Month: November 2025

We have been believing that bacteria are a weapon against tumors for 150 years. And finally we have discovered how

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In the fight against cancer, there are many treatments that are emerging, being the immunotherapy one of the most innovative, although there are also other alternatives such as based on LED light. Now therapies continue to advance and science is already pointing to a group of bacteria to be able to destroy tumors without depending on the immune response, opening a new era in oncological medicine. It’s not something new. The idea of ​​using bacteria to treat cancer is not new: already in 1868 the German doctor Busch observed that some cancer patients experienced remissions after bacterial infections. Later, William Colby developed bacteria-based treatments that they laid the foundation of modern immunotherapy. However, these traditional therapies require a functional immune system, which is a serious problem for patients who are immunocompromised due to cancer. The present. a study published in Nature Biomedical Engineering presented an innovative “drug-free” strategy that uses a group of bacteria to fight cancer, rescuing this old idea of ​​bacteria against cancer. This treatment has not only demonstrated powerful antitumor efficacy, but it has done so by achieving complete remission of the tumor and, most importantly, it has been maintained for years in mouse models, even in those who are immunosuppressed. The most relevant thing is that the fact that a bacteria helps us with this disease has been achieved without the need to use genetic engineering that alters your RNA. And also, without generating toxicity on the body. A priori they are all advantages. A bacterial duo. The protagonists of this therapy are a bacterial group called AUN, composed of two specific bacteria: Proteus mirabilis (nicknamed A-gyo) and Rhodopseudomonas palustris (UN-gyo). And although we may all have in mind that bacteria are bad for humans, the reality is that They help us (a lot) starting with all those that are in our intestine. When this bacterial duo was administered directly into the blood of tumor-bearing mice, the results were dramatic: complete tumor remission and prolonged survival. And it wasn’t magic. How does it work? It is the obligatory question after seeing the results of this study. The researchers explain that what these bacteria do in short is block the arrival of oxygen and nutrients to the tumors, which literally causes them to suffocate. And a tumor is nothing more than a set of cells that have an advanced metabolism. When taking away their food they end up dead. In essence, these bacteria can reach the tumor and enter its interior, as if it were a Trojan horse. Upon arrival, it causes very small blood clots to form and only in the blood vessels that go to the tumor. In this way, blood clots block the passage of blood and, therefore, its food source. Bacterial transformation. Bacteria are STILL not passive agents, but are dynamic actors that change their behavior when detecting cancer. In this way, the study observed that the A-gyo bacteria undergoes a “wonderful fibrous transformation.” This change is not random. It is specifically activated when the bacteria encounters “oncometabolites“, chemical signals emitted by cancer cells. This highly mobile form of “swarm”, together with the toxins and hemolysins secreted by the consortium, seems to be responsible for the tumor vascular destruction without affecting the rest of the healthy cells. A safe treatment. Using live bacteria as therapy may sound risky, but the study spends much of its time demonstrating the safety and control of AUN. The first thing that has been seen is that the bacterial strains have a unique non-pathogenic profile. Furthermore, to achieve a 100% complete response and avoid the lethality of a single high dose, the researchers developed a “double dose” regimen: a first injection at a low dose, followed days later by a high dose. The low dose “primes” the body, consuming aggressive neutrophils and mitigating the risk of severe cytokine release syndrome. Looking to the future. Although the experiments were performed in mice, the therapy was tested against human cancer cell lines in xenograft models. In this case, cells from human colon adenocarcinoma, ovarian cancer and pancreatic cancer were used. The results in this case were very clear: all the tumors tested successfully disappeared in the mouse models, without very serious side effects. In this way, we are faced with a therapy that does not require any type of drug a priori and that can be self-managed. The authors of the study point out that this approach can revolutionize cancer therapy, but there is still a long way to go. Images | CDC In Xataka | Colon cancers are increasing alarmingly among young people. We have a suspect: sedentary lifestyle

The first is illegal constructions, the second is not knowing what to do with them

