Take proper steps to avoid exposure to fallout
More residents near the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture were ordered to evacuate Tuesday, raising concerns about radiation exposure. Here are basic questions and answers on...
View ArticleSteps to avoid exposure to fallout
Residents near the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture were ordered to evacuate Tuesday, raising concerns about radiation exposure. Here are basic questions and answers on what...
View ArticleLowdown on nuclear crisis and potential scenarios
Frantic efforts to cool down the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant’s overheating reactors and spent fuel rods are continuing, as workers rush to prevent highly toxic radiation from being released into the...
View ArticleLatest threat: radiation-contaminated food
The announcement Saturday that radiation has popped up in milk and spinach made in areas near the Fukushima No. 1 power plant has cast a shadow over food safety. Based on new government standards...
View ArticleShould kids be shielded from coverage of disaster?
Aftershocks, reruns of tsunami footage and images of obliterated communities on television have continued to illustrate the scale of the earthquake that struck the Tohoku region on March 11. But some...
View ArticleIt’s in the water, food, soil: But what are the risks?
Radioactive materials from the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant have been spreading, contaminating milk, vegetables, water and soil in Fukushima and neighboring prefectures. On Wednesday, 210...
View ArticleRadioactive water stymies crews
The effort to steer the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant away from disaster suffered another setback when workers discovered widespread uncontrolled leaking of radioactive water at the six-reactor...
View ArticleLong-life cesium top threat to seafood
The damaged Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant is contaminating seawater with heavy amounts of iodine-131 and other radioactive materials. Here are questions and answers regarding the latest threat...
View ArticleIs seafood too tainted to eat?
The effects of radioactive materials discharged by the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant have spread to marine products. The following are questions and answers regarding contaminated fish: Why were...
View ArticleWhy so many aftershocks? Why so large?
A record number of powerful aftershocks have continued to jolt the already battered prefectures of Miyagi, Fukushima and Ibaraki after the 9.0-magnitude March 11 earthquake. The aftershocks have halted...
View ArticleHow debt, tax hike will affect reconstruction
To finance reconstruction in areas devastated by the Great East Japan Earthquake, ideas have been floated for issuing debt or raising the consumption tax . Below are questions and answers about the...
View ArticleSeveral factors driving plan to double sales tax
The government on Thursday announced a social security reform plan that includes a proposal to gradually double the consumption tax to 10 percent by fiscal 2015. Here are some basic questions and...
View ArticleTrack record of coalition plans not always grand
Amid the chaos breaking out in Nagata-cho since Prime Minister Naoto Kan announced his intention to resign, the ruling Democratic Party of Japan is once again seeking to form a grand coalition with its...
View ArticleAre worries over meat warranted?
About 1,500 cows that were fed hay containing radioactive cesium in excess of the government limit were found to have been shipped from Fukushima and other prefectures to all of Japan except Okinawa,...
View ArticleDPJ-only poll, but of national import
The Democratic Party of Japan will hold a midterm presidential election Monday to pick a successor to Prime Minister Naoto Kan. Among the seven possible candidates, former Foreign Minister Seiji...
View ArticlePrestigious school seen as ticket to rise to the top of political ladder
Newly appointed Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda may compare himself to a “dojo” (loach), but in reality he is an elite politician with a diploma from the Matsushita Institute of Government and...
View ArticleScience far from conclusive on low-level radiation risks
The March 11 nuclear accident at the Fukushima No. 1 plant has transformed what used to be a long-standing academic debate into an urgent issue for millions of ordinary people: Will long-term exposure...
View ArticleScrub homes, denude trees to wash cesium fears away
Worried about radioactive fallout from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant? Don’t wait for the government to help. Experts advise people who live in and near Fukushima Prefecture where they face...
View ArticleWhat’s at stake in upcoming Osaka mayoral poll?
Voters go to the polls Nov. 27 to elect a mayor for the city of Osaka and the prefectural governor. But it’s the former that is drawing the most attention, due to the candidacy of ex-Gov. Toru...
View ArticleTokyo’s intentions for Senkaku islets
Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara’s plan to have the metropolitan government purchase the Senkaku Islands continued to cause ripples Wednesday, with both China and Taiwan quickly issuing statements...
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