Month: September 2025

The most powerful countries in Europe according to their GDP, grouped in this graphic developer

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GDP is the main thermometer of the size and growth of the economy of a country. This has traditionally been reflecting the value of the goods and services produced within a country And it is something that allows us to compare the performance between regions. But, if lately it has been more on everyone’s lips, it has been for the Ukraine Warby the REQUIREMENT OF US ADMINISTRATION in terms of defense and for the European rear. Given this, it is interesting to take an eye on the situation in Europe, comparing the GDP of their countries and regions to have a more global idea of ​​the economy of the neighbors. And this graph shows it perfectly. The pizza. Prepared by Visual Capitalist and using the International Monetary Fund As a source, we can see in a very clear way the size of the economy of the different countries. But there is something important to take into account: if the GDP of any of these countries does not fit you (that of Spain, for example, it was 1,593,136 million euros in 2024 and there it says that it is 2,800,000 million dollars, the fault has the parity of purchasing power. Parity of what? PPA -Parity of purchasing power or PPP in English- is a correction that allows us to compare more directly the price of goods and services between countries. The graph has been prepared by adjusting the GDP by PPA, which allows the size and purchasing power of the different economies. What is this for? In order to measure what can really be purchased locally instead of directly transforming GDP to the international standard change, which is usually the US dollar. Thus, and using an exchange rate that eliminates the distortions of the different currency markets, the panorama is more fairly compared. In short: Economies with undervalued or overvalued coins with respect to the dollar are represented in a more adjusted way to reality and the standard of living, economic well -being and real size of the economies can be better compared. By zones. Given this, we see that, apart from Russia, Germany, the United Kingdom and France, there are more aligned economies such as Italy, Spain, Poland or Netherlands, those four above 1,000 billion dollars, and then the rest of the countries. But, if we distinguish in zones, we see the enormous weight of the aforementioned Russia and Germany. The western zone has a GDP adjusted per PPA of 14,800,000 million dollars for the 12,800,000 of the Eastern Europe. The southern Europe (curiously the so -called ‘Pigs’) with Italy, Spain, Portugal or Greece has that adjusted GDP of 8,300,000 million and that of the north (including the United Kingdom and with Sweden, Ireland, Denmark, Norway or Finland) with a GDP per PPA of 7,800,000 million. Unequal growth. When the nominal GDP is measured, the thing changes. Western Europe would continue first with a GDP of 11,000,000 million, the north with 6,500,000 million, the south with 5,200,000 million and Eastern Europe is the one that falls loudly with 4,600,000 million. Reason? Adjected to the PPA, Russia occupies a huge portion of the cake, but the nominal GDP relegates it to the middle part of the table with a GDP of 2,100,000 million. These regional disparities are what has historically marked a two -speed economic development. Europe has been adjusted and changes for a few years. In that panorama, Russia Lithuania, Iceland or Montenegro are from the countries that grow the most this year. Luxembourg, Ireland or Estonia, decrease. Others grow (Spain), and we see cases such as France or Germany in stagnation. In general, the growth From the Eurozone it was 0.7% and the European Union of 0.8%, but we must see how situations such as external factors, structural tensions or industrial slowdown in some countries to the photo of the European GDP of 2025. In Xataka | Ukraine and Trump’s uncertainty are pushing Europe to recover something until recently anathema: the mili

