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DC5m United States japan in english 7 articles, created at 2016-10-21 06:44

1 Takata airbag rupture linked to 11th US death The rupture of a recalled airbag made by the Japanese company Takata has been linked to an 11th US death, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration... (7.94/8) 2016-10-20 21:02 1KB www.dailymail.co.uk

2 Dollar near 7-mth high as euro slides, Asia slips on weaker oil By Shinichi Saoshiro TOKYO, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Asian stocks slipped on Friday with a (1.00/8) fall in crude oil prices dampening investor risk sentiment, while the do... 2016-10-20 21:02 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

3 superstar looks at what could have been X Japan would have been hard-pressed to imagine a more impassioned following in its heyday, with the symphonic metal group's 1997 breakup in Tokyo taking on... 2016-10-20 22:18 4KB www.dailymail.co.uk

4 Nissan to decide next month whether to build next Qashqai in UK -CEO By Naomi Tajitsu YOKOHAMA, Japan, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co will make a decision next month on whether to produce the next Qashqai SUV model at its... 2016-10-20 21:53 2KB www.dailymail.co.uk

5 Living dolls: Fukuoka's ningyo craftsmen practice a time-honored trade Though the number of ningyo craftsmen has dwindled, a small band of skilled artisans is keeping this niche industry alive. 2016-10-20 21:42 2KB www.cnn.com

6 Piko-Taro’s ‘Pen Pineapple Apple Pen’ debuts on Billboard 100

Japanese comedian Piko Taro's viral single 2016-10-21 00:00 2KB entertainment.inquirer.net

7 Japanese autistic boy who cannot be hugged finds the friend in his service dog An autistic boy who can't be touched or hugged by anyone has connected for the first time - with his new service dog. Five-year-old Kainoa Niehaus traveled to the 4 Paws For Ability center in Ohio from Japan. 2016-10-20 18:15 3KB www.dailymail.co.uk Articles

DC5m United States japan in english 7 articles, created at 2016-10-21 06:44

1 /7 Takata airbag rupture linked to 11th US death (7.94/8) The rupture of a recalled airbag made by the Japanese company Takata has been linked to an 11th US death, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said. The federal agency on Thursday confirmed that a crash fatality in Riverside County, California on September 30 was the latest of nearly a dozen US fatalities connected to the recalled air bags. The woman was driving a 2001 Honda Civic, which the NHTSA said was included in the group of Honda and Acura vehicles the agency had identified as posing "substantially higher risk" -- especially in hot and humid regions. Tokyo-based Takata -- which represents 20 percent of the global market for seatbelts and airbags -- has been hammered by a defect in its airbag inflators linked to at least 15 deaths and scores of injuries worldwide. About 100 million Takata airbags have been recalled, some 70 million in the US. The defect can send metal and plastic shrapnel from the inflator canister hurtling toward drivers and passengers when an airbag is deployed. The main cause of the defect remains unclear but a combination of time, environmental moisture and fluctuating high temperatures is a likely culprit, the NHTSA said.

US confirms 11th death due 11th death due to Takata U.S. confirms 11th death Defective Takata air bag to Takata air bags airbag confirmed in U.S. due to Takata air bags blamed for 11th death article.wn.com article.wn.com rssfeeds.freep.com rss.cnn.com

U.S. confirms 11th death Another death linked to US Confirms 11th Death US confirms 11th death linked to faulty Takata air recalled Takata air bag Due to Takata Air Bags linked to faulty Takata air bag inflator nypost.com abcnews.go.com bag inflator dailymail.co.uk cnbc.com

