Mark Thompson
@markthompson.japantimes.co.jp
Reposted by Mark Thompson
Eating disorders affect athletes at rates two to three times higher than nonathletes. In Japan, two champions share what it takes to recover — and why the silence around the issue remains so dangerous. 👉 ebx.sh/Ww4CFR
September 8, 2025 at 1:07 AM
Eating disorders affect athletes at rates two to three times higher than nonathletes. In Japan, two champions share what it takes to recover — and why the silence around the issue remains so dangerous. 👉 ebx.sh/Ww4CFR
Reposted by Mark Thompson
The Guardian US is releasing a new tool today, a tracker tallying the arrests, detentions, and deportations since the start of the second Trump admin. We are going to continue to update as the admin releases new data: www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
By the numbers: the latest Ice and CBP data on arrests, detentions and deportations in the US
The Guardian US reviewed figures from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection since Trump’s inauguration
www.theguardian.com
August 29, 2025 at 1:56 PM
The Guardian US is releasing a new tool today, a tracker tallying the arrests, detentions, and deportations since the start of the second Trump admin. We are going to continue to update as the admin releases new data: www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
The courage of these parents should be applauded. I hope they inspire more to come forward. And kudos to Mai Yoshikawa for her thoughtful interviews and well-told story. A must-read.
A young player was bullied off his celebrated high school baseball team. His parents made sure his story was told. ebx.sh/JyfvDV
August 29, 2025 at 11:26 AM
The courage of these parents should be applauded. I hope they inspire more to come forward. And kudos to Mai Yoshikawa for her thoughtful interviews and well-told story. A must-read.
Reposted by Mark Thompson
It has been 80 years, but Hideo Shimizu still remembers the 4½ months he spent with Unit 731, the biological and chemical warfare unit of the now-defunct Imperial Japanese Army, like they were yesterday.
The indelible memory of being a part of Unit 731
For 95-year-old Hideo Shimizu, the 4½ months he spent with the biological and chemical warfare unit of the now-defunct Imperial Japanese Army were just like yesterday.
www.japantimes.co.jp
August 13, 2025 at 8:41 AM
It has been 80 years, but Hideo Shimizu still remembers the 4½ months he spent with Unit 731, the biological and chemical warfare unit of the now-defunct Imperial Japanese Army, like they were yesterday.
Reposted by Mark Thompson
If you need an extra reason to visit Toyama, then Himawari Shokudo 2, The Japan Times’ 2025 Destination Restaurant of the Year, should fit the bill.
At Himawari Shokudo 2, Italian food with a Japanese soul
Punching above its own weight, the intimate restaurant is one of the growing number of quality establishments that are helping to cement Toyama's status as a dining destination.
ebx.sh
August 10, 2025 at 12:01 AM
If you need an extra reason to visit Toyama, then Himawari Shokudo 2, The Japan Times’ 2025 Destination Restaurant of the Year, should fit the bill.
Reposted by Mark Thompson
Venezuelan detainees at Texas center spell out SOS with their bodies
Venezuelan detainees at Texas center spell out SOS with their bodies
Men at Bluebonnet fear deportation to El Salvador under wartime law despite maintaining they do not have gang ties
www.theguardian.com
May 1, 2025 at 4:19 AM
Venezuelan detainees at Texas center spell out SOS with their bodies
Reposted by Mark Thompson
Today’s Daily Cartoon, by Lisa Rothstein. #NewYorkerCartoons nyer.cm/QAnwGsj
April 9, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Today’s Daily Cartoon, by Lisa Rothstein. #NewYorkerCartoons nyer.cm/QAnwGsj
Totally fine. Totally chill.
February 25, 2025 at 4:21 AM
Totally fine. Totally chill.
Flash debut. Don’t worry. She’s just chilling.
February 25, 2025 at 4:18 AM
Flash debut. Don’t worry. She’s just chilling.
“In the four years to June 2024, Russia accounted for more than 60% of takedown requests.”
Revealed: Google facilitated Russia and China’s censorship requests
Revealed: Google facilitated Russia and China’s censorship requests
An investigation has exposed the tech firm’s cooperation with autocratic regimes to remove unfavourable content
Google has cooperated with autocratic regimes around the world, including the Kremlin in Russia and the Chinese Communist party, to facilitate…
www.theguardian.com
February 16, 2025 at 11:59 AM
“In the four years to June 2024, Russia accounted for more than 60% of takedown requests.”
In livestreamed chat between Sam Altman and Masayoshi Son, ChatGPT's top investor reassured the world that there is nothing to fear about AI developing emotions, explaining that protein isn't AI's source of energy.
Altman tries to lighten the mood: "So AI won't eat humans. Confirmed." 🧟
Altman tries to lighten the mood: "So AI won't eat humans. Confirmed." 🧟
February 3, 2025 at 7:25 AM
In livestreamed chat between Sam Altman and Masayoshi Son, ChatGPT's top investor reassured the world that there is nothing to fear about AI developing emotions, explaining that protein isn't AI's source of energy.
Altman tries to lighten the mood: "So AI won't eat humans. Confirmed." 🧟
Altman tries to lighten the mood: "So AI won't eat humans. Confirmed." 🧟
“The public should wake up to the fact that this is not a one-off accident.”
Amid efforts to rescue a driver who fell into a sinkhole in Saitama Prefecture, experts warn that Japan's aging sewer systems could mean more sinkholes will appear in the future.
Aging sewer systems could create sinkholes anywhere in Japan, experts warn
Damaged wastewater pipes caused 2,600 sinkholes in the nation in fiscal 2022.
buff.ly
January 31, 2025 at 10:00 AM
“The public should wake up to the fact that this is not a one-off accident.”
He will be missed but his unique brand of surreality will live on every time we describe things to be Lynchian.
A painter turned artist whose films included “Eraserhead,” “Blue Velvet” and “Mulholland Drive,” Lynch also brought his visionary view to the small screen with “Twin Peaks.” | via @nytimes
David Lynch, maker of florid and unnerving films, dies at 78
A painter turned artist whose films included “Eraserhead,” “Blue Velvet” and “Mulholland Drive,” Lynch also brought his visionary view to the small screen with “Twin Peaks.”
buff.ly
January 16, 2025 at 11:51 PM
He will be missed but his unique brand of surreality will live on every time we describe things to be Lynchian.
Reposted by Mark Thompson
The probability that a Nankai Trough megaquake will occur in the next 30 years in Japan has risen to “around 80%,” according to new research released by a government expert panel.
Possibility of Nankai Trough megaquake now 80%, government panel reports
Last year, the likelihood of an earthquake in the zone had been projected at “between 70% to 80%.”
buff.ly
January 16, 2025 at 12:21 PM
The probability that a Nankai Trough megaquake will occur in the next 30 years in Japan has risen to “around 80%,” according to new research released by a government expert panel.
Many good pull-quotes in this one. One of my faves:
... unlike many retired athletes, Hanyu didn’t experience an existential crisis when he ended his competitive career.
“Maybe because I didn’t retire into the broadcast booth like many athletes do,” he says. “The butterflies are still there.” 🦋
... unlike many retired athletes, Hanyu didn’t experience an existential crisis when he ended his competitive career.
“Maybe because I didn’t retire into the broadcast booth like many athletes do,” he says. “The butterflies are still there.” 🦋
"I'm never not thinking about figure skating”: The 'Ice Prince' may be out of the competition, but the bar is still just as high. Read about his next chapter. https://buff.ly/4gOQifc
January 13, 2025 at 1:25 AM
Many good pull-quotes in this one. One of my faves:
... unlike many retired athletes, Hanyu didn’t experience an existential crisis when he ended his competitive career.
“Maybe because I didn’t retire into the broadcast booth like many athletes do,” he says. “The butterflies are still there.” 🦋
... unlike many retired athletes, Hanyu didn’t experience an existential crisis when he ended his competitive career.
“Maybe because I didn’t retire into the broadcast booth like many athletes do,” he says. “The butterflies are still there.” 🦋
Reposted by Mark Thompson
According to cookbook author Sonoko Sakai, adding a touch of Japanese style to your daily favorites should be as natural as reaching for the salt and pepper.
The case for Japan-ifying everything you cook
“Wafu Cooking: Everyday Recipes with Japanese Style” coins the term “wafuing” — shorthand for bringing Japanese flavors into anything and everything.
buff.ly
January 11, 2025 at 11:12 PM
According to cookbook author Sonoko Sakai, adding a touch of Japanese style to your daily favorites should be as natural as reaching for the salt and pepper.
Reposted by Mark Thompson
Zuckerberg holds a majority of voting power in his company. That he should see it as “out of touch” isn’t a criticism of woke Dems. It’s a criticism of the way he himself capitulates and blows with the political winds. He's at war with himself. Has been for years. www.theatlantic.com/technology/a...
We’re All Trying to Find the Guy Who Did This
Mark Zuckerberg is at war with himself.
www.theatlantic.com
January 8, 2025 at 12:45 AM
Zuckerberg holds a majority of voting power in his company. That he should see it as “out of touch” isn’t a criticism of woke Dems. It’s a criticism of the way he himself capitulates and blows with the political winds. He's at war with himself. Has been for years. www.theatlantic.com/technology/a...
It's getting hot in here
In Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel's suit against the U.S. government, the two companies are claiming that they were denied due process and that the $14.9 billion transaction was blocked for political reasons.
Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel sue U.S. government for blocking deal
The suit argues that the two companies were denied due process and that the $14.9 billion transaction was blocked for political reasons.
buff.ly
January 6, 2025 at 3:30 PM
It's getting hot in here
The Great North calls ...
Climate change is making Japan’s northernmost prefecture a new hotbed of rice and wine agriculture — and in 2024, tourists started to take notice.
How Hokkaido quietly became a culinary treasure trove in 2024
Food trucks, morsels with cutesy cues from nature and more helped Japan’s northernmost island have a stellar year.
buff.ly
December 28, 2024 at 2:20 PM
The Great North calls ...
I ain't particularly afraid of no ghosts.
Ghost tales won't spook Japan PM Ishiba from moving to official home - www.reuters.com/world/asia-p...
Ghost tales won't spook Japan PM Ishiba from moving to official home
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said on Friday he was eager to move into his official residence despite long-standing rumours about hauntings at the historic site witness to military rebellions.
www.reuters.com
December 28, 2024 at 1:46 PM
I ain't particularly afraid of no ghosts.
This warning was part of the fact-filled lecture I sat through when I recently renewed my driver's license in Tokyo.
The lecturer also said they were predicting fewer traffic accidents as cars get smarter .... and, I assume, better at detecting sleeping obstacles.
The lecturer also said they were predicting fewer traffic accidents as cars get smarter .... and, I assume, better at detecting sleeping obstacles.
Japanese authorities are urging drivers to exercise caution — and asking party-goers to go easy on the drinks — as collisions involving drunk people asleep on the road typically spike in December.
Japan drivers warned to steer clear of drunk pedestrians sleeping on road
Collisions involving pedestrians asleep on the road typically spike in December, when more people get imbibed at New Year's gatherings.
buff.ly
December 28, 2024 at 1:39 PM
This warning was part of the fact-filled lecture I sat through when I recently renewed my driver's license in Tokyo.
The lecturer also said they were predicting fewer traffic accidents as cars get smarter .... and, I assume, better at detecting sleeping obstacles.
The lecturer also said they were predicting fewer traffic accidents as cars get smarter .... and, I assume, better at detecting sleeping obstacles.
Reposted by Mark Thompson
Matsudo-san, the bouncy businessman mascot of Matsudo City, pulls a rickshaw.
December 27, 2024 at 2:33 PM
Matsudo-san, the bouncy businessman mascot of Matsudo City, pulls a rickshaw.
Reposted by Mark Thompson
It's a New Scientist Weekly holiday special 🎄
@rowhoop and team discuss the best of New Scientist in 2024:
⚛️The quest for gold hydrogen
☠️How neanderthals died out
🌌Why the universe might vanish at any moment
🧠Reanimating dead brains
www.newscientist.com/podcasts/wee...
@rowhoop and team discuss the best of New Scientist in 2024:
⚛️The quest for gold hydrogen
☠️How neanderthals died out
🌌Why the universe might vanish at any moment
🧠Reanimating dead brains
www.newscientist.com/podcasts/wee...
Weekly: The Best of New Scientist in 2024: From Volcanic Diamonds to Immortal Brains
Episode 282Looking back at some of the best stories New Scientist has published in 2024, this episode is a treasure trove of knowledge that will serve you well over the holiday season. Rowan Hooper ho...
www.newscientist.com
December 27, 2024 at 10:34 PM
It's a New Scientist Weekly holiday special 🎄
@rowhoop and team discuss the best of New Scientist in 2024:
⚛️The quest for gold hydrogen
☠️How neanderthals died out
🌌Why the universe might vanish at any moment
🧠Reanimating dead brains
www.newscientist.com/podcasts/wee...
@rowhoop and team discuss the best of New Scientist in 2024:
⚛️The quest for gold hydrogen
☠️How neanderthals died out
🌌Why the universe might vanish at any moment
🧠Reanimating dead brains
www.newscientist.com/podcasts/wee...
Me (groggy at 5 am, wearing dental night guard): Alexa, what time is it?
Alexa: "Ick" is an expression of distaste. Example: "Alexa's farts give me the ick."
True story.
Alexa: "Ick" is an expression of distaste. Example: "Alexa's farts give me the ick."
True story.
December 17, 2024 at 4:54 AM
Me (groggy at 5 am, wearing dental night guard): Alexa, what time is it?
Alexa: "Ick" is an expression of distaste. Example: "Alexa's farts give me the ick."
True story.
Alexa: "Ick" is an expression of distaste. Example: "Alexa's farts give me the ick."
True story.