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It’s a fact of life that summers in Japan are hot and humid, and the Japanese people have a long history of trying to find ways to cool down in hot weather. One tradition that has come about as a result is the telling of terrifying horror stories in the summer, for the purpose of getting “chilled with terror”. And right now with the summer in full swing in Japan, we are indeed in need of some “chilling”.

Well, to help those of us desperate to feel just even a little bit cooler, Japanese entertainment group Culture Convenience Club (CCC), which operates TSUTAYA, one of the largest Video/DVD rental chains in Japan, has released a list of the 20 most-rented horror movies in Japan over the past three decades (1983 to 2012 to be exact). So, let’s see which movies made the list! Read More

Why Do Foreigners Like Japan so Much? We Head to Comiket 82 to Find Out!

Many foreigners view Japan as some marvelous dreamland of technology and culture; a place where crazy is the norm and embracing fantasy in everyday life is acceptable.

But to Japanese people, Japan is just that place you were born. Everyone and everything is routine, and it’s often difficult to see why the rest of the world get’s so worked up about “Japanese culture.”

Earlier this month, we sent one of our Japanese reporters to Comic Market (or “Comiket“), the world’s largest self-published comic book fair and otaku mecca, to interview real live foreigners and ask them what it is they really think about this country.

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Possum Cat Plays Dead(?) in the Heat [Video]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37myg2ReEOg?feature=oembed&w=640&h=360%5D

Summer can be tough. Some days are so hot that it’s difficult to do much more than idly lie there as the heat drains you of your energy. And just imagine how bad it is if you’re covered in fur.

At first glance this kitty is just sprawled out on a sofa, but as the camera moves around (up and down, circling around, even going right up to the cat’s face), you’ll notice that it doesn’t even move its eyes.

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  • Aug 10, 2012

“All the World Has Been Waiting For You, Goku!” Fans Ecstatic Over News of New Dragon Ball Animated Film

We reported previously on a mystery countdown taking place on the website of the Weekly Shonen Jump magazine, which hinted that the popular manga “Dragon Ball” may be making a come back on the magazine. Well, fans of the manga can rejoice! We’ve found out that Dragon Ball is indeed coming back, although not to the Jump magazine, but as a new feature length animated film! Read More

We’ve all had teachers with a variety of temperaments. Some were cool, mellow. Some awkward, or just characters. （But hey, teachers are human too and they have to put up with students’ quirkiness as well).

Have you ever said or done anything that pushed your teacher over the edge, even for just a second? Below are an assortment of such utterances taken from a 2ch thread titled “Tell Us Something You Said That Pissed off Your Teacher.” Some of them may sound weird, and you may be shocked at the violent reaction of some of the teachers, but you need to take into account that some forms of hitting are still considered acceptable in Japanese schools. Read More

In my career as a journalist, never have I seen such a debacle. The match in question was a bantamweight match, between Azerbaijan’s Magomed Abdulhamidovand Japan’s Satoshi Shimizu. On five occasions in one round, Shimizu knocked down Abdulhamidov, who also received a two-point penalty. The judges ended up awarding victory by judgment to his opponent, who was the one who spent more time on the canvas, and the referee didn’t stop the match as he would reasonably expected to during one of these downs, nor did he even start counting down a single knockdown. What exactly is going on with refereeing in the London Olympics? Read More

Samsung Fights to Expel Dr. Dre’s Headphones From the Olympics

It must be hard to be an Olympic athlete with all that pressure to perform with the eyes of the world watching you and asking you to do your very best in that one moment.  Not to mention that most of them are far from home in a strange land with strange customs.

For many, the best way to relax the mind and get reconnected to your homeland is by music.  And there’s no better way to deliver this acoustic tranquilizer than through a pair of the increasingly popular brand of Beats by Dr. Dre headphones.  Unfortunately, electronics giant Samsung wants to take those away from the athletes.

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Somalian Olympic Team Cosplays as Doraemon During the Opening Ceremony

So how ’bout that 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony? There was Mr. Bean’s riveting performance of “Chariots of Fire,” Daniel Craig and Queen Elizabeth II parachuted out of a helicopter, Paul McCartney sang “Hey Jude”…

While the star-studded event gave the world plenty to talk about, there was one cameo appearance during the parade that was likely overlooked by everyone except Japan: everyone’s favorite earless robotic cat, Doraemon.

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Land Yourself an Educated Partner with “The Smell of a Freshly Printed Book”

A new perfume has been created inspired by this quote of Karl Lagerfeld, a heavy hitter in the fashion world working with the likes of Chanel and Fendi among others.

“The smell of a freshly printed book is the best smell in the world.”

Well, hmmm, I never really thought about it before, but I can distinctly recall the smell of a fresh book after reading his words – so he could be onto something.  But does it really make you smell like a book?  And would people actually go for it?

