Month: May 2026

go for nostalgic adults

by

Fashions fluctuate, just like prices or supply and demand curves, but there is one value that is always rising in the market (no matter which one): nostalgia. As we get older, we increasingly value items and experiences that allow us to relive our childhood, which creates a huge business opportunity. It is something that the industry tech or of entertainment has understood well, is driving the creation of arcade rooms and, in general, has converted the “retro” into a valuable asset. Now that desire to relive past times is favoring an unexpected business: that of the sweets. Who eats sweets? The question seems obvious. Sweets are something for children and teenagers, right? Those of us who are between 30 and 40 years old today grew up in a world in which those who went to kiosks to buy gum, candy and other industrial sweets were basically kids. There might be some bigger fans of licorice, mint candies or toffees, for example, but they were the exception. Things today are somewhat different. It is no longer just that adults buy sweets without embarrassment, it is that in some stores they are the majority customer profile and even represent 80% of the business, as revealed a few weeks ago The Confidential in an extensive report in which he analyzes the phenomenon. Is it a novelty? Yes. And no. that the millennials and members of Generation X still eating sweets into adulthood is not exactly new. In 2004, the Spanish Association of Candy and Chewing Gum Manufacturers (Caychi) already published a study which showed that more than half of the country’s adults regularly ate candy, gum and other sweets. About 70% He also admitted that he did it simply because it was considered “a pleasure”, an experience with “a positive effect on well-being”. At that time, however, the ‘photo’ was still somewhat diffuse. Although in the group between 46 and 55 years old, 50.4% of people stated that they consumed candy with some frequency and 34.4% also chewed gum often, the survey presented their consumption with a certain utilitarian perspective: “many” indulged in sweets, it was said thento avoid other unhealthy vices, such as smoking. And now? Now the reality is somewhat different. In his chronicle The Confidential He speaks with companies and representatives of the candy sector who clarify that adults demand their merchandise for an added reason: nostalgia. Maybe they like the taste of sticks, worms, dextrose necklaces, Peta Zetas and heart-shaped lollipops, but for them their consumption incorporates an equally or even more valuable bonus: memories. It is merchandise of 2026, but also a ‘passport’ to evoke the decade of the 80s and 90s. There are even businesses dedicated to sweets whose turnover basically depends on people who already have gray hair. “Normally people think they are for children, but if we depended on them we would have to close,” recognize the commercial head of a Galician company in the sector who estimates that around 80% of his clientele is made up of adults. Your case is not unique. Other companies in the industry confirm the increase in demand for retro gummies, both in the retail channel and among businesses that, in turn, use them in dishes that incorporate ingredients such as Peta Zetas or cotton candy. Is there data to support it? The trend can be followed in two ways. One is the testimonies that are shared from the sector and confirm the change. Others are the statistics on domestic consumption of the Ministry of Food, which they confirm that the consumption of sweets is especially pronounced in households made up of adults between 45 and 65 years old who live alone. Those where young adults and couples without children reside also stand out. The statistics of the Government on domestic consumption show that, at least in November 2025, the per capita consumption of candy, chewing gum and sweets was around the 0.77 kg and, in general, the volume consumed had grown by 6.9%. In October the Produlce employers’ association I remembered that the candy and gum category is the one that grows the most in the sweet sector, with a production that was around 1,500 million euros and 311,000 tons. Against that backdrop, nostalgia-driven sales have found especially fertile ground on the Internet and networks. There you can often find items that are difficult to see in kiosks or the supermarket. In fact, there are websites specialized in that niche, such as Retro candy either Xianaand on Amazon you can also find them searching by categories such as retro sweets. Does nostalgia weigh that much? Not all sales among the adult population are explained by nostalgia, but it is undeniable that this factor has an important weight. It is assumed by Produlce himself, who points out that the fact that “many adults today return to the sweets of their childhood demonstrates the extent to which we are talking about products with strong emotional and cultural roots.” In Retrochuches in fact the catalog of jelly beans is combined with another toy from the 80s and 90s, such as four-in-a-row games, cardboard masks, spinning tops, Tetris machines, marbles, dolls trolls or plastic pendants in the shape of a pacifier, among a long etcetera. Is it something exceptional? No. It’s nothing strange. Nor exclusive to the world of snacks and sweets. The “nostalgia economy” It has reached other sectors, such as fashion, technology and entertainment, focusing its efforts on an audience with greater purchasing power than younger customers. As they explain From some companies in the sector, it is not so much that adults buy more as that they can spend much more money. In the process, nostalgia for the past works some miracles, such as making Generation Z embrace retro technologies that in reality are totally new to her (those who are in their twenties today have never enjoyed games that today are presented to them as ‘vintage’) or that the candy industry finds a new niche despite the … Read more

