Mobile Tech & Gadgets

10,000 steps a day are of no use if they are not done well

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For years, the public health mantra has undoubtedly been focused on something very simple: walking. Anyone with high blood pressurediabetes or any other chronic illness received as a ‘treatment’ by taking a walk with the mantra of 10,000 steps in the background ringing. But the reality is that there are some voices that want to overthrow this concept in a radical way. The criticisms. Felipe Isidro, professor of Physical Activity and Sports Sciences, has put his finger on the sore by pointing out that walking is not exercise, but rather it is wander. For this expert, prescribing “walking” to a patient is as useful as telling him to breathe because logically we are walking every day to get from one place to another (unless we are immobilized). And taking less than 120 steps per minute is inefficient. And science is something that is supported in different studiesbecause human biology is extremely efficient: if an effort is not challenging, the body does not invest energy in adapting. This is what science calls “insufficient stimulus.” For example, the LITE studio analyzed people who walked at low intensity and discovered something quite frustrating: in resistance and functional capacity tests, the results of those who walked slowly were practically identical to those in the control group that didn’t do anything. And it makes sense, since for the body that level of activity was background noise, not exercise. It’s literally like you’re wandering around. The x3 rule. If we compare casual walking with moderate or vigorous exercise, the difference is not linear, but rather exponential. According to the data of the Framingham Heart Studyone of the longest-running and most respected analyzes in the world, moderate-high intensity exercise is three times more effective at improving physical fitness than walking at a slow pace. And it makes sense. The metabolic response that our body has means that one minute of vigorous activity can provide the same cardiovascular benefits as six minutes of moderate walking. But in addition, meta-analyses on type 2 diabetes show that interval training (walking fast in sections) lowers blood sugar levels much more aggressively than always walking at the same pace. And although walking more steps reduces overall mortality, the published reviews in The Lancet suggest that maintaining excessively slow paces can increase cardiovascular risks by up to 44% compared to those who push the pace. A lie detector. Where is the scientific border between “walking” and “training”? The technical literature places the turning point in the cadence. For walking to have a real impact on health biomarkers (blood pressure, aerobic capacity, fat composition), studies suggest a range of between 120 and 140 steps per minute. Below that figure, we are in what physiologists call “light physical activity.” This activity is useful for breaking a sedentary lifestyle (and has proven benefits on the mental health and mobility of older people, reducing motor difficulties by 14-16%), but it is insufficient to reverse metabolic problems or improve the cardiorespiratory system in healthy adults. A clear verdict. Science does not say right now that walking is bad, but that what gives a neutral or even harmful effect is doing the basic minimum. This is why total steps are excellent for extending overall longevity and not dying early, but what really protects quality of life is intensity. In short, if the smartwatch on duty indicates that you have taken 10,000 steps, but without your heart knowing, the truth is that you have only been wandering. What should be done is simply accelerate the pace so that our body can react (as long as each person’s limits allow it). Images | Arek Adeoye In Xataka | Walking changes the rules of Alzheimer’s: a few steps a day are enough to stop the spark that ignites the disease

OpenAI’s obsession was to train its models like crazy. Now it’s run them faster than anyone else

