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Baseball: Yakult Swallows players

TOKYO, Japan, April 30 Kyodo - Yakult Swallows' players, (from L) Yuhei Nakamura, Tony Barnette and Tetsuto Yamada, pose for photos on July 2, 2015, at Jingu Stadium in Tokyo, after being picked by the Central League's manager for the Nippon Professional Baseball All-Star series. (Kyodo)

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A glimpse of cafe run by Vietnamese expat in China's Qinling Mountains

STORY: A glimpse of cafe run by Vietnamese expat in China's Qinling Mountains SHOOTING TIME: Dec. 14, 2023 DATELINE: Dec. 15, 2023 LENGTH: 00:01:04 LOCATION: XI'AN, China CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various of Liuba County 2. various of Le Thi Ky's cafe 3. various of Le Thi Ky, Ma Qiang and their daughter 4. vaious of Le Thi Ky working at her cafe 5. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): LE THI KY, Vietnamese expat STORYLINE: This is the first Vietnamese cafe run by a Vietnamese woman in Liuba County, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. Le Thi Ky was married to Ma Qiang, a local, in 2015. She decided to open a cafe with Vietnamese characteristics in July as local tourism has been booming with the favorable ecological environment of Qinling Mountains. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): LE THI KY, Vietnamese expat "My business was really good in October this year. Most of the customers were from Xi'an, Hangzhou, and Shanghai. They came here to see the red maple leaves. It is not hot in summer here. And the environment is very good.

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Tunisia's national museum reopens after over 2-year closure

STORY: Tunisia's national museum reopens after over 2-year closure DATELINE: Sept. 15, 2023 LENGTH: 00:02:56 LOCATION: Tunis CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various of Tunisia's Bardo National Museum STORYLINE: Tunisia's Bardo National Museum reopened on Thursday after more than two years of closure. The museum was closed on July 25, 2021, when Tunisian President Kais Saied shuttered the parliament and its adjacent building of the museum. However, Tunisian Culture Minister Hayat Guermazi confirmed Wednesday night during a ceremony that "the closure was due to the ministry's ongoing maintenance and restoration work on the historic building." The museum was hit by a terrorist attack in 2015, which killed more than 20 people in the building and its environs. Located in the capital Tunis, the national museum, founded in 1888, is the flagship of Tunisian heritage and hosts the second-largest collection of mosaics in the world. It used to receive 50,000 visitors worldwide every year before its closure. Xinhu

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Electricity trading mirrors China's commitment to green shift

STORY: Electricity trading mirrors China's commitment to green shift DATELINE: July 18, 2023 LENGTH: 00:01:44 LOCATION: TAIYUAN, China CATEGORY: ECONOMY SHOTLIST: 1. various of Zhang Shuai working at his office 2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): ZHANG SHUAI, Electricity trader in Shanxi 3. SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): ZHANG SHUAI, Electricity trader in Shanxi STORYLINE: 34-year-old Zhang Shuai is an electricity trader in China's Shanxi Province. His main role is to work out the best scheme for buying and selling electricity in the energy market, to facilitate the efficient distribution of electricity from power producers to consumers. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): ZHANG SHUAI, Electricity trader in Shanxi "Electricity traders should try their best to buy the cheapest electricity in the market, to minimize their wholesale cost. The traders also need to choose a proper market to sell the electricity, so that they could maximize the economic returns." In 2015, China issued a regulation on deepening the reform of the electri

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Record summer heat kills over 61,000 in Europe in 2022: study

STORY: Record summer heat kills over 61,000 in Europe in 2022: study DATELINE: July 18, 2023 LENGTH: 00:01:26 LOCATION: BARCELONA, Spain CATEGORY: HEALTH/SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various of people protecting and refreshing themselves during the intense heat of the summer of 2022 in Barcelona, Spain 2. various of Sant Pau hospital 3. various of people in summer STORYLINE: More than 61,000 people died because of the record summer heat across Europe in 2022, according to a study published in the journal Nature Medicine. Led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), the study used data between 2015 and 2022 from 823 regions in 35 European countries. It shows that the summer of 2022 in Europe was one of the hottest on record with warmer-than-average temperatures during every week of the summer period. Italy, Spain and Portugal had the highest heat-related mortality rates. There is an "urgent need to strengthen prevention plans," said ISGlobal researcher Hicham Achebak. Researchers warned that s

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Tanaka dominates A's for 5th win of season

NEW YORK, July 9 Kyodo - New York Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka walks to the dugout in the eighth inning of a game against the Oakland Athletics at Yankee Stadium on July 9, 2015. Tanaka picked up his fifth win of the season with 7-2/3 solid innings as the Yankees won 6-2.

