Month: December 2025

The El Corte Inglés outlet is full of iPads, MacBooks and other Apple devices. All of these are new and brand new.

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On many occasions, after a great offer campaign, a huge assortment of refurbished devices usually arrive in stores like El Corte Inglés. Many probably come from returns. Now, after Black Friday The El Corte Inglés outlet is loaded with Apple devices with fairly reasonable prices for what they offer. In this article we are going to review some that continue to receive software updates, but there is a huge list with Apple devices that are new and brand new. That is, they have not been used and, according to the store itself, they only have some damage to the box. iPad Pro M2 by 783.20 eurosa fairly powerful tablet that incorporates Apple’s M2 chip. MacBook Air M2 by 903.20 eurosa light computer that in this case incorporates a 15.3-inch screen. MacBook Pro M2 by 935.20 eurosa fairly complete computer in terms of features. iMac M1 by 1,159.20 eurosan ideal computer for those looking for an all-in-one. iPhone 15 Pro Max by 1,167.20 eurosa quite complete mobile in its 512 GB configuration. iPad Pro M2 If we talk about Apple tablets, one of the best prices on the reconditioned ones at El Corte Inglés is the iPad Pro M2. Incorporates a 12.9-inch screen with 120 Hz refresh rateits power is still very good despite not having the latest generation chip and the audio section is spectacular. Its price is 783.20 euros. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links MacBook Air M2 If what we are looking for is a good laptop that has a large screen, the MacBook Air M2 It is located in the El Corte Inglés outlet for a price of 903.20 euros. Assemble a panel 15.3 inches and comes with 256 GB of internal storage. Its chip is the Apple M2, the autonomy reaches up to 18 hours of video playback and it has a good audio section with the compatibility of Dolby Atmos. MacBook Air M2 (15.3-inch, 256GB) The price could vary. We earn commission from these links MacBook Pro M2 On the other hand, if we want a more compact computer, El Corte Inglés has the MacBook Pro M2 for a price of 913.76 euros. In this case, it comes with a 13.3 inch screenalso incorporates the M2 chip, has 256 GB of internal storage and weighs 1.4 kg. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links iMac M1 El Corte Inglés also has an Apple all-in-one computer in its outlet. It is about the iMac M1 that comes with screen, keyboard and mouse. All this for 1,159.20 euros. The Retina 4.5K screen is 24 inches and includes a webcam. Has 512 GB internal storagemounts Apple’s M1 chip and includes integrated speakers. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links iPhone 15 Pro Max Finally, at the El Corte Inglés outlet we can also find the iPhone 15 Pro Max. It will not be that of the current generation, but for 1,167.20 euros we talk about its configuration with 512 GB internal storage to save many photos, videos or files. It has good autonomy and Your software will be updated until 2030. iPhone 15 Pro Max (512GB) The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | El Corte Inglés and Compradicción (header), Apple In Xataka | The best mobile phones (2025), we have tested them and here are their analyzes In Xataka | Best wireless headphones. Which one to buy and 21 models from 15 euros to 470 euros

