Mobile Tech & Gadgets

the traditional solution of a town in Navarra to the most dangerous problem of seeing an eclipse

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Who has not been guided by the rooms on New Year’s Eve so as not to screw up with the beginning of the 12 grapes? Without a doubt, those sounds that precede the chimes of 12 midnight are an ideal resource to fully enjoy the last night of the year. This summer, in the Navarrese town of Lerín they will have something similar to follow the solar eclipse of August 12. It is a ringing that has been designed for the occasion by the Navarra Bell Ringers Association and that, without a doubt, will make the observation of this phenomenon much more special. And also safe. A new touch for a unique phenomenon. The town of Lerín celebrates each year some days of astrotourism and scientific tourism, known as Lerín Earth Star. This year, as it could not be otherwise, they have been planned to coincide with the eclipse. For this reason, the astrophysicist and scientific disseminator Javier Armentia contacted the Association of Bell Ringers of Navarra to find out if they have a specific ringing to announce this type of events. The objective, according to explained At the press conference in which this curious invention was announced, it was “to unite tradition and astronomy in a way never seen before.” Since they did not have such a ring, they did not hesitate to look among their members for someone willing to design it. The person in charge, finally, was Rosarina Caballín. A simple touch with several interventions. The touch designed by Caballín is simple, with a ringing that becomes more intense as the climax approaches. It is designed to indicate the beginning and end of the partial and total phase of the eclipse. Bells for security. The decision to notify the start of the partial and total phase is not only symbolic, it also seeks the safety of those attending. While the eclipse is partial, if you look at the Sun it is absolutely essential to use approved protective glasses. Even if there is only 1% of light it can be enough to damage the eyes. On the other hand, during totality, when the Sun is completely covered, you can look at it without glasses. But the ending can be difficult to discern. As soon as the first rays appear again, the glasses should already be on. Therefore, warning through chimes is a genius. Ringing bells. This ringing will be carried out through two bells that have been acquired by the Association for this special moment. They do not belong to any building, but will be installed on a scaffolding approved for the occasion. The use of bells in history. We are used to associating bells with religious issues. In the Catholic religion, for example, it is quite common for them to be used to notify the start of masses, both those that take place regularly and those that are extraordinary for any reason. However, historically bells have been used for many other purposes. They have been used to warn of fires, neighborhood assemblies or even the passage of livestock. Some of these touches have their own tradition. It is the case of touch try cloudwhich was used to warn of the arrival of a storm and which in some places in Spain was even accompanied by a verse: “Hold on, hold on, God can do more than you.” It is not strange that Navarra has wanted to recover this type of traditions and unite them with the astronomical phenomenon of the year. An event that in the north of Spainperhaps it could also be considered the most important of the decade. Image | Unsplash/NASA In Xataka | The trio of eclipses that await Spain on the horizon: an unprecedented and historic chain between 2026 and 2028

“Meditation is related to increased performance on cognitive tasks”

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Breathing is such an instinctive act that we rarely pay attention to it, since, although we do it about 20,000 times a day, we are in a strict physiological “autopilot” of which we are almost unaware. However, in recent years, neuroscience has begun to unravel the mechanisms behind a practice that has been with us for millennia, such as conscious breathing. to relax There are many techniques that are advertised on social networks, such as mindfulness or breathing control. But here are several questions we can ask ourselves: do these techniques really work? And why do they work? This is where science comes in, which has managed to map how the simple act of altering our breathing rhythm is capable of modulating attention, memory and the activity of our brain networks. The neurological basis of this phenomenon is strongly supported by the work of researchers such as Jack L. Feldman, who has dedicated his career to studying respiratory control and its deep link with emotions and cognition. But now we go one step further to understand that breathing control techniques are a way of communicating with the nervous system. The panic button. To understand why paying attention to how air enters and leaves our lungs has such a massive impact, you have to look at the brain stem. Here is a study published in Science in 2017 identified a small but critical group of neurons in the pre-Bötzinger complexthe true “pacemaker” of our respiratory rhythm. With just 175 neuronstheir projections made connections with the areas of the brain responsible for attention, alertness and panic. This is why slow, controlled breathing drastically reduces the activation of this center, and therefore acts as a way to put a biological brake on the brain’s alarm signals. Beyond relaxation. Although it is what they sell us most on a daily basis, the reality is that when we move to conscious breathing, focused attention is also improved, for example. This is what neuroimaging studies show that the brain ‘lights up’ in very specific areas when it is in a state of mindfulness. Specifically, areas related to emotional management, body awareness and focused moment-to-moment attention are activated. In fact, a study published in Scientific Reports in 2018 demonstrated that eight weeks of meditation based on attention to breathing not only improves performance in visual selective attention and working memory, but also optimizes the efficiency of brain networks. The new thing we know. The latest data is consolidating the idea that breathing is the main modulator between our body and our mind. Different research points to how interneuronal connections translate into tangible improvements in emotional control. For example, a work published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience concludes that slow breathing significantly reduces anxiety, improving medial frontal alpha asymmetry in electroencephalograms, which is a known biomarker of control over our emotions. It’s not magic. This is a very important nuance that we have to make here, since although studies agree that these mindfulness techniques are formidable for reducing chronic stress, anxiety and depression, they are not a miracle. What science here is not that we are facing a magical transformation, but rather a neurobiological training. Learning to breathe consciously is, in essence, learning to use a physical interface that evolution has given us to optimize the efficiency of our neural networks, improve our emotional regulation and maintain focus in an increasingly dispersed world. Images | Benjamin Child In Xataka | The best 18 meditation, relaxation and mindfulness applications to have better mental health