How the Atacama desert shows the ecological price of decarbonization

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Lithium has become white gold. Has become A strategic element Due to its importance in the global energy transition. Among other things, and While we find alternativesis what allows us to create batteries for electronic devices, but also critical systems for the decarbonization such as electric car batteries and those of renewable energy storage. There is a problem: extracting it requires huge amounts of water. Chile has one of the greater lithium reserves in the worldand its exploitation shows us the hidden cost of the energy that wants to “save” the planet. Atacama. The Atacama desert, located in northern Chile, is very peculiar. It is about driest desert in the worldbeing 250 more arid than the Sahara. It is a gigantic garbage dump Due to the fast fashion culture, but it also has huge solar parks that are the country’s energy pride: 500 operational projects and another hundred under construction. In addition to sun, there are minerals like copper –that China is accumulating at pleasure-, iron, gold and silver, but also other strategic such as Boto or Lithium. Within the region, the Salar de Atacama stands out. It is this area that has large lithium concentrations that have allowed Chile to become the largest global exporter of this element during the last two decades. It is so important that the Chilean regulatory regime gives the State property over lithium, considering it “Non -concessionable” and restricting foreign exploitation only to special contracts. Salar in 1995 In 2005 And today Ecosystem transformation. In the superior images we can see how the landscape of Salar has been transformed from 1990 to the present, with Lithium farms Greater and bigger. And something that we can see with the naked eye is the amount of huge ‘swimming pools’. The process of obtaining lithium is based on the evaporation of brine, being something that consumes billions of liters every year that is extracted from both the surface and the subsoil. In Atacama Salar, that is causing sinking, Loss of vegetation and of the rich microscopic diversityas well as the emblematic fauna of the place: the flamenco. Faviola González, biologist of the Chilean National Reserve, is one of those who complaint that the population of flamenco has decreased in recent years. It is not just your observation. As we read in the BBC article, the Natural Resources Defense Council, based in the United States, published a report in 2022 in which it indicated that almost a third of the native Algarrobos began to die in 2013 due to the impact of mining. Without brake. This transformation of the landscape has led to judicial demands, especially by indigenous communities that denounce the degradation of water resources and the loss of cultural identity of the desert. Because yes, Atacama’s is a desert, but with great biological wealth. The problem is the aforementioned Importance of lithium for the country. Chile is within the so -called ‘Lithium Triangle’ with Bolivia and Argentina and, as the second largest world producer and holder Of the largest reserves on the planet, it has the power to dominate the supply chain. It is an economic engine, with a value My dear of exports of 2,895 million in 2024, and its importance will go more. HE wait That the global lithium demand exceeds 1.3 million tons in 2025, with the forecast to triple by 2040. Measures to mitigate damage. And here comes the big question: if the lithium is needed to decarbonize the planet, but at the same time we are damaging the ecosystems in their obtaining, is there nothing we can make? Valentí Barrera, SQM Lithiuum Sustainability (the Chilean company that manages some of these farms) affirms that understand the concerns of indigenous communities and are carrying out pilot programs to mitigate the impact of mining. One is the Lithium extraction directly from brinewithout the need for evaporation pools. Another is the reinjection of water on earth once the lithium is obtained. The problem is that they are arguments that do not convince those who live from that land, who have seen the ecosystem disappear and who They affirm that they do not have a significant carbon footprint and that electric cars will go to Europeans and American, but contaminated water will be left. Because at some point, lithium will run out and the miners will leave. EITHER The price will fall so much which will cease to be profitable to extract it to Mansalva. Images | Google Earth, Coordenação-Geral de Observção da Terra/inpe, Heretiq In Xataka | The Atacama desert is one of the most arid places on the planet. And right there a handful of “crazy” is trying to get water out of the fog

