Month: January 2026

A simple gadget is making a species evolve live and direct: hummingbirds

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During the late 1820s, Rene Lesson visited many times the ornithological collection of François Victor Masséna. Every morning, he crossed the doors of the Parisian palace of the Dukes of Rivoli and immersed himself in the more than 12,000 species they had accumulated there. Some say he fell in love there. Sometimes, just before immersing himself in work, he would come across a very young woman Anna d’EsslingMasséna’s wife. Lesson, who was well aware of his social situation, never said anything; but in his papers he described Anna as “a woman of exceptional beauty, elegance and education.” I imagine that, for this reason, when he discovered the amethyst-headed hummingbird among the Duke’s specimens, he thought of her. I imagine that, for this reason, Lesson named it after him. What I can’t imagine is what the French ornithologist would think if we told him that we were “evolving” the hummingbird he gave to Anna until we changed it forever. But that’s how it is. The evolution live and direct. I came to this story (and Global Change Biology study which supports it) thanks to a bluit by Carlos Cabido. It is, as the evolutionary ecologist says, “another case of rapid evolution that has generated observable adaptive changes in a very short period.” The “smoking gun.” But let’s start at the beginning: researchers at the University of California Berkeley analyzed the population expansion and the morphological changes in the beaks of hummingbirds in relation to a very specific device: the feeders that, since the 1930s, have been used on the west coast of the United States. These are simple sugar water dispensers, but (always according to researchers) they have caused a series of very striking changes. What changes? On a regional and temporal scale, “the density/use of feeders appears as the best predictor of population expansion”; well above other variables analyzed. This means that the installation of these dispensers is the key to the expansion of hummingbirds. Linked to that, researchers they observed significant changes in the morphology of the beak: it has become longer (to better access the feeder) and sharper (in a context where territoriality is becoming more important because it is linked to a very concentrated resource). And all this in a couple of decades. That is, in about ten generations. Why is it important? Above all, because it is one more example that a cheap, massive and standardized device (if it creates a new food environment) can reconfigure body structures and behavioral repertoires. And, beyond all that, because it shows that, if environmental change is intense and sustained, natural selection works like a shot. However, all that glitters is not a hummingbird. In fact, Anna’s hummingbird is almost an exception. As far as we know, countless hummingbird species They are suffering (and big time) the changes linked to the Anthropocene: although the Anna is growing, its first cousins ​​are in clear decline. And yes, it is our fault. Yeah this study shows that we have great power to change nature, the overview reminds us that “with great power comes great responsibility.” Image | Robert Bottman In Xataka | The domestication of cats remains a mystery. But we are closer to knowing where and why it happened