Madonna, Shakira and BTS are going to perform at halftime of the World Cup final. But the regulations only allow it to be 15 minutes

by

For years, Gianni Infantino watched with envy the spectacle of American football breaks. This year, the president of FIFA is going to have what he has been wanting for years: the final of the July 19 World Cup in New Jersey will have the first halftime show from the history of the tournamentwith none other than Madonna, Shakira and BTS as headliners. A decision clearly conceived from the point of view of not stopping to think about the differences between soccer and American football. Elmo tells you. The most watched event on the planet debuts, 96 years after its first edition, a concept that American football has been perfecting for decades. The advertisement came in video form with Chris Martin of Coldplay, Elmo, Gustavo, Miss Piggy and other Muppets to break the news, that at one point they made a call with BTS. The tone was curiously lighthearted for the announcement of an event that handles astronomical figures. Good causes. The production of the event is carried out by the NGO Global Citizenfor which Chris Martin and Coldplay’s manager Phil Harvey are creative curators. The show is linked to the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fundan initiative that wants to raise 100 million dollars to expand access to education and soccer for children around the world, and which has already raised more than 30 million. One dollar from every ticket sold is donated to the fund. There are no precedents. No World Cup final had ever included a half-time show. There are ceremonies (opening, closing, before the opening whistle), but the break was always to rest (and the corresponding commercial break). The Qatar 2022 final, between Argentina and France, had a closing ceremony before the start of the match, with performances by Gims and Ozuna, but no shows in between. What changes. The scale, without a doubt. The 2022 final reached an average live audience of 571 million viewers worldwide, with more than 1.4 billion people watching at least one minute of the match. The 2024 Super Bowl brought together, in comparison, an average of 123.7 million viewers in the United States and about 62.5 million internationally. The platform that FIFA offers to artists who appear in the intermission has no comparison with any other. The problem. The laws of the game established by the IFAB, the international body that regulates football, set the break at a maximum of 15 minutes. A rule that few people notice, but that has a physical reason, which the ESPN analyst explained Gabriele Marcotti: Professional soccer players are conditioned for that maximum recovery interval. Extending it carries real risks of players getting cold or stiff. In the Super Bowl, the break is usually extended to 30 minutes, because the NFL sport includes regular breaks and players are accustomed to long timeouts. According to FIFA has confirmedthe show is planned to last 11 minutes, which in theory would keep it within the regulatory limit. However, it wouldn’t be entirely strange to see the IFAB modify its rules to accommodate the spectacle. But then… who thinks about the players? Little risk. On the other hand, the choice of Madonna, Shakira and BTS is a safe bet. All three have more than proven experience in mass events of this caliber. Madonna’s performance at the 2012 Super Bowl set the audience record for the halftime show with 114 million viewers, a figure that Bruno Mars would surpass two years later. The 2020 show, starring Shakira and Jennifer Lopez, attracted 103 million viewers. Shakira is also already linked to the World Cup thanks to the release of two official anthems: ‘Dai Dai’ in 2026 with the Nigerian Burna Boy, and ‘Waka Waka’ in 2010. BTS, for its part, arrives in the moment of greatest visibility for the band since the group interrupted its activity to complete mandatory military service in South Korea. Your album’ARIRANG’published in March 2026, debuted with record on US chartswhich makes this concert especially suitable for the band. Since April, the group has also been immersed in a world tour. Header | Julio Gómez Braojos

Iceland has had a four-day work week since 2019. Seven years later, it delivers on all the promises of Gen Z

