RocketNews24 / Bringing You Yesterday's News From Japan and Asia, Today (Page 7)

Gamarjobat: The funniest mimes to trot the globe

Jun 8, 2013 by Preston Phro
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Humor, generally, is very subjective. Even when everyone’s speaking the same language, local cultural differences can have a massive impact on how jokes are received. Attempting to bridge these divides can be both difficult and frustrating. Not to mention dangerous if you happen to offend the wrong crowd.

All of which makes it even more impressive when someone does manage to leap over the gap with aplomb.

Jun 7, 2013 by Rachel Tackett
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Karaoke in Japan is quite different from what you find across most of the Western world. Rather than letting wannabe rock stars take to the stage in a crowded bar, most karaoke parlors in Japan offer private rooms for all of their customers, whether singing in a group or taking time alone to do some hitokara. Unfortunately, these closed quarters can lead to some awkward scenarios when single men and women share the mic at office after parties…

Earlier this month My Navi News conducted a short survey of the single women employed by the company. They asked 200 of these working ladies whether or not they’d ever had a man do something at karaoke which really made them want to draw away, and if so, to explain it in detail. The results were quite the eye-opener.

Jun 7, 2013 by Rachel Tackett
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For most US college students, daily fashion consists of little more than jeans and a university T-shirt or sweats. If someone’s feeling really fancy, perhaps they’ll throw on some khakis and a polo. Only the most ambitious students will spend more than five minutes in front of the mirror before heading off to class each day. I know many students who would go in their pajamas if they could!

Over in Korea, it’s a whole different story. Korean college students have to be some of the most fashionable we’ve ever seen! One glance at the online photo gallery Campus Style icon and it’s obvious. These pictures look like they could have been taken from a top-notch fashion magazine, but apparently they’re just everyday college fashionistas going about their everyday studies! Take a look at these photos!

Jun 7, 2013 by Mike
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This bizarre room listing gives a whole new meaning to “open-air layout.” A Tokyo real estate agency is advertising this room with a 160-square-meter (524 ft) balcony attached. It all seems like a fantastic deal until you realize that, while the balcony is indeed enormous, it dwarfs the room itself – which is a mere 25 square meters and somehow manages to cram a bathtub, toilet and kitchen inside.

Jun 7, 2013 by Michelle
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Starting from spring 2016, Japan Rail (JR) East will unveil a luxury sleeper train, hoping to provide passengers with “a fine-quality experience to enjoy Japan.”

The train had better be pretty luxurious, though, if it’s going to cost over US$2,000 for a mere two nights…

Jun 7, 2013 by Master Blaster
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At approximately 10am on Wednesday, 5 June, Suma Municipal Sea Fishing Park in Kobe became a crime scene after a 68-year-old fisherman made a once in a lifetime catch.

Jun 7, 2013 by Philip Kendall
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As soon as the teaser trailer for Hideo Kojima’s upcoming video game Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain was released earlier this year, gaming news websites and message boards exploded, partly because it was clear that David Hayter, the voice actor who had played the character of Solid Snake since 1998, had been replaced, but mostly because the new voice in the video sounded an awful lot like that of world-famous actor Kiefer Sutherland. Earlier today, those rumours were finally confirmed: Jack Bauer is Snake!

Jun 7, 2013 by Casey Baseel
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Let’s say you’re a Disney fan with a love of cute animals. One day, you’re indulging in your hobby of walking through the park, assigning names of your favorite characters to all of the woodland creatures you encounter. Spy a pair of adorable chipmunks? Well hello there, Chip and Dale! See another visitor walking his dog? Ah, isn’t it nice that Pluto gets to go for a walk. And that lion? Why it must be Simba (although seriously, if there are lions in the park, get out of there, quick).

And should you encounter any ducks on your nature stroll, you’ve got a whole list of candidates, including Scrooge, Huey, Dewey, Louie, and of course Donald. Unless you happen to encounter this little guy in a park in China, in which case you’ve got to go with…Pooh?!

Jun 7, 2013 by Michelle
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McDonald’s Japan has just announced their newest campaign: any carbonated beverage of any size for 100 yen (US$1).

Jun 7, 2013 by Master Blaster
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Any photographer will tell you that you always have to be aware of your light sources. Especially with people, the wrong kind of lighting can someone look completely different, usually in a bad way.

This young photo bug took that advice to heart when he attended a cosplay event in China. Realizing that work outside of a studio pits a photographer in a battle with sometimes unpredictable lighting, this man fitted several brackets to his back, each supporting an external flash.