when Albacete set the record for a capital at -24ºC

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Europe has started 2026 with cold. Very cold. But even the icy winds that have hit part of the continent and the peninsula these days, sinking the thermometer below 15 ºC, they pale when compared to what Castilla-La Mancha experienced in the early stages of 1971. That year left a meteorological curiosity in Albacete, a record that has remained unbeatable since then in the historical records of the Aemet: the coldest temperature ever remembered in a provincial capital, neither more nor less than -24 degrees. The most curious thing is that not even that value (more typical of other Siberian latitudes) marks the record of cold registered by the agency in Spain. “Extreme values”. The Aemet not only helps us know the weather in the ‘future’, to know if this week it is going to rain or be sunny, we should dust off the winter scarves and gloves or we can give the anoraks a break. The agency also allows us to know what the weather was like in our cities 10, 30, 50 years ago… even more, almost a century ago, something that is possible thanks to its series of “absolute extreme values”. The service (available online) details the record measurements associated with each weather station since 1920. What does that mean? That we can know the record values ​​of rain, temperatures, snowfall or gusts of wind captured by each of the stations managed by Aemet in the 50 provinces of Spain, in addition to the cities of Ceuta and Melilla. Their data must be handled with some caution (especially in comparisons) because they are subject to important handicaps. Aemet does not clarify, for example, whether all the sensors have been operational for the same amount of time or how long each one has been working. Another key fact is that within the same region (or even locality) there may be thermal differences or significant rainfall. It all depends on where the sensor is installed. A station located in a port area may collect very different values ​​than another located within the same municipal area but in the heart of the urban area or in a higher area, such as an airport. In fact, it is not strange that Aemet has sensors that collect information near the terminals. provincial capital lowest temperature Date Madrid -15.2ºC 01/16/1945 Barcelona -10ºC 02/11/1956 Valencia -7.2ºC 02/11/1956 Saragossa -11.4ºC 02/05/1963 Seville -5.5ºC 02/12/1956 Malaga -3.8ºC 02/04/1954 Murcia -7.5ºC 01/16/1985 Palma de Mallorca -10ºC 02/12/1956 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria 6.5ºC 03/27/1954 Alicante -4.6ºC 02/12/1956 Bilbao -8.6ºC 02/03/1963 Cordova -8.2ºC 01/28/2005 Valladolid -18.8ºC 01/03/1971 Victoria -21ºC 12/25/1962 To Coruña -4.8ºC 01/07/1985 Grenade -14.2ºC 01/16/1987 Oviedo -6ºC 01/07/1985 Santa Cruz de Tenerife 8.1ºC 02/22/1926 Pamplona -16.2ºC 01/12/1985 Almeria 0.1ºC 01/27/2005 San Sebastian -12.1ºC 02/03/1956 Burgos -22ºC 01/03/1971 Albacete -24ºC 01/03/1971 Santander -5.4ºC 01/21/1957 Castellón de la Plana -7.3ºC 02/11/1956 Logrono -11.6ºC 12/25/1962 Badajoz -7.2ºC 01/28/2005 Salamanca -20ºC 02/05/1963 Huelva -5.8ºC 02/17/1938 Lleida -15.4ºC 01/02/1971 Tarragona (Reus Airport) -8ºC 02/11/1983 Lion -17.4ºC 01/13/1945 Jaen -8ºC 02/11/1956 Cadiz -1ºC 02/11/1956 Ourense -8.6ºC 12/25/2001 Girona -13ºC 01/09/1985 Lugo -10ºC 12/23/2005 Caceres -5.8ºC 02/11/1956 Guadalaraja -11ºC 01/28/1952 Melilla 0.4ºC 01/27/2005 Toledo -14.4ºC 01/18/1945 Ceuta -0.4ºC 01/05/1941 Pontevedra -5.5ºC 12/10/1922 Palencia -14.8ºC 01/04/1971 Royal City -13.8ºC 01/03/1971 zamora -13.4ºC 01/03/1972 Avila -16ºC 01/15/1985 Huesca -13.2ºC 02/12/1956 Basin -17.8ºC 01/03/1971 Segovia -17ºC 01/06/1938 Soria -15ºC 12/17/1963 Teruel -21ºC 01/12/2021 One piece of information: -24ºC. Taking into account the above, the historical record of the Aemet leaves a curious fact, one that I remembered recently in X Vicente Aupí, popularizer and astrophotographer: on January 3, 1971 Albacete the thermometers dropped neither more nor less than -24º. The data was obtained at the air base and is interesting for several reasons. Not only is it the lowest value recorded in the city since records began, it is also the coldest confirmed in a provincial capital. Freezer records. The next lowest value among the provincial capitals was experienced by Burgos that same day (January 3, 1971), when the mercury dropped to -22. Vitoria and Teruel follow in the ranking. The first recorded -21 ºC on Christmas Day 1962, the second endured the same temperature on January 12, 2021. These are surprisingly low data, although in recent decades Aemet has reported a few measurements below -15º. Meteorological bulletin of January 3, 1971, when the station located in Albacete recorded a minimum of -24 ºC, a record value among the provincial capitals of Spain. Extract from the meteorological bulletin of December 17, 1963, when a minimum of -30 ºC was recorded at the Calamocha-VOR observatory station, province of Teruel. to stay at home. The most striking thing about January 3, 1971 is that the thermometer not only collapsed in Albacete. Another interesting resource that Aemet offers is the newspaper archive of the ‘Meteorological Bulletin’a part edited by the agency’s predecessors between March 1893 and well into the 21st century. On its website today we can consult practically all of its digitized issues from 1894 to 2007. Among them is the census of that Sunday, January 3, 1971. And what does it tell us? That day the people of Albacete were not the only ones who faced a wave of polar cold. Although the city took the cake, in Burgos they scored -22º, in Valladolid, Teruel and Daroca -19º and -18º in Cuenca or La Molina. Some of these values ​​were also obtained at aerodromes, just as happened in Albacete, where that day the thermometers they did not go beyond -6º. In all the provincial capitals of Spain, that day the mercury did not rise above 10 ºC, the maximum recorded in Almería, Cádiz and Castellón. The coldest day? Yes. And no. The figure for Albacete is a record among provincial capitals, but in Spain we have endured even colder days. At the end of 1963, the residents of a small town in Teruel saw how the mercury dropped until it reaches -30 ºC. That is the surprising minimum temperature recorded on December 17 of that year … Read more

Disney+ has discovered that Generation Z does not want to watch its two-hour movies. So he’s going to give them vertical microdramas