by

Iceland was one of the first countries that dared to experiment with the four-day workday and new working day models maintaining the salary. Today, Iceland has not only managed to reduce the working hours of 86% of its population, but it is also among the most dynamic European economies. These data show that the four-day work week and the reduction of working hours are not incompatible with growth. Pioneers of the four-day work week. Between 2015 and 2019, the country implemented a pilot program in which 2,500 public employees reduced their working hours from 40 hours a week to between 35 and 36 hours. The Iceland test data indicated that productivity levels were maintained and the well-being of workers who reported lower levels of stress and well-being was considerably improved. improvements in work-life balance. The reactions were immediate and the Icelandic unions reached agreements with the companies to take this model to other sectors. According to the study monitoring of the experiment of reduction of working hours carried out by the Autonomy Institute of the United Kingdom and the Association for Sustainability and Democracy (ALDA) of Iceland, as a result of those negotiations, 86% of Icelanders already work under some form of reduced hours. “This shows that the public sector is prepared to be a pioneer in reducing the working week, and other governments can learn from this lesson,” said Will Stronge, research director at Autonomy Institute. Years of implementation are beginning to bear fruit. Monitoring of test data in Iceland has continued to see the long-term effects on the impact of the reduction in working hours both among employees and on the country’s economy. ALDA and the Autonomy Institutejust published a study in which it analyzes the impact after four years of reduced working hours available to the majority of its population. Between 2020 and 2022, for example, 51% of its workforce already had access to reduced working hours, including a four-day work week or a five-day work week with shorter days. In parallel, the study revealed that Iceland’s economy was growing faster than that of most of its European neighbors. According to the report World Economic Outlook April 2024 prepared by the International Monetary Fund, Iceland’s economy recorded growth of 5.2% for 2024 and 4.9% for 2025. Greater well-being for employment. The International Monetary Fund report points to the strength of employment in Iceland as one of the keys to its economic growth. According to the ALDA study By 2024, 78% of Icelandic workers are satisfied with their current job. 62% of those who have adopted reduced working hours claim to feel more satisfied with their working hours, while 97% have stated that shorter working hours have made their balance between work and family easier. Impact on the Icelandic economy. The authors of the study point out that Iceland had always worked more hours than its surrounding countries, obtaining lower productivity. However, they highlight that, after the change in working hours, the productivity in Iceland has increased 1.5% annually on average over the last five years. “This is a possible break with the past, when productivity was lower in Iceland than in neighboring countries.” The data provided by the study reflect a behavior very similar to that recorded in the test of the Valencia four-day week: Having more free time encourages the local economy and recreational activities. The study estimates the improvement in the internal economy at 10% after implementing reduced working hours. The key is not the reduction of working hours. The conclusions of the study reflect an idea that was also put on the table in the conclusions of the test of the four-day work week in Germany: “A probable cause of this change (in productivity) is the optimization of work and the reorganization of work shifts as strategies aimed at reducing effective work hours,” the study notes. This clarification reveals that the key to the successive successes in terms of productivity of the tests of the four-day work week would not be a consequence of the reduction of the working day itself, but of the prior optimization process that is carried out in these experiments. Happy future. Iceland’s experience is especially positive for generation Z, definitely the labor cohort that most enthusiastically embraces hybrid or reduced work formats. As we have seen in other countries, Sean Norway or Germany, and as various studies point outGeneration Z has a strong preference for the four-day week. Both socio-labor trends and cultural priorities point in that direction. And the case of Iceland is important because it underlines that the economy is not suffering. In Xataka | Germany is considering the most ambitious labor reform: it wants to eliminate the limit on eight-hour days a day Image | Einar H. Reynis

While we were looking at gasoline, the Iran crisis has skyrocketed the price of asphalt. And the roads of half the world are already suffering from it

