DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ 'Dungeons & Dragons' is a cornerstone of big-business nerdworld. A top exec says Wizards of the Coast has a plan to keep the game hot for 50 more years.
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-27 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

BI spoke to a Wizards of the Coast executive to hear how the company is trying to keep "D&D" hot. For half a century, the game of "Dungeons & Dragons" has been a cornerstone of the nerdy experience. Fresh contentWOTC's plan centers on refreshing D&D's core content, including rulebooks like the "Player's Handbook" (PHB), "Monster Manual," and "Dungeon Master's Guide." Lanzillo highlighted one of WOTC's major ongoing collabs: "The Twenty-Sided Tavern," an off-Broadway theater production that's a live, stage-play version of a "D&D" game. AdvertisementDavid Carpenter, the creator of "Twenty-Sided Tavern," told BI that the show involves the audience using software to participate in the two-and-a-half-hour-long program.

Persons: It's, Elon Musk, it's, Chris Cocks, Jess Lanzillo, We've, Lanzillo, WOTC, k0gr6kMDXC, —, Matthew Mercer, — there's, who've, that's, David Carpenter, Carpenter, Bronwen Sharp Felicia Day, Iyengar, Erika Ishii, Gen Organizations: Coast, Hasbro, WOTC, Lanzillo Locations: Converse, New York, North America

☆ Japan’s government in flux after election gives no party majority
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-28 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

TOKYO — The makeup of Japan’s future government was in flux on Monday after voters punished Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s scandal-tainted ruling coalition in a weekend election, leaving no party with a clear mandate to lead the world’s fourth-largest economy. The biggest winner of the night, the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDPJ), had 148 seats, up from 98 previously, but also still well short of the 233 majority. But days before the vote, a newspaper affiliated with the Japan Communist Party reported that the party had provided campaign funds to branches headed by non-endorsed candidates. “LDP’s payments to branches show utter lack of care for public image,” ran an editorial in the influential Asahi newspaper two days before the election. In one bright spot, a record 73 women were elected into Japan’s male-dominated parliament, surpassing 54 at the 2009 election.

Persons: Shigeru Ishiba’s, “, Ishiba, Komeito, Keiichi Ishii, ”, Tobias Harris, Yoshihiko Noda, Fumio Kishida, Yuichiro Tamaki, Nobuyuki Baba, Rintaro Nishimura, Masakazu Tokura Organizations: U.S, Ishiba’s Liberal Democratic Party, Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Japan Foresight, LDP, Japan Communist Party, Asahi, Democratic Party for, People, Japan Innovation Party, DPP, Bank of Japan, Asia, Komeito Locations: TOKYO, China, North Korea, Japan

☆ China warns against maritime 'camp' confrontations but stops short of naming US
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Ryan Woo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi speaks during the opening ceremony of the diplomatic symposium at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse on October 24, 2023 in Beijing, China. The Philippines, Japan and the United States have complained about what they say is growing Chinese aggression in the South China Sea. Last month, China and the Philippines traded barbs over a collision in the South China Sea as Chinese vessels blocked the passage of Philippine ships. Beijing has been especially critical of the U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy, which identifies China as an aggressor in the region, including the South China Sea, undermining international maritime law including freedom of navigation. China will continue to fulfil its obligations under international maritime laws, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Wang said, again without referring to Washington.

Persons: Wang Yi, Ken Ishii, Wang, Xi Jinping, Joe Biden, Ryan Woo, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Rights, Economic Cooperation, United Nations Convention, UNCLOS, Thomson Locations: Diaoyutai, Beijing, China, Rights BEIJING, United States, Philippines, Japan, South China, Philippine, Manila, Hainan, U.S, Asia, Washington

☆ Japan's Itochu raises profit forecast on strong machinery business
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Toru Hanai/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 6 (Reuters) - Japanese trading house Itochu (8001.T) posted a 14.5% drop in six-month net profit on Monday but raised its full-fiscal year profit forecast on stronger expectations for its machinery business and the weaker yen. Itochu increased its net profit forecast for the year ending in March 2024 by 20 billion yen to 800 billion yen ($5.4 billion) after weaker coal and iron ore prices resulted in its half-year net profit falling to 412.90 billion yen. "We have raised our full-year profit forecast for the machinery segment, backed by strong performance of automobile, construction machinery and North America's power business," President and Chief Operating Officer Keita Ishii told a news conference. The full-year profit forecast for Itochu's machinery business -- its second-biggest profit contributor after the metals and minerals segment and which makes ship and car parts and industrial machinery -- was increased by 10 billion yen to 115 billion yen. The company also said it will buy back up to 1.2% of its shares, worth 75 billion yen.

