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Cat Desktop Robotic Vacuum Cleaner is meme homage with a practical twist
Anyone who has ever trawled YouTube will have encountered videos of cats. And probably anyone who had looked at more than a few would have soon encountered a subgenre of the YouTube cat video: cats...
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Kengo Kuma to design new Meiji Jingu Museum, opening in autumn 2019
A new museum will open in Meiji Shrine (or Meiji Jingu), the central Tokyo shrine linked to the Imperial Family that is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the city. Designed by Kengo Kuma...
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Yamanote Line poster project reimagines Tokyo’s most famous train line
Inspect a Tokyo railway map and the vibrant green loop line at the heart of the metropolis will immediately jump out at you. It’s called the Yamanote Line, and it’s one of Tokyo’s most vital transport...
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2020 Tokyo Olympics launches official promotional song and summer dance
The countdown to the 2020 Olympics continues in earnest: there is now just three years until the opening of the Summer Games. While the main stadium in central Tokyo is still far from completion, along...
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Pepper serves free drinks at SoftBank store robot cafes
Visitors to SoftBank stores in Tokyo and many other areas around Japan would have likely encountered the small white robot Pepper. The humanoid robot, co-developed by Aldebaran Robotics with the...
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Beppu keeps promise to build hot spring spa amusement park
Remember the mayor of Beppu, who promised to build an actual hot spring amusement park with water rides if a promotional video went viral? The video hit the necessary one million viewers mark very...
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Tamagotchi 20th Anniversary Original Model Re-release goes back to nostalgic...
Old is back! We first of all saw this trend when Nintendo released a “new” console, the Nintendo Famicom Mini NES Classic, that is an almost exact replica of the original NES. The video game giant...
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Fire at Tsukji Fish Market ahead of relocation to contaminated new site
A fire at Tsukji Market on August 3rd has damaged the internationally famous fish market. The fire raged for 15 hours at the site of the world’s largest wholesale fish and seafood market. No injuries...
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Roland creates world’s first electronic taiko drum
Japanese electronic musical instrument manufacturer Roland has teamed up with Kodo, a taiko traditional drumming company, to provide the world’s first electronic Japanese taiko. Although still in...
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AKB48 music group election event in Okinawa paid for partly by government funds
Given the ubiquitousness of AKB48 and its various members on advertising campaigns, music releases and television screens, you wouldn’t think that Yasushi Akimoto needs a tax break. But that’s what he...
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Pikachu Outbreak 2017 in Yokohama features Pokémon Go Park, Pikachu parade...
Pokémon Go fans have been rallying in Yokohama since August 9th, bringing together participants for a mass hunt of virtual creatures on the augmented reality phone app that became a global phenomenon...
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Thomas the Tank Engine fans in Japan ride a full-size replica steam train,...
Thomas the Tank Engine fans in Japan young and old can now enjoy two special events this summer. At the observatory of Tokyo Skytree, you can get a great view of the city while taking in an exhibition...
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Allegations about popular model Rola’s harsh contract reveal dark side to...
The weekly magazine Shukan Bunshun has published allegations that the entertainer Rola is stuck in a 10-year “slave-like” contract with her agency. Though she is apparently suffering mentally and even...
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Creative Sole: Japanese Sneaker Culture explores the multicultural world of...
The writer Manami Okazaki has carved out a solid name for herself in what are sometimes dismissively called “coffee-table books”, but are at heart lovingly conceived and designed photo books or art...
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Rodeo Boy Exercise Fitness Machine uses horseback riding motion to deliver...
A few years ago we noticed a lot of online chatter about Japanese fitness machines that recreated rodeo-style motions. People sniggered because they seemed wacky or even suggestive. But they work — and...
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Mourners in Japan stay close to deceased loved ones with augmented reality...
Japan’s society is aging — and rapidly. With the second-highest life expectancy in the world combined with a falling birth rate, the numbers of retirees and older citizens will only continue to rise....
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Japanese virtual reality entertainment attractions expand nationwide, overseas
Japanese virtual reality continues to thrive and expand in the entertainment industry. Following the success of the pilot VR Zone facility in Tokyo Bay and then the recently opened space in Shinjuku,...
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Night pool parties becoming popular in Japan as fewer young people visit beaches
Japan is suffering from a phenomenon known as “umi-banare” — literally, “moving away from the sea” — whereby fewer and fewer people visiting Japan’s beaches to take advantage of one the country’s great...
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Chun-Li and Cammy Street Fighter cosplay underwear are dream come true for...
While fans of the Capcom video game franchise Street Fighter are stereotypically male, now female aficionados can get their hands on two official sporty lingerie sets based on the characters of Chun-Li...
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Henn na Hotel robot-run hotels to open in Tokyo, expand overseas
The public’s (and tourists’) appetite for wacky accommodation experiences continues unabated, it seems, as Henn na Hotel has announced a major expansion. The Sasebo-based hotel, which is ostensibly...
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