Although it might sound unusual for artifacts with a centuries-long history, swords are currently in vogue in Japan. Museum exhibitions of historically significant katana have been attracting large, enthusiastic crowds in recent years, but the blades' surging popularity is yet to solve a few problems. (Japan Today)

Japan's core consumer prices were expected to show their seventh straight month of annual increases in July, a Reuters poll found, offering the central bank some hope a strengthening economic recovery will gradually lift inflation toward its 2 percent target. (Reuters)

Legoland Japan said Friday it will start giving free one-day tickets to visitors who purchase one-day or one-day family passes to the theme park. (Japan Times)

The Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry will address a surging number of accidents involving rental cars driven by foreign tourists, whose number is on the rise in Japan, by identifying locations where accidents are likely to occur and setting up foreigner-friendly road signs in the hope of preventing accidents. (the-japan-news.com)

Some 10,000 fireworks were set off Thursday evening at a beach within the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage-listed Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range. (Kyodo)

Police arrested Thursday former world championship marathon runner Yumiko Hara on suspicion of shoplifting. (Japan Today)

Japanese and British researchers have found out that healthy sperm can be produced by making a kind of stem cell called iPS from sterile mice. (NHK)

The Japanese government carried out Friday a drill for its emergency alert system in areas in and around the likely flight path of ballistic missiles North Korea has recently threatened to launch toward Guam.

(Japan Today)

A heavy-duty version of Japan's H-2A rocket is now scheduled to lift off Saturday with a geostationary navigation satellite after a week-long delay to diagnose and resolve a leak in the rocket's propulsion system, the Japanese space agency announced Wednesday. (spaceflightnow.com)

Police in Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture, have arrested an unemployed 50-year-old man on suspicion of beating his 48-year-old wife to death with a wooden sword. (Japan Today)

Osaka Prefectural Police have arrested a man in the slashing of a male acquaintance with a Japanese sword in Kishiwada City on Thursday, reports the Mainichi Broadcasting System. (tokyoreporter.com)

Big hair, leather jackets and a touch of danger -- these were photographer Denny Renshaw's first impressions of Japan's "Roller-Zoku" gangs. (CNN)

The Japanese government has confirmed that all of its citizens in South Korea can be admitted to shelters designated by the South Korean government, should North Korea launch an attack on the South. (the-japan-news.com)

A tour bus fell off a road on Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido on Friday, leaving dozens of passengers injured, local police said. (Kyodo)

A nonprofit organization based in Tokyo plans to identify the resting place of the Battleship Hiei (see below), which sank off the island of Guadalcanal during one of the fiercest battles of World War II. (the-japan-news.com)

Organizers of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics are discussing a plan to establish "festival squares" in three locations in Tokyo, where people without tickets can enjoy the vibrant atmosphere of the Games through public viewing events and other gatherings during the competition. (the-japan-news.com)

From beer gardens on the rooftops of department stores to fireworks extravaganzas to quiet, wood-paneled craft breweries, Japanese seem to quaff an awful lot of beer in the summer. (dailymail.co.uk)

Japanese researchers say an extinct variety of otter formerly widespread across the country may still survive in southwestern Japan. The Japanese river otter was officially declared extinct in 2012. (NHK)

A giant tortoise that made a break from a Japanese zoo has been found safe and sound two weeks after it escaped -- just 140 meters from the park. (Japan Today)

Huge bonfires on mountains lit up Japan's old capital, Kyoto, on Wednesday night in an annual Buddhist ceremony. (NHK)

Japan's Defense Ministry has decided to consider introducing a new US-made missile defense system known as "Aegis Ashore" in light of progress in North Korea's missile development. (NHK)

Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force and US Marines have opened their joint exercises in Hokkaido, northern Japan, to the media. (NHK)

Lack of sunshine caused by prolonged cloudy conditions and lingering rain in Pacific coastal areas of northeastern Japan may cause problems for the rice harvest. (NHK)

The Imperial Household Agency said on Thursday it will announce the informal engagement of Princess Mako, a granddaughter of the Emperor and Empress, to former university classmate Kei Komuro on Sept. 3. (the-japan-news.com)

Incidents of "outing" of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students by teachers in Japan have been on the rise, discouraging other LGBT students from coming forward due to concerns about discrimination and confidentiality. (Japan Today)