Examining Japan’s Population Decline
After World War II (1939-1945), many countries experienced a “baby boom.” As peace and stability returned to many post-war nations, people returned to work and started families. Japan was no exception. In 1945, Japan’s population was just over 71 million people. By the early 2000s, the population had nearly doubled to around 125 million. However, […]
Warmer Weather Brings Cherry Blossoms
The flowering cherry tree grows throughout the world in mild climates. In Japan, the tree is called sakura. It is planted as an ornamental tree and has played an important role in the culture of Japan. In springtime, the flowering cherry tree produces pink and white flowers called cherry blossoms. The cherry blossoms do not […]
Stolen Art Returned to Japan
A surprising discovery was made in 2023 in the attic of a Massachusetts home. While sorting through their late father’s belongings, the children of a World War II veteran stumbled upon a collection of Japanese antiques. Astonishingly, there were 22 pieces hidden away. The oldest items dated back to the 1700s. The family reported their […]
Japanese Prime Minister Sympathizes over Korean Forced Labor
Japan occupied and governed Korea as a colony from 1910 through 1945, when World War II ended. As a result, Korean and Japanese leaders have had a tense relationship since this colonial history ended. On May 7, 2023, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida publicly expressed sympathy for Koreans forced to labor for Japan during these […]
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Archaeologists Discover Ancient Gold Coins On October 3, 2022, Israeli archeologists found forty-four pure gold coins hidden in a wall in the Golan Heights. The coins date back to the seventh century and weigh about six ounces each. They feature the faces of Byzantine emperors Phocas and Heraclius. Scientists believe that the coins were hidden […]
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Precious Plastic Refugee camps are places where many people live together in a very small area. These camps don’t have the systems for refuse and trash control that are common in cities and established areas of high population density. Refugee camps also receive donations of food, water, and other supplies from international aid organizations. The […]
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The Teal Pumpkin Project One out of every thirteen American children lives with a food allergy. So, Halloween is not a simple night of free candy for them. That’s where the Teal Pumpkin Project comes in. This movement began in 2012 in Tennessee and has now expanded to all fifty states. It encourages households to […]
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More Border Issues for President Biden In the past few weeks, thousands of migrants have arrived at the border between the United States and Mexico. Many of these are Haitians who had been allowed to live in other countries several year ago. Many of these migrants crossed into Del Rio, Texas, and formed an encampment […]
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Tokyo 2021 Olympics Update Have you been following the Tokyo Olympic Games so far? Now that the event is more than halfway through here are some highlights. At the end of the second weekend of the Games, China leads the gold medal count with 24, followed by the United States (20) and Japan (17). The […]
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Ida B. Wells Monument Unveiled in Chicago Ida B. Wells was an enslaved person who later became a newspaper editor and civil rights activist in Memphis, Tennessee. As a journalist, she travelled the South in a crusade against lynching. Wells published the stories she heard in her newspaper, The Memphis Free Speech and Headlight. She […]