Month: July 2026

They will be able to park where any car parks

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Parking a motorhome in the center of a city It has been a lottery for years. And what was allowed in one municipality could mean a fine in the next one. However, the owners of this type of vehicle can sleep peacefully now, since the Government has approved a modification of the General Traffic Regulations that make these vehicles equal to other cars when parking on public roads. Below these lines we tell you what changes. Consensus. Until now, each city council had room to treat motorhomes differently from other vehicles, prohibiting them from parking on certain streets or areas just because of their type. The reform, published in the Official State Gazette, eliminates that possibility. And the municipalities will no longer be able to veto the parking of a motorhome in a place where a conventional car is allowed to park. The sector’s employer, Aseicar, has rated the change as a historic step in the use of this type of vehicles in Spain. In detail. The new text add a section to article 92 of the Regulation, which establishes three conditions for parking to be legal. The motorhome cannot deploy any element that protrudes from its outer perimeter (no awnings, tables, chairs or extended steps). It must remain supported only on the wheels, although the use of chocks or wedges to immobilize it is permitted. And no fluid from the passenger compartment can be discharged to the outside. By complying with these three points, no agent can sanction the vehicle for the simple fact of being a motorhome. Between the lines. The key to all this reform is in a distinction that already existed and that is now reinforced: parking is not the same as camping. A tightly closed and undeployed vehicle is, for legal purposes, just another car parked on the street. On the other hand, removing tables, chairs or awnings turns that stop into a camping trip, something that is still prohibited outside the areas authorized for it and that can lead to fines of between 200 and 1,000 euros. The town councils, furthermore, do not lose all their power. And they retain the ability to regulate schedules, rates or maximum parking times, but these rules must apply equally to all vehicles, without being able to specifically point out motorhomes and campers. And now what. The reform will come into effect on October 1and comes in parallel to an instruction from the DGT that also updates other aspects linked to these vehicles, such as ITV deadlines. This change comes as a result of the fact that the caravan park is already around 365,000 units in Spain, with sustained growth in recent years, while specific areas for motorhomes have barely gone from 280 to 1,400 in the last two decades. Although this rule does not solve the deficit of camping areas that the country has, it does clear up the doubt about whether or not a motorhome can park in an area like any tourism would. Cover image | Carl Tronders In Xataka | Watching the sunrise in a cove in Ibiza seems like a good idea. Until they fine you 30,000 euros

historical minimum price only for 48 hours

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In the last Amazon Prime Day we were able to see many devices of all kinds (mobile phones included) at minimum prices, but discounts for Apple did not proliferate. The good news is that we have started July with a very good offer for the iPhone 17 Pro: PcComponentes has snipped its price and now costs 1,199 euros. Yes indeed, only for 48 hours. Apple iPhone 17 Pro 256GB Cosmic Orange The price could vary. We earn commission from these links It is one of the best compact phones This offer comes within the framework of the PcDaysan event that will last until July 12. However, this iPhone 17 Pro deal comes in a round of Apple device-only flash deals that will only last today and tomorrow. In this way, we have a very good purchasing window for this iPhone, but also for other products such as AirPods Pro 3 or the MacBook Neo. Apple’s iPhone 17 Pro is one of the best compact phones that we can buy right now. It has a 6.3-inch OLED screen with ProMotion technology, so we can expect a very good experience from it. Furthermore, inside is the A19 Pro chipthe best that Apple has and that will give us outstanding performance now and for many years to come. Another point where this iPhone stands out is in the photographic and video section, thanks to a very versatile 48 megapixel triple sensor. Apple promises that it is capable of reaching 31 hours of video playback in a matter of autonomyone step below the 37 hours of iPhone 17 Pro Max. If you are looking for a compact mobile phone, this iPhone 17 Pro is one of the best options you can buy. ⚡ IN SUMMARY: iphone 17 pro offer ✅ THE BEST Historical minimum price: Taking into account that Apple mobile phones do not usually receive much discount, it is a discount of 120 euros. A mobile that will last you many years: The hardware of this mobile is outstanding, so we can expect it to be a mobile that will last a long time. ❌ THE WORST 256 GB storage: This is the most basic version of the mobile, which has 256 GB of storage. They can become short in a short time if you are one of those who take a lot of photos and videos. 💡 BUY IT IF… Are you looking to have one of the best compact phones on the market or do you want an iPhone that can accompany you for a long time. ⛔ DON’T BUY IT IF… You have a relatively recent model (like the iPhone 16 Pro) or you prefer an option with more autonomy, such as the iPhone 17 Pro Max. You may also be interested Apple iPhone 17 256 GB: 6.3 Inch Screen with Promotion, A19 Chip, Center Stage Front Camera, Greater Scratch Resistance, Whole Day Autonomy; Black The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Apple AirPods 4, Wireless Headphones, Bluetooth, with Custom Spatial Audio, Water and Sweat Resistant, USB-C Charging Case, H2 Chip and up to 24 Hours of autonomy The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | Pedro Aznar in ApplesferaApple In Xataka | Best iPhones. Which one to buy in 2026 and recommended models based on budget, tastes and quality-price In Xataka | Best mobile phones 2026. Which one to buy based on use and six recommended models