Do not make mistakes with the Treasury when collecting it

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Statistically, the probability of touching you The Christmas Jackpot is 0.001%. However, has touched you and, suddenly, everyone has a plan for your money. The joy is real, but so are the doubts. How much money really reaches your account, what silly mistakes can turn into a prize in a problem and, above all, what you should do with that money to avoid the “lottery effect” and in five years you will be left without money and with more debt than you have now. No joke, many lottery winners they have ended up ruined. To avoid any scares, we have consulted with Aitor Fernández, head of the tax area of TaxDownto tell us how to avoid surprises with the lottery. A prize clean of dust and straw. In the case of the Christmas Lottery, the key tax rule is the “special tax” that the Treasury applies, in which the first 40,000 euros are exempt from taxation, and a 20% withholding is applied to the rest. “You do not receive the 400,000 euros of the first prize, but you directly receive 328,000 euros because the bank already applies the withholding on account of taxes,” says Aitor Fernández. “Only those prizes lower than 40,000 euros, which is the exemption limit.” “The positive part is that you don’t have to do anything to the Treasury, you will receive the net amount.” Of the 400,000 euros, the first 40,000 are exempt, so 20% is applied to the remaining 360,000 euros. This implies a withholding of about 72,000 euros in taxes. Therefore, the bank will give you a total amount of 328,000 euros when collecting the first prize. The calculation is the same for second and third prizes. The fourth and fifth prizes are tax free because its amount is less than the 40,000 euros established by the Treasury. The tenth is shared, not the taxes. A custom almost as deep-rooted as the Christmas Lottery is share the tenths with co-workers, friends or family. However, when it comes to collecting it, a decisive factor must be taken into account: who collects the prize. The temptation is for the person who has the ticket to go to the nearest bank to deposit their tenth and then distribute it among the rest of the group. This is the biggest mistake. As the tax expert highlights, “if a single person collects and then distributes, the Treasury can interpret it as a donation, so it is advisable to record the participants and percentages from the moment of collection.” In this way, the bank itself distributes the prize and withholds its share of taxes from each participant. Otherwise, the Treasury could demand from the person who collects it the payment of Inheritance and Donation Tax, especially taxable when it comes to donations when there is no relationship. Is it awarded? I buy it from you. From Gestha warn to the winners of the main Christmas Jackpot prizes that people may appear interested in buying the winning tenth for an amount greater than the prize itself. It looks like a double stroke of luckbut in reality it is the prelude to possible problems for the winner, both with the Treasury and with Justice. This is a fraud that involves an unjustified increase in assets (when you win the lottery there is evidence of its origin), so it is no longer governed by the same “special tax” of lottery prizes, but rather by the maximum of the autonomous community of residence. Furthermore, he would incur a crime of money launderingwhich would also have problems with the law for it. As Fernández highlights, “it is neither free money nor fiscally innocuous.”​ A very distributed Gordo…in Finland. There are more and more Spanish workers who They emigrate to other countries to workeither tourists coming to Spain and participate in the Lottery tradition with friends or family from Spain. How are these prizes taxed for non-residents? The AEAT classifies lottery prizes for non-residents by linking them to the same special tax that applies to residents. That is to say, in principle, nothing changes and from the outset the same withholding is applied as to any resident. However, Aitor lands it “when you are going to collect, this person has to identify himself and the tax is 20 percent. The impact is the same. Where it gets complicated is later, since here the double taxation agreements and there we will have to see in each country”, because the country of residence can require to declare income or request a refund of what was paid in Spain, and even adjust the taxation by requesting a refund of part of the amount paid in Spain and pay tax on a percentage in the country of residence. Tips to avoid going bankrupt: use common sense. According to a study of the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, only 49% of the adult population has financial knowledge, so finding yourself overnight with more than 320,000 euros in your current account “can lead to making illogical and irrational decisions regarding businesses or very expensive purchases,” says Mireia Cabero, professor of Psychology and Educational Sciences Studies at the UOC. In this scenario, the TaxDown expert recommends using common sense and, above all, forget about the rush. “We no longer have to pay taxes again for the prize we have received for having it in the bank. Without doing anything, that money will not be taxed again, unless we already have a lot of assets and we have to declare the Wealth Tax. Normally winning the lottery is not going to get you into the Wealth Tax”, so he recommends letting that money “rest” until you have a plan of what to do with it. In addition to staying calm, Fernández recommends “let a few days pass, get advice, learn a little about the investment options that exist, see what to do with this money and what investments we are comfortable with and always reserve something so as not to put all our eggs … Read more

Europe is the world leader in heat pump manufacturing. The only problem is that Europeans don’t use them