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OpenAI has signed an agreement estimated to be worth more than $10 billion with Cerebras Systems, a startup that designs advanced AI chips dedicated to one thing: running AI models as fast as possible. It is a unique alliance not only because of that change of focus, but because there is a conflict of interests. what has happened. The firm led by Sam Altman has committed to purchasing 750 MW of computing capacity over the next three years from Cerebras. Sources cited in The Wall Street Journal indicate that this alliance has an estimated value of more than $10 billion. We are therefore facing an operation extraordinary in size, but peculiar in form and substance. What Cerebras does. The firm based in Sunnyvale, California, was founded in 2015 by former engineers from SeaMicro, purchased in 2012 by AMD. The startup designs artificial intelligence chips specifically aimed at the inference stage of AI models, that is, executing them. More tokens per second please. When we use ChatGPT or any AI model, what we are looking at is an AI model using inference. Some “write” faster than others, and that speed of displaying text in responses is measured in tokens per second. Typically NVIDIA chips are great for the training phase, but not so much for the inference phase. Chips from companies like Cerebras —or those of the well-known Groqwhich has just been “bought” by NVIDIA—are precisely designed to run those models at full speed and obtain very high token per second speeds. The AI ​​is already good. Now she wants to be fast. NVIDIA’s recent “purchase” of Groq makes it clear that Jensen Huang’s company wanted the ability to offer those ultra-fast inference chips, and now OpenAI seems to want something very similar with its deal with Cerebras. AI models have already achieved remarkable performance in many scenarios, and although they are not perfect, now companies want them to not only work well, but also work very very fast and their responses, even if they are long, appear almost instantly. OpenAI wants more computing power. This operation also helps Sam Altman’s company with another objective: to obtain (and reserve) as much computing capacity as possible in anticipation of the fact that demand for these AI models will grow non-stop in the coming months and years. According to WSJ OpenAI already has more than 900 million weekly users, and its managers have frequently commented that they continue to have computing capacity problems. Brains grow. This agreement reinforces Cerebras’ position in a market that clearly demands this type of solutions. The firm is negotiating a $1 billion investment round that would bring its market valuation to $22 billion, tripling the current valuation, which is around $8.1 billion. In the past it has raised $1.8 billion according to PitchBook. Conflict of interest. This agreement also draws attention for an important aspect: Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, is also an investor in Cerebras (he is at the bottom of this Cerebras website) and indeed your company At one point he considered acquiring Cerebras although in the end that operation did not bear fruit. We are therefore faced with an operation that theoretically benefits Altman on both sides, which is worrying. How will OpenAI pay for this party? This new agreement once again triggers the debate about OpenAI’s ability to meet its credit and debt obligations. In 2025 it generated about 13,000 million dollars in income, but that enormous amount remains minuscule if we take into account that the contracts it signed with OracleMicrosoft or Amazon They amount to about 600,000 million dollars that will have to end up getting from somewhere. Where from? It’s a good question. We’ll see if they can end up answering it. In Xataka | The alliance between Oracle and OpenAI is not just about data centers: it is about overtaking Google, Apple and Microsoft on the right

charge a lot to Big Tech that uses it for AI

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The world’s largest free encyclopedia is celebrating. Wikipedia turns 25, and to commemorate this event they have prepared content and activities for all its users that give context to the beginnings of this non-profit project. However, perhaps the most striking thing about your statement It has to do with the new vision that the Wikimedia Foundation will take from now on: a Wikipedia in the age of AI. For this reason, those responsible for managing this digital library have also revealed that Microsoft, Meta and Amazon joined other Big Tech companies such as Google to be able to use Wikipedia content to train their language models. To do this, companies pay good money to the foundation for having premium access to that content. What is happening. The Wikimedia Foundation has confirmed that Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, Perplexity and Mistral AI have joined Google as paying customers of Wikimedia Enterprise, a commercial platform launched in 2021. According to Lane Becker, senior director of revenue at the foundation, this initiative offers a version of the Wikipedia API “optimized” for commercial use and AI companies, with functionalities customized according to the needs of each company. Why are they paying? Tech companies rely massively on Wikipedia to train their AI models. 65 million articles in more than 300 languages ​​are essential for chatbots like ChatGPT or virtual assistants. However, Wikipedia says that this use has also increased the maintenance and server costs of the library, whose traditional financing comes from small donations from the public. “Wikipedia is a critical component of the work of these tech companies that need to figure out how to support it financially,” explained Lane Becker told Reuters. In detail. Wikimedia Enterprise is not simply downloading Wikipedia. The platform allows these companies to access content at a volume and speed specifically designed to train large-scale AI models, with structured data formats and custom functionality requests. Microsoft, Perplexity and Mistral AI joined forces over the last year, while Meta and Amazon were already partners although their participation had not been publicly announced until now. Between the lines. It is a financing model with which the Wikimedia Foundation would benefit more, in addition to individual donations. It’s also a change in how Wikipedia sustains its nonprofit mission. For years, the platform has relied on individual donations while large corporations benefited from its knowledge for free. Now, the foundation has found a balance: keeping access free for the general public while monetizing heavy commercial use. “Reaching a new sustainable balance with these new companies is critical for our continued existence, but also for yours,” pointed out Becker to The Verge. Wikipedia in the age of AI. Just like account Foundation, Wikipedia continues to be created and maintained by approximately 250,000 volunteer editors around the world who write, edit and fact-check information for free. Tim Frank, corporate vice president of Microsoft, counted that “together, we are helping to create a sustainable content ecosystem for the AI ​​internet, where contributors are valued.” On the other hand, Selena Deckelmann, Director of Product and Technology at Wikimedia, assured that “Wikipedia proves that knowledge is human and knowledge needs humans. Especially now, in the age of AI, we need Wikipedia’s human-powered knowledge more than ever.” Cover image | Oberon Copeland In Xataka | The Apple Intelligence and Siri disaster has caused something unusual: Apple gives the keys to its kingdom to Google