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In 2021, the Community of Madrid began to think that it was time to know what was happening in its territory. It seems like an absurd idea, but the truth is that the Spanish administration has been organizing its territory blindly for decades. And in that context, “reestablishing urban planning legality” is impossible. So they got to it and It took them four years to do it.. What have they found? Generally speaking, you have a problem: There are 5,334 hectares affected by illegal settlements in 56 municipalities. Of course, the problem is not perfectly distributed: 80% of these lands are concentrated in the plains of the main Madrid rivers, mainly in the areas of Tajuña (2,712 hectares), Jarama (1,019), Guadarrama (363) and Tajo (150). And of course that makes the problem much bigger. Because failing to comply with urban planning regulations is not only an administrative issue; On the contrary, there is an enormous risk for people and the environment. The latter is easily verifiable: there are regional parks, special areas and protected places that are key to biodiversity; and overlap with the areas affected by illegal constructions. But, in addition, as the Community itself attests, it entails an enormous physical risk because many buildings are in flood-prone areas, riverbeds and meadows. And we don’t talk about catastrophic events like DANAbut that the floods of towns (like Las Sabinas in Móstoles) has put the issue on the table. And no one has concrete answers. Above all, because it is nothing new: the state of impunity is endemic (and not only in Madrid) for at least 20 years. And we are not only talking about “lack of control” or “turning a blind eye”: we are talking about that, while jurisprudence is clear that actions on non-developable land They can only be exceptionalThere is always a license, a specific modification or a technical fix that makes it difficult to comply with the regulations. What is behind it, deep down, are the conflicting incentives between local and regional dynamics. It’s something we’ve been seeing from the eternal conflict of Algarrobico. That is, now we know the real magnitude of the problem. The study, which aims to demonstrate the regional executive’s commitment to soil protection, reflects above all decades of tolerance. Now it’s time for a complex debate: demolish everything or regularize it. And it is not just about luxury chalets or precarious settlements: there is a lot of informal productive use that fully affects local activity. Furthermore, this is Madrid, a region that, due to its demographic growth, has already organized many areas that until recently were the same or worse. If we zoomed in: the data for Spain would not be better. And there are no solutions in sight. Image | Community of Madrid / Elentir In Xataka | The Government is working on a coastal regulation with a question in the air: whether it can expropriate a house on the beach

a 100 square meter spider web where two enemy species live in peace

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He fear of spiders is one of the most common phobias. So much so that there are video games that allow you to change the design of spiders for that of other animals and there is even research into how. recreate them in less scary ways. With this I want to tell you that, if they give you the creepswhat they have discovered in a cave between Albania and Greece will be the new scene of your nightmares: the biggest spider web in the world, a megacity that has more than 111,000 spiders. And the most curious thing has nothing to do with the size of the structure. In short. A few days ago, in the magazine Subterranean Biologya team of researchers described their great discovery: in the Sulfur Cave between Albania and Greece, they had found a mega city of spiders. Actually, the initial discovery was made by speleologists from the Czech Speleological Society in 2022, but scientists from Transylvania University were the ones who visited and documented the cave in recent years. What draws the most attention is a nightmare scenario: a ‘silk’ structure that covers about 106 square meters and in which a whopping 111,000 spiders live. It is located about 50 meters from the cave entrance, in a very narrow, permanently dark area, and researchers believe there are thousands of individual funnel-shaped spider webs that have come together to create the structure. The colony. For that reason alone, the find is worth mentioning, but the most interesting thing is not the size, but rather the people responsible. If we were talking about a single species, well, it would be impressive due to its dimensions, but what is relevant here is that there are two species that coexist in the megacity: The curious thing is that both are solitary species and have never before been documented to form colonies. Furthermore, under normal conditions, the domestic tegenaria would hunt the Prinerigone vagansmuch smaller, but the researchers realized that both coexisted peacefully. Paradise. The reason? The total darkness may be inhibiting the spiders’ senses, allowing coexistence, but the toxic sulfuric environment may also be playing a role. What they are clear about is that the ecosystem is perfectly oiled: There is no photosynthesis as there is no light, so the microorganisms that are present are sulfur-oxidizing bacteriaconverting inorganic compounds into organic matter that sticks to the walls. There are chironomid larvae that feed on these biofilms. From the larvae, Tanytarsus albisutus emerge, mosquitoes that do not bite and that form dense swarms in an inland stream and of which there are an estimated 2.4 million individuals. By accident, they fall into the webs of the spider megacity and estimate that each spider touches 200 mosquitoes, so they are well fed, they do not need to hunt or leave the structure and they continue to expand the colony. The two species in love and company Implications. One of the researchers, István Urák, has commented that they often think they completely know a species “to the point that we think we understand everything about it, but even then unexpected discoveries can happen.” And he does not say this because the two species coexist, but because they have carried out DNA analyzes that have revealed that the populations of the Sulfur Cave are genetically different from their conspecifics that inhabit the surface. This means one thing: in the evolutionary line, those on the surface have gone one way and those in the cave have gone another, remaining isolated enough to evolve in another way and adapt specifically to the hostile environment they inhabit. These differences mean that microbial diversity is lower in cave spiders and females produce fewer eggs per sac than those on the surface, possibly because since they do not have predators, they do not have to produce as many offspring. a mine. Urák’s team is working on a follow-up study that may shed more light on these spiders, but in addition to the silk megacity, other teams have documented another thirty species of invertebrates that have adapted to this peculiar environment. Among them, another spider: the Metellina merianae who, unlike the other two, prefers to live in solitude. And, regardless of curiosity and even scientific interest, researchers have stressed the importance of protecting this colony. For this reason, the exact location of the cave has not been shared, but the situation is complex because it is located on the border between Albania and Greece and it remains to be seen which country has the power to protect it. In the end, they have been developed in a very specific way and any external element that is introduced can be a contaminant. Beyond the rejection that spiders produce for many of us, this discovery puts on the table that, even in conditions as hostile as a cave without light, with little oxygen and the presence of toxic gaseslife not only makes its way, but “enemy” species can form enormous communities that live in harmony. For the sake of the Prinerigone vagansmay there never be a lack of mosquitoes… Images | Marek Audy, Subterranean Biology In Xataka | We have genetically edited a spider to produce a fluorescent red web. And the implications are promising.