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Disney+ has decided to join the battle for the viewer’s thumb. The company announced this week at CES that will incorporate vertical videos to its platform during 2026, a commitment to the format that dominates TikTok and Instagram. The news marks a strategic shift for a giant traditionally associated with the traditional (and horizontal) cinematographic experience. What does it consist of? If Disney previously sold large screens in dark rooms, now it is not exactly seeking to replace them, but rather to create a new habit: that opening Disney+ is a gesture as automatic as doing so with any social network. Netflix measures its impact in monthly viewing hours, but Disney wants what YouTube and TikTok already have: compulsive daily views. In an industry where engagement Everyday life has become the battlefield, Mickey and Spider-Man will learn to do choreography in vertical format. What will it include? Now, as explained by Erin Teagueexecutive vice president of product management, the plan aims for a feed personalized with algorithms that will mix news and entertainment. The raw material will be varied: from original productions designed for vertical format to recycled material from social networks and scenes from series or movies reformatted for mobile screens. Teague acknowledges that what they intend is to turn Disney+ into “a must-visit destination every day.” It is no longer enough to be the service where you can watch the latest season of something, but to be the one that you open without thinking, several times a day, just like you do with other apps that don’t even charge a subscription. where does it come from. The strategy does not come from nowhere. Disney had already tested the waters with the so-called “Verts” in the renewed ESPN application, launched in August 2025. Those vertical sports clips (highlights, quick analyzes, statements) functioned as a laboratory before escalating the bet to the rest of the Disney+ ecosystem. Rita Ferro, global head of advertising at Disney, commented in the presentation that ESPN had captured 33% of all live sports audiences during 2025 in the United States, leaving its closest competitor at 20%. The evolution of the vertical format. The vertical format has been redefining how we consume audiovisual content for years. Teague herself, before signing for Disney, worked for years on YouTube and witnessed from the inside how Google initially underestimated TikTok’s push. The answer (YouTube Shorts) was a long time coming, but when it did it changed many preconceptions: most of these short videos they end up consuming themselves on televisionsnot on mobile phones. The vertical conquered the living room, and that’s where Disney+ wants to be. Aside from this, Netflix tried publishing vertical anime videos in 2021, but never took the proposal beyond limited experiments. No competitor has yet found the formula, and Disney wants to be the first to get it right. Who has already done it. None other than Procter & Gamble, the multinational consumer products companyreinvent the soap opera and launch this January ‘The Golden Pear Affair‘, a “micro soap opera” of 50 episodes designed specifically for consumption on social networks, since its distribution will start on platforms such as Instagram and TikTok before migrating to its own mobile application. This is not advertising disguised as content: it is content designed from scratch to sell products: if the product placement classic interrupted the narrative, here the narrative is born to serve the product. Meanwhile, the fever of microdramas that conquered Asia a few years agoreaches other continents with production companies like TelevisaUnivision making compressed soap operas. The Spanish-speaking network has been exploring the “microdramas”ultra-brief versions of the soap opera format. and disney you know this works: Apps like ReelShort and Crazy Maple Studio have been dominating niche markets with sixty-second vertical dramas for years. Its model (free hook episodes, payment to unlock more chapters) has shown that addictive narrative works even atomized. These Asian platforms generate tens of millions annually with content that Hollywood would have considered impossible to make profitable a few years ago. Advertising implications. The vertical format is not just an aesthetic or generational issue. It is, above all, a new advertising space: Disney announced a metric that merges Disney’s own data with information from external providers, saying that the format was a very attractive space for advertisers. And it also introduced an artificial intelligence-powered video generation tool that allows advertisers to convert existing materials into renewed ads. It is no longer necessary to produce spots from scratch; just feed the machine with assets priors and brand guidelines. So now Disney’s recent deal with OpenAI does. acquires a renewed meaning. Transformation or concession. Teague openly acknowledged that “Gen Z and Gen Alpha aren’t necessarily thinking about sitting through two-and-a-half-hour long content on their phones.” Disney does not want to attract new generations to its classic catalog, but rather to speak in the same language as these young people who have always been its potential audience. For millions of users, cinema is no longer the basic unit of entertainment, and Disney has decided that, rather than compete with Netflix, it has to do so with WhatsApp, Instagram and TikTok. In Xataka | “I cried 152 times in 2025”: Generation Z lists their emotional crises and turns them into infographics

We had been looking for an alternative to cement for decades. We just found it in seashells

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The search for construction elements that move away from classic materials such as steel, concrete or cement makes sense from different fronts ranging from economics to sustainability through technical limitations. Without going any further, we can already see skyscrapers made of wood and some even compete to be the tallest in the world. Yes, wood is proposed as a serious alternative, but you can also give a twist to cement as we know it with a new old acquaintance: the shells on the beach. From waste to concrete ingredient. Seashells that are normally treated as waste can become a kind of substitute for the cement used for concrete, as a published study by the University of East London has concluded. in Construction Materials magazine. In fact, they can act both as a filling material and as a partial substitute for cement. Thus, microstructural analysis revealed that the shells, which are rich in calcium, help refine the porous structure of the concrete and promote the formation of additional binding compounds, that is, it even provides additional benefits in terms of performance. under the microscope. Scallop shells are composed by a range of 95 to 99% calcium carbonate (like limestone, the raw material for cement) presented in two crystalline forms, calcite and aragonite. The other 1-5% is the organic fraction, which serves as cement to bind the calcium crystals. The shells are a sort of biogenic limestone, chemically compatible with cement, which is still a hydraulic binder of limestone and clay. Up to 36% less cement. The process is also quite “simple”: grinding scallop shells to turn them into a fine powder suitable to replace part of the cement mixture. How much? Up to 36% without substantially altering the characteristics of the concrete. Why is it important. The partial replacement of cement with a natural waste material such as shells is an unexpected and novel solution to reduce the environmental impact of cement, currently responsible for approximately 7% of global carbon emissions. This percentage is so high not only because of the fuel required to heat the furnaces, but also because of the chemistry of the process itself. In fact, already has been experimented with ecological mortar. The person responsible for the study, the associate professor of Structural Engineering at the UEL and doctor Ali Abass contributes more context: “Concrete is everywhere and, consequently, its carbon footprint is enormous.” Regarding its applicability beyond the study, Abass is optimistic: “At moderate levels of substitution, concrete performs very well, meaning this solution could be scaled in real-world environments.” In addition, two problems are solved at once: “Millions of tonnes of shell waste are generated around the world every year, and most of it has no useful destination. If we can divert even a fraction into low-emission building materials, the environmental benefits could be significant. It’s a simple idea with real potential to transform part of the sector.” A giant step towards more sustainable construction. In short, the use of shells would allow us to cut significant amounts of CO₂ from one of the most polluting materials in the world and move towards more sustainable construction. In the absence of future industrial trials to support large-scale reliability, its adoption potential is notable, especially at a time of increasing calls for stricter environmental standards and scrutiny over carbon footprint calculations. In Xataka | Bloc is a brick that promises to lower the temperature around it by almost 10 degrees: its technology is that of the botijo In Xataka | In our battle against plastic, we have centrifuged bacteria. And its cellulose is postulated as the ideal substitute Cover | Rodolfo Quiros and Pok Rie