1,900 years ago the Romans knew that going barefoot in a public bathroom was a bad idea, so they wore bathroom flip-flops.

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The image above these lines illustrating the article belongs to the reconstruction of the Roman public baths in Bath, about 550 kilometers from one of the most prolific Roman sites: Vindolanda, also in Britain and next to Hadrian’s Wall. That’s where just found a fairly common item nowadays when we go to public bathrooms: bathing clogs, a kind of primitive bathing flip-flops. Of course, these are almost 2,000 years old. The Roman bathing slippers. The discovery dates back to between 140 and 180 AD. C. and is possibly the world’s oldest example of a shower shoe. The sole is a wooden platform with a leather strap on top to support the foot. Come on, a traditional flip flop, what the Romans called sculponeae. As explains Elizabeth Greene, an archaeologist at the University of Western Ontario, more than 5,000 Roman shoes have been found in Vindolanda and about 50 of them are bathing clogs. Most have platforms between 2.5 and 5 centimeters high and while some were smooth, others had geometric decorations or shapes. That they found so many clogs in that search implies that it was not something random, but rather the order of the day. And it makes sense: the Romans used these platform clogs to protect themselves from bathroom floors, slippery from steam and water, and hot from the heating system. hypocaust. Why is it important. Because Vindolanda It is UNESCO World Heritage and one of the most important Roman sites in Europe. The main reason why Vindolanda is a real treasure trove for archeology is that the organic remains of items such as clogs (made of wood and leather) have been moderately well preserved thanks to the layers of oxygen-free mud. On the other hand, it shows that preventive hygiene is not a modern invention: these primitive flip-flops constitute documented proof of the practice that dates back about 1,900 years, which is directly related to preventive medicine and the functional design of footwear. Context. The Roman baths were meeting places: whoever went there undressed and went from a cold room to a warm room to finally reach a hot room. When leaving, he finished with a cold water bath. To heat the rooms there was an underground oven that functioned as underfloor heating. Considering the estimated date of the clog, it falls within the period of the emperors Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius, when Vindolanda was an active military fort on the northern border of Britain. Who wore those bathroom clogs?. As a military fort that it was, what was abundant there were Roman soldiers and their families. However, the CEO of The Vindolanda Trust poses in the official podcast of the site a revealing question: why is there so little evidence that children used the bathrooms? (they have not found child-sized clogs), which suggests that access may have been conditioned by age, status or other social norms. It is known that at one time there were mixed baths, but it is most likely that men and women with children bathed at different times. The oldest bathroom flip flops ever known. It is true that there are much older samples of sandals, such as those of King Tutankhamun, from about 3,300 years ago; or those of the Etruscans of the 6th century BC But as nuance Elizabeth Semmelhack, director of the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto, none of these were intended for use in bathrooms. In fact, the National Institute of Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) public in 2025 the discovery of two wooden soles of the sculponae type in Izernore (France), slightly earlier than those at Vindolanda, although the official source does not specifically associate them with use in bathrooms. It is in the specific application that makes the difference. In Xataka | The Romans found a macabre and sophisticated way to use perfume: breaking pigeons’ necks (made of glass) In Xataka | Almost 2,000 years ago a Celtiberian soldier visited the most remote frontier of the Roman Empire. Then he returned to Soria with a souvenir Cover | Diliff

