Workers in Nepal clean argeli bark, which will be used to make yen notes in Japan. Uma Bista for The New York Times

Argeli, an evergreen shrub that grows wild in Nepal, had virtually no value until Japan discovered that it could be used to make bank notes. Now, Nepal’s farmers are thriving as they (literally) grow money on the hillsides.

Lives lived: Ushio Amagatsu brought worldwide visibility to Butoh, a hauntingly minimalist Japanese form of dance theater that arose in the wake of World War II. He died at 74.