Álvaro Moreno and his Catholic clothing brand is just the tip of the iceberg: the fever for "chic christianity"

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During the inauguration of one of its stores in Zaragoza, the Álvaro Moreno brand repeated his usual ritual: A priest toured the facilities blessing the premises and the employees, while the motto “May it be for the glory of God” was read on a large screen. The gesture summarizes the philosophy of the Sevillian businessman who has made his Catholic faith part of his business model. Showing faith. “When I open a store I say let it be for the glory of God, because if it is not for his glory, why are we here?” he said in an interview with El Español. He was 21 years old when he opened his first store in Osuna; Today, his brand employs 700 people and has an annual profit of almost 11 million. In the midst of the pandemic, after attending mass one morning, he says he found something more than comfort: a new way of understanding the company. Your company seeks to integrate “social and solidarity projects” through initiatives such as Tiendas con Alma, which collaborates with NGOs such as Down España, ELA Andalucía, Tu Casa Azul or the Daughters of Charity of Pumarejo. “Doing a company with soul” is not marketing, he insists. But the truth is that his way of mixing religion and business fits perfectly with a broader cultural trend: the return of Catholicism as an aesthetic, story and, in some cases, as a brand strategy. In Xataka Rosalía has entered her Catholic phase: she is only the latest in a long list of Spanish artists and filmmakers A new spiritual language? Álvaro Moreno’s public devotion does not come from nowhere. It is part of a broader movement, where religion once again appears among pop songs, fashion shows or company slogans. Catholicism, previously relegated to silence or modesty, now becomes a visible sign, even a form of style. The singer Rosalía has been the most visible face of that trend. Their new album, Lux, is crossed by religious symbols and songs. On the cover she appears dressed in a white habit and in the presentation video you can hear Gregorian choirs and verses about God in fourteen languages. This gesture is located within a broader artistic movementwhere religiosity is no longer taboo for the new generations. Spirituality has become, in other words, a new cultural language. From Rosalía’s habit to Catholic festivals like Hakuna, which brought together 85,000 young people At a massive concert in April, faith is leaving the sacristies and entering the timelines. From TikTok to the pulpit. The phenomenon is not limited to Spain. In the United States, a report from the Wall Street Journal describes how Christian music contemporary “is on fire again for God. Artists like Forrest Frank, former member of the pop duo Surfaces, have brought their faith to TikTok with songs like God’s Got My Back, accumulating more than 15 million streams on Spotify and millions of views on social networks. According to the same medium, Christian artists accumulated more than 1.2 billion views in the US this year. And not just artists: even convents have learned to move in the digital age. Nuns like Sister Marta, Sister Verónica or the Argentine Josefina Cattaneo They accumulate hundreds of thousands of followers showing their daily life in the convents: from how a habit is prepared to how a birthday is celebrated in community. The formula works because it humanizes the religious vocation and makes it accessible to young people who perhaps would never approach a church. What was previously communicated from the pulpit is now shared from the algorithm. From modesty to believing pride. In Spain, the data confirm a generational change. According to the CIS36.4% of young people between 18 and 24 years old declare themselves Catholic, compared to 28% in 2021. 10.5% are practicing. It is the only age group in which religiosity grows. “There is a rise in identity-based Catholicism and a visibility of religious identity among part of the youth,” explains anthropologist Mónica Cornejo in El Correo. “They wear crosses and claim their faith without shame. They say: ‘I’m a Christian, so what?’” For Cornejo, it is a Catholicism that is “more cultural, less dogmatic. They are not as interested in read religion as in lived religion.” In a country where religion seemed a thing of the past, faith is once again a flag—aesthetic, emotional or political. And he does it, curiously, from Instagram, from the reels or from a walkway. {“videoId”:”x8ldfb3″,”autoplay”:false,”title”:”HOW ELON MUSK MAKES MONEY if MANY of his companies ARE NOT PROFITABLE”, “tag”:”Webedia-prod”, “duration”:”797″} Towards chic Catholicism. But there is a question underlying all of this: is it devotion, strategy or both? As Noemí López Trujillo warns in Newtralthe religious aesthetic that Rosalía has embraced “does not seem to renounce or contradict itself, but rather deliberately embrace the idea that what is conservative is subversive.” In the case of Álvaro Moreno, the phrase “Let it be for the glory of God” resonates with authenticity, yes, but also with a precision of branding: store, ritual, history of improvement, visible values. And in a market where consumers seek purpose as much as they seek product, that narrative works. The question is whether something essential is not diluted along the way. Deep spirituality becomes consumer aesthetics, and faith—like almost everything—into a market value. Because believing in something offers comfort; But commodifying belief offers a story that sells. And at that border—between conviction and strategy—we may have to look beyond the blessed display cases. Image | TikTok Xataka |Shein has opened its first store in Europe in Paris. Paris has reacted as always: staging a revolt (function() { window._JS_MODULES = window._JS_MODULES || {}; var headElement = document.getElementsByTagName(‘head’)(0); if (_JS_MODULES.instagram) { var instagramScript = document.createElement(‘script’); instagramScript.src=”https://platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js”; instagramScript.async = true; instagramScript.defer = true; headElement.appendChild(instagramScript); – The news Álvaro Moreno and his Catholic clothing brand is just the tip of the iceberg: the fever for “chic Christianity” was originally published in Xataka by Alba Otero .