Haiti wanted an epic jersey for their return to the World Cup. He has managed to piss off FIFA and make everyone talk about Poland

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Toward more than half a century that Haiti was not participating in the World Cup and yet, ironies of history, in the country (and the sports press of the rest of the planet) they are not talking about their players or their chances of success today in their debut match against Scotland. What is being talked about is his t-shirt. About its meaning, its colors, what exactly its designers wanted to capture in it and whether FIFA has acted well by demanding Haiti to change it. To understand it you have to go back to the 19th century. What has happened? We don’t know how Haiti will fare its world premiere today against Scotland (the match is played at 9:00 p.m. ET in Boston), what we do know is that, no matter what happens, their participation in the FIFA Cup is already football history. First because it did 52 years that the Caribbean nation did not qualify for the tournament. In fact, he had only achieved it once. in 1974when he participated (with little success) in the World Cup in West Germany. The second reason is that, even before the ball began to bounce on Thursday at the Azteca stadium, Haiti was already one of the teams with the most headlines in the World Cup. And the reason is surprising: his uniform. Or rather, a detail in the lower right corner of his shirt that FIFA did not like. What is the shirt like? We could see the shirt of the Haitian team a few days agoduring the friendly match that played on Friday the 5th against Peru. The design has also been shown in the profiles of the Haitian Football Federation (FHF) or even in the official website of FIFA. Also in publications of Saeta, the clothing brand Colombian sports that took on the challenge to shape the uniform and that at the end of 2025 he was already thinking about the design and its details. On March 28, the company finally published a post on his Instagram account in which the three Haitian team shirts could be seen: one blue (home), another white (visitor) and a third red. A nod to the colors of the country’s flag and two concepts: the sea and passion. Otherwise, the design was very simple: red collar and sleeve ends with a white stripe, the FHF shield at chest level, the Saeta brand… and a kind of very faint illustration, made up of shadowed silhouettes, at the level of the right hip. What does that flag mean? The image in question shows a group of men with a clearly highlighted silhouette in the foreground holding a flag. The key is… What colors does that banner look like? If we look at the t-shirts with a white or red background, it seems that the flag shows a blue stripe on a red stripe, the colors of Haiti. If we look at the shirt with a blue background, the bluish part of the flag however fades so much that it appears white. That last was the option the team used in your game on friday 5 against Peru and automatically led some to see a nod from the Caribbean nation to Poland. Is it really like that? A tweet from the 9th that ended up going viral points in that direction and many other international media (generalists and sports) have jumped on the bandwagon by publishing that, indeed, the Haitian shirt includes a deliberate tribute to Poland. Others believe that if the flag appears white and red (an effect that occurs in the home kit, but not in the others) it is the result of a factory error. In recent days they have circulated on networks voices who insisted on one and another version: intended tribute either optical illusion. Click on the image to go to the tweet. Poland, for the sake of what? If the doubts had been pointed towards the flag of the Netherlands, Italy, Russia, the United States, Japan or any other nation on the planet, they would probably have been cleared up soon, but not with Poland. The reason is very simple: with history books in hand, Haiti has reason to be grateful to the Poles. To understand it we have to go back to the beginning of the 19th century, more specifically to the Battle of Vertieres (1803), in which the Haitian revolutionaries defeated Napoleon’s troops, ended colonial rule and cleared the way for Haiti to achieve its independence. In that episode the Poles played an unexpected role. What role? Its role was explained in 2003 by Dr. Zdzislaw Wesolowski in a speech pronounced in the USA: in 1802 5,000 Poles from a legion attached to the French army were transferred to the Caribbean to quell the uprising in the colony of Saint-Dominguethe current Haiti and Dominican Republic. It is assumed that many fought on the side of France for Napoleon’s promise to restore freedom to his Poland. Shortly after arriving in the Caribbean, however, the Poles began to disobey the command and joined the rebels. At the end of 1803, in Verières, allies were already fighting with Jean-Jacques Dessalineswho proclaimed the independence of Haiti shortly after, in January 1804. What do we know about the happy shirt? When he started thinking about the design, in December 2025, Saeta explained that he was “collecting ideas, cultural references and identity elements” to “create an authentic and representative garment.” He wanted to “reflect the history, energy and resilience of the town.” With that starting point, it is supposed that the silhouettes located on the right hip refer to the Ballata de Viertières and the Haitian Revolution. One of his iconic moments actually came when Dessalines tore the white stripe off a French tricolor flag to create the banner of the first republic free black, an episode that was celebrated every May 18. What has FIFA said? Whether it represents one thing or another, whether its effect is more or less intended, … Read more

