Japan’s Karoshi culture was a warning. We didn't listen

Lonely men are driving an online astrology boom

In today's WIRED DAILY, we explore why lonely men are driving an online astrology boom and look at the lessons we should have learned from Japan's overworking culture. Japan's Karoshi culture was a warning. We didn't listen Thirty years ago when Keio University sociologist Junko Kitanaka first started to study Japan's culture of working oneself to death, it was considered a novelty overseas. In the 1990s, stories of mostly middle-aged businessmen working so many hours that they would drop dead from a bodily failure, or opt to end their lives rather than return to the office, were received outside Japan as a peculiar cultural phenomenon.    When Kitanaka presented to academic audiences in Europe and North America, she says they did not understand the mentality of people who wouldn't go see a psychiatrist and who were driven to die for work. A few decades later, the idea isn't so alien Read the full story on WIRED Today's headlines Facebook lifts ban on lab leak hypothesis What happened: Suggesting that Covid-19 was man-made would previously have seen you banned on Facebook. But with the resurgence of government interest in this possibility, Facebook has dropped this ban. Why it matters: The Wall Street Journal recently reported that three researchers from China's Wuhan Institute of Virology were hospitalised with coronavirus symptoms in November 2019. The World Health Organisation has repeatedly said that the lab-leak theory is "extremely unlikely" and that the virus most likely spread naturally to humans through an animal.  Twitter subscription service listed on app store What happened: An update to Twitter's app store listing now lists Twitter Blue as priced at £2.49 in the UK and $2.99 in the US. There's still no word yet on when the feature might launch. Why it matters: Researcher Jane Manchun Wong revealed some details about the service last month. It will supposedly include an undo tweet function, as well as giving people greater control over the organisation of their tweets.  James Bond to remain in cinemas What happened: Bond will remain in theatres, according to the producers who have creative control over the character. "We are committed to continuing to make James Bond films for the worldwide theatrical audience," Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson told Variety in a statement. Why it matters: Rumours circulated last year about a possible $600 million purchase of the new Bond film. Now, with Amazon buying MGM for $8.45 billion, it's likely that future Bond films will show in theatres before exclusive releases on Amazon Prime. Lonely men are driving an online astrology boom   "Nearly 2000 years of astrology's history has been mostly male, written by men, and produced by men" Astrology and psychic apps have been booming in lockdown – and now they're growing even faster by targeting men Today's job picks Tech lead Global Radio Services Apply now Editor and technical content writer Moody's Corporation Apply now This week on the podcast 👍 Amit and James find out about the wild and weird world of the Facebook Famous   🐄 Vicki and Matt R explore some of the major scientific challenges facing the cultured meat industry Listen now Lewis Hamilton opens up about the secrets behind his performance, and how he's learning to translate those skills into his future away from the track. Also in this issue... How to fix social media The fast-growth businesses you need to know about Why robots are animals, not humans The quest to make genuinely cheesy animal-free cheese   Subscribe for £19 a year Prefer a weekly digest? Subscribe to the WIRED Weekly Unsubscribe  |  View this email in your browser  Queries about this email? Contact datacontroller@condenast.co.uk Condé Nast Publications 1 Hanover Square, London W1S 1JU © The Condé Nast Publications Ltd Our Privacy Policy