China is already experiencing it

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Is it worth ordering three family pizzas to take advantage of a 3 for 2 promotion? The answer is: it depends. It depends on if you are ordering just for yourself or if you are going to share them with four or five friends, although my friends would say that three pizzas for five is not enough, but that is another story. Be that as it may, the logic is overwhelming: better price, more people among whom to divide the expense and payment for a single shipment. It makes sense. Now let’s raise this, but with all the neighbors on the block or colleagues in the office. The savings would be considerable, especially if everyone orders the same thing from the same site. Well, in China this is an increasingly popular trend. Context. He increased cost of living It is not something that affects only us. He house pricehe rising prices of consumer goodsthe stagnant wages and other factors that make your hair stand on end mean that you have to tighten your belt and take action. In China, where eating out is practically a religion, it is acceptable A menu costs between 20 and 30 yuan (two-four euros, more or less). Meituan delivery driver | Image: Meituan Inequality. The problem is that salary inequality is absolutely brutal, to the point that the average really tells us little. What they tell us the data is that the top 1% of China’s earners have a larger share of the country’s wealth than the top 50%. Or what is the same, if 100 people lived in China, only one person would have half of the wealth of the entire country. Therefore, it will not surprise anyone that with the average salary of 353,000 yuan per year, about 45,000 euros at the exchange rate, it is difficult to live in many places. Eat out. It is, as we said, something common in China. The question is: how can we make menus cheaper? Indeed, asking for a lot of the same thing from the same place. That idea is the one that applied Meituana Chinese shopping platform for consumer products and local retail services, to the delivery industry. 拼好饭. Or translated into the language of Cervantes, “group food delivery.” It is more or less the same premise that we proposed when eating this text: recommendations of popular dishes, group orders and a single delivery. This system It allows certain authorized establishments to prepare food in batches and for delivery people to make several deliveries in a single trip, since everyone is nearby and has ordered the same thing. Image | Meituan Coordinating. It requires more coordination and the food may take a little longer, but it allows you to save up to 50% on certain menus, as explained from Sinica Podcasts. “In central Guangzhou, a roast duck leg with rice usually costs 28.8 yuan if ordered individually, but drops to only 11.2 yuan with the group takeaway option,” they say. The cost of shipping represents up to 80% of the cost of the order, so adding dishes to the order dilutes the price for more people. and it works. It is clear that users are willing to wait a little longer for food if it is much cheaper. Meituan began testing this system in 2020 in poorer markets and by April 2023 had already established a department dedicated only to group orders focused on first-tier cities. Only in 2023, Meituan processed 1.16 billion group orders, which represented 6% of all orders. And in Spain? It is not a very widespread or popular thing, at least at the user level. Yes, it is possible to take advantage of promotions and share food to dilute the shipping and make the price per head better, but there is no proposal similar to the Chinese one. Companies like Uber do allow something similar, but it is focused on small groups of people or companies, not so much on large volumes. But perhaps it is a matter of time, especially in large capitals. Cover image | zhang kaiyv In Xataka | China has found a huge health problem in its kitchens: record per capita salt consumption