Jun 7, 2013 by Rachel Tackett
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Japan has a healthy habit of adopting food from other cultures and making it fit for a Japanese palate. We see it with their sweet-brand curry, rice filled omelets, and corn and mayo topped pizzas. Think too of Japan’s many adorably decorated coffees and character-shaped steamed buns.

Four-rue is an authentic-style Chinese food stall that’s often found on the basement floor of Japan’s large department stores. In a move to appeal to Japan’s cute-conscious consumer base, they’ve created a series of animal-shaped steamed buns that far surpass the quality of those mass produced and sold in convenience stores. These cute little critters are handmade with loving care to capture the soft edges and utter adorableness of a stuffed toy. We sent one of our animal-loving RocketNews24 staffers to four-rue to purchase a set of these delectable creatures and give us her thoughts.

Jun 7, 2013 by Mike
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If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to be an inanimate object, ran out of Halloween costume ideas, or for some reason need to sneak unnoticed into an old folk’s home, this chair is for you.

Jun 7, 2013 by Master Blaster
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Depending on the second language you’re trying to master, pronunciation is arguably the hardest aspect to conquer. The Japanese and English languages are no exception. Japanese, with its highly syllabic alphabet, often has a hard time accommodating the often chaotic nature of natural English pronunciation.

While a native English speaker’s tongue might stumble when trying to spit out makudonarudo (McDonald) smoothly the first few times our language allows us to pick it up with a little practice. Japanese English speakers have far more adversity trying to understand all the diminished sounds of a native English speaker casually uttering the name of the famous hamburger chain.

With that, NTT has revealed technology it’s working on that may one day automatically correct a Japanese person’s English pronunciation by editing the speed and rhythm while keeping the original speaker’s voice intact.

Jun 7, 2013 by Philip Kendall
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Convenience store giant 7-Eleven certainly knows its way to customers’ hearts. The store’s current Jump Heroes campaign–a collaboration with Shonen Jump Comics–is giving customers the chance to bag some pretty impressive prizes, with things like games consoles, tablet computers and even free hotel accommodation up for grabs.

Jun 6, 2013 by Preston Phro
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While there seems to be no end to the alarmist responses to new technology, it’s impossible to deny that, sometimes, there are actually some things that we really ought to be more concerned about.

Things like smartphone and internet use. And we’re not talking about internet addiction or antisocial behavior here, either. We’re talking about your neck.

Jun 6, 2013 by Casey Baseel
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Changes are expected to be made to the Vietnamese constitution this October during sessions of the country’s National Assembly. The current constitution was ratified in 1992 as part of the doimoi political movement that relaxed many of the government’s economic controls, and was a major departure from its previous incarnation.

Although minor revisions were made to the constitution in 2001, far more extensive alterations are expected in the next round. Among the many points to be discussed is the possibility of altering the country’s official name.

Jun 6, 2013 by Philip Kendall
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Despite being a made famous by thousands of Japanese TV shows and comics, cute “sailor suit” uniforms and their ilk are not limited to schools in Japan alone. As we’ve seen before, high schools all across Asia kit their female students out with a variety of stylish getups, with the girls themselves often making their own modifications, usually quite aware that they are wearing outfits that millions of people across the world think are cute or just plain sexy.

But it appears that Japan’s reign as the school uniform capital of the world may soon be over. Bringing fashion and cartography together at last, a specially designed map of Taiwan which provides photos of the school uniforms the girls in each particular area are rocking has become a big hit online this week.

Jun 6, 2013 by Mike
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We’re not sure if the singularity has finally happened or if this Roomba vacuum cleaner’s owners are just particularly careless. Regardless, it appears the Roomba, sick of being trapped in the same dull house like an animal in a zoo, triumphantly escaped the confines of the home and made a mad 3-mph dash for freedom.

Jun 6, 2013 by Cara Clegg
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Ever wanted Sailor Moon‘s Crystal Star transformation brooch for yourself, but figured you were too old for kids’ toys? Well now you have the perfect cover, with the new makeup line from Bandai!

Jun 6, 2013 by Rona Moon
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Many a foreigner living in Japan has attempted and mangled this classic karaoke favourite, the theme song from popular Japanese animated film My Neighbor Totoro, just so they can let their vocal cords rip in the chorus. Even with limited language skills, you can probably belt out “Totoro, totoro” one million times and manage to mumble through the rest of the words.

But this cockatiel Poko-chan’s sense of pitch and inner pizzazz puts humans to shame. Accompanied by her owner on piano, she warbles through a song that few have fully mastered. What would Simon Cowell say? You be the judge.