What channels are available for free and how to access them

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Let’s tell you how to watch DTT on Prime Videoalthough at the moment only those on public television are available. We are going to tell you what exactly you can expect from this movement, its advantages, and how to access these channels. Although DTT is accessible to almost everyone, being able to access its channels from streaming services can help you wherever you are. There is no television signal but you do have internetwhether sharing the connection from your mobile or with something contracted. Which DTT channels are seen on Prime Video For now, from January 14, 2026 You can see all RTVE channels. These channels are La1, La2, Clan, Teledeporte and 24H. All of them can be accessed from the same place as the rest of the channels. The other DTT channels are paid. For example, Atresmedia has its own available, but you must pay for Atresplayer Premium, while for Mediaset’s you must have a subscription to Infinity+. You have to hire these as an addon. We still do not know if after the free incorporation of RTVE the private channels will imitate their movement or not. How to access channels To access the free DTT channels on Prime Video, the first thing is to have a subscription to this service. Then inside the app Click on the section live TV that you will have at the top. This will take you to the list of free channels that are broadcasting live on this service. In it, simply, go down until you find the ones from TRVE and select them. That will start the broadcast over the Internet. In Xataka Basics | DTT channels in 2026: what changes are there with a channel that is leaving, a new channel and another that changes its name

Barcelona believes it has a night security problem. So you’re going to leave the Christmas lights on all year long