by

A few months ago we published in Xataka an article with the following title: Spanish roads have a problem in 2026: repairing a kilometer of asphalt is more expensive than ever. It was February 26, 2026. In it we analyzed the problem that Spain had encountered. Our roads, prepared for a hot and dry climate (especially in the southern half) had suffered very intense days of almost constant rain. It didn’t take long for the holes to appear and neither did the complaints in the media and social networks about the supposed poor condition of the roads. Trying to understand if this is really the case or not and why it is estimated that the State needs to invest some of 13,000 million euros to fix themwe looked to see if it had become more expensive the price of asphalt in recent years. Something that, indeed, was reflected in the aforementioned article. But this, as we said, was published on February 26. Two days later, on February 28, we woke up to the news that the Government of the United States and Israel had launched a joint bombing offensive against Iran. The rest, we already know. Crisis in oil supplya battle for open and close the Hormuz canal and fuel increases for passenger cars and airplanes. But there is something that has also risen. And that something is called asphalt. More expensive than ever (now yes) And in less than three months, which seem to have lasted a lifetime, the headline has become outdated. At the end of last month, Asefma (Spanish Association of Asphalt Mixture Manufacturers) already warned that the price of asphalt was skyrocketing. According to this association, in March alone the average price of asphalt had risen 8.2%. Nothing compared to April, when it did so by 49.3%. He overrun of the final product is due, above all, to the increase in the price of bitumen that acts as a binder for asphalt and is where the increase in the price of oil has the most impact. Asefma has come to consider that the increase in the price of asphalt was putting at risk the viability of the signed contracts or even whether they will be fulfilled or completed if the works have already begun. The truth is that, beyond the possible pressure measures of the employers’ association that defends the interests of its associates, the price of asphalt has skyrocketed inside and outside our country. To understand why asphalt has become more expensive you have to understand what makes it up. The pavement of our roads is made up of dirt and stones that are compacted. They serve as a base but also cushion the weight placed on them to delay the breaking of the asphalt. This asphalt is a bituminous mixture that uses bitumen of different intensity depending on where the road is going to be built. Those that resist heat better tend to be less flexible and those that drain better tend to be more flexible. Therefore, the latter They can melt when temperatures are very high. All components have been affected by the increase in the price of oil. To begin with, the earth and stones have to be transported by heavy vehicles with very high diesel consumption, precisely the fuel that has become most expensive. The same thing happens with the refinement of bitumen or asphalt (what we ultimately step on). If energy costs rise, the price of this product rises. But, in addition, the price of bitumen is closely linked to the price of oil. This product is made from the densest oil in the barrel, the least usable in energy terms and the most expensive to convert into fuel. This product is what is refined to obtain bitumen and, with bombs falling on Iran and the subsequent response on neighboring countries, the production and export of raw materials It has been very diminished, obviously. The American company Victory Paving figure in an increase of between 2 and 3% in the price of asphalt for every 10 dollars that a barrel of oil rises. They also argue that the shortage is greater because the rise in energy costs has an impact on a drop in the production of refineries and these usually prioritize the production of diesel and gasoline over asphalt refining because the fuels are more profitable. Richard Hudock, president of Derry Construction Co., pointed out to the American media who had never suffered a crisis so serious in the 42 years that they had been working, ensuring that the impact of the price of oil on the raw materials and fuel to be able to operate their vehicles put their job at risk this summer. In Argus They point out that the situation in Africa is no better. They point out that the bitumen that reaches countries like South Africa has become almost exclusively dependent on trade with Greece and Türkiye, once the Middle East tap has been closed. This has caused the price of each freighter to triple. If the price of asphalt has grown in the United States, South Africa and Spain, doubts have also grown about what to do in these cases. In the first of these countries It has been proposed to delay the patching of certain streets or highways. But this can cause the problem to worsen and, even if the price of oil falls again in the future, the damage will be deeper and the investment to be made would have to be larger. And the problem is that in the United States, the United Kingdom and Spain we face the same problem. The winters In all of these countries it has been very cold or very rainy, so the condition of the asphalt has been compromised. In BBC They report that the United Kingdom had already increased the budget to repair its roads but that the increase in the price of oil has put this item in check. The result, as … Read more

The super Niño of 1877 wiped out 4% of the world’s population. The one that is already beginning to form promises to be worse, but what does that mean in 2027?

by

In the last week, El Niño has become suddenly real. Media like Washington Post, BBC or countless media in Spanish have begun to compare what is coming to us with El superNiño of 1877, the event that “wiped out 4% of the world’s population.” And, stated this way, it is no wonder; The story is simple: “a Child Godzilla is coming and no one knows if we are ready.” That is why it is important to know what exactly we are talking about and if, in short, “we are all going to die.” How serious is the matter? As we said a few days ago, between March and May the reliability of ENSO forecasts is usually worse than normal (because the equatorial Pacific anomalies go through their transition phase). That makes everyone go with “lead feet”; but the data is worrying. Ben Noll of the Washington Post broadcast on May 8 that the North American Multi-Model Ensemble projected “the strongest El Niño on record” between October 2026 and January 2027, with a peak of +3.1 °C in November. They are big words. Above all, because the ECMWF is along the same lines. In the words of Diego Restrepo, “El Niño is rapidly intensifying, and now 8 out of 10 models point to a super event and four project the strongest one on record.” And this looks like 1877? That is Noll’s thesis and it has been repeated a lot in recent days. However, the comparison is misleading. First, because, although the models are pointing to a historical ENSO, they are still models. That is, we still have no idea what is going to happen. And, to be strict, until the models recover their full potential in June, we will not know well. Second because, as argued by Kimberley Reid, from the University of Melbournethe intensity measured in the central Pacific does not translate linearly into impacts. Taking into account everything that has changed in this century and a half at a climate level, the impacts may be completely different. And thirdly because El Niño of 1877 was not the cause of that catastrophe. Yes, it is true that he set the conditions for it to occur but, as noted Mike Davis in “Late Victorian Holocausts”what killed throughout that quarter of a century were colonial policies. And what happened in 1877? A strange combination between a superNiño, the Indian Dipole and a tremendously warm North Atlantic between the years 1876–78 caused a global drought. The problem is that, in a world governed by imperialism, grain exports did not stop and, as local resilience mechanisms had been dismantled, a famine occurred that killed some 50 million people. But the consensus is clear: no matter how intense El Niño was, it caused the problem of its management. And that, although it may not seem like it, is good news. A few years ago the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) published a report with a clear warning: “climate-related disasters” have increased since the 1970s. Specifically, they have multiplied by five over the last five decades. According to their calculations, in the 1980s, 1,400 incidents were recorded – their tables include extreme weather, climate and water phenomena – and in the 1990s, just over 2,200. In the first decade of the 21st century, 3,500 were reached and during the last decade, which spans from 2010 to 2019, it was close to 3,200. Curiously, this increase in the number of disasters has coincided with a decrease in the number of victims. The WMO data is clearalso: from more than 50,000 deaths in the 1970s (incidents basically related to climate and water are taken into account) it went to less than 20,000 in 2010. From an average of 170 a day in the 70s and 80s, it dropped in the 90s to less than a hundred a day and to 40 at the beginning of the 21st century. What will happen? As Restrepo also points out“despite having more information and knowledge, today we have warmer oceans, much more vulnerable ecosystems and collapsing biodiversity. This could generate impacts on health and risks for food, water and energy security.” However, we are more prepared and more importantly we have time to prepare. The ball is in our court. Image | Ben Noll In Xataka | There are more and more extreme weather events. In return, they are leaving fewer victims than ever

