The japan tag has no wiki summary.
14
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3answers
893 views
Is Islam banned in Japan?
I noticed some people posting and reposting bold statements online that Japan is (the only) country that banned Islam. I searched a bit and found out that there are some mosques and muslim societies ...
5
votes
0answers
192 views
Did Jews claim to be asians to Imperial Japan?
I came across the following anecdote from the Jewish Stack Exchange: http://judaism.stackexchange.com/questions/5940/jewish-community-in-china-around-ww2/5942
During the questions portion of the ...
1
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0answers
140 views
Does Japan export food that is unsafe to eat in Japan?
This claim states that some of the foodstuff that leaves Japan is deemed unsafe there because of the radioactivity levels, and is exported to places with more lax restrictions, like the United States.
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5
votes
1answer
221 views
Was sexually transmitted disease rampant amongst troops occupying Japan?
In the English language Wikipedia article on the Recreation and Amusement Association, an organization for prostitution to Allied troops occupying Japan after World War II, it's claimed that sexually ...
14
votes
1answer
409 views
Did Studio Ghibli send a katana to Disney that said “no cuts?”
A famous story that has made the rounds in the anime circles is this:
While Disney/Miramax were in talks to dub and release Studio Ghibli's Princess Mononoke in the states, it was suggested that a ...
3
votes
2answers
254 views
For the same size, is real estate cheaper in Australia than Japan?
From an upvoted comment:
Size of an apartment isn't very good measure of how rich some is.
Let's say a house that would make you filthy rich in Tokyo might be
considered tiny rathole in ...
5
votes
1answer
179 views
Did Allied forces use chemical weapons in Okinawa during World War II?
A Japanese friend of mine claimed that Allied forces used poisonous gas during the Battle of Okinawa. I asked for a link to such a claim, and got a link to this section of the Japanese language ...
2
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0answers
321 views
Does HEATTECH heat-generating clothing work?
Uniqlo sells HEATTECH heat-generating clothing.
Is this just a marketing gimmick or does this fabric generate heat as advertise?
8
votes
0answers
443 views
Did Japanese people misspell “We pray for MacArthur's election”?
The Internet is full of references to the same story:
It was probably in 1946, when Gen. Douglas MacArthur was temporarily put in charge of running Japan, which was in tough shape after ...
12
votes
1answer
2k views
Was homosexuality an integral part of samurai life?
The Beautiful Way of The Samurai:
Toshiro Mifune, the popular actor famed for his characterizations of quick-witted, taciturn samurai, never uttered a word about it. Akira Kurosawa, the well-known ...
8
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0answers
149 views
Glut of dolphin meat in Japan going into pet food?
Is there any truth behind the claim that Japan doesn't need all the dolphin meat it gets and the excess is being passed off to the pet food industry because there is little demand for the meat or they ...
12
votes
1answer
2k views
Do Japanese people have a lower body temperature than caucasians?
I heard from a Japanese person that Japanese people have a lower body temperature than caucasians. Is this the case?
Examples from the internet of people discussing claims that Japanese people, or ...
4
votes
2answers
324 views
Were members of the yakuza amongst the Fukushima 50?
Tomohiko Suzuki, author of the book The Yakuza and the Nuclear Industry, claims that several members of the Fukushima 50, workers who stayed behind to work on the Fukushima dai-ichi nuclear reactor ...
5
votes
2answers
505 views
Curing common cold with green onion
In Japan it is sometimes said that to cure common cold a remedy is to wear a warm green onion (Allii Fistulosi), around the neck, as explained for instance in this article (Google translation). This ...
3
votes
0answers
222 views
Were modern Japan customs for Valentine's Day and White Day instigated by retailers?
In Japan, women give chocolates to men on Valentine's Day, and men give gifts to women on White Day, which falls on March 14.
There are various claims that Valentine's Day and White Day customs are ...
13
votes
2answers
1k views
Can a ninja star (hira shuriken) used as a thrown weapon kill?
In many movies, especially from the 80's when Ninjas were involved they would use their ninja stars as a deadly weapon. An example clip is here.
Is this realistic? Can a ninja star penetrate and be ...
26
votes
1answer
5k views
Are Katanas made of steel folded 1000 times?
A Katana needs to be made of steel folded 1000 times, according to eHow:
Pound the tamahagane into two separate blades. These need to be heated, pounded by hand, and folded 1,000 times each to ...
7
votes
0answers
316 views
Did ninjas use Pythagoras' theorem to determine the depth of moats?
Ninjas are alleged to have determined the depth of moats by taking a reed that's attached to the bottom of the moat, and measuring the height of the reed above water, and how far forward they had to ...
3
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0answers
171 views
Did Matsuo Bashō compose a haiku about Matsushima where he was at a loss for words?
Lonely Planet's "Discover Japan" claims that Matsuo Bashō wrote a haiku where he was at a loss to describe Matsushima Bay.
Wikipedia says the supposed haiku is roughly translated as:
Matsushima ...
8
votes
1answer
229 views
Was stable iodine distributed post-Fukushima by the Japanese government?
In Canadian Medical Association Journal: Japanese Response to Fukushima Even Worse than Communist Russian Response to Chernobyl … “The Japanese Government Was Lying Through Its Teeth”, there are a lot ...
11
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0answers
560 views
Is prostitution uncommon among geishas?
Many news stories and plenty of ensuing comments about geishas have people making a strong point that geishas are not prostitutes.
However, the wikipedia article makes a meal out of the topic and ...