Young Koreans just want to be doctors

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While the two Koreas seems to be giving a trucewho knows if something else, the southern neighbors live with anguish a problem that has been entrenched too long: in an increasingly aged country, becoming old is a condemnation of poverty. And the young? They are also indirect protagonists of this endemic evil: they have agreed to study the same. Brain drain. In South Korea there is an unprecedented phenomenon: students even leave the most prestigious universities from the country (Seoul National, Yonsei and Korea University, known as the Sky Group) to pursue A career in Medicine. Only in 2024 they were recorded 2,481 dropouts In these three institutions, the highest figure in 18 years and 17% more than the previous year. Most of the deserters They came from the natural sciences and the humanities, attracted by the expansion of access quotas to the faculties of Medicine, which passed 3,000 to 5,000 places Annual in a government attempt by alleviating the shortage of doctors in an increasingly aged society. Medicine, perceived as the most prestigious and profitable profession in the country, has become the preferred destination even for those who had reached the quoted places of the elite universities. Pressure on medical schools. The change, however, is overflowing capacity of medical faculties, which already dragged structural problems. Overloaded teachers, massive strikes and classrooms They are now the norm, in a context where resources do not grow at the same rate as demand. At the same time, fundamental disciplines such as basic sciences and humanities They suffer from emptying that threatens the intellectual diversity of the country and erodes the long -term innovation potential. Academics like Theodore Jun Yoo They warn that this trend mine educational balance and puts at risk the production of critical thinking and technological advancement, while The low birth rate It reduces the need for new teachers and researchers, weakening the national academic base. The roots of the trend and the AI. The rise of this career towards medicine does not arise from nothing. Studies show that since 2022 more than A quarter Of the students with the best notes in the university admission exam, medicine to Sky universities have preferred, a sign that traditional disciplines have lost attractiveness as an option for the future. For academics such as Robert Fouser, the proliferation of artificial intelligence and the perception that humanities and sciences already They do not guarantee stability work have accelerated the leak. Japan experiences A similar phenomenonwith young people who choose regional medical schools instead of specializations in social or humanistic sciences in Tokyo, which reflects a regional pattern of more armored careers in the face of technological disruption. Mental of medicine. Paradoxically, some experts point out that this fever for medicine can Not being the panacea or the best bet In the long term. The profession itself is exposed to deep transformations derived from AI and demographic changes that are already affecting pediatrics, reduced by Birthday fall and the displacement of professionals towards more profitable specialties such as dermatology. In other words, this suggests that, in the long term, engineering or technological development careers could Offer more resilience than an overcrowded medical profession. Proposals to stop the crisis. Given this panorama, more and more critical voices ask the government to act quickly. It is raised Medical training more and force new graduates to work at least six years in rural areas, where the shortage of doctors is more pressing. These measures are looking for stop the avalanche towards the faculties of Medicine and redistribute human resources more balanced. However, the situation reflects a substantive tension: social obsession with economic stability and prestige, in the face of the national need to preserve a diverse university system capable of sustaining innovation and technological leadership. Educational crossroads. The “career towards medicine” in South Korea not only reveals social anxieties about the future work, but also exposes the limits of a model that privilege a single path to the detriment of other essentials for the integral development of the country. The risk It seems clear: In the search for individual security, the collective capacity of producing new ideas, of forming critical thinkers and of guaranteeing a balance in professional training is undermined. If you also want, the final paradox is that, in its attempt to ensure more doctors, South Korea could be weakening precisely the bases that have allowed it to prosper as one of the more innovative economies of Asia. Image | ITU PICTURES In Xataka | South Korea has found the formula to improve their birth rate: that companies pay fortunes to their employees for having children In Xataka | South Korea and North Korea had been engaged in the “Altavoces War” for years: it has suddenly ended

The Arctic cold was the ideal barrier against invasive species. Now that barrier is falling

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The Arctic Ocean is one of the hot points as far as climate change is concerned. Separated from the surface by polar ice, this ocean is a place with its own characteristics that go beyond its icy temperature. The barrier falls. A new study headed by researchers at British Antarctic Survey (BAS) He has found evidence of the arrival of an invasive species of Percebe to the waters of the Canadian Antarctic. This has led the team to conclude that the barrier that previously represented the low temperatures of the polar ocean is falling. Amphibalanus Impherevisus. The species in question is a type of Balánido sometimes known as bay’s percebe (Amphibalanus Impherevisus). These crustaceans are disturbed in a distant way with the common perclabes (Cornucopia policipes), but its presence is considered a problem and not A food source. The species has already become a regular of the waters of Europe and the Pacific Ocean, where it causes problems when attached to ships, pipes and infrastructure of different types. However, until now it had remained absent in the waters of the Canadian Arctic. EADN. The detection of the invasive species was carried out thanks to the study of the bars coding of the Environmental DNA (Edna). Living beings are leaving our genetic imprint in our environment: detached cells, waste and other biological remains. This technique allows to detect the presence of a species (or several) without finding a single specimen, only through environmental samples, in this case, water. The details of the study were Published in an article In the magazine Global Change Biology. Climate change, the great suspect. The Arctic is one of the regions most affected by climate change. There are two factors, both related to the increase in temperatures in this region, which have contributed to the expansion of this percebe. The first factor is the increase in maritime traffic of the Arctic associated with the thaw and the opening of new routes. Generally, the team explains, these invasive species usually arrive in the ships of the ships or in their ballast tanks. The second factor is that the waters of the Canadian Arctic no longer present such hostile conditions for the proliferation of foreign species. “Climate change is really in the nucleus of this problem. The ships are increasing in number because the reduction of sea ice has opened new nautical routes. It adds to this that the invasive species that the ships bring to the Arctic also are more likely to survive and establish populations due to the warmest temperatures of the water,” explained in a press release Elizabeth Boyse, who led the study. An issue to clarify. According to the team responsible for the study, there are still details to corroborate with respect to the spread of this species in the Canadian Arctic, starting to know if the DNA detected responded to larvae in transit or a more stable and fruitful population. To know this type of detail, it will be necessary to complement the study with other techniques, such as direct observation of animals. In Xataka | A group of Dutch came up with watering the Arctic could be a good antidote against thaw. It is working Image | Ansgar Walk, CC by-SA 3.0