2016-10-20 21:02 Afp www.dailymail.co.uk

2 /7 2 /7 Dollar near 7-mth high as euro slides, Asia slips on weaker oil (1.00/8) By Shinichi Saoshiro TOKYO, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Asian stocks slipped on Friday with a fall in crude oil prices dampening investor risk sentiment, while the dollar hovered near a seven-month high against an index of peers. The dollar was boosted by a fall in the euro after the European Central Bank shot down talk it was contemplating tapering its monetary easing - sending the euro lower. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.2 percent. South Korea's Kospi lost 0.4 percent and Australian stocks shed 0.3 percent. Japan's Nikkei bucked the trend and rose 0.2 percent , brushing a six-month high, as the yen weakened against the dollar. U. S. stocks ended a choppy session on Thursday slightly lower as investors digested the latest round of earnings, with a sharp drop in telecoms offset by gains in healthcare. The ECB left its ultra-loose monetary policy unchanged on Thursday but kept the door open to more stimulus in December, with ECB President Mario Draghi dousing recent market speculation that the central bank may begin tapering its 1.7 trillion euro asset-buying programme. "The European Central Bank removed a source of immediate risk for traders by revealing that it did not discuss tapering its QE program at this month's meeting," wrote Ric Spooner, chief market analyst at CMC Markets. "Decisions are being deferred until December pending the outcome of research - meaning that meeting will be a key focus for markets. " The dollar index was steady at 98.318, not far from 98.404, its highest since March scaled overnight. The euro was little changed at $1.0926, within reach of a four-month trough of $1.0916 struck on Thursday on ECB President Draghi's dovish comments. The dollar was up 0.1 percent at 104.085 yen adding to overnight gains of 0.5 percent. Sterling was flat at $1.2251, taking in stride comments by European Council President Donald Tusk that British Prime Minister Theresa May had confirmed that Brexit talks would be triggered by end- March 2017. U. S. crude futures were down 0.1 percent at $50.58 a barrel. The contract lost more than 2 percent on Thursday as the dollar's surge prompted profit-taking on a rally that sent U. S. crude to 15-month highs midweek. (Reporting by Shinichi Saoshiro; Editing by Eric Meijer)

FOREX-Dollar stands tall after dovish Draghi pressures euro dailymail.co.uk

2016-10-20 21:02 Reuters www.dailymail.co.uk

3 /7 X Japan superstar looks at what could have been X Japan would have been hard-pressed to imagine a more impassioned following in its heyday, with the symphonic metal group's 1997 breakup in Tokyo taking on an air of national mourning. But could X Japan have been far bigger on the world stage? In a new documentary on the band, of Kiss relates his awe at discovering X Japan and opines that, had the rockers been American or British, they may have been the world's biggest band. "," which opens in US cinemas on Friday, explores the rise and turbulence of the band that found unprecedented glory in Japan's high-flying 1980s. Led by , the physically frail but musically furious drummer, pianist and songwriter, X Japan took inspiration from the power of arena rock but with the glam flair of David Bowie and firm underpinnings in Western classical music. "We Are X" -- directed by , who previously filmed the Rolling Stones -- follows X Japan as the band's reunited surviving members play New York's Madison Square Garden in 2014. Yoshiki, in an interview with AFP, noted that the Tokyo Dome -- where X Japan performed its farewell concert in 1997 -- had three times the capacity of 18,200-seat Madison Square Garden. "But when you're talking about making it in the whole world, Madison Square Garden is one of the goals," he said. - 'The world was not ready' - "We Are X," which premiered at the Sundance film festival, shows the band's awkward initial attempts at international success. The rockers in 1992 hurriedly learned English and gave a news conference in New York to announce a US recording contract, yet X Japan's foreign fan base was to remain niche. "It was almost like a mission back then," Yoshiki said of going global. "But we were not 100 percent sure we could do it, because the world was not ready. " Yoshiki, 50, believes X Japan's trajectory could have been different if the band had been born later. "We now have the same opportunity to achieve as those who were born in America and England. " In the past 30 years, Japanese culture from sushi to Pokemon has swept the world and the internet has transformed the distribution of music, he said. South Korean rapper Psy's "Gangnam Style" reigns as the most-viewed video ever on YouTube, with its equestrian-style dance winning an audience who barely understands a word. "These days anything can happen because of the internet and everything," Yoshiki said. "The world has kind of changed so any artist from Japan or anywhere -- China, anywhere in the world -- may be able to make it and became a worldwide known artist. " - Darkness behind the celebrity - The documentary also shows the darkness lurking behind X Japan's fame. Yoshiki, sickly from a young age with frequent bone fractures, is haunted by his father's suicide and takes out his aggression through music. With X Japan, he would sometimes convulse in pain on stage, with audiences mistakenly thinking he was acting. And just months after X Japan split up, lead guitarist Hideto Matsumoto, better known as "," was found dead from hanging, with fans throwing themselves on his funeral procession. His death was ruled a suicide, although Yoshiki in the documentary contended that hide accidentally died from "neck-stretching" exercises. "We Are X" also shows the reconciliation between Yoshiki and singer , whose decision to leave the group triggered the 1997 breakup. Toshi explains in the documentary that he had been brainwashed by a cult that made him ashamed to perform and seized his money. Yoshiki, who composed a work for piano and strings to mark Emperor Akihito's 10th anniversary on the throne in 1999, has stayed active in classical music and recently announced Carnegie Hall performances for 2017. "I don't know how long I have left in my career," he said. "But I'll try as much as I can and also open the door for artists of the next generation. "