Science has investigated why we bite our nails or leave everything until the last minute: “controlled explosions”

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Biting our nails until it hurts, bingeing on junk food after a stressful day either open TikTok just when we have to start workingit is not an irritating habit that we would like to erase from our daily lives. But the reality is that science is beginning to see these behaviors in a radically different way: as a protection strategy for the organism. The brain seeks survival. As pointed out by different experts such as clinical psychologist Charlie Heriot-Maitland, author of Controlled Explosions in Mental Healthour brain prefers to inflict controlled “microdamage” on itself rather than face a greater and unpredictable threat. And the premise from which affective neuroscience and evolutionary psychology start is forceful: our brain is not programmed for us to be happy, but it is programmed to seek survival. Which is precisely what we did thousands of years ago when we tried to hunt or flee from predators. Systems that are still very present in our genetics. A hypersensitive system. This threat detection system is hypersensitive today. In the modern world we do not have to flee from a predator, but criticism from the boss or the fear of failing in a project activates the same alarms that a predator in the savanna activated in our ancestors. And faced with this unbearable stress, the brain looks for an escape route that acts as a “safety valve.” This is what Heriot-Maitland calls “controlled explosions.” Nail biting. Why can something as absurd as biting your nails or picking your skin be “protective”? The key is predictability. And in a chaotic world and an emotional, abstract and difficult to manage threat, cause us a little physical damage (like biting a cuticle), causes the brain to divert attention towards a specific, real stimulus and, above all, under our control. In this way it works as a “costly signal”, since we prefer a small and known damage to cushion emotional pain that we perceive as potentially devastating. Procrastinating is not laziness. scientific literature speaks in this sense of the self-handicapping (self-limitation), which suggests that we put obstacles on ourselves to protect our self-esteem. This way, if you stop studying for an exam and fail, you can tell yourself, “I failed because I didn’t study.” It’s a small damage to your ego. However, if you study to the maximum and fail, the conclusion is much more painful: “I failed because I am not capable.” The brain prefers the narrative of lack of effort (microdamage) rather than facing the threat of incompetence that poses greater emotional damage to anyone. It is not exclusive to us. In nature, there are numerous social insects that resort to defensive self-immolation in order to save their colony, as we already saw. In our case, the mechanism is something like this: we sacrifice our current well-being, such as physical health, to reduce a perceived long-term risk. The problem is that this system is designed for life or death situations, not to manage the chronic stress of the 21st century. In this way, what began as a useful defense ends up becoming a self-defeating pattern that generates more anxiety than it relieves. How to avoid it. If we understand that modern nails or procrastination are defense mechanisms, the solution changes completely. In this way, modern therapies, such as Compassion Focused Therapy, They propose that the first step It is not fighting against the habit, but understanding the reason for its existence. The most important thing in this case is not to punish yourself, since self-criticism is perceived by the brain as other threatens more, which reinforces the need to resort to the destructive habit to calm down. In this way, if we generate security, the brain will not have the need to cause these “controlled explosions.” Images | Sander Sammy Tim Gouw In Xataka | Procrastination is one of the great temptations of the mind. There are techniques to avoid it, according to science