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Not to get grandiose, but Europe has never had so many renewables underwayhad never made so much clean technology and never had talked so much about energy independence. And yet, winter has arrived again and the ritual is always the same: turning on the heating still means burning imported gas. Although if we reach this point it is not for lack of alternatives, because they are there. The problem is much more mundane: in much of the continent, heating with electricity it’s still more expensive than doing it with gas. The energy shock that changed everything. A recent EMBER report has detailed how Europe abruptly lost access to cheap Russian gas and had to replace it with much more expensive liquefied natural gas in a highly volatile global market. The result was an unprecedented price shock: an accumulated extra cost of 930 billion euros during the energy crisis. More on fossils. Far from being a problem caused by the green transition, the document indicates that the impact was concentrated precisely in the sectors most dependent on imported fossil fuels. Energy-intensive industries reduced production and, in many cases, never returned to pre-Ukraine war levels. This reading coincides with that presented by researcher Jan Rosenowwho rejects the idea that dismantling climate policies would make energy cheaper. The problem, he maintains, was not going too fast, but rather having delayed electrification for decades and having kept gas as the pillar of the system. Here the central contradiction emerges. According to EMBERheat pumps are a mature, efficient and strategic technology: they produce between two and three times more heat than a gas boiler for each unit of energy consumed. Even if that electricity came entirely from a gas plant, the net fuel savings would still exist. However, in practice, the technological advantage is diluted in the bill. In most EU countries, electricity costs 2 to 4 times more than gas for the end consumer. The average electricity-gas ratio in the EU is 2.85, and in some member states it exceeds 4. The problem: the pricing structure. As pointed out in the consultancynon-energy costs —taxes, tolls and public policy surcharges— can represent up to three quarters of the final price of electricity, while gas maintains a much lower tax burden. The result is an obvious distortion: the most efficient technology appears expensive and the most polluting technology appears affordable. You save but not. For an average home, this anomaly has a direct effect, since changing systems reduces energy consumption, but it does not always reduce the bill. And when that happens, adoption slows down. Furthermore, the data confirm that this is not a cultural or climatic issue, but rather an economic one. In countries like the Netherlands, where electricity is only slightly more expensive than gas, heat pump sales are soaring. On the other hand, in Germany, Poland or Hungary —where electricity can cost more than three times as much as gas—, adoption is much lower. The lever that remains to be activated. Solutions exist and many are immediately applicable: transferring the costs of electricity policies to public budgets, reducing electricity VAT, taxing fossil gas more coherently or implementing specific rates for heat pumps. From there, technological deployment is no longer a promise, but a reality. In fact, Europe leads the global heat pump industrywith manufacturers such as Bosch, Vaillant, NIBE or Danfoss, and with industrial projects that already operate on a large scale. These are not prototypes or pilots, but rather functioning infrastructure. Real limits and tensions. None of this eliminates obstacles. Europe still need gas to stabilize its electrical grid. The infrastructures are stressed, the flexibility of the system is insufficient and any cold winter can send prices skyrocketing again. Added to this are the physical frictions of the transition. The massive expansion of offshore wind in the North Sea is generating unprecedented conflicts between countries due to the so-called “wake effect”, which reduces the production of neighboring parks. Electrification is not only a matter of political will, but also of technical coordination and supranational planning. The anomaly that Europe has not yet corrected. Europe already has the technology, the industry and the climate goals. What it has not yet corrected is a basic anomaly: fiscally penalizing electricity while de facto subsidizing fossil gas. As long as that distortion persists, heat pumps will continue to advance more slowly than data, engineering, and economic common sense would allow. As the EMBER report concludeselectrifying heating is not a green whim, but a strategy for energy security, industrial competitiveness and price stability. The transition is not about inventing new machines, but about deciding which energy is made cheaper and which is left behind. And today, in Europe, that decision continues to be reflected—very clearly—in the invoice. Image | freepik Xataka | While the US and China dominate different sectors, Europe leads an unexpected leadership: heat pumps

China is launching more rockets into space than ever before. And the reason is very simple: not to depend on Starlink