74,000 years ago, a volcanic eruption led humanity to the edge of extinction. We begin to understand how we survive

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74,000 years ago, in a remote lake north of Sumatra, a volcano erupted. But it wasn’t a normal volcano. According to archaeologist Jayde N. Hiniak“The Toba expelled 2,800 cubic kilometers of ash to the stratosphere, created a crater of 1,000 soccer fields” and caused a global winter. That could take our species to the edge of extinction: for more than half a century, many anthropologists are convinced that it was that eruption (one of the greatest known eruptions) that reduced the human population to about 10,000 fertile couples. It would be the most critical moment of Homo Sapiens since it arose. It is true that the theory is controversial and the debate around the real climate change that the Toba created is still very alive; However, no one doubts that what happened that day in Sumatra was a huge catastrophe. And that can be seen in archaeological remains. As Hiniak pointed out“Most archaeological sites show a history of resistance.” In areas such as South Africa or the lowlands of Ethiopia these climatic changes led to the adoption of technological innovations such as the development of arches and arrows. In much closer places (such as Indonesia, India or China), the population also suffered deep changes that allowed him to survive. All this can be known because the Toba left many geological samples distributed throughout the world. Studying the deposits before and after the ash of the volcano gives a lot of information on how these societies changed socio-technologically. The flexibility was key. Regardless of what Toba will cause (or not) drastic reduction Of the population, what is clear is that it allows us to draw conclusions about what was the fundamental feature that explains the survival of human communities: behavioral flexibility. Something that allows Image | Tetiana Grypachevska In Xataka | When Newton reached the fundamental laws of physics there was already a sign that said “Leonardo was here”

convert offices and parking lots

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If there is something that sister a multitude of countries at this time, that is the deep housing crisis we are going through. In Spain, and according to Idealisticthe average price of the square meter has triggered more than 40% these last five years. If we look at what the neighbors do, we have cases that are familiar to us. For example, Almost 10% of its real estate park are second residencesand in London it is so serious that They are uploading taxes to Mansalva. In the search for solutions, an idea has occurred to Paris: convert offices and parking lots. And he wants to do it with a coup d’etat. Social Housing. Paris is one of the European cities that is investing the most when creating protected housing. Fruit of different actions of these last decades, They have passed From about 126,000 social homes to almost 272,000. Currently, the Social Housing Park in the French capital is around 25%, but although the administration has increased Public spending up to 800 million euros (28% more than the previous figure), the demand is so high that it cannot be satisfied. What does this translate? In which, although there is more protected housing, prices are exorbitant. The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, commented Recently, young people cannot access housing because “it is almost impossible, the price level is tremendous,” stating that without family support they cannot access as owners. And to solve it, they have begun to use the law. 2025-541. That is the number of a law that France promulgated in June of this year with the objective of facilitating the transformation of non -residential buildings. It is a regulation that gives the urban administration the power when allowing the change in the use of buildings, even if it contradicts local urban plans. As? Facilitating the transformation of offices and other non -residential buildings, such as parking, in homes. Besides, contemplate a reversible license which allows to modify the use of a building between residential and office without the need for new permits, all with the aim of expediting processes. Truillot garden Transformation. The purpose is to encourage the creation of housing in areas that already have an infrastructure, but whose qualification is not residential. That is, instead of Raise new floors (A longer and more expensive process), what they want to encourage is that certain spaces be remodeled to be converted into homes. It is another step in a practice that the French capital has been carrying out in recent years. It is estimated that 70% of urban permits issued since 2020 are linked to structure reconversion projects, an example being both both the Truillot garden (It was a parking lot and now it is a green space with urban garden) like the Lamarck Street parking which will become a mixed space of offices, homes, sport and social areas. It is something that also affects administrative buildings, such as the conversion of premises of the Ministry of Defense on 254 social floors. Truillot in 2014 And in 2024 Ambition. The objective of these proposals is to reach 40% of social housing before 2035. It is very ambitious if we take into account that they move in current 25%, a figure that took 20 years to reach. In addition, new projects must have a series of common characteristics such as efficient energy systems to achieve decarbonization objectives and have green areas, betting on a model of “vegetation“Of the neighborhoods. It is something that even has taken debate In Europe. An attack. Now, this plan has harvested criticism and doubts about its true impact when solving the housing crisis. Among the latter, there are who He thinks That betting on the conversion of empty offices is something that only responds to creating the illusion of acting in times of crisis, since the volume of really transformable offices is not so high and the figures will remain below the political objectives. In addition, it is not a simple process. HE points to transformable offices that have a good amount of years behind them, so the process would be complex and expensive to be energetically poor buildings that will have to adapt deeply to comply with residential regulations of light, ventilation and accessibility. Finally, and beyond political criticismit is estimated that the cost of rehabilitation would be so high that private companies would be discouraged by doubts about the return of investment, forcing To these expensive projects are financed with public aid. Images | Guilhem Vellut from Annecy, CHABE01 In Xataka | Paris is reinventing the architecture throughout the city. It has a good reason: heat waves