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Vigo risks losing his position as “city of lights” (from Spain). Although the Galician City Council usually displays its Christmas decorations already in July and boasts every year of the millions and millions of LEDs that adorn its streets for almost two months, from November to January, there is another city that is about to raise the stakes: Barcelona. There the Consistory has decided maintain part of the lighting for the festivities Old City during the remainder of winter. Their reasons actually have little to do with Christmas. Lights, lights and more lights. Christmas may be over, but in Spain it is becoming common for us to talk about its lights for months and months. In Vigo they do it because the City Council begins to hang them in the middle of Julywith the thermometer flirting with 30º and the city full of tourists in shorts and flip-flops. Now they will do it too in Barcelonaalthough for other reasons. What do they want to do there? The news I advanced it on Monday The Vanguard: Barcelona is finalizing a plan to improve the lighting of some of the narrowest (and darkest) streets of Ciutat Vella, taking advantage of part of the decoration that was installed there this Christmas. That is to say, in the absence of traditional streetlights, garlands strung between facades are good. Although Jaume Collboni’s team has not yet revealed the details of the initiative, the idea does seem clear: it is not so much about neighbors, merchants and tourists continuing to walk for months under decorations of Santa Clauses, Three Wise Men and Christmas trees, but rather about maintaining the most ‘timeless’ designs. Walking under light bulbs. The key is therefore to take advantage of decoration that does not clash with the rest of the winter. To reinforce it, the municipal government also proposes maintaining the garlands that the merchants themselves have placed. In the Gòtic there are businesses that have been hanging decorative lights on their own, although as these were private initiatives they encountered challenges such as the passage of garbage trucks or some parades. Where, when and how. While waiting for the City Council to provide more details about where, when and how the initiative will be deployed, The Vanguard has advanced some keys: the measure will focus on points in Ciutat Vella, Gótic and Sant Pere streets, Santa Caterina and Ribera that aspire to improve their lighting. Regarding the calendar, councilor Albert Batlle explains that the Consistory proposes keeping the lights for several months: “The will is that the measure be implemented, now and in the future, during the winter time period, approximately between the last weekend of October and the last weekend of March.” Two keys: trade and security. Batlle too confirm that the measure pursues two objectives: to favor the businesses and residents of the area and to put an end to alleys in which pickpockets find refuge. “We want to improve the lighting of some small streets in Gòtic and Sant Pere, Santa Caterina and la Ribera to promote commercial, cultural and social revitalization, and also to improve the feeling of security, especially on days with fewer hours of daylight,” he adds. “We are working on the formula to enhance this network.” “They give them more qualms”. The measure appears to have had good reception among the businesses in the area, which even proposed expanding the list of roads that were initially going to benefit from the lights. “If the streets are more illuminated, walking becomes safer and commerce will benefit,” recognize to The Newspaper David González, from the Via Laietana Merchants Association. Proof of how convincing the measure is is that at the time some businessmen from Born they already started to hang garlands at your own risk. “People go along Paseo del Born very happy because the promenade and the streets are usually well lit. But the dark alleys make them hesitant.” The idea has also been found with detractors who consider it a patch. But… Does it work? Although he has achieved reduce your crimeBarcelona usually appears in the area highest of the rankings about the cities insecure from Spain. The key is whether more public lighting will translate into greater real safety, a question that has generated debate in recent years. What they do seem to confirm cases like that of Vigo is that a good commitment to street lighting (even if it is seasonal) serves to attract thousands of visitors. Images | Barcelona City Council (X) and Núria (Flickr) In Xataka | The upper area of ​​Barcelona no longer interests the rich: the Eixample has become fashionable and its neighbors tremble because of the prices

We have so much supply on the way that no one knows what will happen to the prices.