Persons: Toru Hanai, Keita Ishii, Ishii, Katya Golubkova, Yuka Obayashi, Kim Coghill, Savio D'Souza Organizations: Itochu, REUTERS, Mitsui, Mitsubishi, Sumitomo, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Japan, China

[1/3] Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks with Colombian President Gustavo Petro during a meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, October 25, 2023. The upgrade of relations with Colombia means China now has strategic ties with 10 out of the 11 South American countries with which it has relations. Paraguay is the last South American nation that has ties with Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory. In 2022, shipments from Colombia to China totalled $7 billion, up almost 20% from five years earlier. Among the 11 South American countries that have diplomatic ties with Beijing, Colombia has the largest trade deficit with China despite increased Chinese imports.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Gustavo Petro, Ken Ishii, Xi, Petro, Ivan Duque, Liz Lee, Ryan Woo, Ellen Zhang, Bernadette Baum, Robert Birsel, Nick Macfie Organizations: of, People, REUTERS Acquire, Initiative, South American, Tuesday, China Harbour Engineering Company, Bogota Metro, Xian Metro Company, Bombardier Inc, Columbia, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, Zijin Mining, Canada's Continental, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Colombia, Latin America Colombia, Xi's, Initiative BEIJING, U.S, America, Guyana, South America, Central America, Caribbean, United States, Taiwan, Paraguay, American, Latin America, Bogota, Argentina, Venezuela, Bolivia, Suriname

[1/4] Indonesian President Joko Widodo arrives at Beijing Capital International Airport to attend the Third Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China, October 16, 2023. Ten years on, the most senior EU leader expected to attend the third Belt and Road (BRI) Summit this week is Hungary's populist Viktor Orban, who will join guests including Russia's Vladimir Putin and a minister of the Afghan Taliban. Other analysts say economic slowdown both in China and globally, and rising commodity prices, have also cast a pall over the initiative. Wang Huiyao, president of the Center for China and Globalization think tank, said the BRI had "greatly pushed forward global awareness about the infrastructure deficit". "It's not perfect, but it’s a process, and people are gradually realising it's so important: we need to build infrastructure.

Persons: Joko Widodo, Ken Ishii, Putin, Orban, Britain's, Viktor Orban, Russia's Vladimir Putin, Xi, Jinping, Matthew Erie, they've, Raffaello Pantucci, Ruby Osman, Tony Blair, Osman, Wang Huiyao, Wang, Joyce Zhou, Vineet Sachdev, Antoni Slodkowski, Don Durfee, Robert Birsel Organizations: Beijing Capital International Airport, Forum, REUTERS Acquire, Initiative, University of Oxford, Reuters, Washington, American Enterprise Institute, S.Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Tony, Tony Blair Institute for Global, Global Development Initiative, Monetary Fund, Sri, Center for, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Italy, Xi's, BEIJING, Western Europe, EU, Taiwan, United States, Ukraine, Erie, CHINA, America, Africa, Russia, Kazakhstan, Congo, Singapore, China's, Argentina, Sri Lanka, Zambia, Center for China

[1/4] Indonesian President Joko Widodo arrives at Beijing Capital International Airport to attend the Third Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China, October 16, 2023. Ten years on, the most senior EU leader expected to attend the third Belt and Road (BRI) Summit this week is Hungary's populist Viktor Orban, who will join guests including Russia's Vladimir Putin and a minister of the Afghan Taliban. Such Western doubts have coincided with Xi's assertive leadership and a deterioration in ties over trade, human rights, COVID-19 and Taiwan. Other analysts say economic slowdown both in China and globally, and rising commodity prices, have also cast a pall over the initiative. "It's not perfect, but it’s a process, and people are gradually realising it's so important: we need to build infrastructure.

Together, experts say, these efforts aim to enhance China’s military reach, which currently includes only one operational overseas naval base in Djibouti on the Horn of Africa. “It’s a question of when – not if – China will secure its next overseas military outpost,” he said. This photo taken on August 1, 2017, shows Chinese People's Liberation Army personnel attending the opening ceremony of China's new military base in Djibouti. The Hambantota commercial port in Sri Lanka has long been considered a prime candidate for a Chinese naval base. However, China’s path to developing permanent overseas bases, if indeed that is its aim, is not straightforward.