the “digestion cut” does not exist and science is clear why

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There are some very ‘mother’ phrases that are very well ingrained in our minds and without a doubt one of them is the obligation to wait strictly two hours after eating before entering the pool or the beach. Under the pretext of ‘digestion cut‘, there are many children (and also adults) who have to wait before taking a dip for fear of drowning. However, this is a myth. A popular fable. The concept of “digestion cut” It is not something that is included in the different medical guides nor is it categorized by the WHO as an existing disease. And this is what specialist societies such as the Spanish Society of Primary Care Physicians also point out, whose expert Ángel Jimeno Aranda clearly points out that cutting digestion is a popular term: It really has nothing to do with digestion, although it is true that when you feel so bad after suddenly entering cold water, you begin to have a headache, blurred vision, fatigue, nausea, vomiting or abdominal pain. The symptoms have caused this popular belief that the problem has a digestive origin, but it has nothing to do with digestion. It is more of a vascular process What really happens. If the ‘digestion cut’ does not exist, then… What happens? The answer lies in immersion syndrome, also technically called hydrocution or thermodifferential shock. This phenomenon is triggered when there is a large temperature difference between a bather’s skin and the water, usually when the latter is below 27°C or there is a thermal difference equal to or greater than 5 °C with respect to body temperature. In the body, This is instantly detected by the different receptors that begin to send signals to the brain to provoke an uncontrolled automatic response characterized by involuntary reflex inspiration, hyperventilation and severe cardiac arrhythmias that can lead to immediate drowning, regardless of the state of digestion. So, as we see, it is a completely vascular problem and has nothing to do with having had a sandwich just before going to the restaurant. Matches the food. Despite being a myth, the historical relationship between eating and immersion syncope has a hemodynamic explanation, since during the time after eating, the body redistributes blood flow to the areas that need it most, which at that time is the stomach to be able to digest. This means that there is not as much blood in other parts of the body. In this way, if a person is suddenly immersed in cold water in the middle of the digestive process, and especially if they have been in the sun, the body executes massive peripheral vasoconstriction to contain the heat in the body. Literally, there is a clash between the stomach’s demand for blood and this constricting response, which generates a conflict of signals for our brain, which does not know who to give priority to. The result It is nothing more than hyperstimulation of the vagus nerve that produces a drop in heart rate and also blood pressure. And lowering pressure is not good news because it generates cerebral hypoperfusion, resulting in dizziness, nausea, loss of vision and, in the worst case, syncope. The reality. With all this data it has become quite clear that waiting 2 clock hours after eating to bathe is false, since the determining factor is not the time, but the method of entering the water and the temperature difference. If we look at it from another perspective, if we talk about warm water, this is something almost impossible to happen, even if we have just eaten. The recommendations The steps to follow focus on entering the water slowly, allowing the skin receptors to acclimatize to the temperature to which we are exposing them, first wetting the extremities, the back of the neck and the abdomen. In addition, sudden changes must be avoided after physical exercise or sunstroke, since the body temperature here will be very high and can be a problem regardless of whether the stomach is full or empty. Images | Callum Hill In Xataka | It is increasingly common to find jellyfish on Mediterranean beaches before summer. And it’s a bad sign

Every time we have placed a GPS on wild boars they have surprised us. The last one in Spain has been no exception