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The global and European energy market is experiencing an unprecedented metamorphosis. If just three years ago the world held his breath In the face of scarcity, today the scenario is the opposite. According to Bloomberga “record supply wave” is creating a “buyers’ market” that will last until the end of the decade. But the news is not only that there is more gas, but that the rules of the game for buying and selling it in Europe have changed forever: gas has ceased to be a slow raw material and has become a high-speed financial asset. The giants are awakening. The engine of this saturation has its own names. According to Bloomberg dataglobal LNG production grew by 6% in 2025 and the trend has only just begun. This year, two megaprojects—Golden Pass in Texas and the massive Qatar expansion—will begin pumping fuel, alone adding 11% to total global exports once they reach full capacity. This reality has reconfigured the European board. According to a report by S&P Globalthe United States is already the absolute owner of the supply in the old continent, representing 77.53% of imports in 2025. The market no longer reflects shortages, but rather the symptoms of an “excess supply” that is forcing prices down, with the JKM index (Asia) and the TTF (Europe) narrowing their margins. The end of office hours: The gas becomes “hyperactive.” One of the most profound changes is not on the ships, but on the traders’ screens. As revealed by the newsletter Energy Daily from Bloombergthe Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) has extended trading of gas and electricity products to 22 hours a day. This movement breaks with decades of tradition. Before, all traders logged on at 8 am in Amsterdam to check inventories and weather news. Now, the market operates almost tirelessly to synchronize with the United States and Asia. This movement allows you to react “instantly” to nightly headlines about Iran or Ukraine. The result is a cglobal price convergence, but with a risk: this immediacy can amplify sudden movements and volatility in the short term. The landing of the Hedge Funds. This new liquidity and opening hours has attracted a risk-hungry player: the Hedge Funds. By not being tied to physical assets (such as pipelines or ships), these funds can bet on pure volatility. As Bloomberg analysis explainswhile traditional traders suffer from low margins, hedge funds take advantage of the arbitrage opportunities generated by a market that never sleeps. Gas has officially become an asset as dynamic as oil or currencies. The respite of emerging nations. Supply saturation has a human lifeline. The collapse in prices is allowing emerging nations such as Vietnam, India and Myanmar return to the market. After being squeezed out by prohibitive prices in the 2022 crisis, these countries are absorbing excess LNG to displace coal and power their growing electricity grids. It is this Asian appetite that is preventing the market from totally collapsing under the weight of the new American and Qatari supply. The point goes beyond. And as always there is the geopolitical factor. This abundance puts giants like Shell and Exxon Mobil in a bind. According to ReutersShell is already suffering the consequences, with a drop in its trading results that calls into question its $3.5 billion share buybacks. For its part, Donald Trump’s geopolitics adds fuel to the fire. How Reuters has had accessTrump has pressured oil companies to revitalize Venezuela after Maduro’s departure, but Exxon CEO Darren Woods has been skeptical, calling the country “uninvestable.” At the same time, the market is watching Trump’s tariffs on Iran, that according to the Bloomberg graphhave taken Brent crude oil to almost $65, complicating the strategy of some “majors” that must find buyers for their surplus gas in an increasingly volatile world. The European “Wall”. In Europe, the battle is not about gas, but for the infrastructure. Given the slow pace of works on land, the EU has entrusted its fate to FSRUs (floating regasification units). These ships are the mobile “plugs” needed to process gas crossing the Atlantic. On the other hand, Spain is the perfect example of the disconnection between abundance and transportation. Despite being the Europe’s “renewable laboratory”the country has hit a technical wall. Gas consumption for electricity rose by 26% in 2025 to act as a “bodyguard” of the network and avoid blackouts. However, the year closed as the third most expensive in history for the Spanish consumer. Spain has gas on its coasts, but it does not have enough “cables or pipes” (interconnections) to relieve the rest of the continent or lower its own bill. The trap of 2050. Despite the renewable boom, a McKinsey & Company report projects that global gas demand will increase by 26% towards 2050. Gas is not being retired; It is being repositioned as the life support of an electrical network that does not know how to function on its own. As a Morgan Stanley report concludesthe energy success of 2026 is no longer negotiated in political offices in Moscow. It is decided on the speed of the algorithms of the hedge funds that operate 22 hours a day, in the capacity of the floating terminals and in the engineers who must untangle the knot of the European electricity network. There is plenty of gas, but the path for this relief to reach the final consumer is still full of obstacles. Image | Unsplash Xataka | Spain, Europe’s renewable laboratory, runs into the gas wall: 2025 broke the dream of cheap electricity

Leroy Merlin sells the V16 beacon for 30 euros that connects to its own app to notify emergencies and insurance