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With the start of the Olympics just around the corner, we bring you a collection of quotes from people of varying degrees of fame and glory, some sure to make you think.

Prayer alone doesn’t give you courage. You need to make the effort and pray.

– Evander Holyfield, boxer who, among other achievements, unwillingly fed Mike Tyson his ear.

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Voting is open for the “Most Evil Corporation of the Year” Award for 2012

Established by a 10 member team including journalists, activists and University professors, the committee for the “Most Evil Corporation of the Year” (in Japanese “Black Corporation Award”) has made a shortlist of nominees each vying to be the blackest of businesses.

In Japanese, the term “black business” refers to companies who rake in huge profits while exploiting their own work force by discrimination, harassment, unpaid overtime, and short-term contracts.  This type of business is a widespread problem in Japanese society but often goes on undiscussed in mainstream media.

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Lemony Life Hack – Squeeze More Juice From Your Lemons!

Whether it’s a savory slab of salmon, or a sweet cheesecake, lemon juice can enhance a multitude of foods. But the squeezing of lemons to get their fresh juice is often tedious and seems to bear little reward. How do you all normally squeeze lemons? Most people typically cut it in half and get to squeezing straight away. But there’s a method that will yield much much much more juice, as we present below:  Read More

One of the best parts of the Olympics is when a world record is broken, but with the 4 year gap between Olympic summer games it’s easy to forget what has happened before.  So RocketNews24 would like to offer you a quick recap of the greatest achievements from the best of the best athletes from around the world in Olympic events and beyond.

To make these statistics more accessible we compared some of them to various zoo animals and everyday objects.

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  • May 28, 2012

See this amazing video of a “Super Moon” – breathtaking images that look almost surreal!

Most of us at one time or another have probably looked up at the night sky and marveled at the beauty of the moon glowing a beautiful pale silver, or sometimes a golden or orangish yellow. Well, looking at the night sky is sure to be even more exciting when you can see a “super moon” in the sky! What exactly is a super moon? To put it simply, it’s when the earth and moon comes closer together in distance, and you see the moon appearing larger and brighter than usual.  We actually had a “super moon” earlier this month, and we’ve found an amazing video that was taken at the time! Read More

Much A-Blue About Strawberries, Hypothetical Question Gets Everyone in a Tizzy

About 30 years ago, the late great George Carlin asked the famous question; “Where’s the blue food?”  In this routine he’s quick to point out that many foods with “blue” in the name aren’t really blue.  Blueberries are so dark they barely register as blue.  Blue cheese is just white cheese with blue mold in it.  And if anyone on the internet refers you to a “blue waffle” please forget you read it and move on with your life.

This culinary curiosity appears to have everyone mystified as proved by the recent landslide of attention that has befallen a website called strawberryblu.com.  A cute little article attempting to answer the question “Do blue strawberries exist?” which was written about a year ago has just recently been a magnet of attention in the middle of a fierce debate over genetically modified food.

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Revisit 20 Photos of Some of The Most Powerful Moments and People in Modern History

Thanks to the proliferation of the internet we can see countless images in an instant with the click of a mouse.  Most of the pictures available online, however, are of cats with misspelled captions or people confusing Joseph Kony with Carl Weathers.

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Angry Birds Fans Take Game Into Their Own Hands With Real USB Slingshot

Millions of people have experienced the satisfying feeling of pulling back their digital angry birds, releasing and sending them flying into those rickety pig-built structures on their smart phones or computers. It almost makes you want to light up a cigarette afterwards.

But after playing through the hundreds of levels that Roxio has released you may find that original satisfaction waning somewhat.  We have seen the videos of “real-life” versions in the past, but most of us lack the space and resources to do it ourselves. Well now, some ingenious fans have found a great way to add a fresh kick to their Angry Birds addiction using a real slingshot.

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How to Open a Beer With Your iPhone

You buy a beer on your way home, happily thinking of that moment when you can crack it open and relax with a frothy brew. But then you can’t find the bottle opener! You know it was around here somewhere, but no matter how much you search, you can’t find it. Everyone one has had this frustrating experience, right?

Actually, you can get that cap off even without a bottle opener. Of course, a bottle opener is best, and the other methods carry certain risks, but desperate times call for desperate measures! We decided to try out various different methods for removing bottle caps, including one that puts your iPhone to a new use. Read More

Do you have a guy friend who hasn’t had a girlfriend in ages? Some guys have no problem finding their next girlfriend after breaking up with the last one. On the other hand, some guys have never found themselves in a serious relationship of any kind.

Internet forums have buzzed with conversations between groups of Japanese women over what the differences are between men who can attract women and those who attract only scorn. After lengthy discussion, they narrowed the list down to 20 characteristics of guys to avoid: Read More

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