science has discovered why

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Sleeping little is still one of the great silent evils of modern life. Long workdays, screens on until dawn, and the glorification of eternal productivity have normalized something that science has been warning about for decades: subtracting hours of sleep is not freeand can even be likened to going through life drunk. The psychologist specialized in sleep Nuria Roure summed it up on the podcast from ‘Mommy, what are you saying’: “People who have spent more than 20 hours awake have a level of attention similar to that of someone who has consumed about six beers”. It may seem like an exaggeration, but science backs up his claim. Like he was drunk. If you have slept very few hours, surely when you get out of bed the first steps you take hardly follow a straight line, but rather they may seem quite similar to the house having become a real boat. Something that also happens when we have two too many drinks. And it’s not that during the night you woke up sleepwalking and grabbed a few beers from the fridge, but the fault lies in your sleep hygiene. A study from the University of South Australia published in Occupational and Environmental Medicine compared the effects of lack of sleep with those of alcohol. After 17 to 19 hours without sleep, the participants showed cognitive and motor impairment equivalent to a blood alcohol level of 0.05%. That is, the tired brain and the drunk brain process information with comparable slowness and clumsiness. And this is something that also justifies that Driving without sleep is as dangerous as being a little drunk. Although it is not the only evidence we have, since a great study has confirmed that even partial sleep deprivation, which consists of sleeping four or five hours for several consecutive days, affects attention and decision making. You can also get sick. Although we focus on the effects on our brain, the reality is that it goes much further. A study published in the journal Sleep concluded that sleeping less than six hours a night was associated with an increased risk of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, or obesity. But we must not forget about Alzheimer’s. It must be remembered that during sleep, the brain activates its ‘cleaning’ systems to eliminate the garbage produced by neurons, including beta-amyloid that is implicated in Alzheimer’s. In the magazine itself Nature we can find solid evidence which warns that people who consistently slept less than six hours a night in middle age were more likely to develop dementia. Adolescents at the center of the problem. Sleep deficit begins every time before. According to the Spanish Sleep Society, Spanish adolescents sleep on average between six and six and a half hours a day, when their brain needs between eight and ten. One of the culprits in this case for science is the educational system, as pointed out by the American neurologist Mary Carskdon who has been pointing because having to get up early to go to class is a key factor in chronic fatigue syndromes among youth. Images | Shane BENCE BOROS In Xataka | Modern life is destroying the dream. Science explains how to fight back using your greatest ally: light

We sensed that arguing in front of small children was a bad idea. Science has revealed to what extent

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Arguing in front of a small child is something that classically always has been discouraged for the problems that it can cause for the minor himself. And this is something that is not nonsense, because a child seeing this scene does not think that he is witnessing the conflict between two adults, but rather he thinks that it is his fault. And it is not an exaggeration that has always been done, but developmental psychology and neuroscience have been explaining for decades why something as human as this happens. Self-blame. The minds of little ones function very differently from those of adults, and it is logical because they are developing over time. And this is something that was already defined by Jean Piaget, who attributed he “egocentric thinking“to children who are in their first years of life. In it, children interpret the world through their own perspective, and psychologists Wesley Rholes and John Finchman they showed it in the nineties when seeing that minors tend to take responsibility for conflicts family members, especially when they do not understand the causes or why. This causes minors to interpret the situation in a very emotional way without thinking about the reasons why it is causing this (which could be friction between two adults). And it is logical, because at an early age the mind is not yet learning to distinguish between what is internal and what is external. The impact. When these discussions are intense or frequent, children may develop anxiety, stress or guilt. It is something that is proven also by Edward Cummings and Patrick Davies, from the University of Notre Dame, who pointed out that unresolved conflicts between parents affect children’s ability to regulate their emotions and maintain a sense of security. Other studies reinforce this idea, showing that family tension can increase a child’s risk of have emotional problems with the passing of the years. The solution. So… Shouldn’t we argue in front of minors? This may become impossible in some situations, especially when living together. That is why the secret is not in avoiding them, but in how adults manage them and explain it later. This is something where psychologists agree when they point out that the strategy should be for the parents to clarify that the dispute has nothing to do with the child, to help neutralize feelings of guilt and strengthen the emotional bond with them. What the brain says. From neuroscience, we know that when a person (whether adult or child) is angry, the brain strongly activates the amygdala, which is the center where emotions are processed in the brain. Although logically we have a brake which is the prefrontal cortex as it has the activity of reducing this activity. Based on this, science suggests that in moments of intense anger, one cannot ask for calm because physically there are no neural resources that can calm someone down. Therefore, parental calm acts as a brain “anchor.” Its serenity not only calms, but also offers the child a model of self-regulation that his own brain cannot yet achieve alone because it does not have this brake. The link. Ultimately, understanding emotions—your own and those of others—is a shared learning process. Children don’t need arguments to go away, but rather to understand that these tensions do not threaten their safety or self-worth. This understanding does not arise by instinct: it is cultivated with words, presence and emotional coherence. And science backs it up. From Piaget to modern neuroimaging, everything indicates that the true antidote to childhood guilt is not adult perfection, but the opportunity to teach, with each conflict, that love and disagreement can coexist without breaking the bond. Images | Vitaly Gariev Marcus Neto In Xataka | If the question is where to find the time to play sports or learn languages, you have the answer on your mobile