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A team of researchers who followed wild boars with GPS in several European cities discovered something unexpected: Animals did not necessarily avoid human presence, but rather learned to live with it by modifying their schedules and behaviors until they became practically invisible. Scientists went so far as to describe this ability as one of the secrets to their success in environments where, in theory, they should feel more threatened. What each GPS reveals. The truth is that researchers have spent years placing GPS collars to wild boars to better understand how they live, move and survive in increasingly humanized landscapes. The striking thing is that each new follow-up seems to dismantle some preconceived idea. In some cases they have discovered unexpected routes, in others a constant presence near human activities and, recentlya behavior that perplexed even experts with decades of experience. Far from hiding in the most closed and dense shelters, some specimens have developed much more subtle strategies to go unnoticed: remaining motionless in places that are apparently not suitable for hiding and trusting in their ability to blend in with the environment. The wild boar that went viral. One of the most surprising cases was that of a young French wild boar named Phiphi. For almost two years, a GPS collar allowed us to follow each of its movements and revealed that the animal frequently used open areas to restsomething that contradicts the traditional image of the wild boar taking refuge in the densest vegetation. He often lay next to a few ferns or under the minimal protection of an isolated tree in the middle of a clearing. The strategy seemed simple but effective: stay completely still and take advantage of the natural camouflage to practically become part of the landscape. Even when her necklace disappeared for weeks and was later found by hunters, the discovery occurred again in an open area, reinforcing the idea that his success consisted precisely in hiding where no one expected to look for him. Movements of an adult wild boar marked with a GPS collar in the surroundings of a pig farm over the course of a week, evidencing the constant use of the immediate surroundings of the livestock facilities The invisible visitors. He latest scientific work By placing GPS on the animals, he has discovered something that not even the ranchers could have imagined. The studies carried out in Spain by IREC researchers They placed GPS on wild boars in Aragon, Catalonia and Murcia to analyze the risk of transmission of African Swine Fever. The results showed that these animals usually frequent the surroundings of intensive pig farms. without attracting attention of the ranchers. Signs of wild boar activity were detected in nearly half of the farms analyzed, even though many officials claimed not having seen any. The technology showed that the animals visited slurry ponds, feeding areas and other sensitive points discreetly and constantly, revealing a reality completely different from the perception of those who work daily in these facilities. A greater health risk than it seemed. The finding has important implications because the main danger does not lie in direct contact between wild boars and pigs, something relatively rare in intensive farms. The problem arises through indirect connections. Vehicles, clothing, tools or materials can act as a bridge between the environment used by wild boars and farms. The silent presence of these animals in the vicinity multiplies the opportunities for the transmission of diseases such as African swine fevera particularly worrying threat for a country that leads European pork production. The birth of a new tool. All this information has been used to develop the first scientific protocol specific external biosecurity against African Swine Fever in intensive pig farms. Unlike traditional approaches based on general recommendations, the new system analyzes each farm individually, studies its environment, evaluates its weak points and proposes measures adapted to the real risk. The objective is to move from theoretical protection to prevention based on specific data obtained in the field, incorporating for the first time the real behavior of wild boars into the health defense strategy. A species that continues to keep secrets. The common lesson that unites all these studies The fact is that the wild boar continues to surprise those who think they know it well. GPS has shown that it can be hidden in unexpected placesmove around livestock farms without being detected and exploit small vulnerabilities in the human landscape with remarkable effectiveness. Each new monitoring provides information that forces us to review what was taken for granted about the species. And if these works show anything, it is that a good part of the wild boar’s success lies precisely in its ability to be very close to us without us barely noticing its presence. Image | PXHere, A. Savin In Xataka | Neither drones nor snipers: wild boar hunters in Barcelona have a simpler natural and home remedy In Xataka | Putin has become obsessed with eternal life. And that’s why he has scientists experimenting with organs in pigs

It turns out that there is an island in Fiji made of shellfish shells. Some crabs discovered it

