Japan

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United States' gold medalist Missy Franklin holds a national flag at a medal ceremony with Japan's silver medalist Aya Terakawa after the women's 200-meter freestyle swimming semifinal at the Aquatics Centre in the Olympic Park during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Monday, July 30, 2012. (AP Photo/Daniel Ochoa De Olza)

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Japan's Kanae Yagi lifts during the women's 53-kg, group B, weightlifting competition at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Sunday, July 29, 2012, in London. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)

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Japan's Kazuki Yazawa competes in the men's K-1 kayak slalom heats at the Lee Valley White Water Center at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Sunday, July 29, 2012, in London. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

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Brazil's Thiago Pereira, left, United States' Ryan Lochte, center, and Japan's Kosuke Hagino pose with their medals for the men's 400-meter individual medley swimming final at the Aquatics Centre in the Olympic Park during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Saturday, July 28, 2012. Lochte won gold, Pereira silver and Kosuke bronze. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)

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associated press Japan’s Yuki Otsu celebrates after scoring the opening goal Thursday during the group D men’s soccer match against Spain at Hampden Park Stadium in Glasgow, Scotland. Spain is the reigning World Cup and Euro champion.

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United States' Abby Wambach walks on the pitch after the US lost the final match between Japan and the United States at the Womenís Soccer World Cup in Frankfurt, Germany, Sunday, July 17, 2011. The Japanese women's soccer team won their first World Cup Sunday after defeating USA in a penalty shoot-out.(AP Photo/Michael Probst)

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"Samurai: The Warrior Transformed," at National Geographic explores the nonmilitary roles of the samurai throughout Japan's history.

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Japanese lawmaker Ichiro Ozawa reads a statement during a press conference in Tokyo on Monday, July 2, 2012, after he and 49 other lawmakers resigned from the ruling Democratic Party of Japan. (AP Photo/Shizuo Kambayashi)

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When European leaders announced Friday a broad strategy to funnel money into failing banks and keep borrowing costs down for governments, stocks soared around the world, including Japan. (Associated Press)

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A demonstrator holds a slogan and a photo of Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda during a rally in Tokyo on Sunday, July 1, 2012, to protest the restart of a reactor at the Ohi nuclear power plant. (AP Photo/Shizuo Kambayashi)

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Takuma Sato, right, of Japan, spins in the first turn under Dario Franchitti, of Scotland, on the final lap of IndyCar's Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Bill Friel)