Talgo’s Avril trains have been a nightmare for Renfe. One that is going to cost another 132 million euros

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Renfe has reached an agreement with Talgo to reform the Avrils and put a band-aid on the wound. This is what he assures The Economist and Europa Press in two articles where the problem that this train has posed for Renfe’s coffers is evident. The company has been trying for months to find a way out of a conflict with the train manufacturer. And he has found her spending more money. The agreement. The information regarding the agreement has been advanced by The Economista medium that ensures that the agreement is pending approval by the board of directors of both companies but that provides extensive information about it. In Europa Press They already state that Renfe describes the decision as “strategic” because it provides “relevant benefits.” The most relevant aspect of the agreement is that Renfe will pay 132 million euros to Talgo so that 15 Avril fixed gauge trains are converted into variable gauge vehicles. That is, they can be used on standard gauge tracks (Madrid-Barcelona) and Iberian gauge (the Galician high-speed section between Madrid and Galicia). Renfe, yes, renounces using these trains in France, how it came to be valued. The agreement maintains Talgo’s obligation to compensate Renfe with 116 million euros for delays in the delivery of the Avril trains and Talgo will also pay the 10.8 million euros that the homologation of the new variable gauge trains will cost. Variable width? Yes, when Renfe ordered the Talgo S106known as Avril, an agreement was reached for the company to deliver 30 units of these trains to Renfe. Half of them would be of fixed width and half would have movable treads to be used on the Madrid-Galicia high-speed line. The great advantage of those Talgo S106 was, supposedly, that variable width. The train can move its tracks and move on standard gauge tracks, those common in European and Spanish high speed, or on those of Iberian wide, a rarity of our country that prevented high speed from reaching Galicia. These trains do not require a transfer and can “jump” from one gauge to another. And do they work? The problem is that the Talgo Avril have been a problem from day one. Talgo has been delayed with deliveries and, as if that were not enough, some of the fixed gauge trains that circulated on the Madrid-Barcelona line suffered serious damage, to the point of generating cracks in the train structure itself. Since then, Renfe and Talgo have argued whose responsibility it is, with the manufacturer accusing Adif of not properly maintaining the tracks. This was the most notorious problem and the one that definitely broke relations between Talgo and Renfe. However, the trains were already accumulating controversies behind them. First, as we said, for their delays. Second, due to the poor rolling quality (with constant swings) and poor quality of materials chosen for the interior. Third, because just a few months after going into operation, the change to the new year caused the trains to collapse due to a software problem. And why are they modified? A few months ago, Óscar Puente, Minister of Transport, confirmed the study to modify the Madrid-Barcelona line and ensure that the journey is less than two hours. In the change, a Spanish invention is essential and buying new trains, with an award that can approach 1.8 billion euros. The trains will have to run at 350 km/h and Siemens and Hitachi are the best positioned. Adapting trains to variable gauge allows Renfe to move those trains to any track that operates with Iberian gauge, which gives it flexibility. The Madrid-Galicia line has to be liberalized but everything indicates that Renfe will continue to be the only one to operate in it because there is no other manufacturer that offers this feature in its trains and Talgo is committed to its production in the medium term. But converting the trains will allow Renfe to relocate the current Avrils on lines that only have Iberian gauge, an interesting alternative when the future trains of the new award arrive. a nightmare. The Talgo S106, known as the Avril, have been a headache for the company. And the problem has gone far beyond the incidents that we mentioned before, they have also meant that Renfe loses the AVLO service, the low-cost option, between Madrid and Barcelona. The company aspired to face Ouigo on this route with these new trains but with the problem of cracks it had to take these trains out of circulation and with it AVLO service disappeared. Now, Renfe will gain flexibility but to do so it will have to spend another 132 million on trains that have arrived late and that have offered mediocre performance. Photo | Andre Marques In Xataka | Spain thought that Spain could manufacture the perfect trains for Spain. The reality: Spain is already looking for trains in Germany