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On January 1, the new DGT regulations that forces us to carry a V16 beacon in the vehicle to use in case of emergency or breakdown. There are many models that exist on the market, although there are two manufactured in Spain that stand out from the rest. One is the Help Flash IoT+ and the other is this one that Leroy Merlin sells. It is about the V16 Ledone beaconwhich if there is something that stands out for it is the number of candles and also for having its own app. Its price, at the moment, is 29.99 euros. V16 approved DGT geolocated beacon LEDONE Connected The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Made in Spain and with characteristics different from the rest If you have not yet purchased a V16 beacon for your vehicle, this model has some features that make it stand out from the rest. One of them is its design, since it has a base that elevates itso it can be very useful to place in different types of vehicles. Another of its assets is that it has 120 candleswhich is triple the mandatory 40 candelas that this emergency light must have according to the DGT. In addition, it is manufactured in Spain, which gives it extra reliability. Although if there is something for which this stands out emergency light (and that only has one other model on the market) is because it has your own app. From this app, you can communicate directly with your insurance and emergency services, something that will be very useful if you have to leave your car on the shoulder. Other V16 beacons that may interest you If this V16 beacon does not convince you, on the market you can also find other models at a good price. These are some of them: V16 beacon Raykong by 35.99 euros on MediaMarkt: it is also one of the most popular models. V16 beacon iWottolight by 29.99 euros at Carrefour. V16 beacon Nk DP-EL2024-C1 by 29.99 euros in PcComponentes. V16 beacon help flash IoT+ by 36.81 euros on Amazon: a best-selling model with its own app to notify emergencies or insurance. Other accessories that may interest you for your vehicle 10.26″ Wireless Carplay Screen 360 Rotation 4K Dash Cam with Auto Stereo Audio Receiver The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Xiaomi Portable Air Compressor 2 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. Image | Webedia and Ledone In Xataka | Don’t wait until January 1: if you have to buy your V16 beacon, Leroy Merlin has them for less than 40 euros In Xataka | Safety, organization and entertainment gadgets and accessories for cars on long trips

Taiwan colonizing the United States with TSMC as the spearhead

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TSMC is the big name in the global semiconductor industry. We all have companies like NVIDIA, Qualcomm, Intel or AMD in mind, but It is TSMC that produces most of the chips of these companies. The Taiwanese company produces around 60% of the world’s chips, but when we talk about the most advanced chips, that dominance is practically total. It is a technological candy that has decided to expand and, after the plant in the United States, continues to buy land to expand its footprint. And it is a move that further unbalances the balance in terms of chips. Necessary expansion. TSMC’s base of operations is in Taiwan, but a few years ago, the company saw clearly that they had to expand their operations framework. It is something that responds to a double need. On the one hand, the more footprint they have in other countries, the more the technology industry will continue to depend on their technique. On the other hand, the main factor: the threat of china. China and Taiwan are going through a period of growing tension. We have seen maneuvers by China that I’m sure they’ve made the Taiwanese nervous.. Also Taiwan operations for show that they could defend themselves and countries like Japan and, above all, the United States They are very aware of the situation. 87% of TSMC’s more than 80,000 employees operate in Taiwan and any open conflict between the countries would mean a stoppage in the company’s operations. Little joke with this: if its chips move the world, let TSMC stop producing would cause an economic collapse. Arizona. There is a third factor that is encouraging this international expansion. Although Europe, the United States and China seeks national sovereignty in semiconductor matterthe reality is that companies need the cutting-edge chips that only TSMC can reliably mass produce. And, while financing semiconductor plants, countries have decided to invest millions to attract TSMC to their territories. The plant that will open in Germany either that of Japan They are two examples, but the one that is already operating is the American one. Although Trump, with his protectionist policies and ‘America First’, does not like it being a foreign company that cuts the cod, TSMC already has a huge plant located in Arizona from which it produces key components of the iPhone 16. This facility is the company’s most ambitious project far from Taiwan, and what started as a $12 billion investment in 2020 has become a colossal $160 billion-plus operation. They started to produce 4 nanometer chips at the beginning of 2025 and the idea is refine machinery to reach 2nm in 2029. New lands. Within the ‘Made in the USA’ strategy of the large American technology companies, TSMC Arizona is vital. And considering the economic opportunity that the AI ​​era has opened up, with the astronomical need for chips to create products like NVIDIA’s solutions for data centers, TSMC wants to grab as much of the pie as possible. As we read in The Wall Street Journala series of factors such as Taiwanese investment and a relaxation in US tariffs on Taiwan would allow TSMC to expand further. According to the media, last week the technology company purchased 900 acres – about 360 hectares – of land adjacent to its current property in Arizona. The total has been almost 200 million dollars and the intention is to expand the facilities to reach a dozen. TSMC + NVIDIA Made in the USA (more expensive). With this move, TSMC would discourage the competition from trying to invest to stand up to them because, as we say, they are the ones who dominate the production of advanced chips and who have the capacity to supply their enormous customer base. Apple is one of those that already buys chips from Arizonabut NVIDIA has confirmed that its B30 GPUs will be the first made in the United States. Now, there is a toll. HE esteem TSMC Arizona prices on advanced nodes are between 5% and 30%. There are several factors. In Taiwan they have the policy of “everything at one hour”, so any material the factory needs is very close, creating an extremely efficient chain. That does not happen in the American factory, where suppliers are far away and you have to resort to air transportation, which increases the price. There is also the fact that the wages They are higher in the US than in Taiwan. Headache. Despite these conditions, and being a foreign company controlling the show on home soil, TSMC has so dominated the process that the companies it’s worth it because they know that the chips they get will be the best for their products. Furthermore, from a political perspective, these additional costs may even be reasonable if they ensure that a conflict in Taiwan would not completely paralyze its economy. For TSMC, expansion is a great move. At the political level, countries that embrace their factories also have a reason to attract investment and Big Tech and the CEO of NVIDIA himself is clear that swith those who will lead the industry for decades. However, it is still an industry dependent on a single entity. Without leaving the United States, the country got his hands on Intel in the middle of last year in an almost unprecedented move to turn the company into the great american foundry. With TSMC expanding its network at home, they are going to have it complicated despite having the best technology available. Images | NVIDIA, TSMC, Intel In Xataka | The world’s technology industry practically depends on a single road: the one that leads to the Spruce Prine mine