MG, Omoda and BYD close a spectacular 2025 and are among the best sellers

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It was the last days of March 2023 when we traveled to the north of Madrid to attend the BYD launch. “Europe has had its eyes closed for a long time”they told us from the company. That felt like the arrival of the first Chinese brand to our country, the one that came to confront Tesla in the electric car. At that time, MG was already selling thousands of units in our country and there were minority alternatives but the arrival of a manufacturer that was approaching two million cars sold It was already more serious. Months later Chery would arrivewith Omoda and Jaecoo, but also Ebrounder the arm. Along the way, other minority brands such as Lynk&Co or Xpeng have also been bringing new models to the market. But the bulk of Chinese sales and impact in our country is concentrated in the three companies we have listed. MG is completely established in our country, BYD has completed its second full year (with a change of direction included) and Omoda, Jaecoo and Ebro have now established their offer. And the result has been very good for them. More models and more sales If the year of Chinese brands in Spain has been characterized by something, it is because have put more points of sale on the streetmore cars in those points of sale and, above all, more cars in the garages of your potential customers. At the end of 2025, in Spain the main Chinese brands have obtained the following results: MG: 45,163 units (growth of 46.78%) BYD: 25,556 units (growth of 373.87%) Omoda: 13,963 units (growth of 79.33%) Jaecoo: 9,728 units (growth of 785.17%) Ebro: 12,459 units (growth of 44396.43%, they only had one car available at the end of 2024) Are very striking data due to several factors: MG sold more cars in Spain than Citroën (34,286 units), with which it competes on price. And it sold more cars than classics like Ford (29,065 units), Nissan (34,711 units), Opel (26,549) or Skoda (42,387 units). BYD only sells plug-in hybrid and electric cars so its potential customer market is much smaller Omoda, Jaecoo and Ebro are three brands of the Chery Group but each of them competes with three or four cars that, in addition, can be stepped on in price but not in positioning. If the sales of the Chery Group are added, they exceed 35,000 units. Brand by brand If we focus on the approach of each of these companies, we must take into account that MG already has a wide range of vehicles but is managing to attract customers in one of the most complicated markets: that of the cheapest cars on the market. Almost half of the sales of the best positioned one are accumulated by the MG ZS, one of the most affordable options on the market that for just over 20,000 euros delivers the ECO sticker so sought after in a Spain with growing low-emission zones. This has been the first year with its hybrid version working at full capacity and that has been noticed. The same has happened with the MG3which accumulates more than 9,000 units and is its second best-selling car. He good result The MG ZS among hybrids can be seen on the list of best sellers. And, of the non-plug-in hybrids, the Chinese SUV is in seventh position, surpassed by a Peugeot 2008 that has accumulated just five more registrations and in a field where Toyota clearly dominates (three of the four best-selling cars in this segment are its). MG’s third big best-seller is a good example of where the strength of Chinese brands lies. The MG EHS is a plug-in hybrid that, again, conquers by price. It has managed to become the second best-selling plug-in hybrid of the year, surpassing a Toyota C-HR that could be the great favorite. But no one is offering as much size and equipment at a lower price among plug-ins than the Chinese brands. That’s why the BYD Seal U has been the best-selling plug-in hybrid. As we said in our testcosts the same as the Toyota C-HR powered by this technology but for a family it can be much more interesting. The BYD SUV is not the only Chinese one that sneaks into the plug-in hybrid. The Jaecoo 7 also has its market share, a model that has also focused on offering extensive equipment at a reasonable price, which has allowed it to position itself as the sixth best-selling vehicle of this type in our country. The appearance of all of them and the Omoda 9 and the Ebro S700 among the best sellers of December, it gives us a preview of 2026 where everything indicates that The plug-in hybrid is the other great asset of Chinese models for next year (after the entry range). In that low range, the Chery group has already begun to make room for itself with the Omoda 5 but hopes to hit the table with its hybrid version. The car not only has an ECO label, The SHS-H version is a hybrid with all the letters and a particular touch. Attractive price, a design that is being liked and extensive equipment are its great assets for next year. And if we look at BYD, the result can also be underlined as excellent. Surviving with electric cars exclusively was becoming difficult to grow quickly and they have put all their efforts into action. They tested the BYD Seal U DM-i and found that they have a gap among plug-in hybrids. Maybe your Signal 6 DM-ias a family sedan, has it more complicated but the BYD Atto 2 DM-i It is priced to be the most attractive option on the market right now. Despite everything, the company is the first of the mortals after Tesla. Elon Musk’s people continue to dominate the electric market in our country with an iron fist, where the autonomy/price ratio continues to outweigh the rest of the values. Of course, the … Read more

We have been obsessed with Japan for decades to understand people who live over 100 years. The key was in Brazil