95% of young people manage to escape

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Generation Z is taking positions in the labor market. According to the IV HR Challenges and Trends Report: Keys to the new work balance prepared by Pluxee, intergenerational management in the workplace is already a strategic challenge for 95% of Spanish companies, with up to four generations coexisting on the workforce simultaneously. However, these generations could not be more different and that will impact the relationship of the youngest with companies. So much so, that a survey has revealed that nine out of ten young people have reservations about using company resources for personal matters, or downplay the importance of respecting their work schedules. Rules are meant to be broken. Something that Generation Z has clearly demonstrated is that work etiquette is not made for them. According to the data obtained by PapersOwl after interviewing 2,000 young people between 18 and 34 years old, 95% of young people from generation Z said that it was acceptable to leave work early ( or arrive later), use company resources for personal matters and even take a nap at work. Another worrying fact is that 29% of members of millennials and generation Z have been using ‘catfishing‘ impersonating another person during a recruitment and then disappear without a trace and leave the company that hires them in the lurch. Schedules are optional. Leaving work early is, by far, the rule most frequently broken by Generation Z. 34% of those surveyed claim to do so, as is arriving late without prior notice, a practice that 18% of those surveyed regularly do. On the other hand, 27% of Gen Zers said they had called in sick just to take a day off. 11% of those interviewed claimed to have signed up for more hours than they actually did. in the record of your day. Go to work, but not always to work. Those who attended work at the assigned time were also not exempt from “cheating” at work. 11% claimed to have had a nap during work hours. Four out of ten young people claimed to put into practice “coffee badging”. That is, clocking in at the workplace just long enough to have a coffee and make an appearance to avoid the return-to-office regulations, and then go to work. work from another location. Among the reasons that lead them to do so, 66% affirm that it is because of their desire to obtain greater flexibility in the working day, while 44% prefer to work from another more comfortable place, or 32% choose to work in an environment less prone to interruptions. silent vacation. The report Out of Office Culture Report prepared by The Harris Poll in May 2023, indicated that around 40% of young millennials and generation Z had at some time done “silent vacation“. This term refers to pretending that you are active, when in reality you are taking a day off (or several) without the company’s permission. PapersOwl’s data goes a little further. They have revealed that 51% of young people from Generation Z have done it between one and three times in the last year, while 4% of those surveyed have done it more than five times in the last 12 months. 52% argue that they did it to recover from stress either avoid burnout. Unstable jobs. A new study of 2026 published by PapersOwl on Gen Z at work highlights that only 45% of young people between 18 and 28 years old describe their current work relationship as solid and committed. 32% define it as “complicated” and 21% define it as “convenient for now”, but without a long-term horizon. A new phenomenon also appears: almost 6 out of 10 Gen Z workers admit to having used artificial intelligence tools in their work without communicating it to the employer. And 7% have resigned in the last year as an act of protest motivated by feeling ignored or undervalued. A version of this article was published in February 2025. In Xataka | “They are much more daring”: Gen Z is overturning all labor consensus in its massive entry into work Image | Pexels (fauxels)