We all know that green is to advance traffic lights. Less Japan, defending that green is actually blue

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A long time ago We count A fascinating story that had the traffic lights and China as protagonists. It turns out that Beijing tried to change the color of these key traffic devices because use red to “stop” It was “anti -communist”. Of colors and traffic lights also goes the following story. In Japan they have no problem with red, but with green. The blue traffic light paradox. In most of the world the traffic signal that invites us to advance is unequivocally green, but in Japan that same light It’s called blue And, in some cases, it even seems bluish in the eyes of those who visit the country. This peculiarity He has baffled to generations of foreigners, but for the Japanese it is a convention as natural as saying that the sky is blue. The explanation is not found in lamp technology or in an arbitrary decision of the road authorities, but in a Cultural and linguistic background that sinks its roots in centuries of history. The linguistic origins of “year”. In ancient Japanese, they only existed Four basic words To designate colors: red, white, black and blue. The term AO served to name a much broader spectrum of shades than we associated with blue today, including what we consider green and cyan. This linguistic heritage lasted until the Heian periodwhen the Midori word to specifically refer to vegetation and the vitality of green color. However, the force of custom kept alive The use of AO In situations where, for other languages, green nuance is evident. Thus, it is not strange that a Japanese speaks of blue apples, mountains or blue vegetables, although in the eyes of anyone they are green. The conflict. When Japan introduced traffic lights in the 1930s, the progress light was described as green, following the global convention. But in 1960, with the entry into force of the Road Traffic Lawthe term AO Shingō, the “blue signal” was officially adopted. The clash with international standards was exacerbated after Vienna Convention of 1968which set the green as the reference color. Japan did not ratify that treaty, and with it the right to continue using its own denomination was reserved. In 1973, to reconcile customary and external demands, the government decided that the lights should be of a green With a bluish enough nuance As if I could continue to be called Ao. The result was a curious balance: greenish appearance traffic lights, but culturally blue. Beyond the signals. The persistence of AO It is not limited to traffic lights. Common expressions such as aoringo to designate the green apple, Aonori for the green algae that is sprinkled on dishes such as the okonomiyaki, or Aoba for the young leaves of the trees, show how blue overlaps green in the Japanese tongue. In addition, AO acquired a symbolic value associated withor new and the immature. To say that a person is AOI means that it is still inexperienced, a metaphor equivalent to that in Spanish or English we express calling someone “green.” This crossing of meanings reveals how the language not only names colors, but also organizes cultural perceptions and associations around them. Convention turned into identity. Today, although Japanese traffic lights are in green practice, they continue being called blue by millions of people who have inherited a particular way of seeing and describing the world. What for a foreigner is a rarity or confusion, for a Japanese is a tradition that does not need justification. If you want, the tongue has been imposedwork visual perceptionand the result is an example of how cultural conventions can challenge international standards and become part of national identity. Thus, Japan’s blue traffic light recalls that the way we name things influences how we understand them, and that even a traffic light can tell a story of centuries of history, language and custom. Image | Redoxkun In Xataka | That Japan has 100,000 people over 100 years explains a problem: they are running out of drivers, literally In Xataka | If the question is why there are so many Japanese with umbrella on the street, the answer is simple: for more than the sun

There is a Russian station that has been issuing a totally unintelligible message decades. And nobody knows why

