring pavilions from more than 160 countries, territories and organizations.
After a tumultuous buildup, a first look at the Osaka Expo

1 month ago | japantimes.co.jp | Joel Tansey |Tomoko Otake

The only thing brighter than Myaku Myaku's smile was the springtime Osaka sun as the 2025 World Expo opened its doors to members of the media and other invited guests on Wednesday on the human-made Yumeshima island.
Japans weather in 2024: Record temperatures hurt peoples health and wallets

1 month ago | johnmenadue.com | Tomoko Otake

Last year might best be remembered for the conflict in the Middle East or the return of Donald Trump in the US, but in climate circles, in Japan and elsewhere, 2024 will go down as the latest hottest year on record.
Recent spate of wildfires in Japan and South Korea linked to climate change

1 month ago | japantimes.co.jp | Tomoko Otake

A series of wildfires that broke out in Japan and South Korea last week were fueled by human-induced climate change, according to a new rapid analysis released by a group of European researchers. ClimaMeter, a European Union-backed project studying the impact of climate change on extreme weather, said the ongoing wildfires in both countries were made more intense due to persistently dry soil, strong winds and unusually high temperatures.
Japan's record snow in February attributed to global warming

1 month ago | japantimes.co.jp | Tomoko Otake

Global warming contributed to record snowfall in northern and eastern Japan in February, increasing the amount of snow by up to 10%, the Meteorological Agency said in a report released Tuesday. The country experienced an unusually harsh winter, with heavy precipitation in wide areas this year. Last year, it had its hottest year on record.
Japan to extend financial aid to more people moving out of Tokyo

1 month ago | finance.einnews.com | Tomoko Otake |Alex Martin

The government plans to expand in fiscal 2025 the scope of eligibility for financial aid given to people moving out of Tokyo to live and find work in rural areas, in order to tackle regional labor shortages. Those taking up jobs in agriculture, medicine and welfare, and becoming self-employed will be eligible for the aid with the expansion. The aid is currently available chiefly to people who are employed by small regional firms, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Japanese superfans turn dental clinic into Ohtani mini-museum

2 months ago | dental.einnews.com | Irene Wang |Tomoko Otake

Koshigaya, Saitama Pref. – In an online auction four years ago, Japanese dentist Yusuke Kamimura's father purchased his first piece of Shohei Ohtani memorabilia: a rosin bag, the soft pouch containing powder that pitchers use to improve their grip on a baseball. Some 100 million yen ($675,000) later, spent on 300-odd collectibles, renovations and security, the pair are the proud owners of a mini-museum dedicated to the Japanese baseball player inside Kamimura's dental clinic near Tokyo.