This is how Baily pearls work

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Next August 12 we will be able to enjoy the first of the 3 eclipses that make up the Iberian trio. many people they are preparing to travel to one of the places that are within the strip of totality. Those who have never seen a solar eclipse are divided into two groups: those who are going to let themselves flow, without expecting anything specific, and those who are studying everything about this astronomical event to know what they will find. If you are from the second group, you may have come here looking for information about Baily pearls. If you are the first or are reading this for any other reason, don’t miss it, as it is a very interesting phenomenon. Pearls that decorate the Sun. We already know that a total solar eclipse occurs when the Moon, the Sun and the Earth align in such a way that the former prevents the Sun’s light from reaching our planet. Basically, the Moon covers the Sun. Baily pearls are some kind of shiny beads that form along the edge of the Moon when it begins to cover the Sun and just when it begins to let its light pass through again. Its appearance is due to the fact that the surface of the Moon is not smooth. It is covered with valleys, craters and other imperfections. Therefore, when sunlight filters through them, it does not arrive completely clean, but instead forms a kind of shiny balls. That’s what we see from Earth. The origin of his name. Baily pearls are named after Francis Bailythe British astronomer who first described them in 1836, during an annular eclipse. Why they are important during a solar eclipse. Beyond their attractiveness, Baily’s pearls are important because they indicate the beginning and end of totality. They appear when the Moon has covered a good part of the Sun, but they disappear just when it covers it completely, since no light from the sun reaches us. Then, as soon as it begins to appear again behind the Moon, the pearls are drawn around it again. . During a solar eclipse, we can only look directly at the Sun without goggles during the entirety. With the slightest ray of sunlight that appears, our eyes are already at risk. Therefore, Baily pearls are a good indicator. It is true that there are places where they are even more imaginative, such as in the Navarrese town of Lerín, where They have created a bell ringing that indicates the different points of the eclipse. Observing Baily’s pearls can also be a good option, although, when in doubt, it is better to use the glasses for as long as possible. Other eclipses. Baily pearls also appear in annular solar eclipses, just when that characteristic ring of fire forms with the Moon in the middle. Therefore, we will be able to see them during the three eclipses of the Iberian trio. The first two will be total and the third will be annular. Image | CTIO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/D. Munizaga | Brucewaters In Xataka | A third of Spain will be completely dark for a minute or two. The astronomical event of the century is approaching

convert trucks and containers into a take-off runway for drones

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China is exploring an unusual idea even for a time when Drones have become protagonists of almost any military conversation: take some of the logic of an aviation catapult from the aircraft carrier and bring it to trucks and containers. We are not talking, at least with the information available, of a fully demonstrated operational capacity or a substitute for a conventional naval deck. What we have seen in open sources points rather to a modular concept: a removable take-off runway for drones where there is no runway. The last push to the issue has been given by a video spread on Chinese networks. The original post has been deleted, but can be traced back to uan archived post from the WeChat account associated with the School of Mechanical Engineering at the Beijing Institute of Technology. Additionally, the video comes after other tracks: previous photos of the systemits appearance in the vicinity of the Zhong Da 79 ship and a family of military modules in containers that point in the same direction. A catapult outside the aircraft carrier In the most recent images, the system appears to be made up of three trucks that can move separately and then join together to create a single launch line. The sequence shows the takeoff of a propeller drone, with a high wing, V-tail and tricycle landing gear, an aircraft much lighter than the possible models, with which this concept had been visually associated in previous images. There are also upper covers and four-wheel steering, which would allow the assembly to be oriented with more room for maneuver. Capture of the recently released video, which shows the launch of a drone from the mobile electromagnetic catapult made up of several trucks The catapult, in any case, is just one part of a broader family of containerized military systems. Material attributed to the School of Mechanical Engineering at the Beijing Institute of Technology includes modules with anti-ship missile launchers, land attack missiles, surface-to-air missiles, close-in defense, radars, electronic warfare, and command and control. Containers designed to transport a catapult truck and a disassembled drone also appear. According to that publication, the goal would be to produce 2,000 containerized systems per year. Capture of the recently released video It is no coincidence that the concept revolves around an electromagnetic catapult. China has already taken important steps in that technology with the Fujianthe aircraft carrier that marks its leap toward catapult operations and detained deck recovery. This context helps to understand why this mobile system is interesting: it was not born as an isolated technical oddity, but within a stronger commitment to expand ways to put aircraft in the air. Type 076 Sichuanan amphibious assault ship associated in open sources with drone operations, points in a similar direction. Capture of the recently released video The entire photo goes beyond visual weirdness. China is not only expanding its naval aviation, it has also been pushing advanced aviation programs for years such as the J-20, its fifth-generation stealth fighter, and the J-35, a design associated with the leap towards more modern ship-borne operations. The mobile catapult doesn’t play in the same league as those planes, but it fits the same question: how to deploy more air capacity from more places. One of the first known images of the complex, in which the catapult trucks can be seen together with possible models of unmanned aircraft If the system worked as the published material suggests, its usefulness would be in bringing assisted launches to places where a conventional runway is not available or is too vulnerable. We are talking about islands, remote areas, prepared roads, temporary bases or ships with sufficient deck space. It would not serve to deploy any aircraft or to replace a complete aerial infrastructure, but it could bring light drones closer to specific areas of operation. In scenarios like this, every kilometer that the drone does not have to travel from a distant base counts. The list of unknowns remains long. We do not know what electrical power the system needs, what logistical footprint it requires, how the drones are charged before each launch or what actual cadence it could sustain outside of a controlled demonstration. There are also doubts about their use at sea: one thing is to place the modules on the deck of a ship with enough space and another is to launch drones with stability while the ship moves. The difference between teaching a demonstrator and having a useful military capability is still enormous. Images | Beijing Institute of Technology/WeChat In Xataka | Every year a veterinarian, a jurist, a psychoanalyst and a gardener meet. They are the secret owners of rearmament in Europe