2016-10-20 22:18 Afp www.dailymail.co.uk

4 /7 4 /7 Nissan to decide next month whether to build next Qashqai in UK -CEO By Naomi Tajitsu YOKOHAMA, Japan, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co will make a decision next month on whether to produce the next Qashqai SUV model at its Sunderland plant in Britain following the country's decision to leave the European Union, Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn said on Friday. Ghosn last week met with British Prime Minister Theresa May after warning the country's decision to exit the European Union could halt investment at the plant in northern England. The factory, which builds the popular Qashqai SUV and many other models exported throughout Europe, is Britain's largest car plant, producing 475,000 vehicles last year, of which 80 percent were exported. "We're not asking for any advantage (from the British government), but we don't want to lose any competitiveness no matter what the discussions," Ghosn told reporters at Nissan's company headquarters in Yokohama. Ghosn said he had received reassurance that the British government would be "extremely cautious" in "preserving the competitiveness" of the Sunderland plant. "As long as I have this guarantee... I can look at the future of Sunderland with more ease," he said. Production of the next Qashqai model is expected to begin around 2018 or 2019. The time it takes to bring a new car into production means Nissan needs to decide on the location of its next-generation model soon. Businesses have been concerned that Britain is headed towards a "hard Brexit", which would leave it outside the single market and facing tariffs of up to 10 percent on car exports. Ghosn also said he expected the bulk of Nissan's initial cost savings from its partnership with Mitsubishi Motors Corp to come from purchasing and engineering, as Nissan benefits from Mitsubishi's localised supplier network in Asia and uses the smaller automaker's technology for plug-in hybrid vehicles. Nissan on Thursday completed a deal to take a controlling stake in Mitsubishi, retaining the embattled automaker's chief executive in a bid to help it recover from a mileage cheating scandal. (Reporting by Naomi Tajitsu; Editing by Michael Perry and Stephen Coates)

2016-10-20 21:53 Reuters www.dailymail.co.uk

5 /7 Living dolls: Fukuoka's ningyo craftsmen practice a time- honored trade With production based in and around Fukuoka, a coastal city on the southern Japanese island of Kyushu, these pint-sized pieces of art have a long and evolutionary history.

"Production of Hakata dolls supposedly started in the early 17th century," explains Harry Sargant of Inside Japan, a British company that organizes tours of Fukuoka.

"A lowly roof tile craftsman called Souhichi Masaki is said to have begun making basic ceramic dolls, which were then copied by other craftsmen. Over time they became increasingly sophisticated and colorful. " The largest city on Kyushu, Fukuoka is actually two cities -- Fukuoka and Hakata -- rolled into one.

After the two merged in 1889, the name Fukuoka was applied to both, but many residents still think of their home as Hakata.

A national symbol of cultural pride

The dolls remain one of Fukuoka's most iconic symbols.

Ningyo are popular across Japan, both as ornaments and reminders of Fukuoka's rich culture and heritage.

"Most dolls are depictions of famous historical characters," explains septuagenarian master doll- maker Kuniaki Takeyoshi.

"You'll find everything from bijin (beautiful women), kabuki players, characters from noh (musical dramas) and religious and legendary figures, right through to sumo, samurai and children. "

Most dolls on the market are contemporary, although a small number of more valuable vintage examples date back to the post-World War II period, when a number were taken back to the United States by servicemen as souvenirs.

While the number of ningyo craftsmen based in Fukuoka has declined, a small band of enduring and highly skilled artisans keeps this niche industry alive.

"It's certainly a difficult task inspiring the next generation of doll makers," says Takeyoshi, who is also president of the Fukuoka Doll Making Union. "There are about 70 master craftsmen alive now. "

Takeyoshi is doing what he can to promote the art of doll making.

