From The Mainichi:
The visitor toilet accreditation system in Gunma Prefecture began in 2003, with conditions at 259 bathrooms meeting its standards as of fiscal 2024. Facilities are judged on cleanliness, safety, ease of use and other factors based on around 25 points, with certified lavatories bearing a plaque with the prefectural mascot Gunmachan.
Please don’t let the rating system be a touch screen installed by the toilet paper.
From Nippon.com:
On August 12, 1985, the crash of a Japan Airlines Boeing 747 in central Japan resulted in 520 fatalities. It was Japan’s deadliest air accident, as well as the deadliest air disaster in history involving a single aircraft and no additional deaths on the ground.
A sad tale. The TV program Mayday did an episode on this crash it is worth the watch. The fact that four people managed to survive is frankly amazing.
Tatsuya Naganuma from The Mainichi:
The Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition on Aug. 11 announced that a total of 18,095,703 tickets to the Osaka Expo had been sold as of Aug. 8, surpassing the approximately 18 million tickets set as a guideline for the break-even point for operating expenses.
However, the association has not disclosed the final outlook for profitability of the Expo, which will continue until Oct. 13, as unforeseen expenses could arise due to disasters or other factors.
Even if it doesn’t break even in the end with all expenses, it is a small miracle that it might be able to. World Expos are not money makers these days.