Search Results for: japan

BY MONICA DOBIE

JAPANESE scientists have discovered a new species of bacteria called microbacterium hatanonis, which is so robust, it can contaminate hairspray, claimed a study in the International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology.

Scientists examined the appearance and diet of the bacterium, then analysed its genome to show that it is an entirely new species.…

BY MONICA DOBIE

JAPANESE scientists have discovered a new species of bacteria called microbacterium hatanonis, so robust that it can contaminate hairspray, claimed a study in the International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology. Researchers from the Japan Collection of Microorganisms say it is a previously undiscovered bacteria strain, but are uncertain if it poses a danger to humans.…

BY PAUL COCHRANE, in Damascus and Beirut, and HELENA FLUSFELDER, in Jerusalem

INTRODUCTION AND THE GULF

THE DENIM sector in the Middle East is as diverse as it is fragmented, with strong demand in the Gulf and Israel for major brand names and the latest trends, while in the less economically developed parts of the Levant international brands are of less importance than style.…

BY KARRYN CARTELLE

AS the world’s wild finfish and seafood stocks continue to dwindle and environmental pressure for sustainable fishing practices rises, South Korea’s fishing fleet is adjusting with the times.

South and North Korea’s combined expansive coastline spans 8,693 kilometres (South Korea’s mainland alone commands 2,413km).…

By Keith Nuthall

A UNITED Nations-sponsored global initiative to encourage business schools to teach and promote social and environmentally responsible commercial practices has gathered a critical mass of support. More than 100 business schools worldwide have now signed up to the Principles for Responsible Management Initiative.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE FOOD and drink manufacturing industries could get a big shot in the arm this year, if the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) seven-year-old Doha Development Round reaches a successful conclusion, as planned. If it does, all import duties on their products traded worldwide would be significantly reduced and there is a chance many of them could be eliminated altogether.…

BY JULIAN RYALL, in Tokyo

BY any standards, it has been a tough couple of years for the Japanese nuclear energy industry. Still stinging from public, political and media criticism of atomic energy operators’ practices – including the way in which companies consistently failed to report data that might have been damaging to their operations – the industry was then dealt a blow by Mother Nature.…

By Mark Godfrey in Beijing

No country has added nuclear power like energy-hungry China. Neighbouring North Korea had more nuclear power capacity than China in 2000 (as did Taiwan). But by 2010, according to the US government-affiliated Energy Information Administration, China will have bypassed both countries.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Commission is monitoring concerns that Italian mozzarella cheese has been contaminated with dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs, amidst claims that the refuse crisis in Naples’ Campania region generated the responsible pollutants. Brussels was poised to ban the sale of the white melting cheese, but was mollified by a safety recall by Italian health authorities.…

BY JULIAN RYALL, in Tokyo

JAPANESE society is going through some dramatic changes that will have far-reaching effects on the nation’s domestic consumption patterns in the immediate future, as well as over the longer term. Arguably one of the most susceptible to these changes will be the cosmetics industry, which will have to wrestle with rapidly changing demographics among its core customers.…