Ten years ago Beijing was an unbreathable city. Today its air quality is better than that of Madrid for a reason

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On December 8, 2015, schools were closed in Beijing. Construction stopped. Only a handful of cars could circulate on the streets. The atmosphere was unbreathable. We don’t say it, the city leaders said it at that time. As stated BBCit was the first time that the red alert due to contamination. In China, an action protocol with four levels had been launched to deal with this type of episode. That day marked a before and after. Just over a decade later, Beijing is one of the Chinese cities with the best air quality. The country still has a serious problem with pollution but the data show that the country’s capital has left those days of constant fog behind. And it has done so, in large part, by a huge investment in cleaning up transportation. Better air quality than Madrid That December 8, Beijing registered 291 micrograms per cubic meter of PM2.5ultrafine particles especially harmful to health. They are polluting emissions that can come from different sources but in whose production diesel engines intervene decisively. That’s why DGT environmental labeling that It is used in Spanish ZBEs discriminates (by age) between diesel vehicles and gasoline vehicles. Is 291 micrograms a lot? To get an idea, the WHO recommended At that time, it did not exceed 25 micrograms per cubic meter. Obviously, this pollution rate occurred on a specific day under specific circumstances, but the annual levels were so high that in 2013 they signed 89.5, as stated in Motorpassion. Last year, according to published data By the Beijing Municipal Ecology and Environment Bureau, the city signed 27 micrograms per cubic meter of PM 2.5. A fact that improves the air breathed in Madrid, “which did not exceed 31 micrograms of PM 2.5” on average, in the words of the Madrid officials. The decline is absolutely spectacular and is marked by profound changes in mobility, lowering the 30 microgram barrier for the first time in its history per cubic meter on the annual average. In addition, 311 days of 2025 were classified within the parameters that point to the best air quality. For this, Beijing launched a campaign against pollution which became especially relevant a little over a decade ago, although it already took its first steps with the 2008 Beijing Olympic Days. It was not until 2013 when the city took serious measures. More than a million coal-fired boilers in the city were replaced with boilers that run on gas or electricity. The city added more than 600,000 new energy vehicles (electric or plug-in hybrids that generally operate in completely electric mode). But, above all, 1.9 million cars that were considered too old and polluting were taken off the road. Low emission zones had a key effect in achieving this. Then, the 6NI mechanical (which was equivalent to our Euro 6) to let vehicles pass or not. Automobiles that, in addition, had to stay at home alternately (discriminating by license plate) when high pollution episodes were activated. The evolution of Beijing has been so spectacular in the last 10 years that it is common to see it as an example for those most polluted cities, like New Delhi, in India. Photo | zhang kaiyv and Quique Olivar In Xataka | Tire pollution is as serious as engine pollution. This company says it has found the solution