Persons: FDD, Craig Singleton, “, –, ”, Tea Banh, FDD’s Singleton, Tang Chhin Sothy, Singleton, Xi Jinping, Stringer, ” AidData, Stephen J, Townsend, ” Townsend, Bata, Ali Bongo Ondimba, Ken Ishii, ’, ” Singleton, China’s, Aaron Favila, Isaac Kardon, Kardon, ” Kardon, BlackSky Singleton, Rob Wittman, Fu Tian, Seth Moulton, ” Moulton, Martin Meiners Organizations: South Korea CNN, People’s Liberation Army Navy, Foundation for Defense of Democracies, People’s Liberation Army, PLA, Ream, Base, CNN, China’s Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ream Naval Base, ” Cambodian Defense, Cambodian, Getty, Fleet, Communist Party, US, Liberation Army personnel, William & Mary University, Sri Lankan Navy, US Africa Command, Gabonese, of, Xinhua, Naval Research Academy, Carnegie Endowment, International Peace, East China Seas, China, Control, Organization, Force, Strategic, International Studies, Defense Department, Chinese Communist Party, ”, Virginia Republican, The Defense Department, Qingdao Port, People's Liberation Army Navy, China News Service, America, Pentagon, US Defense Department Locations: Seoul, South Korea, China, Beijing, Washington, Cambodia, Argentina, Cuba, Djibouti, of Africa, Africa, West Asia, Gulf, Thailand, United States, Preah Sihanouk, AFP, Horn of Africa, “, South, Taiwan, Virginia, —, Sri Lanka, Bata , Equatorial Guinea, Gwadar, Pakistan, Kribi, Cameroon, Ream, Vanuatu, Nacala, Mozambique, Nouakchott, Mauritania, Colombo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, West Africa, South China, East Asia, East, Asia, Washington In Washington, Nanchang, Qingdao, Shandong province, Massachusetts

☆ Why Olive Wagyu is so expensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Irene Anna Kim | Pj Rickards | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

At over $500 a pound, olive wagyu is one of the most expensive meats you can buy. There are only 2,500 heads of olive wagyu cattle on the island of Shodoshima. Farmer Masaki Ishii feeds his cattle waste from local olive oil groves. In Shōdoshima, Japan, Masaki Ishii creates olive wagyu by feeding his cattle the waste from local olive groves. So, what makes olive wagyu different from other varieties of wagyu?

[1/5] People hold up special edition newspapers, reporting Japan's victory at the World Baseball Classic final, as others queue to try to get them, in Tokyo, Japan, March 22, 2023. REUTERS/Kato IsseiTOKYO, March 22 (Reuters) - With cherry blossoms reaching full bloom in Tokyo, Japanese sports fans erupted in jubilation on Wednesday after their countrymen defeated Team USA to win the World Baseball Classic (WBC). "Nihon yusho," or "Japan victory," was the No. Japan pitchers set a WBC record for strikeouts throughout the series, according to Fox Sports. With sublime serendipity, Japan's victory comes as Tokyo cherry blossoms reached their zenith, bathing the city's parks and streets in pink and white.

☆ Wealthy Chinese, Fed Up at Home, Find a Haven in Japan
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Miho Inada | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

OTARU, Japan—A growing number of affluent Chinese are coming to Japan to live, according to real-estate brokers and people in the Chinese community here, in an indication of social and political tensions back home. Hideyuki Ishii, a real-estate broker on the northern island of Hokkaido, says he has been inundated recently with requests from Chinese nationals who want to buy property that they can use as a foothold to move to Japan.

☆ Cercetătorii au descoperit o genă care reprezintă un factor major de risc în cazul Alzheimerului
▼ + stars: | 2020-05-10 | by ( ) tvrmoldova.md time to read: +2 min

Această variantă genetică poate fi folosită pentru a prezice degradarea funcţiilor mentale, independent de depunerile de proteine. Astfel, APOE4 joacă un rol important în cazul traumelor suferite de către bariera sânge creier, responsabilă de protejarea ţesuturilor cerebrale de toxine. Acesta mai adaugă: Deteriorarea severă a celulelor vasculare numite pericite a fost legată de probleme cognitive mai severe în cazul persoanelor care prezentau APOE4. Cercetătorii explică faptul că APOE4 reprezintă una dintre variantele genei responsabile pentru codificarea proteinelor care transportă colesterolul prin creier. Dintre acestea, după cum explică cercetătorii, o parte dintre participanţii erau sănătoşi, în timp ce cealaltă parte prezenta deja forme uşoare de degradare a funcţiilor cognitive.

Persons: Alzheimer, Makoto Organizations: Science Alert Locations: APOE4, California de Sud, Statele Unite ale Americii, neuroştiinţe

Search resuls for: "Ishii"

12 mentions found