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No one knows what their origin is. Or what is it for. What does it say. Nor does anyone (any government or organization) claim that it is yours. The station UVB-76aka ‘The Buzzer’, is one of the enigmas that has generated more hours of debate among the theorists of the conspiracy over the last years. Basically it is a short wave station that has been (It is said that decades) emitting a buzzing dotted from time to time by names and figures in Russian. Enough to give pábulo to all kinds of stories. Stories that They have sounded again With force now that the Kremlin and the West have tensed their relationship. A name: ‘The Buzzer’. In the world there are many stations. Many. Few however have awakened the fascination of ‘The Buzzer’ (“The buzzer”, in English), also known as UVB-76. And the reason is very simple: it is not known who is responsible for issuing its signal for decades, just as its content is unknown or what is the succession of noise, names and codes that interspersed every so often. Something is only known: it is a paid terrain for the conspiracy. What exactly? UVB-76 is the call indicative of a short wave station that transmits on the frequency 4625 kHzsupposedly from Russia. What it emits is a buzz, a monotonous and repetitive sound that very occasionally (without anyone knowing the reasons) is interrupted by the voice of people who read names and figures in Russian. It is said that at least forty years operatingwhich would overcome its origins to the time of the USSR. In fact, in 2017 The BBC assured He had been with his peculiar salmodia for 35 years “24 hours a day.” If curiosity stings to you, on YouTube there are people who is dedicated to sharing supposed emissions of ‘The Buzzer’, just like In networks. And there are also those who do follow-up of its history and broadcasts, day by day, throughout the year. Who doesn’t like a good mystery? If you are looking in Google you will find dozens and dozens of articles on UVB-76, some of years agoothers of last week. Even in media like Wired, Popular Mechanics, Newsweek either The BBC They have dedicated articles. The reality is that if something is ‘The Buzzer’ is a huge mystery that has known in time, shaking the ingenuity of many conspiracy theorists … and the occasional academic. Last year David StuppleProfessor of Electronic and Radio Engineering at the City University of London, I recognized that to know “the whole truth and nothing more than the truth” of UVB-76 would need to pronounce the Russian Federation, but with everything it was thrown with its own prediction: “It is almost certain that it is the Russian government who is using it. If it is the Russian government, it would not be for peaceful purposes.” Going back to the 70s. The chronicles about ‘The Buzzer’ usually go back to at least The 1970swhen it is believed that their transmissions began. As Remember Wiredthe first thing that caught the attention was his great reach. The second, its content, a buzz that occasionally gave way to tones and men reading messages in Russian. All unintelligible. In the 90s he used the indicative зб-76 (badly translated as UVB-76), a name that has endured. In the history of UVB-76 it is difficult to separate myth of contrasted facts. It is said that in origin the main signal came from a military position located not far from Moscow. Some versions They talk about Povarovo. Others of a site Something fartherabout 80 kilometers north of the Russian capital. In any case, the broadcasting station seems to have not been still during these decades. Popular Mechanics points That since 2010 the signal is more difficult to follow, which explains that there are those who associate it with St. Petersburg, Moscow or PSKOV. When In 2011 Some researchers visited what was supposedly the base on which the signal arose only found a radio team and record books. What does that mean? That if a merit has UVB-76 is its ability to stay for decades as a mystery full of rumors and theories very difficult to confirm, something that also extends to its broadcasts. Popular Mechanics account that at first it issued only beeps and in the 90s I change for a buzz mixed with something similar to a siren and (each or two weeks) the reading of names, words and numbers. The big surprise for his followers arrived 15 years ago, in 2010, when cuts were recorded in the transmission. Why did he? Another mystery. Popular assures That during those days there were those who heard an unusual retransmission, similar to people moving, in addition to an alleged message in Morse and even fragments of ‘The Swan Lake’. Since then his legend has continued to gain weightly, at the blow of news difficult to contrast. Some media They ensure that in 2022, before the invasion of Ukraine, he issued a code series. Or even that in May, after a telephone conversation between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, the famous station He began to spit A retahíla of names that were part of a code. Theories to bore. Of course, over the last decades there have been no lacked people willing to theorize about the nature of UVB-76, who is behind or what is their purpose. Some are boring. Others would fit in the script of the last ‘007’ movie and they have earned him The nickname of “the radio of the end of the world”. Stuples Slide For example, it can be an alternative to guarantee communications in case of a disaster that affects the rest of the media. If so, he speculates, his purpose would be to “reserve” the channel. “Maybe they are only reserving it for air defense or some type of defense,” he reflects. “If someone does not use it. The band is so congested that people seek their opportunity … Read more

‘Borderlands 4’ has been the great launch of September. Also an example of what is wrong in the current video game