The most advanced Spanish military satellite suffered an impact in space more than a week ago. There are still no clear explanations

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For years, Spain has invested millions of euros in building a space communications system designed for extreme scenarios, from military operations to international emergencies. One of its pillars, the satellite SpainSat NG II, It took off in October with everything as planned and within a program presented as the most ambitious in Spanish space history. However, something happened very soon during its transfer to its orbital position. More than a week after an incident was acknowledged, what surrounds the satellite’s true status is a combination of minimal data and silence that leaves many questions open. An aging statement. The only thing confirmed so far comes from a statement released by Indra January 2, 2026in which it is recognized that the satellite suffered the “impact of a space particle” during its transfer to the final orbit. The incident occurred about 50,000 kilometers from Earth, still an intermediate phase of the journey to its geostationary position. Since then, the technical team is analyzing the available data to determine the extent of the damage, but no assessment of its operational status or the actual consequences of the impact has been made public. The launch of SpainSat NG II took place on the night of October 23 in the United States, already in the early hours of the 24th in Spain, aboard a Falcon 9 bound for a geostationary transfer orbit. From there, the satellite had to complete a journey of several months until reaching its final position about 36,000 kilometers from Earth, a process that, according to the CEO of Hisdesat told Euronews, usually takes between five and six months. The impact recognized by Indra occurred in that intermediate phase of the journey, when the satellite had not yet reached its final operational orbit. The reaction. In that same statement, Indra explained that Hisdesat, operator and owner of the satellite, had activated a contingency plan to guarantee that the committed services are not affected. The formulation fits with the logic of a two-satellite system, which seeks to ensure continuity of service even in the event of unforeseen incidents. However, the specific measures adopted and the current degree of dependence on the affected satellite within the program as a whole have not been detailed, which limits the ability to evaluate the real scope of this response. Twin units. SpainSat NG II is not an isolated satellite, but one of the two central pieces of a system conceived as a long-term strategic infrastructure. Along with his twin, the SpainSat NG Iis part of a program promoted by the Ministry of Defense with an investment of more than 2,000 million eurosintended to provide Spain with its own secure communications. The first satellite has already been operational since the summer, while the second was to complete the system, a context that explains the attention that any anomaly in its deployment has generated. The secrets of the satellite. From a technical point of view, SpainSat NG II represents a notable leap over previous generations of government communications satellites. Built by Airbus on the Eurostar Neo platformthe satellite has dimensions close to seven meters and a mass of around six tons. Its payload incorporates an X-band active antenna system that, according to Airbus, offers the equivalent functionality of 16 traditional antennas and allows coverage to be dynamically adapted up to 1,000 times per second, a capacity designed for changing and demanding operating scenarios. More questions than answers. With the information available, the range of scenarios remains wide. An impact from a space particle can result in minor damage without operational consequences, but also in a more serious impact that forces the functions to be limited or the deployment of the satellite to be reconsidered. Indra has even left open the option of a replacement if necessary, and maintains that, in that case, the satellite would be replaced as soon as possible. The absence of specific technical data makes it impossible to know whether this is a controlled incident or a problem with deeper implications. Given the lack of public updates, from Xataka we have contacted Indra to find out if there was any news about the status of the satellite. The company’s press office has responded to us that, for now, they have no details to share about what happened. That silence prolongs the uncertainty around a strategic system that has not yet entered service and leaves open key questions about the real scope of the impact. Images | Airbus (1, 2) | Thales In Xataka | We already have an official date for the United States’ return to the Moon: it is imminent and mired in a sea of ​​doubts

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