Instagram has become a Chinese bazaar. My last purchase is the best proof of this

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Instagram is becoming a Chinese bazaar. And this is not a criticism, it is the truest definition of how companies are taking advantage of the platform to make gold by selling products that come from Chinese suppliers like Alibaba. The showcase cool and aspirational Instagram is transforming into a bazaar where dropshipping reigns with low-cost products made up of exclusive rarities. The fever for analog lenses that They simulate the look of old cameras disposables are the best example. With a faithful ally and a little patience you can discover, one by one, where those striking and apparently exclusive products that they try to sell us come from. 21 INSTAGRAM TRICKS – Tutorial with all the secrets! It all starts with an advertisement (well, with many). Three stories, one ad. We have long normalized that Instagram is full of advertisingsomething that companies know very well. In my particular case, my feed is quite full of content related to photography. And, for months, they were bombarding me with some very specific advertisements. 65,000 followers on one of the accounts and 30,000 on the other. Collaborations with influencers and a product that, to be honest, attracted a lot of attention. A lens shaped like an Oreo cookie that promises to emulate the look of the “disposable cameras“, the disposable cameras that you may have played with if you have a few years under your belt. a good business. One of the companies sells this product for 34.95 euros, the other for 44.95 euros. Taking into account that a good goal It costs more than 1,000 euros and since even the most mediocre kit lenses exceed 100 euros, it seems like a bargain. An economical, fun and different product, outside the catalog of the big camera brands. As a good Spaniard, my first reaction was to wonder if it could be even cheaper. Google Lens, my best ally. I have been obsessed with passing him for some time Google LenIt is any product from which I deduce Chinese origin. From electric motorcycles that sell in Spain for thousands of euros and cost just $600 on Alibaba to… targets shaped like an Oreo cookie and features clonal to those of the brands that advertise them. It didn’t take me even five seconds to find the target on AliExpress. 14 euros. This is how much it costs to buy an Oreo lens on AliExpress. One with a 32mm fixed focal length and f/10 aperture. The lens sold by its rival Instagrammers is also a 32mm, in this case with f/11 as described. It is something impossible to verify, since this lens does not have electronic pins, it does not communicate with the camera (it is literally putting a piece of plastic in front of the sensor) and it does not offer data on focal length or aperture. “Brand” objective | AliExpress target. Everyone draws their own conclusions. I’m not saying they are the same, but they are the same.. E-commerce through platforms like Shopify is a good thing for the user. You buy a product with fast shipping, seller guarantees and packaging that is probably more attractive than the plastic in which AliExpress delivers its products. The important issue is paying double or triple for the same product. The objective delivers what it promises, by the way. On Instagram you don’t sell a product, you sell a narrative. Instagram is, by far, one of the best showcases for selling cheap products with high margins. Profiles dressed in aspirations desired by users, collaborations with influencers. The algorithm is also your best accomplice by surgically adjusting the ads. Photography, motor, cooking, technology. Each and every potential storefront has a huge marketplace of easy-to-wrap products on Alibaba. Instagram is no longer a social network. It is a marketplace with a social network aesthetic. A perfect platform for high-margin dropshipping, disguised as a brand with values ​​aligned with your target. Image | Xataka In Xataka | If you buy on a website, it’s most likely Shopify: how three friends devoured the ecommerce industry

In the midst of rearmament, Europe has realized an unimportant detail: it does not have enough bullets