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The last quarter of the year is not just a IMPORTANT MOMENT IN TECHNOLOGY: In the video game market, it also represents a crucial moment. Titles like ‘Ghost of Yotei‘ either ‘Metroid 4‘They will come out over the next few months, but the one that has just arrived is one of the bombings of the last layers of 2025:’ Borderlands 4 ‘. The analysis reflects that it is a hilarious gamebut also something that players are not missing: it is the example of what is wrong in the current megap production industry. And in this story the director of the game is being considered as the villain when we should look beyond: to technology and optimization. We are going to review. The situation. ‘Borderlands 4’ was launched last week and the reception by the players was good. It is a continuous, really fun title that, in addition, looks spectacular thanks to the artistic style so characteristic and that the engine Unreal Engine 5 (Stay with this name) Allows you to offer. The Steam review system is quite broken, but it is a thermometer of both the quality of the players and, at first, the reactions were mostly positive. All that has changed to ‘varied’, which implies that there is more bad than good. The problem is not the game itself: even those who put a bad review admit that it is a ‘borderlands’ and is hilarious. Here the problem is optimization of the game, especially on PC. Players complain that specs Minimum and recommended offered by developers -Gearbox- do not add up to the experience they are having with teams that reach those specifications or that exceed them. A negative A positive, but also talking about performance Randy Pitchford. It is the name of the director of Gearbox and one of the heads after the success of ‘Borderlands’. Also One of the most controversial characters of the industry due both to your actions as to his most recent statements about the price of video games with that “True fans will find a way to pay them”. It is a guy who does not usually go unnoticed and that uses his social networks to ‘chop’ with any user, and with the wave of criticism of his game, he has not lost the opportunity to get into a couple of gardens. There are countless encounters these days between Randy and users and the problem is that he is doing it from Twitter X. This direct communication between managers and public is a fixed double weapon because it gives the sensation of closeness, but for somewhat large companies have communication teams: so that what is happening does not happen. If we take a look at some Steam reviews, many are reflecting the discontent with the game for those words of Randy. Among the messages of the manager, have Those who encourage a refund to ask if you do not agree with the performance (something that, after two hours plays cannot be done), to “accept the reality of the relationship between the hardware of your PC and the software they want to reproduce”, “”program your own engine and we will be your customers ”and another Comments series that a good part of the community has been taken as a “Randy is calling us poor to those who do not have a RTX 5090” The reaction. And what, unfortunately, happens so much in the world of video games: people who pass from the line. A sample is the following message that Pitchford himself shared In X after receiving it by mail: “You are a damn idiot. If you think that the” Premium “games exist or that there are” premium “players, you are a damn delayed. You are the closest that a white man can become a ‘n -r’ -a racial insult, basically. This type of messages, more own ‘Gamergaters’ than from someone civilized, is a sad reality in certain forums and Randy himself commented that he had “caused harm.” And there are already developers who have shown support to the CEO of Gearbox for the situation. Another one with Unreal Engine 5. Seen all this context, we go with what directly affects the game: the engine on which it is developed. When Unreal Engine 5 was presented, the latest version of the Epic Games engine, We all stay with our mouths open. The demo in PS5 It was impressive and promised a lot. The problem is when the games began to arrive. That a game uses Unreal Engine 5 usually involves bulky requirements to make it work, mediocre yields –even in consoles– In many cases and a series of failures that prevent players from enjoying it as a launch as they should. And it is a problem because the engine greatly facilitates the development of video games, so he is tempting for studies, but there are already those who, when he sees the EU5 logo, starts to tremble for how the title will work on his machine. Balls out. It has passed with more recent examples, such as’Metal Gear Solid Delta‘, or the remake of’The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion‘, and Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, He swept home A few weeks ago, stating that the engine is good, but that studies should start with optimization tasks at an earlier phase of development, and not crossing the task just at the end. The big background problem. As much as it is, and Returning to ‘Borderlands 4’, it is evident that there is a problem. Digital Foundry is an expert medium in the technical analysis of video games, the performance being one of the parameters that measure. From the middle they affirm that there are decisions that do not understand, such as limiting cinematics in real time to 30 fps, the overload that seems to occur when there are many enemies on the screen, the ‘level of detail’, or Lod ‘so aggressive or the pop-in that occurs walking around the world. And that on the … Read more

There is a national symbol that Japan has been invariable for generations: a very expensive school backpack