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Off the northern coast of Vanua Levu, the second largest island in the entire archipelago of Fijithere is a small island of 3,000 square meters. In a country made up of more than 300 islands scattered in the Pacific, the fact that there is one so small is not a surprise. But when you remove the mangroves and sand, what you have are shells. More specifically, edible seafood remains. The million dollar question now science is done It is whether that huge amount of shells is the work of people or nature. Once upon a time there was an island made of seafood remains. The shell deposit reaches 60 centimeters thick above the average high tide level and is between 20 and 40 centimeters thick on average and its composition is between 70% and 90% edible shellfish remains. Radiocarbon dating indicates that the greatest accumulation occurred around 760 AD, with samples spanning from approximately 420 to 1040 AD. That there is such an abundance of edible species gives a clue to the origin of the island: if it were a natural deposit, what would be expected would be to find an indiscriminate mixture of marine detritus, such as stones or inedible organisms from the seabed. Why is it important. Because everything indicates that this simple and small island is a “shell midden“, a “conchero” or shell dump created by humans. Or what is the same: the physical proof that there was once a community that lived, worked and fed in the area on the coast of Culasawani. Over the centuries, this accumulation of remains became an island demonstrating that even without wanting to, humans can make land without trying. On the other hand, historically there are not many archaeological studies in Vanua Levu and this site It constitutes a great opportunity to reconstruct ancient settlements and their customs. Context. The first time the research team was aware of the island was in 2017, in a general reconnaissance. It was the activity of the burrowing crabs that caught the team’s attention: the crustaceans brought material up to half a meter deep to the surface. In 2024 they resumed the investigation and they confirmed it: It was an island separated from the mainland. The “concheros” are an old acquaintance in the archeology of the Pacific, since they give many clues about how ancient communities lived, what they fed on and how they interacted with the environment. Of course, in this case the shell hole is so large that it has formed an entire island. The mangrove would arrive later, when the settlement had already been abandoned: the relative drop in sea level and the deforestation of inland areas released large quantities of sediment that functioned as a substrate on which to take root. In detail. To analyze it, the research team extracted 20 sediment cores and excavated four pits measuring one meter by one meter. All the remains of shellfish found in the sediments belonged to edible species, more specifically, the majority of the shellfish that make up them are clams of the genus Anadarain addition to other edible bivalves and gastropods and some ceramic fragments typical of human activity. The team found no clear evidence of animal bones, fish remains or stone tools, suggesting that these people gathered the shellfish in shallow waters, extracted the meat there and transported the food in ceramic vessels to another site, leaving the shells behind. Yes, but. In archeology, having the absolute truth is a chimera, but the most solid hypothesis with the evidence found is that it is an island of random human construction. The natural alternative involves a large wave or tsunami, but it is ruled out: it would carry away all types of marine organisms, not just those that are eaten. There is still one pending issue: where exactly the people who processed that seafood in the place lived. The team’s next step is to explore the mainland area near Culasawani to find the associated village and better understand how the entire system worked. And they are racing against the clock: what barely peeks through the mangroves is tremendously vulnerable to rising sea levels, a threat about which the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has already warned. In Xataka | A man bought a desert island in 1962: he planted 16,000 trees and turned it into an anti-rich sanctuary In Xataka | A billionaire bought an island in Hawaii for himself and his friends. So the locals had to leave Cover | Zunnoon Ahmed and Eduardo Gorghetto

“When someone who is 91 years old still remembers, you know it’s something special”

