Japan’s suicide rate is falling after years of preventative measures, but there’s still much to do, says the Japanese government.
Compiled by the Japanese cabinet office, the report found that the number of people who took their own lives fell to 21,897 in 2016, the lowest level in 22 years. For much of the 2000s the rate hovered above 30,000 each year.
The report was the 11th consecutive paper released by the government, and showed that despite the positive drop, Japan still has one of the highest suicide rates among industrialized nations. On average, 19.5 people kill themselves per 100,000 in Japan, compared to 11.3 in Canada, or 7.5 in Britain. Topping the list however is Lithuania, where 30 people out of 100,000 take their own lives each year.
A flurry of aftershocks hit southwestern Japan on Saturday as rescuers scrambled to reach trapped survivors of two big quakes that killed at least 35 people. About 190 suffered serious injuries, according to the government.
Evacuation orders were issued for areas vulnerable to landslides amid powerful thunderstorms in the area, the government’s main spokesman Yoshihide Suga said in an evening press briefing.
“There are still sporadic aftershocks from this morning’s earthquake, and so there is still a need to be vigilant,” Suga warned.
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College students carry blankets and food toward a gym-turned shelter as a damaged apartment building is seen in the background after an earthquake in Minamiaso village, Kumamoto prefecture, Japan, April 16. Yuki Sato / Kyodo News via AP
Gunshots set the tempo for one of the most draining rhythms of American life.
Mass shootings, which have been about as consistent as the rise of the sun this year, are a constant source of tragedy and anxiety across the country. Again and again, the United States reacts to mass shootings with a ritualized bout of mourning as critics of the country’s gun policies slide into a well-worn cycle of horror, sadness and anger.
One established feature of this cycle is a chart that circulates across the Internet showing how exceptional the U.S. is in the developed world for the frequency of its gun deaths.
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United States reacts to mass shootings with a ritualized bout of mourning
Bob Simon is among a handful of elite journalists who have covered most major overseas conflicts and news stories from the late 1960s to the present, earning an unprecedented number of awards in the process. He has been contributing regularly to 60 Minutes since 1996. At the same time, he was a correspondent for all seven seasons of 60 Minutes II, from January 1999 to June 2005, after which he became a full-time 60 Minutes correspondent. The 2014-15 season is his 19th on the broadcast.
Simon recently reported on the persecution of Coptic Christians caught up in Egypt’s political turmoil and the situation in Fukushima, Japan, three years after it endured the triple tragedy of an earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster. His 2012 story from Central Africa on the world’s only all-black symphony won him his fourth Peabody award and an Emmy. Another story about an orchestra in Paraguay, one whose poor members constructed their instruments from trash, won him his 27th Emmy.
There isn’t much one can do with the classic bike’s design, right? Wrong! Japan, has yet again surprised us all with this new design of the classic bike that will allow you to walk while you conveniently commute. The stepping bikes or officially known as the Walking Bicycle Club (WBC) relies on the up and down movement of the legs instead of the rotational movement to ride the bike.
WBC comes with three wheels and is also equipped with an electric motor that is responsible for helping the cyclist while going up a hill. The bike weighs about 36 pounds and is about 3.3 feet in length. The group that came up with the design is known as Katayama Kogyo says it wanted to create a new experience that would be the combination of walking at the speed of cycling.
Wheelchair users may soon have greater freedom of movement than ever before with the development of a new chair equipped not just with wheels but legs as well. Invented by scientists at Japan’s Chiba Institute of Technology, the chair is being prepared for commercial sale by the end of next year. Rob Muir reports.
Each spring, people flock to Kawasaki, Japan, to celebrate Kanamara Matsuri, aka the “Festival of the Steel Phallus.”
Held this year on April 6, the festival is a celebration of the penis and fertility. People parade gigantic phallic-shaped mikoshi (portable Shinto shrines) down the streets during the event, as revelers suck on penis lollipops, buy penis-themed memorabilia and pose with sculptures in the shape of — you guessed it — penises.
According to the BBC, the festival is believed to have roots in the 17th century, when prostitutes are said to have prayed for protection from sexually transmitted infections at Kawasaki’s Kanamara shrine.
Japan’s highly-contentious whaling campaign experienced a major setback on Monday when a United Nations court ruled that the island nation could no longer continue its annual whale hunt in the waters around Antarctica.
Japan’s highly-contentious whaling campaign experienced a major setback on Monday when a United Nations court ruled that the island nation could no longer continue its annual whale hunt in the waters around Antarctica.
The International Court of Justice ruled in favor of Australia, which had sued Japan and rejected that country’s argument that the whaling has been conducted mainly for scientific reasons.
Japan’s highly-contentious whaling campaign experienced a major setback on Monday when a United Nations court ruled that the island nation could no longer continue its annual whale hunt in the waters around Antarctica.
The International Court of Justice ruled in favor of Australia, which had sued Japan and rejected that country’s argument that the whaling has been conducted mainly for scientific reasons.
Japan’s highly-contentious whaling campaign experienced a major setback on Monday when a United Nations court ruled that the island nation could no longer continue its annual whale hunt in the waters around Antarctica.
The International Court of Justice ruled in favor of Australia, which had sued Japan and rejected that country’s argument that the whaling has been conducted mainly for scientific reasons.
Japan’s highly-contentious whaling campaign experienced a major setback on Monday when a United Nations court ruled that the island nation could no longer continue its annual whale hunt in the waters around Antarctica.
The International Court of Justice ruled in favor of Australia, which had sued Japan and rejected that country’s argument that the whaling has been conducted mainly for scientific reasons.
Japan’s highly-contentious whaling campaign experienced a major setback on Monday when a United Nations court ruled that the island nation could no longer continue its annual whale hunt in the waters around Antarctica.
The International Court of Justice ruled in favor of Australia, which had sued Japan and rejected that country’s argument that the whaling has been conducted mainly for scientific reasons.
Japan’s highly-contentious whaling campaign experienced a major setback on Monday when a United Nations court ruled that the island nation could no longer continue its annual whale hunt in the waters around Antarctica.
The International Court of Justice ruled in favor of Australia, which had sued Japan and rejected that country’s argument that the whaling has been conducted mainly for scientific reasons.
Welcome to Hiroshima, Japan a business fair was held back in January and some really amazing gadgets were introduced to the public. Among many gadgets that we witnessed, there was a peculiar new gadget that reminded us right away of Joaquin Phoenix in film ‘Her’.
The creation comes from Kazuhiro Taniguchi who is a staffer at Hiroshima City University. This device, prototype so far, employs infrared waves in order to ascertain when the user closes or opens his/her mouth. These detected movements and the respective commands are sent back to the device. So what we are looking at are applications that will allow the users to get information pertaining to traffic or even be able to get directions by turning their heads or biting down. The device is being called an Ear Switch which comes equipped with earpiece along with a compass, speaker, barometer, gyro sensors, microphone, battery and GPS capabilities.
Film and Writing Festival for Comedy. Showcasing best of comedy short films at the FEEDBACK Film Festival. Plus, showcasing best of comedy novels, short stories, poems, screenplays (TV, short, feature) at the festival performed by professional actors.
Explore the dynamic relationship between faith and science, where curiosity meets belief. Join us in fostering dialogue, inspiring discovery, and celebrating the profound connections that enrich our understanding of existence.
Japan’s Suicide Rate is Finally Falling
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James' World 2 