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The European defense industry is experiencing a decisive moment after decades of demilitarization, outsourcing of key processes and a growing dependence on suppliers that seemed assumed to be structural until the Russian invasion of Ukraine revealed its weaknesses. In that context, that of rearmamenta chemical compound with more than a century of military history has reappeared as a critical link: there is no TNT. The strategic resurgence. Yes, the shortage threatens the continent’s ability to sustain its ammunition production. The panorama is as simple as it is disturbing: Europe, with giants such as Rheinmetall, BAE or KNDS, only has a TNT plant operational (Nitro-Chemin Poland), while Russia manufactures millions of projectiles annually and receives direct support from North Korea. This combination has created a strategic asymmetry that the EU is trying to correct with massive investments and new industrial playersamong them a Swedish start-up that aims to break a historical blockade with a modern and fully European factory. At the center of this story appears Joakim Sjöbloman entrepreneur who abandoned fintech to build the first Swedish TNT plant in 30 years and contribute, as explainedfor her daughter to grow up in a continent capable of defending itself. The geopolitical urgency. Although its origin was almost anecdotal (a yellow dye produced in Germany at the end of the 19th century), the TNT It became a fundamental piece of modern warfare since its explosive properties were discovered. Today it is essential for almost any ammunition that exceeds the size of a bullet: artillery projectiles, grenades, aerial bombs and countless military loads require this compound which, paradoxically, is almost no longer manufactured in the West. The gap between capabilities is evident: while Russia produces between 4.5 and 5 million of projectiles per year, Europe barely reached 600,000 in 2024a figure that rose to 1.2 million adding US production, but still far from what is necessary for a balanced deterrence. Each projectile requires about 10 kg of TNTso matching the Russian pace would require about 50,000 tons of explosive per year. The great dependence. Nitro-Chem It manufactures a significant part of that volume, but exports much of it. outside the EUand the rest of the European market depends on India and China, suppliers that would automatically be left out of the equation in a conflict between blocs. For Sjöblomthis dependence is an intolerable risk: any diplomatic or military crisis could immediately cut off the supply, just as happened with vaccines during the pandemic. The Swedish bet. It counted on Insider that Swebalthe company founded by Sjöblom after selling Minna Technologies to Mastercardaims to produce 4,500 tons of TNT per year in a facility located a few kilometers from Alfred Nobel’s historic dynamite factory. The project (which plans to start in 2028) aims to only use Swedish and Baltic raw materialscreating a completely European supply chain and drastically reducing delivery times that today depend on ships diverted around the Horn of Africa. Although its capacity does not even remotely cover the continental gap, Sjöblom himself maintains that it will be a significant contribution for at least a decade, because even adding all the projects planned in Finland, Greece, the Czech Republic and the United States, Europe would still be far from balancing the industrial pulse with Russia. The rebirth of TNT is not a historical eccentricity, but the reconstruction of a capacity that Sweden had until 1998 and that it dismantled because demilitarization made it unnecessary to maintain a dangerous, expensive chemical industry for which there were no commercial incentives. A dangerous process. The construction of a TNT plant It requires overcoming a regulatory labyrinth that Sweden applies rigorously even in the era of rearmament. To obtain the environmental permit, Swebal has had to carry out 14 studies on protected faunaarchaeological remains, acoustic impact and risk analysis, in addition to guaranteeing a perimeter isolated by forests that would act as a natural barrier in the event of an explosion. The plant’s own architecture reflects the delicate nature of the process: acid tanks connected to a concentration tower, chemical reactors enclosed in an enclosure of six-meter earth walls, video control, electrified fencing and permanent security equipment. Automation. The goal is that 90% of the process be automatedso that workers only enter in a final laboratory testing and in a shielded control room. Mixing toluene with sulfuric and nitric acid involves managing extreme temperatures and toxic gases, and any mistake can lead to lethal fumes or spontaneous detonation. Additionally, producing TNT generates “redwater”a carcinogenic waste that Swebal will send to an external plant for incineration, avoiding repeating polluting practices of the past. All this requires between 80 and 90 million of euros of investment, well above the initial financing of 3.5 million that the company has already closed. The European dilemma. Behind this industrial commitment there is an economic argument that transcends TNT. Europe spends 200,000 million euros annually on defense, but more than 60% of that money is allocated to US suppliers. For Sjöblom, relocating supply chains would generate millions of jobs and reinforce strategic autonomy, two objectives aligned with the plan ReArm Europe 2030which could mobilize up to 800 billion in investments and loans for the defense industry. However, the sector continues to face a structural obstacle: Orders do not arrive as quickly as companies need to take risks. This inertia (coupled with the lack of interoperability between European weapons, which forces the maintenance of multiple calibers and standards) is, according to Sjöblomone of the greatest dangers to the defense of the continent. If Europe does not unify criteria and build a robust industrial base, it will end up depending on others to support its own security doctrine, a reminder that is summarized in a phrase which he considers essential: “either you have an army, or you have someone else’s army in your country.” Local tensions. There is no doubt, the factory, located near a group of summer huts next to a lake, has awakened reluctance among the residents of Nora, who fear truck … Read more