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On August 12, the first of the solar eclipses that will make up the so-called Iberian Trio will take place. In 2026, 2027 and 2028 we will have solar eclipses that can be seen in Spain. The third will be annular, but the other two are total eclipses and their strip of totality crosses very different places. In 2026this strip goes from the north of Galicia to almost all of the Balearic Islands, passing through Asturias, Cantabria, La Rioja, the north of Castilla y León and the Valencian Community and a part of the Basque Country, Navarra, Madrid, Aragon, Catalonia and Castilla la Mancha. That of 2027, on the other hand, will be seen far to the south, especially in the area of ​​the Strait of Gibraltar. Something curious about the first eclipse is that it is expected to transport a large number of tourists to towns in what is known as emptied Spain. That is, to places that are not normally among the favorite destinations of national tourism. And much less from the international one. There are many people who have decided to organize their vacations this year around this astronomical event. August 12 has been marked on your calendar for many months. In some cases, even more than a year. After all, for astronomy lovers, having a total solar eclipse in your country is almost like having your favorite international singer come on tour in your city. I have talked about all this with Mabel Anguloone of those people who have decided to organize their vacations around the eclipse. Chatting with her it is inevitable to become infected with that illusion of seeing with your own eyes one of those shows that you can barely see once or a few times in your life. And, in reality, listening to it you understand that, two months before the big day, there are already so many hotels and rural accommodations full to the brim. What leads a person to organize their vacation around a solar eclipse? Mabel is a great lover of astronomy. In her work as a journalist for Canal Sur specialized in science, she especially enjoys communicating news that is related to space. Furthermore, years ago he became interested in astrophotography, a hobby that has helped him meet many other people with the same passion. Therefore, the opportunity to see a solar eclipse seems like a unique gift worth taking advantage of. “As an astronomy fan, I think it is one of the most amazing events you can witness.” Many of his colleagues have already seen one and only tell him wonderful things. “Everyone tells you that it is wonderful to see how day turns into night, to be able to see the crown, which is normally hidden from our sight… I am very curious.” Above all, he wants to see it with his own eyesto see if everything is as wonderful as they say. “Although I think so, because I see broadcasts from other places like the United States in 2024 and, honestly, those faces cannot be faked.” Plus, there is another very special reason why you want to see the eclipse. And he would like to be able to share with his mother the impressions of having witnessed one of these phenomena. “My mother saw the one from 1959. It is usually said that the one in 1912 was the last total solar eclipse in Spain, but no, gentlemen, it was the last one on the peninsula, in the Canary Islands there was one in ’59.” He had never told him this, but when she told him that she was planning her vacation to see this year’s one, he explained how she saw it then. “When a 91-year-old person keeps remembering that it was night and that it was incredible, you already know that it really is something special, that it will be part of the wonderful experiences of the life.” The only summer vacation For Mabel, this is going to be her only vacation. Although he also plans trips to see his family, the only leisure trip he will have this summer will be the one he has planned to see the eclipse. In your case, it will go to an area between Valladolid and Palencia. You have opted for a trip organized by a company called take me to the stars. Meet Heike Mai, CEO of the company, from the Jerez astronomy association. They told him that they were organizing trips and asked him about availability and prices. It was almost a year away, but there was only one gap left. Seeing that it was a “very good offer” he could not reject it. The accommodations were in double rooms, so he only had to find a companion. It didn’t take long for her to find it when she saw that a colleague from her astrophotography association was as excited as she was. The two friends will travel from Almería, where they live, to Valladolid by car. They will be in a rural accommodation for 5 days, during which they will take the opportunity to visit the surroundings and, of course, take many photographs. Of course, at the time of the eclipse Mabel’s plan is to enjoy, not obsess over the photos. “I’m going to live it,” he tells me. “I’ll set up the telescope and a camera and leave it on during the eclipse. If it comes out, great, if not, great.” Advance notice is essential Mabel began looking for ways to organize her vacation in September 2025, exploring possible offers and travel companions. Nevertheless, He left everything closed in January 2026. “In January we closed with Heike and she confirmed us in February,” he recalls. “She wanted us to close everything in time, especially for fear of the prices going up, because it already happened to her with an accommodation that they canceled it and then she saw it uploaded to another, much more expensive portal.” This is something that is … Read more