Now you can enjoy an exclusive 15% discount on your travel insurance with Intermundial

by

Your subscription to Xataka Xtra It is, from now on, a little more complete. If a few days ago we announced the exclusive advantages in the Samsung online store and the 99,999 credits for AI in Magnific (formerly Freepik), today we present you a new advantage that, it must be said, could not come at a better time. From today, all Xataka Xtra members can enjoy an exclusive 15% discount on Intermundial travel insurance. But there is more, because exceptionally and during the first two months the discount will not be 15%, but 20%. If you are planning a trip abroad and want to do it with extra security, you just have to access your subscriber area. There you will find this new advantage and the instructions to take advantage of it. Travel safer (and at a better price) Image | Taryn Elliott Interworld has been offering travel insurance for 30 years. Each year it insures more than 5.7 million people, manages more than 64,000 claims and assistance and has more than 6,000 distribution points. Additionally, as a curious fact, it is the insurance provider for Civitatis. If you usually travel and like tours, it will probably sound familiar to you. Travel insurance does two things: peace of mind and coverage in case of need. A visit to the doctor in depending on what countries and under what conditions can involve an enormous outlay. A visit to the emergency room in the United States, for example, can cost around $2,000. Let’s not talk about repatriation, which I hope no one will ever have to experience, but it is an expense of up to six figures that is not covered by the embassy or the consulate, but by the user. Travel insurance like those provided by Intermundial covers all these situations, in addition to protecting us against theft or loss of luggage, delays, missed connections, cancellations or overbooking, etc. With Xataka Xtrathat peace of mind comes out a little cheaper and, for that matter, here is a real case. An example of insurance for a three-week trip to Japan | Image: Xataka In October, yours truly goes on a honeymoon to Japan for 21 days. Totaltravel insurance, which covers up to five million euros in medical expenses, 350 euros for delays in the delivery of luggage and up to 2,500 for damage, theft or loss, to name a few figures, would cost under normal conditions 163.26 euros, that is, 81.63 euros per person. With the exclusive discount of Xataka Xtrawhich in these first two months is 20%, its price drops to 130.61 euros, or what is the same, 65.31 euros. That’s 33 euros that we can now spend on sushi or, better yet, on a 30-centimeter figure of Satoru Gojo. Join Xataka Xtra and save The Xataka Xtra subscription includes this and many other exclusive benefits, from a Discord server for subscribers to a direct line with editors through El Consultorio, a monthly meeting with the editors of the house, exclusive giveaways and a growing list of discounts and advantages on digital services. You can join from just 30 euros per year and take advantage of this discount, in addition to all those already available and everything that is to come: In Xataka | Subscribe to Xataka Xtra