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China has taken the lead in a disputed area: that of space sovereignty. To talk about space is to think directly about the POTbut the photo has changed in recent years. The space race It is no longer just a matter of government agencies, but also of private companies as SpaceXthe Spanish PLD Space either Blue Origin. Europe seeks its space without depending on anyone and countries like China and India are taking steps to expand your borders by looking into space. And, earlier this month, China complete four space missions. It is a clear blow to the United States. Rhythm. 2025 has marked a turning point in China’s aerospace industry. The country has broke his record of launches with more than 80 orbitals throughout the year (it was on 68 launches), adding the one with three Long March rockets taking off less than 19 hours apart. Something like this is within the reach of very few. Specifically, only within the reach of SpaceX in terms of pace. stress test. The litmus test took place at the beginning of December, when the Chinese space agency carried out a stress test on its system. Between the 5th and 9th of this month, China overloaded its entire launch chain. They used four different launch sites to test the extent to which their launch, logistics and telemetry centers could operate in good conditions. With this, the country wanted to check to what extent its different centers can operate almost in parallel, without interference and without hindering each other. This is key for routine launches of mega satellite constellations, but also for rapid responses during a crisis. It is also a trial by fire to see how optimized the process is in which the rockets can spend the shortest time possible at the launch points, without forming bottlenecks. What do they throw?. For this operation, four ports were mobilized: Hainan, Taiyuan, Xichang and Jiuquan. And what they have put in the space is… a little of everything: Mission 1: A Kuaizhou-1A rapid-deploy rocket launched from Jiuquan. In the cargo there were VDES satellites to identify ships and their purpose is dual: to monitor maritime traffic, but also to have an analytical capacity for data on the high seas. Mission 2: a Long March 8A rocket designed for a high rate of launches that started from Hainan. It carried 14 Guowang satellites, the state’s answer to Starlink. This is also the most strategicsince the Long March 8A is designed to compete directly against Starlink’s Falcon 9 in costs and launch rate. Mission 3: another Long March, 6A. It left Taiyuan without a confirmed payload, although it is a rocket that has previously been used to launch more Guowang satellites into orbit. Mission 4: a Long March 4B that took off from Jiuquan and is the most “military” of all. Launched Yaogan-47, a satellite recognition to “census lands and estimate crops.” It is still a remote sensing satellite, and we are in a very complex moment in the Pacific. CAS Space The fear of Starlink. One of China’s goals is to have its own Starlink system. This involves thousands of satellites orbiting and providing service, something that cannot be launched in one go. This intense four-day campaign puts on the table the logistical capacity of the Chinese space agency to be able to launch many launches in a short space of time without jeopardizing their reliability. It is a movement that will allow climb the launch of thousands of Guowang satellites into orbit and, when we talk about “fear” of Starlink, we mean that China wants to occupy the orbital space before it runs out of chairs. It is estimated that Starlink has more than 6,000 satellites circling and another 42,000 planned. China has 25,000 planned between Guowang and G60, but in space the law of “first come, first served” applies. The International Telecommunications Union assigns orbits and frequencies under this principle, so China does not want to fall behind the West. Specifically, against the United States. Sovereignty. In fact, there is an interesting “prick” with Musk’s satellites that has nothing to do with communication. Starlink has already demonstrated its usefulness in the war context (andn the war in Ukraine, for example), but also, in 2021 Tiangong space station had to maneuver twice to avoid satellites starlink. And we already know that Russia, China and the United States are preparing (and according to the United States, more than just preparing) for a war in space. In the end, it is a matter of spatial sovereignty. The United States is the proper name when we think about space, but China has been strengthening its position for decades and more recently has begun to occupy that space. And from the European Union it is alsoe is testing the ground for that spatial sovereignty. The goal of all agencies and governments is the same: not to depend on external technology. And this stress test by China when it comes to launching is a blow to its biggest rival. Image | CAS Space, Galactic Energy In Xataka | After many years trying to copy the Falcon 9, Elon Musk believes there is a company about to achieve it

Robert Liston, “the fastest knife in London”

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Two and a half minutes. That’s how long it took Dr. Robert Liston to amputate a leg, from making the first incision to cutting the loose threads of the sutures. Today he would be considered reckless, sloppy and careless; but, quite the contrary, in Liston’s time he was considered the most reputable surgeon in the United Kingdom. And also a clear example of the beginnings of modern medicine. Your story. We are talking about the first half of the 19th century, a world without anesthesia in which every second was essential. Not only did it minimize the patient’s pain, but it greatly improved the chances of survival. According to medical historian Richard Gordonit is estimated that one in ten patients died on the tables at the University College Hospital where Liston operated. In those at St. Bart’s hospital, also in London, one in four died. Surgery was a race against death. at the doors. That virtuosity caused dozens of patients to camp at the door of the hospital asking to be treated. Especially, cases that had already been resolved by other surgeons. Among the most striking are a 20 and a half kilo scrotal tumor or an aortic aneurysm that is still preserved. in the UCH pathology museum. Issues. But, of course, speed is not always good and the stories attest to this. Historians do not agree on which are true and which are, but there is a group of them that, due to their gruesome spectacularity, would well deserve to be so. It is said that, once, along with the leg he was trying to amputate, he took the patient’s testicles. But the most famous is another. In that legendary operation, Liston’s speed was such that, without realizing it, he amputated two of his assistant’s fingers next to the patient’s leg. Immediately afterwards, frightened by the accident, he stuck the scalpel into a student who was observing the operation. All three (patient, assistant and student) died from wound infection. And that operation went down in the annals for being the only one we know of with a mortality of 300%. Pioneer. It is curious that Liston was also the first European surgeon to use the technology that has allowed twelve-hour operations without blinking. On December 21, 1846, he performed the first operation under anesthesia in Europe. A handful of weeks after William TG Morton’s famous surgery at Mass General in Boston. A century for them. Just in 1846 the “century of surgeons” (as Jürgen Thorwald called it) began. One hundred years during which surgery took great strides to free humanity from pain, infections and disease and during which surgeons were able to access the most hidden parts of the human body (the liver, the brain, the spinal cord or the lungs). Liston was one of those heroes who helped create the world as we know it. Images | Wellcome

