SoraNews24 —Japan News—

Most tourists to Japan will come in and out through Tokyo’s Narita Airport. But like many international airports, Narita is not exactly on the doorstep of a major destination city, and travellers headed for Tokyo will usually make the 60-kilometer (36-mile) journey to the metropolis via the Narita Express, a high-speed rail service with a single-trip fare of 3020 yen (US $25.34).

What’s perhaps less well-known is there are two budget bus services that take you from Narita Airport to Tokyo Station for as little as 900 yen. Tokyo Shuttle and The Access Narita seem to offer similar airport shuttle services, but which is the better option? And can they match the Narita Express in comfort and convenience? We sent one of our Japanese reporters to test out both services and find out!

Japan
(Narita Airport • service • shuttle bus • Test • transportation)

Mythbusters: We drive a car over our smartphone to test the protective film

Hayashi 'Fang' Hougi
Dec 20, 2014

Even today, a lot of people in Japan still prefer flip phones over smartphones. Part of the reason is because smartphones screens–exposed as they are–are a lot more vulnerable and seem to break easily. Take myself for example: after purchasing a brand new Samsung Galaxy S4 last summer, I dropped it once and since then have had a giant crack across my screen.

But with the right case and protective film, your smartphone can, apparently, become practically invincible!

Japan
(accessories • experiment • smartphone • Test)

Twitter user exposes test-taking “geek” to the world, geek sees tweet and turns to confront him

Preston Phro
Jan 20, 2014

It’s January, which only means one thing to Japanese high school students: University entrance exams. These tests can be a source of extreme stress of Japaneses students, and many of them spend hours upon hours every day studying in class, at home, or at cram schools. Substandard test scores means they’re denied entrance–and spending the next year or two studying to take the tests again.

One of the hardest tests is the Center Test, which is used by both public and some private schools to make admittance decisions. Like the SATs or ACTs on steroids, it covers a range of topics and is, by anyone’s standards, really freaking hard. So what does the picture above have to do with the Center Test? Click below to find out!

Internet, Japan
(anime • blankets • entrance exams • funny • manga • Test)

Chinese netizens call for education reform after seeing Japanese test question

Master Blaster
Oct 14, 2013

The above question allegedly taken from a children’s test in Japan was posted on Chinese social networks recently. It’s a question that not only teaches us the proper way to use a scale but also a little something about the way we educate our youth.

China, Internet, Japan
(education • scale • Test • wtf)

Horse blinders for students? Cheating prevention tool at university in Thailand met with criticism

Michelle Lynn Dinh
Aug 20, 2013

A new method of cheating prevention at a university in Thailand has been met with criticism according to a recent report from Newsclip. The tool employs a white paper headband with two large pieces of paper attached to the sides, preventing students from peeking at their neighbor’s answers.

SE Asia
(cheating • exam • Test)

Do All Asians Look the Same to You? Take the Test!

Michelle Lynn Dinh
Feb 14, 2013

“All Asians look the same.” Whether or not you agree with this incredibly broad statement, you’ve no doubt heard it before. Now, thanks to a website called All Look Same, you can test your ability to differentiate between Japanese, Korean, and Chinese faces, turning the statement into a question: “Do all Asians look the same to you?”

Global, Internet
(All Look Same • Asian • Test)

We Take Our New Wii U for a Ride on a Bullet Train, Works Like a Charm

Philip Kendall
Nov 26, 2012

The Wii U — Nintendo’s first new home console in six years — may not be available until next Saturday here in Japan, but that didn’t stop our team getting hold of a North American unit and getting stuck into some quality gaming early.

Gamers among you will already know a little about Nintendo’s newest baby, but for the uninitiated, here it is in a nutshell: the Wii U combines the remote-wielding mayhem of everyone’s favourite Nintendo system with a unique new controller featuring a touch screen that can be used with or without a TV set, all topped off with a layer of gorgeous high-definition visuals. The idea is that the player uses the screen to interaxct with their games in a new way or, as we did here, use the gamepad screen in place of a TV set.

Sounds good, right?

But until we got our hands on a Wii U, we never fully appreciated just how much of a game-changer it was. We’ve played Sony PSP and Nintendo DS consoles on the go for years now, but imagine being able to take your actual home games console out on the road. Or how about on a high speed train…

Japan
(bullet train • fun • nintendo • portable • shinkansen • Test • videogames • Wii U)

The Proper Use of Chopsticks, It’s Never Too Late to Change Bad Hashi Holding Habits!

Karen Bremer Masuda
Oct 2, 2012

Chopstick culture is something unique to Asia. Japanese chopsticks, or hashi, are especially beautiful. Any foreign tourist can vouch for the allure of the hashi shop, a great place to linger and enjoy the attractive displays of hashi and their cases.

You would think that anyone living in Japan would get used to eating with chopsticks simply by using them over and over. Well, they do, but it may not necessarily be the correct way. There is in fact a proper way to eat with chopsticks,** and even some Japanese adults—two in three people in their 30’s, to be exact—continue to use them incorrectly**

Using chopsticks incorrectly can make it more difficult to bring food to your mouth, and it just looks bad too. Fearing the Japanese national image may be at stake, 33-year old reporter with Nikkei.com decided to see if long years of mistaken hashi holding could be fixed.

Japan
(attractively displayed • bottom hashi • chopsticks • correct usage • forefinger • good penmanship • grasping food • hashi • holding hashi properly • ideal length • lunch box foods • middle finger • operate finger muscles efficiently • ring finger • Test • thumb • top hashi)

Get a Complete Psych Profile in a Few Minutes Using Only a Pen and Paper

Master Blaster
Mar 21, 2012

The internet is home to thousands of thousands of tests and quizzes each promising everything from your IQ to the Glee character that most resembles you. Now we bring you a new test that really kinda probably doesn’t work, but it’s fun to try.

Using just a pen and paper you can get a snapshot of your current mental state. But to get a super-duper accurate reading you CANNOT scroll down to until you complete each step, OK?

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