It already has permission to sell its H200 GPU to 10 Chinese companies

by

Alibaba, Tencent, ByteDance and JD.com are four of the ten Chinese companies that already have access to the GPU for artificial intelligence (AI) NVIDIA H200. According to Reutersthe US Department of Commerce, which is the institution that grants or denies export licenses, has authorized at least ten Chinese companies and several distributors, including Lenovo and Foxconn, to acquire Nvidia’s second most powerful AI chip. This news comes almost two months after the US Government confirmed which was going to allow the company led by Jensen Huang to deliver its H200 chip to its Chinese customers. Nvidia announced in mid-March during its annual developer conference that the US and Chinese Administrations had unlocked the sale of this GPU in the nation led by Xi Jinping. However, so far not a single delivery has been made. In practice, the blockade continues despite the March announcement. In all likelihood this is why Jensen Huang has joined the White House delegation participating in a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week. Nvidia is caught between the opposing interests of the US and China, and Huang is going to try to recover a market, the Chinese one, valued at 50 billion dollars in 2026 and which has come to represent 13% of its income. Now the problem is the Chinese Government Earlier this May, Jensen Huang confirmed that he is currently Its market share in China is 0%. Nvidia has not sold its AI chips in this country for several months because US regulations require Chinese buyers to demonstrate that they have implemented sufficient security procedures and that they will not use the GPUs for military purposes. In addition, Nvidia must also certify that it has sufficient inventory in the US. And all this bureaucracy is not being resolved quickly at all. Currently the greatest reluctance to sell Nvidia chips in China comes from Beijing However, currently the greatest reluctance to sell Nvidia chips in China comes from Beijing. The Chinese Government wants to promote developing your own GPUs for AI at any price, which in October 2024 led him to send a recommendation to Chinese AI companies in which he asked them to use chips produced in China as much as possible. Ten months later this recommendation became a requirement. And the Chinese Government is already forcing state-owned data centers throughout the country to use at least 50% Chinese integrated circuits in their servers. The Administration led by Xi Jinping has made this decision because it can afford it. And it is that It already has three very clear alternatives to Nvidia: Cambricon Technologies, Huawei and Moore Threads. On the other hand, in the US there is also a pressure group that opposes the sale of advanced US AI chips in China. Chris McGuire, senior fellow on China and emerging technologies at the Council on Foreign Relations, holds that “any deal that allows Nvidia to sell more chips to China means fewer Nvidia chips for US companies and a minor US advantage over China in AI“. Besides, McGuire argues that “it is surprising that President Trump continues to allow himself to be convinced to put Nvidia’s interests before those of America.” Image | Nvidia More information | Reuters In Xataka | The US remains committed to stopping China. Now it has targeted the second largest Chinese chip manufacturer

Dubai has come to the same conclusion as Russia. To protect your oil from drones there is something better than missiles: giant cages

