(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Last Week in Japanese News 12/11/2022-12/17/2022 [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2022-12-17 Hello, this is RWPOINTWOMAN, and this is Last Week in Japanese News. Here is where I translate Japanese news articles from the Easy section of the news reader app Easy Japanese, which is for Japanese language learners so I should be to translate accurately. December 12, 2022: Price of eggs rises in spite of not having risen before. (NHK) Eggs, which are frequently used this season for things like Christmas cake and hot pot, have become more expensive. In Tokyo, 1 kg of medium-sized JA Zennoh eggs sold for ¥262 on average in November. This is ¥55 more than the same time last year. The average price in December was ¥273. This is nearly as high as in December 2013 when it was ¥280. The price has not changed in a long time. According to the Japanese government, this is because the Russian invasion of Ukraine has driven up the cost of corn used as chicken feed. Another reason is the chicken culls due to bird flu. Aside from eggs, the price of bean sprouts and tofu, which had also been unchanged, has rise. Yamaguchi University discovers 168 new geoglyphs in Nazca. (NHK) A group from Yamaguchi University is studying the Nazca Lines, a Peruvian World Heritage Site. From June 2019 to February 2020, the group worked with Peruvian experts and AI, drones, etc. to investigate the area around the town of Nazca. They have announced that they have discovered 168 new geoglyphs as a result of that. The geoglyphs include those that resemble cats, camels, people, etc. Also, their size is about 50 m. The group thinks that these were made around 100 BCE over a period of 400 years. The group found a total of 358 images. Yamaguchi University Professor Masato Sakai said, "Once again, we do not understand why these were made. From now on, we will use AI to determine to find the and determine why they were made." Japanese-made space ship headed for the moon. (NHK) On December 11 Japan Time, a space ship made by ispace, a Japanese company, was launched by an American rocket. After 47 minutes, the space ship detached from the rocket and headed toward the moon. The space ship has a height of about 2.3 m and a width of about 2.6 m. The space ship is scheduled to land on the moon next April. This will be the first privately funded to land on the moon. After landing on the moon, robots made by organizations like JAXA will study the moon and conduct a variety of tests. A person with the company said, "We are relieved that we were finally able to launch a space ship." Recently, the notion that the would be an important place for carrying out activities in space. It appears that from hereon out, there will be more companies doing space exploration. December 13, 2022: "Sen" is "Kanji of the Year". (NHK) Every year, the Japanese Kanji Proficiency Test Association selects a kanji out of all of them. And then whichever one gets the most votes is selected as Kanji of the Year. The Kanji of the Year was chosen on December 12 at Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto, Japan. Out of the over 22,300 kanji assembled, "sen" (戦 lit. war) got the most votes. This is the second time it has been chosen. It was also chosen in 2001 after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The Association says that one reason is that the Russian invasion of Ukraine was on their minds. Another was that people felt they were in a fight to survive the depreciation of the yen and rising prices. A Buddhist priest said, "We wish everyone peace of mind and easier lives next years." Discussion of problems by foreign technical intern trainees increasing. (NHK) Over 320,000 foreign technical intern trainees, who work in Japan while picking up skills, were in Japan in June. They continue to complain of things like going without pay and being fired without good cause. The Organization for Technical Intern Training, which assists technical intern trainees, had about 23,700 discussions in fiscal year 2021. That is 3.2 times as much as in 2021. Things like "problems with management," and "pay, overtime, etc. problems," were frequently discussed and there were about 4,000 in each category. An expert said, "We think employment and human rights are important to the people of the world. We must end human rights abuses. It is necessary to improve the system in order for Japan to be chosen." Häagen-Dazs and Kiri cheese slated for price increases. (Asahi) Things Häagen-Dazs ice cream and Kiri cheese are slated for price increases next year. Häagen-Dazs Japan has announced price increases for 6 categories of items including ice cream and gift cards that will go into effect with the April 1 2023 shipment. Items like Mini Cups and Crispy Sandwiches prices will go from ¥295 to ¥325 and the assortment boxes will go from ¥880 to ¥925. Ito Ham will also increase the prices of 15 items from the Kiri series of cheeses and 34 items including things like Kikusui noodles and ingredients that will go into effect with the March 1 2023 shipment. Kiri Creamy Cheese 6 portions wil go from ¥450 to ¥500, for instance, and the price increases for the cheeses will reportedly go up between 6-13%. December 14, 2022: Convenience store has begun testing selling expired desserts at discount. (NHK) Convenience store Lawson has decided on a rule regarding how long to keep a given food on the shelves. They are discarded at midnight on the sell-by date even though they are still edible. Lawson has ended this rule for 10 desserts and has begun testing selling them at a discount of over 40%. Store employees will notify customers of these discounts. If they put in an order