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For decades, when science was searching for secrets of aginghe always looked in the same places: Japan’s “Blue Zones”Sardinia or the icy and homogeneous populations of northern Europe. However, researchers have pointed out that all this time we have been ignoring a biological gold mine: Brazil. The study. Understanding why there are people who live to be over one hundred years of age is undoubtedly an objective of science to to be able to unlock possible therapies in the future that will extend our lives much longer. Since it is curious that in specific areas such as Japan the population ages far beyond the normal average, being a mystery to science (although the reasons are already gone). The latest research on the matterpublished on January 6 in Genomic Psychiatry, has identified a genetic mix in the South American country that could contain protective variants invisible in more uniform populations. The Brazilian superhumans. The study, led by geneticists Mayana Zats and Mateus Vidigal de Castro, is based on the analysis of a group of more than 160 centenarians and at least 20 supercentenarians, who They are those people who are over 110 years old. Among these people, some quite relevant figures stand out, such as Sister Inah, who reached the age of 116, and several of the oldest men in the world, according to the LongeviQuest Atlas. But what really makes this group of people who have been analyzed by researchers special is not their age, but their biological resilience. Its biological resistance. The researchers’ main thesis is that the intense Brazilian miscegenation, fruit of centuries of interaction between indigenous populationsPortuguese colonizers, enslaved people of African origin and European and Japanese immigrants, has created a unique genomic diversity. By analyzing this genetic “breeding ground”, scientists have identified millions of variants that do not appear in large international biobanks. The hypothesis suggests that this mixture allows protective variants to emerge that are practically invisible in homogeneous populations. It is, in essence, a search for the genes of resilience in an environment of maximum diversity. COVID resistance. Without a doubt, it is one of the most fascinating examples of this history, since before the arrival of vaccines, three supercentenarians of the study they managed to survive the disease. By analyzing their immune response, the researchers found a concentration of cells related to innate defense that was very efficient. In this way, it was seen that individuals not only live longer, but also have a defense system capable of neutralizing threats that are lethal to people decades younger. Something that seems to be related to an increase in biological processes related to autophagy, that is, the ability of some cells to literally clean the body of harmful components. What was already known. This paradigm shift connects with previous works such as those done by researcher Manel Esteller on the epigenetic profile of the Spanish María Branyasthe oldest Spanish person of all time. In this case, what was done was to understand the “biological clock” of longevity in Europe. Now, the Brazilian project expands the map into the unknown. By sequencing entire genomes in this mixed-race population, scientists have discovered some eight billion undescribed variants, many of which could have a functional impact on how we age and how our cells withstand the test of time. Towards the future. The study of Brazilian supercentenarians is not only a matter of biographical curiosity about who holds the age record, but a critical step towards genomic medicine of the future. By understanding how the mixture of ancestors can concentrate protective factors against degenerative or infectious diseases, science is getting closer to discovering whether there is a biological “formula” for longevity that can be translated into therapies for the rest of the population. Brazil, with its genetic mosaic, is demonstrating that the most complex answers to our survival could be written in the genes of those who, against all odds, have seen more than a century of history pass by. Images | Unsplash In Xataka | The change of year has a weapon to slow down your aging: a list of New Year’s resolutions

More and more car brands are fleeing from Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. And it makes all the sense in the world

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My Volkswagen Polo is 10 years old, has a screen where I can see car statistics and play the radio or Spotify and little else: if I want to enjoy a GPS navigator, I have to place my phone on a support on the grille and it will work. So yes, I get really excited when I drive my partner’s Kona, with a screen bigger than a tablet on which I can visit Xataka from the web browser, watch videos either play a game. Android Auto is wonderful, but if I connect my iPhone, using apps like Waze on CarPlay is also another story. For someone who has a stupid screen in their car and the intention of not renewing it in the next five years, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay sound like a heavenly melody in my ears. However, Google and Apple’s infotainment systems are taking a step back: there are manufacturers who decide to back off, so their new models are left out. And it doesn’t surprise me. Goodbye to Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Last summer and despite the delays, Apple promised they would be happy with their Apple CarPlay Ultra budding until he got a brand slam: There are barely Aston Martin and Porsche left. Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Ford, Lincoln, Audi, Jaguar, Acura, Volvo, Honda, Renault, Infinity and Polestar got off the boat. In the fall, the leadership of General Motors explained in a The Verge podcast that it intended to remove both infotainment systems from its newer vehicles and replace them with its own Gemini-spiked system. Finally, German brands such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, or Volkswagen they have joined to create an open source alternative called Safety Open Vehicle Core. S-Core, its abbreviation, is basically a base infrastructure with the essentials from which each manufacturer will build its adapted customization layer. It’s a matter of control. Android Auto and Apple CarPlay provide a unified and mainstream experience within the reach of the majority who have a smartphone and implementing them is not expensive. Although well, it is not so much because of the money they spend installing Android Auto and Apple CarPlay and more because of what they stop earning. Data collection and what you can do with it. It should be noted that with their respective infotainment systems, Apple collects information such as your position and how it varies over time, which allows you to know your speed, schedules, frequent routes… to give some simple examples. They also know what apps you use and when. An open door to the vein of subscriptions. In recent years we have already seen how large manufacturers launched a subscription model to release certain premium hardware functions: Volkswagen to unlock all the powerthe controversial BMW heated seats (then backed out), Mercedes and its improvements subscription accelerationor Polestar for offering similar performance packages. Having access to detailed information on usage habits would allow the establishment of a user profile and thus offer a more personalized experience in the form of a subscription. Materializing it will not be easy or fast. The GM news detailed that the measure would be implemented in the coming years and does not even imply a complete disengagement as long as it does not completely eliminate Google from the equation, since it implements Gemini, the Menlo Park company’s big bet. And Google’s AI is not exactly sparing in capturing information. Using an Android fork could also be an interesting option. S-Core- Eclipse Release Schedule The route of German companies does seem more viable. In fact, their preview schedule is available on HitHub and for now they are fulfilling it to the letter. Of course, one thing is that they are able to create a platform and another is the experience it offers. How cold it is outside of Android Auto and CarPlay. One of the great assets of Android Auto is the quantity and quality of compatible apps: Thinking about a platform without Google Maps, Waze or Spotify would feel like a huge step backwards. So later, they will have to get the companies behind them to bring their apps to these systems. And even if they did achieve it, then there are other hot potatoes such as updates to their frequency. Life without Android Auto or Apple CarPlay is an option and if you don’t tell Rivian or Tesla, but in the end it’s all about user experience. Don’t let it feel like taking a step back. Buying a car (especially if it is high-end) and finding a setback is not a dish of good taste. They don’t charge you a premium for unlocking functions or removing advertising either. The scenario of having to pay a monthly fee to access maps and extras when you have a solid and free alternative on the market sounds absurd. In any case, the winds of change are blowing on car screens. In Xataka | Android Auto is quietly preparing for us to drive with smart glasses. In Spain it won’t be easy In Xataka | This car was a pioneer with Android Automotive, but its users were crying out for Android Auto. Your wish has been granted