“We position it above OLED”

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The battle for the best image in the living room can no longer be counted only as a fight between OLED and Mini LED. What we are seeing now is a new layer within the high end: RGB backlit LCD TVs who want to improve the color. Each manufacturer is putting its own brand name on the table, but the underlying direction is similar. In this context, Sony arrives with True RGB and with a phrase that clearly indicates how far it wants to take its bet. That is the starting point of the conversation we had with Albert GraciaCommercial Director Sony Iberia, during a presentation focused on the company’s RGB 2026 technology and range. Sony did not limit itself to showing new televisions: it wanted to explain why it considers True RGB represents a relevant leap within its BRAVIA family. Hence the question that runs through this article: what cards does Sony play with in a category that is already beginning to move and why does it place its new BRAVIA 9 II at the top of its own range. Sony enters the RGB battle with two proposals for the Spanish market Gracia does not present True RGB as an isolated technology, but rather as Sony’s response to a market that is already being filled with similar names. “Right now on the market there are many technologies that carry the RGB names.”, he explained during the conversation, before taking the argument towards the area that interests the company most: the way in which backlighting is generated and controlled. If we look beyond Sony, photography helps to understand why the term begins to need context. Samsung has the R95H within its Micro RGB familyTCL appears on this map with the RM9L RGB-Mini LED and LG has presented its Micro RGB evo AI, with the MRGB95 as a reference announced for 2026. These are not names that Gracia mentioned in the conversation, but rather examples that we put on the table to understand the market a little better. Sony BRAVIA 7 II What these proposals seek is not simply to put another label on the television box, but to attack one of the most sensitive points of the image: how the light that we later see converted into color is generated. The idea, explained without going into all the engineering, is that a component-based backlight red, green and blue allows you to better tune the intensity and chromatic purity. From there come known promises, but important ones for the high-end: more color volume, better gradation and more precise control of the scene. That’s where Sony tries to make its difference. According to Gracia, True RGB is based on a backlight made up of red, green and blue diodes, but the company’s argument does not stop at using three colors. The key, he defended, is that Sony is capable of “independently controlling each of these color diodes”, an idea that connects directly with its previous experience in controlling LED backlighting. Sony BRAVIA 9 II In Spain, this commitment does not remain a technology demonstration or a promise for later. Sony lands it in two specific models of its 2026 range: BRAVIA 7 II and BRAVIA 9 II. The former expands the presence of True RGB within the BRAVIA family, while the latter focuses the company’s highest ambition on image quality. The place reserved for the BRAVIA 9 II is important because Sony not only presents it as its most advanced RGB television, but as the model with which it wants to set its current ceiling in image quality. Gracia explains it by comparing it with OLED within the house itself, a relevant nuance because the company maintains that technology in its catalog with models such as BRAVIA 8 II. The phrase serves to better understand the hierarchy that Sony wants to build around True RGB. “In the case of the BRAVIA 9 II, for us it is the maximum exponent in terms of image quality. We position it above OLED, because we believe that it is the television that right now can provide the best image quality and the first reaction that we are seeing from the market is super positive with an already spectacular level of pre-orders from end consumers throughout Europe and with a very good reaction from the public.” The comparison with OLED is not just a striking phrase. In the 65-inch showcase, the BRAVIA 8 II OLED 4K appears with an original reference price of 3,499 euros in front of the 4,299 euros BRAVIA 9 II output with True RGB. At the time of preparing this article, the two models appear significantly reducedbut that doesn’t change the background reading. Sony retains OLED in its high range and, at the same time, places its new RGB proposal on a higher level within BRAVIA. Images | Xataka In Xataka | Haier launches its new 2026 televisions, moving from OLED and with one goal: to sell us more than 75 inches

Today on Netflix, the exciting third installment of one of the most viewed sagas in the history of the platform