before 11:00 AM, they can pick it up at the store. This is a big convenience store and this is the first time it chosen to those foods at a discount if expired. Lawson will continue its test until the end of January. And then it will investigate whether this could reduce food waste. Nobuhiro Terada made head of Ukrainian National Ballet. (NHK) The Ukrainian National Ballet is one of the world's most famous ballet troupes. On December 6, Nibuhiro Terada, who is from Tokyo, Japan, became the first Japanese person to be the head artistic director of the Ukrainian National Ballet. Terada studied ballet abroad in Ukraine in 1987. After continuing to dance, he was made Assistant Artistic Director of the Ukrainian National Ballet. Dancers who had fled to other countries after the Russian invasion of Ukraine have been rescued and have returned. Terada said, "It is important to protect Ukraine's arts while emphasizing the importance of it history and culture and creating a new age." The plan is for the Ukrainian National Ballet to perform in Japan. Abalone declared endangered species mostly due to overfishing, poaching, and climate change. (Asahi) Could the abalone that the Japanese have become well-acquainted with in such forms as sashimi and osechi-ryouri become extinct? The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced its latest update to the Red List, which consists of endangered species from around the world, on December 9. They designated kuro-awabi, megai-awabi, and medaka awabi ​​​​​, which are luxury foods found in the seas beside Japan, as endangered species. Person in charge of IUCN Red List: "Rising ocean temperatures are accompanied by increasing illness, making this more frequent. With the additional factor of increased environmental pollution, more will be lost." This is the first time that they have designated abalone species as endangered and they have applied this designation to 20 of the 54 abalone species. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (MAFF), the Japanese haul of abalone peaked in 1970 at 6,466 t was 829 t in 2019. Japan Post to implement full-fledged lunch breaks next spring where they are hard to take due to security concerns with target of 1,000 post offices. (Asahi) Next spring, Japan Post plans to fully implement a lunch break at a portion of its post offices. According to a person connected with this, the lunch break is to last an hour between the 11:00 AM-2:00 PM and the ticket window is to be closed. The expectation is that this will cover over 1,000 post offices, mainly small ones where there would be only 2 people managing it and it would be difficult to take a lunch break because of concerns about crime. Implementing this in urban areas is also under discussion. After this point, there will be discussions with local governments, etc. and after a 1-month period of public awareness, it will be swiftly implemented starting next March. Even once after this begins, they would like to respond flexibly to citizen input, which would include stopping or changing the time. December 15, 2022: Meeting begun to ponder foreigners' technical trainee system. (NHK) In Japan, there is a system that gives foreigners technical training while they work in Japan. This is aimed at people raised in developing countries. However, the opinion exists that the foreigners are doing jobs held by the few. On December 14, experts began to convene a meeting in which they were to contemplate this. The leader of the meeting, who is with JICA, said, "It is necessary for companies that make a living together with foreigners to place a premium on things like safety, peace of mind, and human rights for all. We are thinking about the system because of this." Questions like, "Should the current system continue?' and, "Should this be used alongside other systems?" were raised at the meeting. The plan is for the meeting to release a report next fall. 8.8% of elementary and middle school aged children estimated to have a developmental disorder. (NHK) This year, the Japanese government asked how many children in either elementary or middle school might have a developmental disorder. Developmental disorders can impair things like reading, writing, math, a conveying one's feelings to surrounding people. The Japanese government says that the result was that 8.8% of children in either elementary or middle might have a developmental disorder. This is 6.5% greater than 10 years ago. Out of these, 28% were said to have been deemed by their schools to need special assistance with things like studying. Because of this, an expert who attended a meeting convened by the Japanese government said, "We need to try to think about helping children besides that 28% as well." And then they said, "It is important for the whole school to get involved in assisting these children." Fujiya to raise price of Country Maam, other products and reduce units of Milky candy from 7 to 6. (Asahi) Country Maam, which had previously had the size of its packaging reduced, is now going to have its price increased. Fujiya has announced price increases for 24 pastries including Country Maam and Home Pies starting in sequence with the March 1 2023 shipment. The size ranges from 6-14%. Additionally, 4 products including Milky, which is their flagship product, are to have the size of their packages reduced, effectively increasing their price. Milky, which currently comes in a package containing 7 of them, will start coming in a package of 6 on March 14 2023. Country Maam already had its package volume reduced this July. It is believed that the main causes are things like the continuously rising cost of raw ingredients and energy. Kikkoman to hike price of soy sauce, tsuyu, etc. by 