why 14 municipalities of Guadalajara have rebelled against Europe’s “mineral sovereignty” plan

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The silence that guards the 15,000 hectares of the Sierra Norte of Guadalajara is not empty, it is an inheritance. However, that calm has been disturbed by the flash of a promise as old as it is dangerous: gold. The emergence of Oroberia SLU—subsidiary of the Australian multinational Global Mining Enterprises—has fractured the peace of the region with a request to drill into its bowels that has awakened the ghosts of exploitation. The origin of the conflict. The alarm went off in the spring of last year. Oroberia SLU is a company established only in March 2025 with a capital of only 3,000 euros, what woke up immediate suspicions about its solvency and transparency. Through three projects called “Gua”, “Dala” and “Jara”, the company aims to explore a territory that covers from La Toba to Atienza. This new “mining wave” finds its legal protection in the EU Fundamental Raw Materials Regulation (in force since April 2024), which seeks to cover 10% of the extraction of strategic supplies on European soil. What Brussels sells as “patriotic resilience” in Guadalajara translates into accelerated permits and a disturbing ease in classifying private projects as “strategic.” As Javier Cantero, mayor of La Toba, warns in The World“the companies are not state-owned… They will sell the raw materials to whoever pays the most.” The drilling plan. Thanks to “JARA” Permit Environmental Restoration Planwe know with technical precision the scope of the intervention. The company planned: Deep drilling: Rotational drilling with core recovery between 300 and 400 meters deep. Phases: An initial phase of six surveys per permit, expandable to another six if the results were favorable. Surface impact: Occupation of about 200 square meters for each drilling platform. The real danger, as experts explainis that if the mineral is less than 200 meters away, exploitation would inevitably be open pit. This would involve removing massive amounts of soil, raising dust loaded with microcrystals that can cause silicosis and other lung diseases, in addition to requiring enormous water resources and containment ponds for chemical treatments that could leak into the subsoil. The setback of the Board. Oroberia’s strategy of presenting three different projects has been described as “fragmentation” to avoid controls. However, in November, the Provincial Delegation of Sustainable Development of Guadalajara issued a historic resolution: Mandatory unification: The company must encompass “Gua”, “Dala” and “Jara” in a single project of 14,600 hectares. Ordinary Evaluation: The simplified evaluation (more agile) is denied and an ordinary Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is required, much more rigorous and slow. This decision is a victory for the neighbors. As Alberto Mayor points outfrom Ecologistas en Acción, this allows the “synergistic impacts” to be evaluated and forces the company to face the reality that 63% of the affected land contains habitats of community interest and protected species such as the Iberian wolf, the golden eagle and the ricotí lark (the latter in danger of extinction). A total and transversal opposition. The social response has been overwhelming. According to Ecologists in Actionnearly 800 allegations have been filed. The alliance is unprecedented because it includes mayors of all political colors (PP, PSOE, IU), hunters’ associations, environmental groups and even local parishes. The fear is not only environmental, but also economic and patrimonial. The “Jara” project would directly affect to towns such as Sigüenza and Atienza, committing their candidacy to UNESCO World Heritage status for the “Sweet and Salty Landscape”. Furthermore, mining would “a death blow” to already consolidated sustainable tourism projects, such as the Camino del Cid or the seal Starlight Destination. What will happen now? The company has two options according to local media: give up in the face of administrative obstacles and social pressure, or present a new unified environmental study that will be subjected to a new period of public exhibition. However, the scenario is complex. Currently, Spain is experiencing a mining rediscovery. While in Guadalajara the fight against gold is underway, in Galicia work has already begun to extract tungsten in the San Juan mine (Ourense), and in Jaén, the company Osmond Resources (linked to the same directors of Oroberia) has received permissions to investigate rare earths in the “Menipe” project. The ghost of 1973. One of the most critical points is that mining in Spain is governed by a Mines Act of 1973written in the last years of Franco’s regime. This law converts the mineral resource into public domain: if the administration grants permission, the owner of the land is obliged to let the company enter or face expropriation. This legal defenselessness is the fuel that fuels the rage of the fourteen Guadalajara municipalities. The value of what is not seen. The conflict in the Sierra Norte of Guadalajara is the representation of a clash of worlds. On the one hand, an extractivist vision that sees mining grids in the mountains and profits in the Australian stock market (where gold is trading upwards as a safe haven). On the other hand, some towns that, in the words of the mayor of Ríofrío del LlanoMaite Pérez, they only ask that the depopulation laws serve so that people live in their land and not to make it easier for them to be kicked out. For now, the Sierra Norte still stands, guarding a geological and biological heritage that, as your neighbors say“it has no price because it is not a commodity.” Image | freepik Xataka | The problem with Greenland is not that it does not have minerals: it is that getting them out of there is an engineering nightmare