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Model train diorama installed on Shinkansen train

FUKUOKA, Japan - A model train diorama is installed on a Sanyo Shinkansen "Kodama" bullet train at West Japan Railway Co.'s rail yard in Fukuoka Prefecture on July 2, 2014. The renovated train will run between Shin-Osaka and Hakata stations from July 19 through March 2015, making one roundtrip a day.

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Chinese rural development foundation wins acclaim for far-reaching engagements in Ethiopia

STORY: Chinese rural development foundation wins acclaim for far-reaching engagements in Ethiopia DATELINE: Oct. 12, 2022 LENGTH: 00:02:08 LOCATION: Addis Ababa CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various of the China Foundation for Rural Development (CFRD) having won acclaim for its far-reaching engagements in Ethiopia 2. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): JIMA DILBO, Director general of Ethiopia's Authority for Civil Society Organization 3. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): YANG YIHANG, Minister counselor for Economic and Commercial Affairs at the Chinese Embassy in Ethiopia STORYLINE: The China Foundation for Rural Development (CFRD) has won acclaim for its far-reaching engagements in Ethiopia as the organization, formerly China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation, celebrated its third anniversary of establishing the Ethiopian Office Monday. The CFRD, which started implementing various programs in Ethiopia back in 2015 and officially registered as an international charitable organization in the East African country in July 2019, w

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(EyesonSci) CHINA-GUIZHOU-ASTRONOMY-FAST-TELESCOPE (CN)

(220806) -- GUIZHOU, Aug. 6, 2022 (Xinhua) -- Combo photo shows China's Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST) with the first reflection panel installed (upper L, photo taken on Aug. 2, 2015), with nearly half of the reflection panels installed (upper R, photo taken on Dec. 16, 2015), with about 80 percent of the reflection panels installed (lower L, photo taken on March 9, 2016), and a panoramic view of FAST (lower R, photo taken on July 21, 2022), in southwest China's Guizhou Province. Located in a naturally deep and round karst depression in southwest China's Guizhou Province, FAST started formal operation in January 2020 and officially opened to the world on March 31, 2021. It is believed to be the world's most sensitive radio telescope. With FAST, scientists have identified over 660 new pulsars. (Xinhua/Ou Dongqu)

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(EyesonSci) CHINA-GUIZHOU-ASTRONOMY-FAST-TELESCOPE (CN)

(220806) -- GUIZHOU, Aug. 6, 2022 (Xinhua) -- Combo photo shows China's Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST) with the first reflection panel installed (top, photo taken on Aug. 2, 2015) and with the final reflection panel installed (below, photo taken on July 2, 2016) in southwest China's Guizhou Province. Located in a naturally deep and round karst depression in southwest China's Guizhou Province, FAST started formal operation in January 2020 and officially opened to the world on March 31, 2021. It is believed to be the world's most sensitive radio telescope. With FAST, scientists have identified over 660 new pulsars. (Xinhua/Ou Dongqu)

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Iran says to begin gas injection into new centrifuges

STORY: Iran says to begin gas injection into new centrifuges DATELINE: Aug. 2, 2022 LENGTH: 00:01:23 LOCATION: Tehran CATEGORY: POLITICS SHOTLIST: 1. various of Iran's centrifuges (file) STORYLINE: The spokesman of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) said on Monday that the AEOI has been ordered to launch and inject gas into hundreds of new centrifuges, including IR-1 machines and advanced IR-6 ones. Behrouz Kamalvandi said this move was in line with the implementation of a strategic law aimed at removing anti-Iran sanctions and safeguarding the interests of the Iranian nation, the official IRNA news agency reported. The International Atomic Energy Agency has already been informed of the measure, the official noted. Iran signed a nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), with world powers including the United States in July 2015, agreeing to curb its nuclear program in return for the removal of sanctions on the country. However, former U.S. Pr

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Hungary, China resume regular passenger flights

STORY: Hungary, China resume regular passenger flights DATELINE: July 8, 2022 LENGTH: 00:00:52 LOCATION: Budapest CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various of Budapest Airport exterior 2. various of plane arriving at Budapest Airport 3. passengers check in STORYLINE: A direct flight from Beijing landed at Budapest's Ferenc Liszt International Airport Thursday, marking the official resumption of regular passenger flights between Hungary and China. Direct air links between the two countries were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. According to plans, the Beijing-Budapest flight will be operated by Air China every Thursday. Peter Szijjarto, Hungarian minister of foreign affairs and trade, said on his Facebook page earlier that the decision to resume the Beijing-Budapest flight is a milestone that will promote tourism, trade and the overall Hungarian economy. Air China launched the first direct passenger flight between the capitals of China and Hungary on May 1, 2015. Xinhua News Agency cor