The reason why Generation Z is giving up alcohol

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For years, alcohol has been an almost inherent to youth leisure. But something is changing. The generation Z drinks less than the previous ones and not only for a health or economic issue: you begin to perceive alcohol as a factor that directly affects your mental well-being, your ability to concentrate and, consequently, your daily productivity. It is not a moral crusade nor a total renunciation of consumption. It is a change of relationship with respect to alcohol and its subsequent consequences. Generation Z drinks less than millennials. The data confirm that it is not an isolated perception. According to FortuneGeneration Z consumes around 20% less alcohol than millennials at the same age, a sustained drop seen in several Western countries. That is, the alcohol is still present, but loses prominence in youth leisure. According to data From the Survey on Alcohol and other Drugs in Spain (EDADES), in 1997 12.7% of the population aged 15 to 64 claimed to drink daily, in 2007 it was already 10.2% and in 2024 this percentage was barely 9%. Hangxiety: the hangover that cannot be seen. Generation Z has grown up with greater access to information about mental health, basic neuroscience, and emotional well-being. This has changed the perception of alcohol, which is no longer seen just as fun and is now understood as an element with clear cognitive costs. One of the concepts that best explains this change is that of “hangxiety”, which Guardian defined such as the anxiety that appears after alcohol consumption, even when the physical hangover is mild. The alcohol alters neurotransmitters such as GABA and serotonin, generating a rebound effect that can translate into anxiety, irritability and ruminative thoughts the next day. For a generation especially sensitive to anxiety and mental healththis effect is especially dissuasive. Less alcohol, more cognitive stability. That is, the reason for reducing alcohol consumption is not only avoid hangover, but to improve mental stability and your cognitive performance during the following days. a study from the JSI Research and Training Institute in Boston, investigated the effects of alcohol consumption on work performance. According to their findings, even moderate levels of hangover can affect decision making, memory, and sustained attention. The problem is not only the occasional excess of alcohol, but residual effects that drag on for days and the discomfort that these effects produce among the youngest. Live without fatigue. Reducing alcohol consumption does not imply marathon days in which you can work more hours. What changes is consistency. Less alcohol means fewer “wasted” days, less cognitive fatigue and greater ability to maintain focus throughout the week. For a generation that moves in a more unstable labor market and competitive, that control of own performance is key, betting on social alternatives without alcoholmore planned consumption and less pressure to drink to fit in. In Xataka | On Tinder there is a trend that is gaining weight among Generation Z: dating without a single drop of alcohol Image | Unsplash (Vasilis Caravitis)