the suppliers you are making gold

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If there is a recipe to succeed in the retailMercadona seems to have found her. In 2024, Juan Roig’s company invoiced more than 38.8 billion euros and increased its net profit by 37%. That’s not new. What is curious is to what extent this push is making gold to the company’s main suppliers. In recent months we have seen invest millionaire sums to expand its facilities and boast an EBIDTA (earnings before taxes) that grows at double digitbut an overall image was missing. At last we have it. An “industrial cluster”. Mercadona is not just any supermarket chain. And it is not for several reasons. The main one is that it is the one that Spanish families go to most. Your market share (at least in terms of value) around 30%significantly above other rivals established in the sector such as Carrefour or Lidl. There are those who even gives you a weight elderly. The other reason why Mercadona stands out is its strategy, based on a formula in which the “short assortment”the commitment to ready-made dishes and the white label. The success of the Valencian chain can hardly be understood without brands such as Hacendado, Deliplus or Bosque Verde, which finished a large part of its shelves. The suppliers that help sustain this offer are so relevant that Mercadona itself speaks of a “industrial cluster”. One question: How much do they earn? Recently Five Days An interesting question was asked: do we know how they evolve the income from Mercadona, but… And what about its suppliers? How are its “specialist suppliers”, the firms that allow the chain to offer a catalog dominated by its own brands, doing? It is an interesting question because between both, Mercadona and suppliers, suppliers and Mercadona, such a close relationship has been created that many of the supply companies generate more than 50% of their business through the Valencian firm. That is to say, Mercadona is not only its main client but 50, 60, 70 or even (in some cases) more than 80% of its cash depends on it. To clear up doubts Five Days consulted the 2024 financial reports deposited in the Commercial Registry by Mercadona’s 20 main suppliers. They are only a small part of the more than 2,000 “specialist suppliers and inter-suppliers” of the chain, but the weight they have in their offer is fundamental. The catalog of products that are marketed under banners such as Hacendado, Bosque Verde or Deliplus is largely indebted to them. A percentage: 20%. The Commercial Registry leaves something curious to say: in 2024 the sales figure of Mercadona’s 20 largest suppliers exceeded 12,000 million euros, 18% more than in 2022. Not only that. Its aggregate profits also grew by 5% to exceed 360 million. During the same period, Mercadona saw its turnover soar by 25%, a percentage that can be explained by price increases, but also by the opening of premisesthe increase in sales and your business share. Going down to detail. Of course, not all of them have grown at the same pace nor do they manage the same levels of income from product sales. At the top are Casa Tarradellas, Incarlopsa, J García Carrión and Covap, with turnover that has exceeded 1,000 million euros. The four also saw their sales grow between 2022 and 2024 at a rate of between 12 and 29%. The list continues (at least in terms of net turnover) Profand, Importaco, Jealsa, Entrepinares, Virto, Cerealto, Schreiber Foods, Delisano, Huevos Guillén, RNB Cosmticos, Alacant, SPB, Laboratorios Maverick and Hijos de Juan Pujante. The list is closed by Arrocería Pons, which registered 135 million euros. “Very significant part”. The reports deposited by those twenty signatures in the Commercial Registry are interesting for another reason. Many not only report high volumes of income and an increase in billing in recent years (between 2022 and 2024). It is also made clear that a considerable part of these companies depend largely on Mercadona. Not all of them provide the data, but among those that do, there are firms that recognize that 53, 69, 73, 85 or 94% of their sales are linked to the Valencian chain. Others do not go into detail, but slip that “a significant part” or “most” of their turnover comes from their relationship with Mercadona. Surprise (half). These are interesting percentages because of what they tell us about Mercadona’s expansion and the effects it has within its business ecosystem, but the truth is that few will be surprised. A few months ago Familia Martínez, a strategic supplier of Mercadona specialized especially in prepared food, it was news for your decision to invest 150 million of euros to reinforce its facilities. That gave a first clue about the business that is heating up in the heat of the expansion of the Roig chain. Images | Mercadona Via | Five Days In Xataka | Three chains are devouring the supermarket business in Spain year after year: Mercadona, Lidl and Aldi

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