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No one forces them to use them. There is no decree, nor regulationnor order of any other type that requires your purchase. And yet every year (especially In May or August) The families of Japan with children about to start school are subjected to the same ritual: they travel stores to choose with great care the backpack that must accompany the child during their six years of primary school. They do it paying attention to colors, shapes, fabrics … but not to the model. That is taken for granted: the backpack must be a ‘raondoseru’. ‘Rondoseru’? Exact. The word may not tell you much, but if you usually read comics or watch Japanese series and movies it is likely that the article itself is familiar. THE ‘RANDOSERU’ (A style, not a commercial brand) are the backpacks used by Japan children during their early years in school, the equivalent of our primary. Large, rigid, usually of leather, they usually always share the same design: rectangular shape, straps and a huge flap. Where do they come from? The ‘Randosseru’ connects with its origins, at the end of the 19th century. The word is a kind of adaptation of the Dutch “Ransel”, which can be translated as “backpack” or “backpack.” And it is no accident. It is said that the first to use the ‘randoseru’ were the Japanese soldiers at the end of the EDO period, who used them for their luggage. The design must like the prestigious Gakushūininstitution created to train the children of the aristocracy, because Towards 1885 He decided to incorporate a similar model as an official backpack. Other versions They say that in those years, at the end of the 1880s, the Prime Minister Itō Hirobumi He gave the prince Yoshihito (eight years old) A backpack for the school made with leather and remembered the backpacks that the soldiers loaded behind the back. Whether or not, the ‘ramoseru’ ended up triumphing and established a tradition that has managed to survive the nineteenth to the twentieth and twenty -first century, with their wars, political swings and fashions included. A symbol of distinction? Today they are a community symbol. With the passing of the decades, the ‘ramoseru’ have become so popular, have extended so much by the schools throughout Japan, which have become almost a timeless icon. They were used by parents and use them children. In fact they are usually The grandparents Those who give them to their grandchildren and families spend time, resources and attention to choose the best backpack for their offspring. Mainichi Shimbunone of the most relevant newspapers in the country, defines it as something similar to “a rite of initiation” for children who are about to start at school. “Getting a backpack ‘ramoseru’ before the first grade is an important mile In June Moe Yamamoto. Maybe it sounds exaggerated, but families often choose backpack with a surprising anticipation, a year before the child is going to step on the classrooms (they get to work in May in the face of the course that will start in April) and pay attention to all the details. In the department stores Isetan It is even celebrated A special event with hundreds of models to choose designs, colors or materials. How common are they? In 2024 the reporter of The New York Times In Tokyo Motoko Rich He dedicated them A report It starts with an interesting experiment. Rich recounts the first day of the school year at a Koto school, in Tokyo, and then looks at how many of the elementary children carry the famous backpacks. His conclusion is resounding: “almost all.” “It is not a rule imposed by anyone, but a rule that we all comply with together,” confirms Shoko FukushimaDeputy Educational Administration professor at the Chiba Institute of Technology. But … what are the ‘Randoseru’? Although tradition has remained over the last decades, backpacks have not been alien to fashions. Before The usual It was that the boys carry black backpacks and the red girls, but that has changed. And we know it for sure because there is an association of ‘randoseru’ that Monitoring trends: Colors (L Lavender and Rosa triumph among the girls, more than red), sizes, materials or even dates and places of purchase. Unlike what happened a few decades ago, today the offer is wide and includes models of different shades and with cartoon characters, embroidery or linings of various fabrics. The objective: that each one has their ideal ‘raondoseru’. Comfortable and cheap? There are reasons to doubt the first. And objective reasons to deny the second. The ‘raondoseru’ are heavy. Vacuum, the classic model Round the kilo and a halfand Motoko Rich acknowledges that when books, notebooks, cases or even tablets are added to more than four kilos. In Your report He speaks, for example, of a student of the first course that one morning left for school carrying a three kilos backpack. It may not seem much, but it supposed more or less a seventh pass of his body weight. As for prices, Rich Explain That the average leather models is around $ 380, although that is just a reference. There are much more expensive versions, which go to more than 500 or even exceed The 1,000 barrier. Of course it is not necessary to resort to such heavy or expensive bags. Mainichi remember That manufacturers have created alternatives to traditional leather wallets, such as Nylon editions that weigh between 650 and 1,200 grams (far from the 900-1,500 g of the oldest models) and can be bought for less than 70 dollars. Another alternative is to pay for backpack subscription services that in exchange for a monthly payment allow the portfolio to be changed every so often. Are they used in Spain and Europe? The undeniable thing is that the ‘ramoseru’ have aroused interest outside of Japan, something that is found to see the amount of articles that the western press has dedicated to him in recent years. One of the … Read more

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