It is not clear how to make money when AI answers everything

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These days there is a gesture that is repeated over and over again: open a chatbot or a generative search mode, write a question and wait for a direct, orderly and apparently definitive answer. There is no list of links and no need to compare ten pages to decide which one to trust. The promise of comfort is evident, but behind that everyday gesture a much deeper crack is opening up. For years, internet search has been one of the tech industry’s big money-making machines. If AI begins to answer everything for us, the question is no longer technical, but economic: who pays for that answer and who is left out. The first clear sign that something is moving came at a very specific time in the trading calendar. During the last Black Friday, the big language models started sending real traffic to top-tier online stores. According to Semrush data cited by The Wall Street Journaltwenty large retailers received an average of 183,000 daily visits from AI tools, a figure still small compared to Google, but almost eight times higher than the previous year. The volume is still marginal, but the trend no longer goes unnoticed by those who make a living by attracting and converting users. When the response replaces the click. Traditional search worked as a referral system: the better positioned a page was, the more traffic it received. The emergence of AI alters this scheme by offering closed answers that, in many cases, reduce or eliminate the intermediate step. This change does not guarantee greater quality or reliability; the models can make errors, mix sources or generate incorrect information. But it does transform the distribution of attention. If the user stops visiting thousands of sites and the interaction, in many cases, is concentrated on the platform that responds, the economic model that has sustained the web for years comes into tension. This shift in attention has triggered an immediate reaction on the business side. As AI-generated responses begin to influence which brands appear and which disappear from the user’s radar, a new concern arises: how to “be” within those responses. Hence the idea of ​​optimizing for search with AI, a still diffuse field in which traditional agencies, newly created startups coexist, such as Evertune either Profoundand platforms that attempt to offer metrics, tools, and promises of visibility into systems that, by definition, They work like black boxes. The emergence of AI search has not generated consensus, but rather a clash of interpretations. ORPart of the sector believes that the change is incremental and that good practices as always continue to be relevant, even if they are now expressed in another way. In front of them are those they openly talk about a change of era and they defend that visibility in generated responses requires a new discipline. Companies, brands and investors move between both extremes, with millions of dollars at stake. The signs that resist change. In a field that is not very standardized, many of the tactics that best fit generative search are not radically new. Authority, context and editorial clarity remain relevant factors, as does offering useful and verifiable information. Some companies, Semrush explainsthey are fine-tuning formats, summaries or structures to facilitate reading by models, but without breaking with their previous practices. When social context enters the equation. Compared to classic SEO, AI seems to rely more on signals external to the website. According to data analyzed by Profound, recency weighs especially heavily in this type of response. And, according to Semrush, user-generated content is also gaining relevance, from forums to comments on social platforms, which models use as raw material to understand products and brands. That introduces a variable that is difficult for brands to control: the real conversation. It is no longer just about optimizing pages, but about understanding that the collective story also influences what the AI ​​returns. For years an entire industry has been built around a very specific premise: appearing on Google to influence a purchasing decision. SEO specialists, digital marketing agencies, advertising tools and platforms have made a living by optimizing visibility, information and messages that took the user to a store. This system worked because the search acted as an intermediary and referred the potential buyer. If the AI ​​starts responding, recommending and prioritizing or suggesting which link to show to buy, the entire gear is reconfigured. The question is no longer just how to attract visitors, but how to make money when the intermediation changes hands. Images | Google | Austin Distel | 1981 Digital In Xataka | The risk that OpenAI goes bankrupt goes far beyond its future as a company: the entire sector depends on it

Zara has found the formula to produce more photos in much less time. The answer was not where many thought

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Every time a big fashion brand mentions artificial intelligence, the reflex is almost automatic. We think about the possibility of models replaced by avatars, sessions that are reduced to a minimum and increasingly automated campaigns. It is a logical reaction, fueled by what we have already seen in the sector in recent months. But not all bets go that way. In the case of Zara, the question is not whether AI enters the creative process, but how it does so and what it decides to preserve intact. Not all AI in fashion is the same. In recent years, the sector has been trying very different paths under the same label. There are brands that have opted for generate complete campaigns with images created by generative systems, and others that have explored the creation of digital “doubles” of models to reuse their image in marketing. This context explains why Zara’s announcement triggers almost automatic suspicions. But it also forces us to refine the focus, because replacing a session is not the same as reusing a photograph, nor is it the same to displace people as to reorganize how visual content is produced. What exactly has Zara announced. Reuters reports thatZara has begun using AI to help create new images of real models in different outfits and accelerate visual production, in a movement that is part of a broader trend in the sector. As explained by an Inditex spokesperson, AI is being used to complement existing processes, not to replace them. The company presents it as a way to gain speed in the production of images without considering a total change of model in how its visual communication is built. How the “nuanced” approach works. From what has been published so far, the approach aims to take real photographs of human models and use AI to edit them and show those same models with other combinations of clothing, without repeating the session. The British newspaper CityAMfor its part, includes the anonymous testimony of a model according to which Zara asked for permission to edit its images with AI and thus show different items. This difference is important, because we are not talking about generating a campaign from scratch or creating a complete digital replica, but rather about expanding the number of final images based on previously photographed material. A precedent that marked the debate. Months before Zara’s move, H&M had contributed to tense the conversation with a much more visible proposal. In March 2025, the swedish company announced that would begin to create digital “twins” of 30 models to use in social networks and campaigns, always with prior permission. The initiative included compensation and control of rights by the models, but it also provoked criticism and once again put on the table the fear of a progressive reduction in work on traditional sets. The other end of the spectrum. The clearest contrast is offered by Mango. The company presented a campaign for its youth line generated entirely with AIa much more radical approach than Zara’s. In its case, AI is not limited to expanding combinations from a previous session, but is placed at the center of the creative process, although with subsequent intervention by human teams for selection and retouching. Mango frames this decision within its 2024-2026 strategic plan and presents it as a commitment to efficiency and innovation, thus marking a clear limit compared to hybrid approaches. Even so, the discomfort does not disappear. Some actors in the sector warn that the growing use of AI could reduce the number of assignments for photographers, models and production teams. It does not speak of a specific impact, but of a cumulative effect that can alter an entire ecosystem, from established professionals to those trying to make their way. The concern is not only focused on a specific brand, but on the sum of decisions that, little by little, change how many times a camera is turned on. Images | Zara | Highlight ID | M. Rennim In Xataka | All tech companies are putting AI in all their products. The problem is that nobody wants them