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Turkish wigmaker helps hairless kids realize dreams

STORY: Turkish wigmaker helps hairless kids realize dreams DATELINE: July 2, 2022 LENGTH: 00:05:31 LOCATION: Ankara CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various of Yasin Kirazli, a 29-year-old Turkish hairdresser making a wig for Melek Su, a 6-year-old little girl at the capital city Ankara 2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Turkish): YASIN KIRAZLI, Hairdresser from Ankara 3. SOUNDBITE 2 (Turkish): RUKIYE YILDIRIM, Mother of Melek Su 4. SOUNDBITE 3 (Turkish): HASAN YILDIRIM, Father of Melek Su STORYLINE: A 29-year-old hairdresser living in Turkey's capital city Ankara has been making wigs for free for kids who have lost their natural hair because of cancer or other ailments such as alopecia. Weaving wigs since 2015, Yasin Kirazli is helping realize the dream of children without hair and rebuild their self-esteem. He accepts hair donations from his clients and then he handles natural hair, creating wigs tailored to children's head measurements. To date, he has made nearly 180 wigs for children who are in need. His latest luck g

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CHINA-TIANJIN-COVID-19-TAIWANESE-DOCTOR (CN)

(220126) -- TIANJIN, Jan. 26, 2022 (Xinhua) -- Photo taken on July 2, 2015 shows Huang Xinyi (R) and Zhang Boli, then president of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, at a doctoral graduation ceremony of the university in north China's Tianjin. Tianjin launched its fourth citywide COVID-19 nucleic acid testing at 6 a.m. on Jan. 20. Doctor Huang Xinyi, who participated in the citywide nucleic acid testing for the second time, was in charge of the testing site of Guanyun Primary School in Hedong District of Tianjin, together with seven colleagues. Born in Kaohsiung of southeast China's Taiwan, Huang Xinyi came to Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in 2003 to study traditional Chinese medicine. After receiving her doctorate at Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in 2015, she became a doctor in the infection department of Tianjin Third Central .....

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Hakuho's coach arrested over violence

Kumagatani, coach at sumo grand champion Hakuho's Miyagino stable, is arrested in Tokyo on Sept. 2, 2015. The 45-year-old, whose real name is Kazuyuki Yamamura, allegedly hit an acquaintance in the back with an aluminum bat about a dozen times in late July, requiring him to receive two weeks of treatment, according to police. Kumagatani has admitted to the charges. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Sendai reactor to run at full capacity

File photo taken July 2015 shows the No. 1 (front) and No. 2 reactors of the Sendai nuclear power plant in southwestern Japan. Its operator, Kyushu Electric Power Co., will start running the No. 1 unit at full capacity on Aug. 31, 2015, after it became the first commercial nuclear reactor in the country to be reactivated under safety regulations upgraded in the wake of the 2011 Fukushima meltdowns. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Co-existing with bears at Japan World Heritage site Shiretoko

Photo taken July 2, 2015, shows a brown bear cub and its mother on the Shiretoko Peninsula, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site on the eastern tip of Hokkaido in Japan. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Co-existing with bears at Japan World Heritage site Shiretoko

A brown bear swims in search of food in the sea off the Shiretoko Peninsula, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site on the eastern tip of Hokkaido in Japan on July 2, 2015. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Co-existing with bears at Japan World Heritage site Shiretoko

Hatsusaburo Ose, a 79-year-old fisherman, works in the Rusha area of the Shiretoko Peninsula, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site on the eastern tip of Hokkaido in Japan on July 2, 2015, with brown bears moving around behind him. Ose says that secret of co-existing with bears is pretending not to notice. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Co-existing with bears at Japan World Heritage site Shiretoko

Two brown bears walk on driftwood on the Shiretoko Peninsula, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site on the eastern tip of Hokkaido in Japan on July 2, 2015. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Monsters appointed as PR chiefs for tourist spots

Photo taken in Akita city, northern Japan, on July 2, 2015, shows "Tamaglar," one of many "local" monsters created to promote tourist spots and regional specialties. Tamaglar is named after the Tamagawa hot spring resort in Semboku, Akita Prefecture. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Chinese central bank devalues yuan