Through events, meetings and government liaison, the Fukuoka Doll Making Union works to encourage interest from youngsters, as well as to market ningyo at home and abroad.

Visitors to Fukuoka who wish to see how ningyo are made should stop by the Hakata Traditional Craft Center , while at the Shogetudo shop in the city's Nakasu neighborhood they can even paint their very own Hakata doll.

2016-10-20 21:42 Daniel J www.cnn.com

6 /7 Piko-Taro’s ‘Pen Pineapple Apple Pen’ debuts on Billboard 100 Japanese comedian Piko Taro’s viral single “Pen Pineapple Apple Pen,” or PPAP, has debuted its stardom on the US Billboard Top 100 Singles at 77th place.

His catchy ditty bloomed into a groundbreaking record as the shortest song on the American weekly charts. Piko-Taro’s track, which is 45 seconds in length, outshone The Womenfolk’s “Little Boxes,” a one-minute and two-second song that peaked at 83rd in 1964, Billboard reported.

Today, Piko-Taro’s single is available on streaming services such as Spotify and iTunes. The comedian composed the song in one seating and based the lyrics on the first traditional English phrases taught to Japanese students, such as “this is a pen” and “this is an apple”, Japan Times reported.

Piko Taro is enacted by 43-year-old comedian-DJ Daimaou Kosaka, whose real name is Kazuhito Kosaka. In his music clips, he wears a golden leotard scarf outfit and wraparound sunglasses as he perkily sways and sings his lyrics.

A native of Aomori City, Kosaka was the founder of comedy group “No Bottom” and previously starred in the 2012 film “Karasu No Oyayubi” (By Rule of Crow’s Thumb).

The music video uploaded on YouTube last Aug. 25 has reached at least 56 million views while the clip uploaded on 9GAG’s Facebook page has amassed 68 million views. The addictive jingle was even endorsed by Justin Bieber when he tweeted that the video was “his favorite video on the internet.”

The internet sensation has produced 11 videos uploaded to YouTube so far, including “Romita Hashimikov” and “Kashite Kudasaiyo.” His recent masterpiece, “Neo Sunglasses,” has been streamed more than 7 million times on YouTube. Gianna Francesca Catolico

2016-10-21 00:00 entertainment.inquirer.net

7 /7 Japanese autistic boy who cannot be hugged finds the friend in his service dog An autistic boy who cannot be touched or hugged has made an incredible connection for the very first time with his new service dog. Five-year-old Kainoa Niehaus traveled to the 4 Paws For Ability center in Ohio from Japan. The little boy waited two years for an animal to become available and then flew thousands of miles to meet him. His mum Shanna shared a photo of her son resting his head on Tornado. Scroll down for video... 'See this moment? I've never experienced a moment like this,' she wrote underneath the posting on Facebook. 'This picture captures the face of a mother who saw her child, who she can't hug, wash, dress, snuggle and touch freely lay on his new service dog of his own free will, with a purposeful, unspoken attachment. 'This is the face of a mom who has seen her son experience countless failed social interactions on the playground in an attempt to have a friend. Any friend. Any kind of connection. 'She has sat with her son while he has cried at night for months because he has no consistent connections outside of the family no matter how hard he tries and no matter what he works hard on in his Autism therapies. 'It doesn't transfer to the natural occurring world for him. And now she is sitting behind her son silently watching this moment, with the air sucked from her lungs, and no words to say.' The non-profit organisation 4 Paws For Ability who provided the youngster with the animal say they hope to enrich the lives of children with disabilities by placing them with task-trained service dogs. The non-profit global organisation provides service dogs to disabled children and veterans who've lost the use of limbs or their hearing. Kainoa's mom added: 'It's worth every fight for services for my son, every diagnosis, every new provider, every dollar spent, every paper filled out, every school meeting, every shed tear, every step forward, every step back, and every wonder of the unknown future. Somehow because of this - because of Tornado - I know everything will be okay. 'As a mother, I have seen countless challenging and painful moments my son has encountered and cried countless more. Yesterday however, I cried for a different reason. It is a feeling that is indescribable.' Shanna's post on the Love What Matters Facebook page has been shared more than 232,000 times so far.

2016-10-20 18:15 Dailymail.com www.dailymail.co.uk

Total 7 articles.

Created at 2016-10-21 06:44

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