by

In World War II, the British discovered something disconcerting when analyzing the German bombings on its industrial cities: many times it was not necessary to completely destroy a refinery or factory to paralyze it for weeks. It was enough to hit some few vulnerable points to cause fires, disruptions and a disproportionate economic effect. Eight decades later, that same logic once again dominates another war, only now the weapon that attempts to find those weak points fits in an operator’s backpack and costs a fraction of an anti-aircraft missile. Dubai is located in Ukraine. For years, the United Arab Emirates built its security around a very specific idea: cutting-edge technology, advanced anti-aircraft systems and one of the most sophisticated defensive architectures in the Middle East were enough to protect the country’s energy heart. The war with Iran has begun dismantle that trust. After enduring hundreds of missiles and more than 2,200 Iranian drones, Dubai and Abu Dhabi have reached an uncomfortable conclusion that Russia learned before in Ukraine: in the face of cheap, numerous and persistent drones, it is sometimes more effective to raise huge metal structures over oil deposits than spending multimillion-dollar interceptors trying to destroy every threat in the air. The images that appeared near Dubai International Airport show precisely that: those gigantic “cope cages” surrounding fuel tanks, a scene that until recently seemed exclusive to Russian refineries attacked by Ukrainian drones, or in the films of George Miller. The cheap drone war. The problem facing the Emirates has less to do with the individual sophistication of each drone than with the economic logic of the conflict. Iran has demonstrated that it can launch massive waves of Shahed-136-type UAVs and other relatively cheap attack munitions against extremely expensive infrastructure and difficult to replace. Even when air defenses work, the economic drain It’s starting to be absurd: Shooting down low-cost drones using advanced interceptor missiles turns defense into a financially unsustainable battle. That’s where these appear giant metal cages. They are not designed to stop ballistic missiles or complex attacks, but to create a physical separation that reduces the damage of suicide drones or improvised munitions before reaching fuel depots, pipelines or critical facilities. A brutally simple solution, and precisely for this reason it is beginning to spread. Russia led the way. Because what the Emirates is doing now has been going on for years. happening in Russia. Since Ukraine began hitting refineries, oil depots and military bases with long-range drones, Moscow began to cover facilities strategic with nets, metal mesh and improvised structures. What was initially derided as a desperate solution ended up evolving in a defensive system relatively common around vulnerable assets. The logic is simple: an FPV drone or a Shahed does not need to completely destroy a facility to cause a huge problem, it is enough a precise impact on a tank, a pipe or a critical point to cause fires, interruptions and million-dollar costs. The Emirates, despite having practically unlimited resources compared to Russia, is discovering exactly the same structural vulnerability. The difference is that now these cages appear next to the most futuristic skyscrapers and financial centers in the Gulf. Oil as a strategic objective. Iran has focused a good part of its attacks precisely on the Emirati energy heart. Facilities such as the Fujairah oil port or the Habshan gas plant have suffered damage that will take months to fully repair. That explains why the country has accelerated visible defensive measures even after the partial ceasefire between Washington and Tehran. Because the threat has not disappeared. In fact, one of the most disturbing aspects of the conflict is that the attacks continued even after the truce announcements, reinforcing the feeling that any critical infrastructure can become a target again with very little notice. In this context, protecting refineries and warehouses no longer depends only on radars or anti-missile batteries, it also implies physically harden facilities, assume partial impacts and prevent a relatively cheap drone from causing a national energy disaster. The Pentagon changes its mentality. The expansion of these improvised defenses also reflects a broader doctrinal shift within of the US military itself. For years, many officials in Washington considered inefficient invest large amounts of money in physically shielding bases, hangars or critical facilities from cheap drones. Ukraine, Russia and now the Middle East are completely changing that perception. Shortly before the war between Iran and the United States broke out, the Pentagon published new guidelines precisely recommending networks, cables and other passive physical defenses to protect strategic infrastructures. The reasoning is beginning to be difficult to ignore: in an era of massive and cheap dronesthe survival of multi-million dollar facilities may depend less on futuristic systems and more on simple, ugly and gigantic industrial solutions. Dubai, probably one of the most recognizable symbols of global technological modernity, has just assumed exactly that reality. Image | x In Xataka | Every time the US takes stock of Iran’s arsenal and capabilities, it realizes something: it has destroyed very little. In Xataka | Suddenly, a military outpost sprouted up in the Iraq desert: it was Israel in its bombing campaign of Iran

put an Android computer on your table

by

The presentation of the new Googlebooks It left many of us wanting more. Above all, more information, because although the company revealed its intentions with these “Premium Chromebooks”, what it did not explain is what operating system would govern them. Everything seems to indicate, however, that here Google will go all out on an operating system that was born to conquer the mobile but now wants to also conquer the desktop: Android. Android comes out of your pocket. For a decade, Google’s strategy has been two-fold: ChromeOS for lightweight, affordable laptops, and Android for everything else. Both operating systems have been getting closer for some time, and in June 2024 the Chromium developers they already explained that “ChromeOS will soon be built with large portions of the Android stack.” We are facing a merger that was silent but now seems to have its own name. Aluminum OS. Curiously, Google did not mention this project even once, but everything indicates that Googlebooks could be governed by this evolution of ChromeOS that will be called Aluminum OS. Those responsible for Google have already indicated that they hoped to launch it in 2026 and everything suggests that it will be just to accompany those laptops. From desktop mode to something else. Although Google takes years fiddling with the idea from desktop mode, it has only been now that has finally offered it on some Pixel family devices officially. One can connect the mobile phone to a monitor using a USB-C cable, and then also connect a keyboard and mouse to the mobile phone via Bluetooth, and start using that desktop mode as if you were working on a conventional PC… more or less. “Stretched” apps. What we have in that desktop mode is an Android experience adapted to the big screen, and that is noticeable from the first moment, for better and for worse. Although the applications work and being able to use them with a mouse and keyboard is very attractive, others seem like “stuffed apps” that don’t fit too well with a conventional desktop environment. What Google intends here is to solve precisely that problem and so that we do not miss the traditional versions of Photoshop or Excel. The danger here is that the “Google PC” will remain a toy for browsing the web, which is something that Chromebooks with ChromeOS could already do. It is reasonable to think that the current Android desktop mode is basically what we will see on Googlebooks. Gemini like glue. Competing with Windows, macOS or Linux with these options may not be enough, so Google keeps the card for its artificial intelligence platform. Gemini Intelligenceits new AI platform to automate mobile processes, also seems like a good way to enhance this operating system, but we will have to see if the implementation is really useful or not. What is proposed is striking: an operating system in which icons are no longer too relevant, because AI will anticipate our needs and do things for us in the operating system without us barely having to use a mouse or keyboard. Samsung DeX has already shown the way. The South Korean company has been betting on its own desktop mode with DeX. That function is still present on their phones, but it has remained a second-tier feature that users can take advantage of but that has never had the ambition of making us stop using Windows or macOS. But of course: Samsung does not sell laptops with DeX (at the moment), and Google intends to do exactly that to offer a total alternative to the traditional Windows or macOS laptop. Can we do it all with an Android laptop? Maybe not everything—we’re thinking about gaming, and Googlebooks won’t be for that—but most of what we currently do. The problem is not being able to do it, it is whether changing a Windows or a macOS for a desktop operating system based on Android will provide something truly different. That is the challenge, and although Android has its strengths (such as a huge app catalog), pure “desktop apps” are not its forte. But the moment is right. Especially considering that Windows is in low hours after that obsession that has made Microsoft I flooded it with AI. The company seems want to correct that problem that so many criticisms has generated, but there are many users disenchanted with an operating system. That gives a unique opportunity to its rivals, and for now Apple has already taken advantage of it. with the Macbook Neo. If Google’s execution is good, Googlebooks could indeed present an alternative. Image | Pepu Ricca (Xataka Android) In Xataka | France wants to “become independent” from Windows and embrace Linux: Extremadura has a lesson to transmit