Buying seafood before Christmas Eve saves up to 40%. A mistake when freezing it ruins your dinner

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Christmas is coming and, with it, the spread of the large tables. In Spain, seafood is the absolute king of the banquet, but its presence this year is once again marked by a “stratospheric” price increase. According to data from the OCUshopping on the eve of Christmas Eve can mean paying 78% more for barnacles or 53% more for clams. Given this scenario, the freezer becomes the best ally of savings, allowing discounts of up to 40%. However, saving can be expensive. Science and gastronomy issue an urgent warning: the problem of Christmas poisoning is usually not the original product, but rather our management of the cold at home. The golden rule: immediacy. The most common mistake begins at the front door. According to CuidatePlusmany consumers make the mistake of leaving seafood in the refrigerator “for a couple of days” before deciding to freeze it. Microbiology explains that the final quality depends directly on the initial state. You have to freeze it “as soon as you get home” to stop the proliferation of microorganisms in its tracks. Furthermore, prior preparation is a step that we cannot skip. As highlighted in the online fishmonger Mariskitoit is essential to wash the pieces well and, above all, dry them with absorbent paper. The outside humidity creates ice crystals that damage the fiber of the animal, ruining its texture. It is not just a question of flavor, but freezing is the only safe barrier to neutralize parasites like Anisakis. Each species has its manual. Not all seafood accepts the same treatment. To avoid errors that ruin the product, we must distinguish the families: Large Crustaceans (Crabs, crabs, crabs): They should always be frozen cooked. The professional trick is to wrap them in a cloth moistened with their own cooking water so that they do not dry out. a detail: they should be stored with their legs up to prevent the internal broth from being lost (“the chub broth“). Small Crustaceans (Prawns, prawns, crayfish): They prefer raw, especially if they are going to be grilled. In the case of crayfish, although crude oil can aesthetically blacken the headits quality is not altered; If you prefer to avoid this, pre-cooking is a valid alternative. Bivalves (clams, mussels): There is a technical debate here. In the sources consulted, some of them suggest steam them beforehand so that the meat does not stick to the shell, others hold which must be raw to keep their marine essence intact. The forbidden: never freeze barnacles or oysters. Their texture is destroyed and, in the case of oysters, it is extremely difficult to know if the animal has died before the process, raising the risk of toxicity. The moment where everything can be ruined. Yes, we are talking about the defrosting process. The gold standard It is non-negotiable: always in the refrigerator, never at room temperature or under hot water. The safest method is to use a rack over a tray. This prevents the shellfish from coming into contact with the water it releases, a place where bacteria “have their fun.” If time is of the essence, from a food safety portal recommends submerging the piece in cold water with salt in an airtight bag, but they prohibit the use of the microwave because it “cooks” the edges of the seafood and ruins its texture. How do they last in our refrigerators? According to the fishmonger Solo Mariscosthe freezer must reach at least -18ºC. In the refrigerator, the optimal temperature ranges between 0ºC and 4ºC. But the cold also has enemies. From Mariscos Carrillo warn that the air in the refrigerator dries out the product; Therefore, they recommend covering the seafood with a damp cloth. Regarding the times, Mariscos Gallego set expiration date to the “trunk of memories”: bivalves should not spend more than 2 months frozen and large crustaceans a maximum of 3 to 4 weeks if we want them to maintain their premium quality. Can I die from poor intake? Food poisoning is not just an upset stomach. bacteria like Salmonella, E.coli wave Vibrio They can cause everything from severe dehydration to sepsis (a fatal immune system response). Additionally, there is the danger of toxins; as Dr. Masarat Jilani explains in a report to The Guardiansome like those of Bacillus cereus (common in reheated seafood rice) they resist even the heat of cooking. Added to this is the problem about heavy metals. Although shellfish (prawns, mussels) usually have low levels of mercury, we should avoid large species such as bluefin tuna or swordfish in pregnant women and children under 10 years of age. The safety test on the plate. As a final piece of advice, there is one piece of advice that is infallible: the “hit test“. Before cooking a clam, if it is open and does not close when you give it a little touch, it is dead and should go directly in the trash. Christmas is a time to enjoy, but as Dr. Jilani concludes“most poisonings disappear within days, but prevention is the only way to avoid extreme cases.” This year, don’t let saving in your shopping cart be a bet against your health. Image | Unsplash Xataka | The great Christmas revolution in Spain is not the millions of LED lights: it is the rise of “Tardebuena” and “Tardevieja”