In case we didn’t have enough of the wedding fever, medieval weddings are coming

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In Yorkshire it smells like wax and fresh bread. Olivia Healy walks slowly down the aisle of a stone church; The golden crown she wears shines in the flickering light of the candles. There are no spotlights or screens, just an iron arch, a few caped guests, and a reverend who smiles before saying, “Welcome to the 12th century.” It is not the filming of a movie, but a wedding inspired by the medieval ceremonies that were celebrated in England eight hundred years ago. There are minstrelsy, a feast of mead and rye bread, and a vow of union that does not mention God, but “the light that unites the paths of the ancients.” According to The New York Timesscenes like this are repeated in half the world: searches for “medieval wedding” on Pinterest have skyrocketed by more than 400%, and castles have become the new fantasy setting for a generation that flees from conventional weddings. A ritual with purpose. What started as an eccentric niche has become a cultural trend. “Couples are looking for a more symbolic type of ceremony, less commercial and more connected to ancient rites,” explains art historian Nancy Thebaut. It is not just an aesthetic—capes, veils, chalices, robes—but a way of understanding love and commitment as something timeless. Some of the most talked about weddings of the year followed that thread. Artist Harley Weir, known for her ethereal portraits, married in a welsh monastery dressed in a tunic inspired by the novices of the 15th century. As well as actress Rainey Qualley opted for a lace corset and hand-embroidered cape in Italian silk, “like a Pre-Raphaelite queen lost in a digital dream.” In all cases, the pattern is the same: ritual, nature, spirituality. Instead of speeches or photocallsthere are processions with incense, sacred music, mystical readings and vows inspired by Celtic or early Christian ceremonies. The phenomenon goes beyond the disguise. This return to the past, according to the New York Timesaddresses an interpretation of “nostalgia for purposeful rituals”: a way of recovering the symbolic in times where the religious has been diluted. For the fashion magazine Vogue, which has documented Gothic and medieval weddings in Irish castles or Welsh monasteries, what is sought is not historical accuracy, but an emotional aesthetic. The medium calls it “epic romanticism”: a cross between the sacred, the theatrical and the intimate. The art historian Harriet Sonne de Torrens remember that in medieval manuscripts The gesture of joining hands represented mutual surrender and divine blessing. Eight centuries later, that same image is redefined: the symbol remains, although its meaning is secular. From historical rigor to pop romanticism. Not to nitpick, but most of these celebrations are not historically accurate—nor do I think they intend to be. “People confuse medieval with Renaissance, Gothic or even Victorian,” explains The New York Times. But that mix is ​​part of its appeal: today’s medieval weddings They are less a recreation of the past than a pop rereading of history. The success of series like game of Thrones either The Witcher, and even the literary rise of authors such as Sarah J. Maas or the anthological The Lord of the Ringshave consolidated a global aesthetic of the medieval-fantastic, which has filtered into fashion, music and, now, marriage. This medieval fever is not alone. In parallel, thematic weddings are growing: ceremonies that recreate entire worlds—from the 1920s to the Tolkien universe—as a form of aesthetic affirmation. According to Bodas.netmore than 30% of young couples in Spain opt for personalized and symbolic rituals, with their own scripts and narrative scenarios. In times of liquid loves, the ritual matters again. In the digital age, couples look for meaning in ancient symbols. Looking to the past has become a way of recovering intention and intimacy—what the New York media has defined as “a nostalgia for purposeful rituals.” And there opens up an interesting connection.. Because this fascination with the sacred is not limited to the symbolic altars of weddings. Religion—or at least its imagery—has once again become a transversal aesthetic language: from fashion to pop. Rosalía is the most notable example. As my colleague explains in Xataka“the artist has swerved towards Catholic iconography. It is not a whim or a marketing maneuver, but rather swimming in a very favorable current at the moment: the modern and youthful vindication of the faith.” This current is not a return to dogma, but a search for transcendence. Both Rosalía and medieval weddings, the sacred becomes aesthetic; the ritual, in performance. Candles, veils or liturgical choirs are gestures of a visual spirituality, more emotional than doctrinal. “Brides are attracted to historical references because they evoke permanence; it is a way of promising eternity in liquid times,” says designer Paula Nadal. My dear Spain. And, as almost always, here we take it to the next level. In Navia (Asturias), a couple got married this summer during the Medieval Days of the municipality, escorted by Knights Templar and bagpipers. In Burgos, several estates and castles—such as Sotopalacios or Belmonte— They already offer “historical ceremonies” with a mead menu, troubadours and photographers who work only with natural light to imitate the painterly texture of the Quattrocento. In networks, the Spanish “medieval core” mixes layers, baroque virgins and processions with a fervor that, according to Telva“can only be understood in a country that turned Holy Week into performative art.” In a way, medieval weddings are the secular reflection of that same religious theatricality that Spain carries in its blood: a liturgy without faith, but with emotion. A ritual in uncertain times? The trend points to the same thing: couples do not flee from the present, but rather look for a symbolic language. What we know is that in 12th century manuscripts, marriage was a sacrament; in the networks of 2025, it is an aesthetic. But the gesture remains the same. Between the digital noise and the contemporary rush, returning to the 12th century is just a way—I hope—to promise the same thing as always: that … Read more

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