A magnitude 5.9 earthquake centered in southern Ibaraki Prefecture shook a wide area of the Kanto region at around 2 a.m. on August 23, registering a maximum intensity of lower 5 on Japan's seven-level seismic scale in parts of Ibaraki, Saitama, Chiba and Tokyo.
A cognitive trait known as aphantasia, in which people are unable to voluntarily form images in their minds despite knowing what objects look like, may affect about 4% of people, highlighting significant differences in how individuals experience memory, imagination and everyday tasks.
Dangerous heat returned across Japan on August 19, complicating disaster recovery efforts in earthquake-hit Kumamoto and flood-damaged Chiba while unusually low rainfall and limited snowfall pushed reservoirs in several regions toward critical levels.
Japanese researchers are developing a lithium-air battery that uses oxygen from the atmosphere to store and generate electricity, promising nearly five times the capacity of conventional lithium-ion batteries at less than half the weight and potentially opening the way to far longer electric vehicle driving ranges.
Security camera footage captured the moment part of the Hinagu Fault Zone broke through the ground during the Kumamoto earthquake on July 28, as strong shaking lifted the surface of a rice field and moved a nearby light truck violently.
New research is reshaping long-held assumptions about Tyrannosaurus rex, including suggestions that the giant predator may have lived to around 40 years rather than 28, while advances in fossil analysis are also offering new clues about dinosaur growth, posture and even color.