A late former professor at Asahikawa Medical University has won the Ig Nobel Prize in Medicine for scientifically examining the proper way to blow the nose, extending Japan's streak of Ig Nobel winners to 20 consecutive years. (News On Japan)

Osaka City plans to tighten regulations on private lodging businesses, or minpaku, by generally prohibiting new operations in wooden and steel-frame apartment buildings where residents already live, following repeated complaints over noise and garbage. (News On Japan)

Japan's rice market is facing a growing surplus as large volumes of last year's crop remain unsold just as another strong harvest begins reaching the market, forcing retailers to slash prices below cost and leaving farmers warning that losses could make it impossible to continue farming. (News On Japan)

Hikone Castle in Shiga Prefecture has been formally selected as Japan's candidate for nomination as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site, advancing a campaign that has continued for more than 30 years and aims to secure inscription in the summer of 2028. (News On Japan)

Highway service areas around the Kanto region are becoming destinations in their own right, offering travelers everything from freshly harvested vegetables and popular regional restaurant dishes to baths, observation decks and family events during the busy summer vacation season. (News On Japan)

A disaster prevention experiment has shown how quickly a rain-soaked slope can collapse once visible cracks appear, highlighting the need for people in landslide-prone areas to evacuate before conditions become critical as the risk of disasters remains elevated through early next week. (News On Japan)

A Chinese man who received a suspended prison sentence and had his driver's license revoked after striking four elementary school students while driving drunk in 2025 admitted at his first trial on September 3 that he repeatedly drove without a license while still on probation. (News On Japan)

FamilyMart has unveiled a new hybrid checkout system that can operate as either a self-service or staffed register, aiming to reduce checkout-related work by about 20% as labor shortages affect roughly 30% of its franchise stores. (News On Japan)

Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry raised subsidies for aviation fuel used on domestic flights from September 3, doubling the support rate while ending subsidies for international flights. (News On Japan)

Russian President Vladimir Putin said tax incentives on the Russian-held islands claimed by Japan have been successful, using a speech at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok to highlight economic development in Russia's Far East. (News On Japan)

Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said on September 3 that the economic policy of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's government should not be equated with conventional reflationary policy, after returning from the Group of 20 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting in the United States and briefing the prime minister on the talks. (News On Japan)

Five oil distributors, including Higashinihon Usami and ENEOS Wing, admitted charges of violating Japan's Antimonopoly Act by forming a cartel to coordinate diesel fuel prices at their first trial at the Tokyo District Court on September 3. (News On Japan)

Night trains are making a comeback across Japan, with railway operators introducing new overnight services and even experimenting with overnight Shinkansen trains as demand grows for alternatives that combine transportation, accommodation and the experience of traveling through the night. (News On Japan)

Tokyo stocks ended mixed on September 3, with the Nikkei 225 closing at 64,214.48, down 111.16 points, as uncertainty over interest rates and currencies kept pressure on risk assets, while the broader TOPIX rose 0.5% to 4,102.04. (News On Japan)

Bear sightings and attacks have been reported across Japan throughout the summer, with animals damaging sheds, attacking livestock and injuring people, while experts warn that autumn is the most dangerous season as bears expand their range in search of food. (News On Japan)

Running around the Imperial Palace has become one of Tokyo's most popular fitness activities, but growing numbers of runners and pedestrians sharing narrow sidewalks are raising safety concerns and prompting calls for stronger rules and better infrastructure. (News On Japan)

Nearly 60% of Japanese high school students consider learning about different cultures "very important," the highest proportion among Japan, the United States, China and South Korea, according to a survey released by the National Institution for Youth Education. (News On Japan)

The number of elderly people in Japan with no relatives to rely on is projected to rise to 4.48 million by 2050, or roughly one in nine seniors, prompting the government to create a new system under revised social welfare laws to support people with daily needs, hospitalization and arrangements after death. (News On Japan)

The Imperial Household Agency is considering holding a significantly scaled-down funeral for former Emperor Akihito at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, reflecting his wishes to minimize disruption to the lives of the public. (News On Japan)

A 17-year-old high school girl was arrested in Omihachiman, Shiga Prefecture, on September 2 after allegedly stabbing her 49-year-old father in the neck with scissors during an altercation at their home, with the father later dying at a hospital. (News On Japan)