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‘Enola Holmes 3’ comes to Netflix almost six years after the platform rescued the young detective from what would have been a very lackluster theatrical release. With it, Millie Bobby Brown returns to the role that made her famous outside of Hawkins, just six months after ‘Stranger Things’ closed its final season. Malta replaces London as the setting, and a kidnapping replaces a wedding as the driving force of the plot. The wedding, of course, is still there waiting its turn. Legendary had developed the first film for theatrical release, but the 2020 distribution halt led Netflix to purchase the distribution rights. The film, co-starring Henry Cavill as the legendary Sherlock Holmes, signed the best opening week for an original film up to that point. In its balance sheet for the third quarter of 2020, Netflix assured that 76 million accounts had seen the film in its first month. Two years later, ‘Enola Holmes 2’ repeated the hit: 64.08 million hours viewed in its first three days of broadcast. The origin of all this is Nancy Springer’s books, published between 2006 and 2023 and starring the little sister of Sherlock Holmes, a character invented by the author. The saga, made up of ten titles, had its corresponding dose of controversy: Conan Doyle’s heirs sued Springer, Legendary and Netflix in 2020 for alleged infringement of rights over the detective’s last ten original stories. On this occasion Enola Holmes travels to Malta to marry Lord Tewkesbury (Louis Partridge), but the ceremony is cut short when Dr. Watson (Himesh Patel) warns her that Sherlock (Henry Cavill) has been kidnapped. The investigation entangles her in a plot that mixes the British colonial past on the island (which includes a subplot about gold stolen by the English army in Afghanistan) with the tensions of a local group demanding independence from the Crown, while Moriarty (Sharon Duncan-Brewster) continues to pull strings from the shadows. In Xataka | ‘Torrente, Presidente’ has broken records at the box office, and now you can check on Netflix if the scandal was a big deal

It’s a very “human” reaction.

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It is possible that some of you, at some point, have had that arrogant co-worker who always brags about his successes and makes a huge mistake that resonates throughout the company. At that moment, more than one person may be happy about this failure and immediately ask themselves: Am I a bad person for this? And the reality is that, in general terms, the answer is no. It is documented. This reaction for science has a specific name, which is ‘schadenfreude‘, which comes from German Schadendamage, and Freudehappiness. And academic evidence warns us that reducing it to a simple “evil” or, on the contrary, a harmless reaction, is to ignore the fascinating wiring of our social brain. Understanding it. To understand the schadenfreude You don’t have to look at psychiatry manuals looking for a clinical disorder, but at functional magnetic resonance imaging. And research published in 2009 in the journal Science, where researchers discovered that envy and schadenfreude They are intimately connected in the brain. What happens in the brain. In this way, it could be seen that when the people studied felt envy, the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex was activated, a region associated with physical pain. But when that envied person suffered misfortune, the activity moved to the ventral striatum, the central nucleus of our brain’s reward circuit. In other words, we can say that, neurologically, seeing someone we envy fall generates a genuine reward. However, fundamental studies such as those by neuroscientist Tania Singer qualify this by pointing out that these responses do not arise because we have a sadistic “evil gene” or “happiness hormone”, but because our brain networks are constantly monitoring social comparison and perceived justice. The thermostat of empathy. If the schadenfreude If it were pure cruelty, we would laugh at the misfortunes of our loved ones, and we really don’t. This is where a piece of research comes in that showed that pleasure in the failure of others is triggered under very specific conditions. For example, when a person is perceived as a rival, when they have a higher status or when they represent a threat to our self-esteem, it is when we feel this pleasure that they make some type of mistake. That is why the schadenfreude It is the dark reverse of empathy, since our ability to empathize is temporarily “turned off” when the suffering of the other balances a scale that we considered unfair or when it reaffirms the position of our “tribe.” Since children. This is not a reaction that appears in adulthood, but rather in experiments with young children have shown that there is also this response of joy to an event of this type, especially in contexts of inequality. For example, if one child sees another child receiving unfairly favorable treatment and then the latter suffers a minor mishap, the first child shows signs of satisfaction. Images | Alexey Demidov In Xataka | Science followed 184 adolescents for 25 years to find out the origin of empathy. Let’s hope the same thing doesn’t happen with evil.

