Last December was a turning point in the major-league careers of Japanese sports icons Matsui Hideki and Suzuki Ichirō―for Ichirō, a new beginning with the New York Yankees; for Matsui, the end of the road. Ninomiya Seijun reviews the achievements of these two remarkable and very different athletes.
(More)

Japan’s scientific community rejoiced on hearing the news that stem cell researcher Yamanaka Shin'ya had won the 2012 Nobel Prize in medicine. But beneath the jubilation lurk deep concerns over the future of scientific research in Japan. Hayashi Yukihide analyzes the problem and calls for a regional research fund to halt the decline and tap East Asia's scientific potential.
(More)

The Communist Party of China unveiled a new leadership lineup in November 2012, naming Xi Jinping as secretary general. In this article, journalist Tomisaka Satoshi evaluates the new regime’s nature as evidenced by the cast of the Politburo Standing Committee.
(More)

With US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on her way out, some in Japan are wondering whether US foreign policy will continue its “pivot” toward East Asia. Veteran diplomat Okazaki Hisahiko offers his analysis.
(More)

Only males are eligible to succeed to the Japanese throne, but just one male has been born into the imperial family in the past four decades. In spite of this, moves to enhance the status of female members of the family face strong resistance from conservatives. Seasoned royal watcher Iwai Katsumi considers the crisis facing Japan’s imperial family.
(More)

A Taiwanese company rescues a renowned Japanese manufacturer? This would have been inconceivable in the past, but it makes perfect sense in today’s electronics industry. It is Foxconn of Taiwan that may step in to bail out Japan’s Sharp Corp. Here Satō Yukihito, a researcher at the Institute of Developing Economies, analyzes this development.
(More)