File photo taken in July 2015 shows the People's Bank of China in Beijing. The central bank allowed the yuan to depreciate nearly 2 percent against the U.S. dollar on Aug. 11 after a run of poor economic data. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Gamba, Albirex play to 2-2 draw in J-League match

Gamba Osaka's Koki Yonekura (L) scores in the second half of a J-League match against Albirex Niigata in Niigata on July 29, 2015. The game ended 2-2. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Japan in determined mood ahead of title defense at E. Asian Cup

Japan boss Vahid Halilhodzic attends a training session on July 31, 2015, in Wuhan, China, prior to the team's East Asian Cup opening match against North Korea on Aug. 2. "The players are tired but they are motivated and ambitious," the former Algeria coach told a press conference. "I told the players let's go and win also at a meeting last night." (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Japan opposition party leader wants to meet with S. Korean president

Katsuya Okada, head of the main opposition Democratic Party of Japan, speaks at a press conference in Tokyo on July 31, 2015. Okada said he is trying to arrange a meeting with South Korean President Park Geun Hye during his Aug. 2-4 visit to Seoul. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Detained S. Korean-Canadian pastor speaks in Pyongyang

Hyeon Soo Lim, a South Korean-Canadian pastor who led the Light Presbyterian Church in Canada's Toronto, speaks at a news conference in Pyongyang on July 30, 2015. Lim said he was detained by North Korean authorities in Pyongyang on Feb. 2 after entering the Rason Special Economic Zone in the northeast of the country on Jan. 30. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Detained S. Korean-Canadian pastor speaks in Pyongyang

Hyeon Soo Lim, a South Korean-Canadian pastor who led the Light Presbyterian Church in Canada's Toronto, speaks at a news conference in Pyongyang on July 30, 2015. Lim said he was detained by North Korean authorities in Pyongyang on Feb. 2 after entering the Rason Special Economic Zone in the northeast of the country on Jan. 30. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Vent filter arrives for Shika Nuclear Power Station's unit 2

A vent filter arrives in the town of Shika, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, on July 27, 2015, for the No. 2 reactor of Hokuriku Electric Power Co.'s Shika Nuclear Power Station. The utility plans to complete the installation of the device for the unit's filtered ventilation system by March 2016. (Kyoto) ==Kyodo

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Tanaka suffers 4th loss

Masahiro Tanaka walks back to the dugout after ending the sixth inning in the New York Yankees' 5-2 loss to the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park in Arlington on July 29, 2015. Tanaka took his fourth loss of the season after giving up four runs in six innings. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Tanaka suffers 4th loss

Masahiro Tanaka pitches in the New York Yankees' 5-2 loss to the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park in Arlington on July 29, 2015. Tanaka took his fourth loss of the season after giving up four runs in six innings. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Tanaka suffers 4th loss

Masahiro Tanaka pitches in the New York Yankees' 5-2 loss to the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park in Arlington on July 29, 2015. Tanaka took his fourth loss of the season after giving up four runs in six innings. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Tanaka suffers 4th loss

Masahiro Tanaka pitches in the New York Yankees' 5-2 loss to the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park in Arlington on July 29, 2015. Tanaka took his fourth loss of the season after giving up four runs in six innings. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Ichiro has 2,900th career hit

Ichiro Suzuki hits an RBI double to left field in the second inning of the Miami Marlins' 7-2 loss to the Washington Nationals at Marlins Park on July 29, 2015. The double made him the 38th player in major league history to reach 2,900 hits. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Ichiro has 2,900th career hit

Ichiro Suzuki hits an RBI double to left field in the second inning of the Miami Marlins' 7-2 loss to the Washington Nationals at Marlins Park on July 29, 2015. The double made him the 38th player in major league history to reach 2,900 hits. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Ichiro has 2,900th career hit

The big screen at Marlins Park shows Ichiro Suzuki, who had his 2,900th career hit in the second inning of the Miami Marlins' 7-2 loss to the Washington Nationals on July 29, 2015. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Aoki returns to Giants lineup

San Francisco Giants outfielder Norichika Aoki grounds out to second base in the second inning of a game against the Milwaukee Brewers at AT&T Park in San Francisco on July 27, 2015. Aoki, who returned to the lineup after a month on the disabled list with a fractured right fibula, went hitless in the Giants' 4-2 win. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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A-Rod homers on 40th birthday

Alex Rodriguez hits a solo home run in the sixth inning of the New York Yankees' 6-2 win over the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park in Arlington on July 27, 2015, his 40th birthday. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Gear used in 1964 Tokyo Olympics torch relay kept by manufacturer