Spain has 46 million cubic meters of unused biomass. They are a crucial shield against summer fires

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The summer of 2025 left us a scar of ash and a lesson that we continue refusing to learn. European forests are burning with unprecedented ferocity, but the answer is not to accumulate more firefighters in August, but to return to inhabit and manage the forest in January. The Copernicus satellite balance from the last summer campaign It was, simply, terrifying: more than 403,000 hectares burned in Spain and over a million in all of Europe. However, the truly disturbing information was provided by the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS): 217 fires were recorded in Spain, less than half of that in 2022 (493). The burned area, however, was dramatically larger. Fire has not become more frequent; He has become a much more ferocious monster. By the end of 2025, the Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service (CAMS) confirmed the disaster: Europe had recorded its highest fire emissions on record in 2003, releasing almost 13 megatonnes of carbon into the atmosphere. Faced with this scenario, the institutional response remains stuck in the same loop: more seaplanes, more retardation, more summer troops. An emergency strategy that ignores an incontestable reality: the problem does not begin when the spark ignites, but long before, in the silence of the mountains, throughout the year. The diagnosis that no one wants to hear. Every year, Spanish forests add 46 million new cubic meters of plant biomass. Of that amount, according to data from Expobiomassonly around 40% is used. The European average is between 65% and 70%. The rest stays on the ground: branches, bushes, dry leaves, weeds. Year after year. Decade after decade. The result is what foresters have long called “fuel loading.” It is not a literary metaphor, it is pure physics: in the face of a heat wave or a dry storm, this accumulation turns an attempt into an uncontrollable inferno. Galicia, Extremadura and Castilla y León already suffered it firsthand last year. As the Spanish Biomass Association (AVEBIOM) warnsthe origin of this powder magazine is historical. Decades of rural exodus and the abandonment of traditional uses – such as grazing, extensive livestock farming or firewood collection – have left the forests orphaned by the management that, for centuries, kept them safe. Nature didn’t do the dirty work, and we stopped doing it for her. A proposal that reaches the European Parliament. This week, that diagnosis landed in Brussels with its own name. Bioenergy Europe presented in the European Parliament the documentary Fuel the solution, not the fire —in Spanish, “Feed the solution, not the fire”— with a central message: preventing large forest fires involves acting long before the flames arrive. The initiative, supported in Spain by AVEBIOM, shows experiences developed in Greece, Italy and Spain that show how the sustainable use of forest biomass can simultaneously contribute to three objectives: reducing the fuel load on the mountains, generating local renewable energy and boosting rural economies. The proposal is not new in the sector. But that it reaches the European Parliament, at the start of a new high-risk season, gives it a political dimension that it did not have before. The model: from the mountain to the caldera. The idea is, in its structure, simple. When pruning, clearing or forestry treatment is carried out, the remaining plant remains – what was previously abandoned or burned in the forest itself – are collected, crushed and converted into chips or pellets. This material fuels boilers in municipalities, hospitals, sports centers or industries. The mountain is cleaner. The town, hotter. And the energy bill is lower. “Sustainable forest management is part of the response to fires. And bioenergy can help provide an outlet for part of the biomass that needs to be removed from the mountains,” explains Pablo Rodero, head of certifications at AVEBIOM, in statements collected by Energies Renewable. Rodero insists on an important nuance so as not to confuse the discourse: “It is not about ‘cleaning the forest’. It is about managing the territory better, with technical planning and sustainability. When the remains of pruning, clearing or preventive work are transformed into renewable energy, prevention stops being a cost to generate economic activity, employment and energy savings.” The specific actions defended by AVEBIOM range from forestry treatments and the maintenance of firebreaks to the recovery of extensive livestock farming and the promotion of sustainable forestry exploitation. Active management, all year round, that does not depend on the urgency of summer. Real numbers on the ground. Beyond the theory, there is concrete data that illustrates the potential. Veolia Biomass In 2024, it transformed more than 300,000 tons of forest biomass—material accumulated in the mountains—into 700 GWh of clean energy. To get an idea: that is equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of more than 200,000 homes. The company already operates in several Spanish provinces: it works in Moros (Zaragoza) and in the Sierra de la Culebra (Zamora) in the elimination of vegetation on 500 and 400 hectares respectively; carries out thinning and thinning in Mayorga (Valladolid), Barcial, Castropepe and La Hiniesta (Zamora) and Cilloruelo (Salamanca); and has restored 200 hectares in Andalusia affected by the fires of the previous year. He CRECEMOS report on Forest Fire Managementpublished in May 2025, adds another dimension to the equation: sustainably mobilizing one million tons of forest biomass per year would avoid the emission of 580,000 tons of CO₂. In regions such as the northwest of the peninsula, where biomass potential is still underutilized, this approach would combine fire risk reduction with economic reactivation of currently depopulated areas. The European lifeline. It is important to put into perspective what is at stake. Bioenergy is neither an experimental technology nor a niche bet: according to the GROW reportrepresents 60% of all renewable energy produced in the European Union. And 96% of this biomass is produced in European territory itself: it is not imported, it does not depend on foreign regimes, it is not exposed to the vagaries of the global gas market. It is, in other words, the most autonomous … Read more

OLED TVs, super-automatic coffee makers, mobile phones like the Galaxy S25+ and more

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We can already say that We are in the middle of the World Cupa moment that many of us take advantage of to renew our television. One of the stores that has the best offers for this right now is MediaMarkt, which, in fact, has an active promotion called World Offers. But, as they explain our TikTok colleagues, There are many more bargains right now besides TVs. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Discounts on mobile phones, OLED TVs or laptops As we say, this MediaMarkt promo, due to the name and coinciding with this football competition, may make us think that we are only going to find TVs on sale. And be careful, there are: we have, without going any further, this S93F OLED from Samsung for 1,699 euros. It is 77 inches diagonal and a discount of exactly 2,000 euros if we are registered in myMediaMarkt (it’s free and takes a couple of minutes). Now, we can find other types of devices on offer. For example, if you like coffee and want a super-automatic coffee maker, you have the Krups Sensation C90 for 339 eurosa price that is close to its historical minimum (which is 329 euros). Or if you want a gaming laptop to continue playing when you go on vacation in a few weeks, you have this HP with 32 GB of RAM, 1 TB of SSD and an RTX 5060 for 1,299 euros. We left one of the best offers of this promo for last. We have available the Galaxy S25+ by 749 eurosa great price if we take into account that it is yesu version with 512 GB. It is a mobile phone that will last a while, with a great processor such as the Snapdragon 8 Elite, a good 6.7-inch screen and a triple camera system that will perform well in almost any scenario. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Important: These offers will only be available until June 15so we don’t have much time left to take advantage of them. 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 | Xataka In Xataka | Best mobile phones 2026. Which one to buy based on use and six recommended models In Xataka | The best TVs to play and get the most out of your PS5 or Xbox Series

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