Articles tagged as Japan | Smithsonian Magazine

Avenue of Cherry Trees Yoshida Hiroshi, Showa era, 1935

How Cherry Trees Blossomed Into a Tourist Attraction

The fragile and transient blossom may herald the first stirrings of spring, but their significance has evolved since the 9th century

March 28, 2016

Cool Finds

An AI-Written Novella Almost Won a Literary Prize

A short novel co-written by humans and AI passed the first round of a Japanese literary contest

March 28, 2016

A worker sorts plastic in a recycling plant in Bangladesh. A new bacteria could make her job obsolete

New Research

Could Plastic-Gobbling Bacteria Save the Environment?

Japanese scientists discovered a microbe that digests one of the most common plastics

March 11, 2016

Interacting with a velociraptor robot is just part of the Henn-na Hotel's efficient charm.

Cool Finds

Japan Has a Hotel Staffed by Robots

Androids, velociraptors and talking toys are all part of the experience at the Henn-na Hotel

March 4, 2016

The Spy in the Doll Shop

The FBI was confounded by mysterious letters sent to South America, until they came across New York City proprieter Velvalee Dickinson

March 2, 2016

Sakurajima spews ash in this undated photo.

Lightning and lava? No biggie

February 8, 2016

An 89 year-old Korean 'comfort woman' Kim Bok-Dong protests in front of the embassy of Japan in Berlin to demand an official apology from Japan in September, 2015.

Even with this agreement in place, many are still seeking a better resolution

December 28, 2015

A pair of six-panel folding screens entitled Waves of Matsushima, Tawaraya Sōtatsu, early 1600s

A Renowned, But Forgotten, 17th-Century Japanese Artist Is Once Again Making Waves

Long neglected, the 17th-century Japanese artist Tawaraya Sōtatsu influenced Western art 400 years later

December 15, 2015

Screenshot from Boogie Belgique - Ms. Yutani (official music video)

Cool Finds

Take a Tour of Postwar Tokyo in the 1940s

High-quality archival footage makes a fascinating backdrop in a new music video

December 11, 2015

An artist's depiction of the Akatsuki spacecraft in orbit around Venus.

The five-year wait is over (almost)

December 8, 2015

Cool Finds

A Buddha in Japan Is Missing Half of Its Curls

What happened to the Buddha of Nara’s famous ‘do?

December 7, 2015

Cool Finds

How Tourism Shaped Photography in 19th Century Japan

Westerners were obsessed with geisha, samurai and cherry blossoms

October 28, 2015

A marionette performs atop a Matsuri float

In Japan, Autumn Means a Parade of (Not-at-All-Creepy) Robot Puppets

A 350-year-old festival in Takayama celebrates creativity — and contains the seeds of modern robotics

October 9, 2015

Just how valuable is that degree in literature?

October 5, 2015

Alice Roosevelt and Nicholas Longworth disembark in Manila

Global Diplomacy Was in Theodore Roosevelt’s Hands, But His Daughter Stole the Show

Alice Roosevelt’s 1905 journey to Japan, Korea and China is documented in rare photographs held by the Freer and Sackler Galleries

September 17, 2015

Tree-covered islands in Miyagi Prefecture, which has been affected by widespread flooding.

The floods are the worst seen in over 60 years

September 11, 2015

Cool Finds

Tour This Japanese City from the Viewpoint of a Cat

New “cat street view” shows Hiroshima Prefecture’s Onomichi through the eyes of its fluffiest residents

September 9, 2015

Cool Finds

One Japanese Company Makes Half Of The World’s Zippers

How YKK came to dominate pants around the world.

September 3, 2015

This Japanese toilet takes flushing to another level.

Cool Finds

A Toilet Museum is Opening in Japan

It’s a love story to the lavatory

September 1, 2015

Cool Finds

These Century-Old Stone “Tsunami Stones” Dot Japan’s Coastline

“Remember the calamity of the great tsunamis. Do not build any homes below this point.”

August 31, 2015