16%, the highest ever. (Asahi) Kikkoman has announced price increases for 103 soy sauces and 54 sauces in the tsuyu/ponzu category that will go into effect with the April 1 2023. Koikuchi shoyu 1 L will go from ¥420 to ¥451 and Koi Dashi Hon Tsuyu will go from ¥492 to ¥556. These price increases range from 5% to ¥16. The price of soy sauce intended for household consumption was also increased in February. Cutting-edge construction robots intended to reduce laborer burden. (Asahi) ​Kajima Corporation opened a construction site that uses cutting-edge robots to reduce the burden on construction workers to the public. Kajima Corporation exhibited robots such as those that can carry up to 200 kg and those that spray flame retardant on steel frames. It is expected that they will be used in dangerous situations like ones where protective clothing is required because of particulate matter or summers in which there is high risk of heat stroke. Because the labour shortage and aging of the population have also become issues, Kajima Corporation wants robots to account for half its workforce in the future. December 16, 2022: Dugongs possibly in seas off of Okinawa. (NHK) It is said that there are a few dugongs, which live in warm waters, in the seas around Okinawa, Japan. There is a worry that these animals will go extinct. Together with universities, etc., NHK investigated whether there are dugongs in the seas around Irabu Island from this August to this month. They believe that they have recorded the sound of a dugong eating vegetation with a microphone placed in the sea. They found dugong DNA in animal feces from the sea. There was also video shot of a dugong in the sea outside Okinawa. However, this is the first time since the 1960s, which is when dugongs were captured, that evidence of their existence has been found in the form of something like feces. An expert said, "The discovery of the continued existence of dugongs is one that makes it important to protect them." Uniqlo to raise price of some of its spring and summer goods by ¥1,000. (Asahi) From the middle of next month onward, Uniqlo will sell its popular Kando jacket, which is newly equipped with UV protection, at ¥6,990, ¥1,000 more than its current ¥5,990. Products such as Airism UV Protection Mesh Parka and Ultra Stretch Colored Jeans will also have their prices increase by ¥1,000. Uniqlo already increased the price of its fleece products for fall and winter. At this time, Tadashi Yanai, who is head of branding, has made statements as to what is coming next. Uniqlo, with its strong foreign operations and feeling the effects of the cheap, has made record profit 2 years in a row. LINE, Yahoo, and PayPay to return purchase points through new service regardless of whether it's made at a brick and mortar store or online. (Asahi) Z Holdings, which LINE, Yahoo, and PayPay fall under the umbrella of, has announced a new service that restores points at an amount proportionate to purchases made regardless of whether they are made at brick and mortar stores or online. With the new milage program, the user can use points added to their account by PayPay when they make a purchase depending on the amount purchased whether it was at a brick and mortar store or online. Manufacturers can obtain customer data from stores that would otherwise be hard to capture and develop promotional campaigns that issue coupons based on purchasing history. The plan is to roll out this service next March and the future revenue target is ¥100 billion/yr. Yoshimi Yamashita one of first women to referee Men's FIFA World Cup, gives interview. (NHK) The FIFA World Cup Games in Qatar were the first Men's FIFA World Cup Games to have female referees. Yoshimi Yamashita of Japan was one of them. Yamashita was the 4th referee to the chief umpire at the Belgian and Canadian Games. When a player rotated out, it was her job to hold up a placard with the player's number to inform the audience and to inform them of additional time. She had been a 4th level referee at all of the 6 she has refereed. Yamashita returned to Japan on December 15 and said, "I want women to continue to referee World Cup Games. Because of that, I also want to give it my all in each and every game," before an audience. Prices for olive oil, etc. continue July climb, 5%-47% range. (Asahi) Nisshin OilliO is raising the price of cooking oils intended for household consumption such as olive oil and seasme oil and this will go into effect with the March 1 2023. The magnitude ranges from 5% to 47% and things like BOSCO Extra Virgin Olive Oil 456 g and Nisshin Healthy Goma Kouyu 130 g have continued rising in cost since July. Rise in global demand and bad weather in oil-producing areas are the principal causes. Tokyo Metropolitan Area to require new homes to have solar panels installed. (NHK) The Tokyo Metropolitan Area has made the decision to allow solar panels to be installed on new homes built by large companies starting in April 2025. This is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Companies must report things like the number of homes with solar panels installed and the amount of electricity produced to the government every year. This is the first such decision made in Japan. The Tokyo Metropolitan Area has also decided to pay ¥30 billion to companies that advance solar panel installation technology. Tokyo Metropolitan Area Prefectural Governor Koike said, "We want to make incremental progress towards our goal of halving greenhouse gas emissions by 2030." That's all for this week. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2022/12/17/2141404/-Last-Week-in-Japanese-News-12-11-2022-12-17-2022 Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/