Europe and China are at risk in the race for the first gravitational wave observatory in space

by

Terrestrial gravitational wave detectors, such as the famous LIGO, have made very interesting discoveries in the last decade. However, there is a great consensus that it would be very useful to detect this cosmic phenomenon directly from space. For this reason, some space agencies are already getting to work to launch their own projects. One of them is the Taiji mission, of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, with which, in fact, a great step forward has just been taken. Everything ready for Taiji 2. The Taiji mission consists of three phases. The first was already launched in 2019. For the second, a piece called the full-function interferometer optical core had to be tested. The tests carried out on Earth have gone perfectlyso it is considered that the second phase could be launched as soon as possible. In fact, its launch It was initially scheduled in 2024but it has been suffering delays. Luckily, it seems that now all the pieces are ready. Three ships in total. The Taiji mission is made up of three ships, strategically placed in space millions of kilometers away. They will all be connected to each other through laser interferometry, so that slight changes in these distances that could be associated with gravitational waves can be detected. The first phase of the mission, in which the interferometry system was analyzed, was launched in 2019. It is expected to send the second part as soon as possible, in which the first two ships will be put into space. As for the third, in principle the established calendar places its launch in the 2030s. Better in space than on Earth. Gravitational waves are waves produced in space-time as a result of a catastrophic event. These types of events could be, for example, the merger of neutron stars or the collision of black holes. When this occurs, space-time experiences a disturbance similar to that produced when a stone is thrown into a pond. Those are gravitational waves. The terrestrial observatories, like LIGOthey can detect them, but they have a small limitation. And there could be confusion with seismic noise and other terrestrial interference. In space, that problem disappears. Taiji to the rescue. According to the tests that have been carried out on Earth and the analyzes of the interferometry system that have already been carried out in space with Taiji-1, this mission is capable of greatly reducing interference. Furthermore, the optical core that has just been tested is capable of detecting disturbances on the order of picometers. That is, on Earth you can discern displacements equivalent to one ten-thousandth of the diameter of a human hair. Although those distances would change under spatial conditions, it is still highly accurate. Therefore, it is expected to detect even gravitational waves caused by intermediate mass black holes. Other similar missions. The European Space Agency It also has its own mission aimed at detecting gravitational waves in space. This is LISAa project with which it is planned to do something similar: launch three ships connected by laser interferometry into space. In this case, the launch of all ships is scheduled for 2035, so China could have some advantage. Of course, until the complete triangle is in space, the mission cannot be considered completed. Perhaps Europe will be able to overtake the Asian country. Image | NOIRLab In Xataka | What happens if you fall into a black hole, explained simply in an overwhelming NASA simulation

Log In

Forgot password?

Forgot password?

Enter your account data and we will send you a link to reset your password.

Your password reset link appears to be invalid or expired.

Log in

Privacy Policy

Add to Collection

No Collections

Here you'll find all collections you've created before.