The greatest Japanese railway dream is a train that would connect Madrid and Barcelona in 75 minutes at 600 km/h. It’s also your biggest nightmare

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Year 2027, Japan prepares for the first trip of its new Maglev. The train that works by magnetic levitation runs at a speed of 505 km/h and has exceeded 600 km/h in its testing phase. It will barely take 40 minutes to travel between Tokyo and Nagoya, cities that are currently separated by more than an hour and a half of travel. If we move it to Spanish soil, the new Maglev that is about to leave Tokyo station would link Madrid and Barcelona in 75 minutes. Today, the fastest train takes 182 minutes and work is being done to reduce travel time to less than two hours. But all this is a dream. A nightmare, more like. And it is that Japan has been dreaming for years with once again taking the initiative in high-speed rail worldwide. Despite being the pioneers in offering trips on what are known as “bullet trains” and demonstrating to the world in 1964 that they were decades ahead of any competitor, China has surpassed them. A project aims to return them to the top. It is the Chuo Shinkansen line operated by a Maglev. But that project is taking hold and, at the moment, things are not looking too good. A decade of delay and shovelfuls of money When in 2015 the Maglev exceeded 600 km/h We thought that today we would travel by train much faster than we do. Japan then presented a seven-car prototype known as the L0 Series. It was one of the first steps to connect Tokyo and Nagoya in just 40 minutes. He calendar projected the dream described above. In 2027, Japan would have a line operated by trains capable of reaching 505 km/h. It would be a punch on the table on a board, that of high speed, which China dominates right now. The neighboring country and great rival has managed to establish itself as the place where the trains travel the fastest, move more people and They have more kilometers of roads available. But all these plans have been delayed and the new date points to 2036. They explain in the specialized media Japanism that the Chuo Shinkansen was designed as a fast route to link the large cities located on the Pacific coast. Currently, Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka are already linked by the Tokaido Shinkansen, but this new line would serve to decongest roads that circulate at their limits and, at the same time, offer the fastest route possible. So much so that Tokyo and Osaka, today separated by a trip of at least 202 minutes, would become connected in just 75 minutes. That is, an hour and a quarter. This alternative obviously requires the construction of an entire railway infrastructure that is encountering a multitude of problems. One of the big secrets why trains in Japan are so fast and punctual is that they use different infrastructure for their high-speed trains and conventional ones. With the Chuo Shinkansen it would be even more necessary since the train works by magnetic levitation. The Maglev is an old Japanese railway dream that has its roots in the 70s when research began on whether a train could operate using magnetic levitation. The idea is that the train “floats” on the tracks traveling at a very high speed, held by powerful magnets. This way friction against the tracks is eliminated and the ride should be smoother and quieter. Obviously, this prevents the current roads from being reused. To carry out this new infrastructure, Japan has proposed launching its trains underground for about 250 kilometers. Tokyo and Nagoya are separated by 286 kilometers and the project involves burying 90% of the route. And to reduce travel times, the train would go underground in the interior of the country, instead of continuing near the coast like the current Tokaido Shinkansen. High-speed trains have a problem: tunnels. The speed of trains in Japan is limited by the numerous holes that the country has had to make in its mountains to carry out its high-speed lines. With each entry into a tunnel there is a change in pressure that generates discomfort for passengers and enormous noise outside, as well as challenges for the movement of the train itself. The idea with Maglev is to eliminate these entrances and exits with a train that almost always runs underground. In this way, it can also work in vacuum conditions, which reduces the energy needed to reach speeds of more than 500 km/h. This idea has faced countless problems, they explain in Japanism. The project began to take shape in 2011 but has experienced constant delays and setbacks. First there was an important political struggle to decide what the final itinerary of the line was and it was not until 2015 when the ground began to be excavated. The problem is that the new tracks circulate, in some sections, next to current high-speed tracks. They explain in the middle that in the Shinagawa area the conventional train tracks are being replaced by magnetic levitation sections but that they can only advance 12 meters a day because there are only four hours of work left free, which is the interval between the last train of the day and the first of the next day. All this, added to the fights with the land owners and the technical difficulties, has increased the cost of the project. It was estimated that the line between Tokyo and Osaka would cost 9 billion Japanese yen, of which 5.52 billion yen would have to be spent between Tokyo and Nagoya. However, cost overruns have skyrocketed the final figure and in 2025 JR Central, in charge of the project, already estimated the cost of this last section in 11 trillion yen. All these cost overruns and technical problems (barely 2% of traffic will move on land, 86% of the time will travel underground and the rest on viaducts and bridges) have caused interruptions in construction and, as we have seen, an increase … Read more

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