A torch (L) and a lantern, used in the torch relay for the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, are kept by their manufacturer, Nippon Koki Co., at its plant in Nishigo, Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan, as seen in this photo taken on July 2, 2015. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Torch used in 1964 Tokyo Olympics relay kept by manufacturer

Nippon Koki Co. shows on July 2, 2015, a torch manufactured by the company and used in the torch relay for the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo at its plant in Nishigo, Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Kobe forward Watanabe scores equalizer on penalty vs. Sendai

Vissel Kobe forward Kazuma Watanabe (L) scores an equalizer from the spot in a J-League Division 1 match past Vegalta Sendai goalkeeper Yuji Rokutan at the Yurtec Stadium in Sendai, northeastern Japan, on July 19, 2015. Kobe won 2-1. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Japan soliciting name for asteroid targeted by space probe

Makoto Yoshikawa, associate professor at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, shows a model of Asteroid 1999 JU3 at a press conference in Tokyo on July 21, 2015. JAXA is soliciting a name for the asteroid where space explorer Hayabusa 2 is heading. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Kobe striker Leandro shoots in J-League game vs. Sendai

Vissel Kobe forward Leandro Montera da Silva (R) shoots after vying for the ball with Vegalta Sendai defender Jiro Kamata in a J-League Division 1 game at the Yurtec Stadium in Sendai, northeastern Japan, on July 19, 2015. Kobe won 2-1. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Shimizu forward Utaka scores 2nd goal in game vs. Nagoya

Shimizu S-Pulse forward Peter Utaka (top) scores his second goal in the second half of a J-League Division 1 match against Nagoya Grampus at the IAI Stadium Nihondaira in Shimizu, Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, on July 19, 2015. The game ended in a 2-2 draw. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Shonan, Kofu players tussle for ball in J-League match

Shonan Bellmare center back Wataru Endo (R) and Ventforet Kofu defender Yuki Tsuchiya compete to head the ball in the second half of a J-League Division 1 game at the BMW Stadium in Hiratsuka, southwest of Tokyo, on July 19, 2015. Kofu won 2-0. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Halilhodzic names Japan squad for E. Asian Cup

Japan soccer coach Vahid Halilhodzic announces a 23-man squad for the next month's East Asian Cup during a press conference in Tokyo on July 23, 2015. Japan launch their defense of the title against North Korea on Aug. 2 and then face South Korea on Aug. 5 before wrapping up the tournament against hosts China four days later. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Halilhodzic names Japan squad for E. Asian Cup

Japan soccer coach Vahid Halilhodzic announces a 23-man squad for the next month's East Asian Cup during a press conference in Tokyo on July 23, 2015. Japan launch their defense of the title against North Korea on Aug. 2 and then face South Korea on Aug. 5 before wrapping up the tournament against hosts China four days later. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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North Japan town combines solar power with farming in pilot project

Sohei Takahashi, chief of the Eco-energy Minamisoma Research Institute, shows on July 2, 2015, an experimental greenhouse run from solar power in Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture. A group of farmers led by Takahashi in the northeastern Japan city sells electricity generated by solar power panels installed at the farm while using the energy to produce vegetables in an effort to recover from the plight caused by the 2011 nuclear disaster at the Fukushima power plant. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Solar power panels shared by experimental farm in northern Japan town

Photo taken on July 2, 2015, shows solar power panels installed at an experimental greenhouse in Minamisoma in the northeastern Japanese prefecture of Fukushima. It is operated by the Eco-energy Minamisoma Research Institute for farmers engaged in greenhouse vegetable cultivation by using some of the solar energy-generated electricity while selling the rest in an attempt to establish a new model of agriculture in a region devastated by the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Greenhouse uses solar power in pilot farming project in northern Japan

Photo taken on July 2, 2015, shows a greenhouse for cultivating vegetables based on solar power generation in a pilot farming project in Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan. It is operated by the Eco-energy Minamisoma Research Institute which aims to revitalize agriculture in the 2011 nuclear disaster-hit area by establishing a new model of agriculture combined with electricity generation. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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World's largest flower blossoms at Tokyo park

Photo taken July 22, 2015, at Jindai botanical park in the city of Chofu, Tokyo, shows Amorphophallus titanium, which is said to be the largest flower in the world. The 2-meter-high flower blossomed on the day for its first bloom in five years. As the best time to see it was short, the park opened at 8:30 a.m., one hour earlier than usual. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo