Will mahjong help deter senility? Study underway in Saga

Will mahjong help deter senility? Study underway in Saga

SAGA, Japan - Four elderly people play mahjong at a community center in Saga, Saga Prefecture as part of a medical study to determine whether playing mahjong helps deter senility and promote health among elderly people. The study is conducted by Etsuo Horikawa, professor of cognitive neuropsychology at the Saga University medical school. Twenty men and women, mostly in their early 70s who never played mahjong before in their life, are taking part in the cognitive neropsychology research.

Store owner shows cake marking princess's wedding

Store owner shows cake marking princess's wedding

IZUMO, Japan - Confectionery store operator Etsuo Sakane shows a box of red and white "manju" steamed bean-jam buns in Izumo, western Japan, on Oct. 5, 2014, produced to celebrate the wedding of Princess Noriko, daughter of Emperor Akihito's late cousin Prince Takamado, and Kunimaro Senge, son of the chief priest of the Izumo Taisha Shinto shrine.

Bic Camera to acquire Kojima

Bic Camera to acquire Kojima

TOKYO, Japan - Bic Camera Inc. President Hiroyuki Miyajima (R) and Kojima Co. President Etsuo Terasaki shake hands after their press conference in Tokyo on May 11, 2012. Bic Camera, a home electronics chain, has decided to acquire smaller competitor Kojima, creating the second-biggest group in Japan's electronics retail industry after Yamada Denki Co.

Bic Camera to acquire Kojima

Bic Camera to acquire Kojima

TOKYO, Japan - Bic Camera Inc. President Hiroyuki Miyajima (R) and Kojima Co. President Etsuo Terasaki attend a press conference in Tokyo on May 11, 2012. Bic Camera, a home electronics chain, has decided to acquire smaller competitor Kojima, creating the second-biggest group in Japan's electronics retail industry after Yamada Denki Co.

License plate bearing name of Mt. Fuji issued

License plate bearing name of Mt. Fuji issued

SHIZUOKA, Japan - Etsuo Suzuki fixes a license plate to his car bearing the name ''Mt. Fuji'' and its height in meters in Numazu, Shizuoka Prefecture, Nov. 4 as the plate was issued at the local transport bureau in the prefecture.

Expert warns grain importers to prepare for shipment halt

Expert warns grain importers to prepare for shipment halt

TOKYO, Japan - Etsuo Kitahara, director general of the International Grains Council, speaks at an interview with Kyodo News in Tokyo. Kitahara, who is on a visit to Japan, warns that as grain markets have become increasingly tighter with declining crops in major exporting-countries, import-dependent countries, such as Japan, should correctly understand market trends and brace themselves for the worst.

Will mahjong help deter senility? Study underway in Saga

Will mahjong help deter senility? Study underway in Saga

SAGA, Japan - Four elderly people play mahjong at a community center in Saga, Saga Prefecture as part of a medical study to determine whether playing mahjong helps deter senility and promote health among elderly people. The study is conducted by Etsuo Horikawa, professor of cognitive neuropsychology at the Saga University medical school. Twenty men and women, mostly in their early 70s who never played mahjong before in their life, are taking part in the cognitive neropsychology research. (Kyodo)

Expert warns grain importers to prepare for shipment halt

Expert warns grain importers to prepare for shipment halt

TOKYO, Japan - Etsuo Kitahara, director general of the International Grains Council, speaks at an interview with Kyodo News in Tokyo. Kitahara, who is on a visit to Japan, warns that as grain markets have become increasingly tighter with declining crops in major exporting-countries, import-dependent countries, such as Japan, should correctly understand market trends and brace themselves for the worst. (Kyodo)

License plate bearing name of Mt. Fuji issued

License plate bearing name of Mt. Fuji issued

SHIZUOKA, Japan - Etsuo Suzuki fixes a license plate to his car bearing the name ''Mt. Fuji'' and its height in meters in Numazu, Shizuoka Prefecture, Nov. 4 as the plate was issued at the local transport bureau in the prefecture. (Kyodo)

Bic Camera to acquire Kojima

Bic Camera to acquire Kojima

TOKYO, Japan - Bic Camera Inc. President Hiroyuki Miyajima (R) and Kojima Co. President Etsuo Terasaki shake hands after their press conference in Tokyo on May 11, 2012. Bic Camera, a home electronics chain, has decided to acquire smaller competitor Kojima, creating the second-biggest group in Japan's electronics retail industry after Yamada Denki Co. (Kyodo)

Bic Camera to acquire Kojima

Bic Camera to acquire Kojima

TOKYO, Japan - Bic Camera Inc. President Hiroyuki Miyajima (R) and Kojima Co. President Etsuo Terasaki attend a press conference in Tokyo on May 11, 2012. Bic Camera, a home electronics chain, has decided to acquire smaller competitor Kojima, creating the second-biggest group in Japan's electronics retail industry after Yamada Denki Co. (Kyodo)

Store owner shows cake marking princess's wedding

Store owner shows cake marking princess's wedding

IZUMO, Japan - Confectionery store operator Etsuo Sakane shows a box of red and white "manju" steamed bean-jam buns in Izumo, western Japan, on Oct. 5, 2014, produced to celebrate the wedding of Princess Noriko, daughter of Emperor Akihito's late cousin Prince Takamado, and Kunimaro Senge, son of the chief priest of the Izumo Taisha Shinto shrine. (Kyodo)