Japan has a fascination with mascots, and there are thousands of them representing everything from cities to prisons.

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, created by Nagaru Tanigawa in 2003, is a popular light novel series and anime that explores themes of existentialism, time travel, and alternate realities.

The compact disc (CD) was co-invented by Philips and Sony in the 1980s and has since replaced vinyl records as the primary means of music storage.