We have found the oldest genetic evidence of incest in Europe. And it’s a case of father and daughter

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When we talk about endogamy in the historical worldthe truth is that it is easy to think about the royal dynasties or in island populations that were on the verge of extinction. But the truth is that this type of practice dates back 4,000 years, since it was only now that a team of researchers has found the first irrefutable biological proof of a sexual union. between a father and his own daughter in European prehistory. The study. Although it may seem crazy, the fact that a father and his own daughter were united beyond the family bond, the reality is very different. The research published in Communications Biology has reached this conclusion after analyzing some remains from a Bronze Age community in Calabria. The discovered. The finding focuses on the Grotta della Monacaan archaeological site in southern Italy used for both mining and burials during the Bronze Age (between 1780 and 1380 BC). There, archaeologists recovered remains of several individuals, but two of them powerfully called the attention of geneticists when analyzing your DNA. Specifically, an adult male with the code GMO022 and a pre-adolescent child with the code GMO007. The genetic material. It undoubtedly keeps a large number of secrets, and the fact that it is maintained over time to know all its details. By sequencing the genomes of these two subjects, the researchers They saw the kinship they had with great clarityand the subject with the number 22 was not only the father of the child. The analysis revealed that the child’s mother was also the daughter of subject 22. That is, child GMO007 was the result of a first-degree union between father and daughter. According to the researchers, led by paleogeneticists from the University of Bologna and the Max Planck Institute, this is the oldest evidence of this type of incest ever sequenced in Europe. Behind the discovery. How can researchers be so sure of this? The key is in a genetic measure called ROH or “homozygosity sections“To understand it, you have to know that when two parents are closely related, their offspring will inherit identical genetic blocks from both sides, and not different ones, as is normal in relationships with two genetically different people. The closer the relationship, the longer these blocks are. In the case of boy GMO007, researchers found unusually long stretches of identical DNA, occupying a massive portion of his genome. This through the computer modeling managed to rule out that it was a union between brothersand confirmed that the markers fit a father-daughter relationship. Habit? Without a doubt, it is the idea that can come to mind when seeing something that today can be a real aberration. In this way, looking for the reasons, it was seen that this community did not have a state of isolation that justified them having to procreate among their own relatives, since the population was about 5,000 individuals. In this way, there were many options available to not have to choose to have a father-daughter relationship. This leads the study authors to an important conclusion: this was not an accepted cultural practice. Unlike later Egyptian dynasties or the Incas, where royal incest was sacred, in this Bronze Age community the case of GMO007 appears to be a unique event. It wasn’t normal. In this way, it seems that this was a chance event or a violation of a taboo, which for some reason occurred in this family. The reasons are not known, but at that time it was not something accepted by social norms, despite talking about a community that was 3,700 years old. Its importance. Until now, evidence of first-degree incest (parent-child or full siblings) was almost non-existent in the European genetic registry outside of very specific cases. We had data on unions between siblings in Neanderthals or distant cases in the Irish Neolithic (Newgrange), but nothing so explicit between direct generations in this period. In this way, this study reminds us that the DNA of the oldest people even helps us see their most intimate details. Images | Sangharsh Lohakare In Xataka | They found a cube-shaped skull in Tamaulipas and thought it was a migrant. Science has turned history upside down

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