began

We thought we were 8,000 million people throughout the planet. Until some researchers began to make numbers

by

In November 2022, the UN celebrated that we were already 8,000 million humans on earth. They are estimates, of course, but beyond the figure, the really interesting thing is that in 2023 We do not reach the replacement rate and that humanity will reach its peak at the end of the century to, irremediably, Start falling. But … to what extent can we trust those accounts? It is something that takes time on the table, and now a study It arrives to add more spicy when we affirmed that we have been making it counting. So much that we have left several hundred million people along the way. Can we trust the numbers? “Calculating the number of people on the planet is an inaccurate science.” That was the comment of demographer Jakub Bijak a BBC In the middle of last year, just when the Study of world population perspectives. Something scientific is something exact, but the researcher also commented that the only thing that can be sure when predicting population figures is of the lack of certainty. That, eye, does not mean that demographers get the figures out of nowhere. “It is something difficult based on our experience, knowledge and each piece of information we have,” said Toshiko Kanera, an expert in demographic forecasts. The demographers drink from the data and trends of each country since 1950, but … what if it had not been well told? We are missing millions. In a new study published in Natureresearchers from the University of Aalto in Finland show how the data sets that demographers manage to “deep and systematic” the population figures worldwide. The serious thing is that we would be talking about hundreds of millions more people living on earth. Example of the tools that demographers use in their analysis. Each corresponds to a different bias The rural areas. Josias Láng-Rritter is one of the investigators in charge of the study and points to the accounts made in a specific segment: that of the rural population. “For the first time, our study provides evidence that a significant proportion of the rural population could be absent in the data sets of the global population,” he says. As we say, we don’t talk about a few million, but thousands of millions. “Depending on the data set used, rural populations have been underestimated between 53% and 84% in the period studied. The results are notable, since these data sets have been used in thousands of studies and have widely supported decision making, but their precision has not been systematically evaluated,” says the researcher. The map shows the location of the 307 rural areas analyzed in the study. It was found that the populations reported in the graph were underestimated between 53% and 84% | University of Aalto Biases. Attempts to review these data are not new, but previous investigations have focused on specific countries or urban areas. The researchers at the University of Aalto have wanted to take a more global photo when comparing the five most used population data sets worldwide. They have used maps that divide the planet into high resolution grids and have taken as a very concrete reference: the resettlement figures of more than 300 rural dams projects in 35 countries. Why this dam bias? Because When a dam is builtthe population that lives in the area that will be flooded is relocated and precise resettlement data is usually had. When comparing this population data from 1975 to 2010, the researchers found that the 2010 maps were more precise, but still omitted between 32% and 77% of the rural population. Between 2015 and 2020 the data sets were updated, but the demographers continue to consider that the underestimation of the rural population continues to exist and is a problem that persists in all regions of the world. Consequences. And we are talking about a problem whose resolution is complex. According to researchers, no matter how much the data is reviewed, it is a structural problem. Governments do not have the resources to collect precise data in these rural regions, there is a huge discrepancy between the real population and the one reported in the population maps that are used to carry out demographic studies and that influences decision making. Average percentage of rural population estimated down (red and orange) and overestimated (blue) | University of Aalto And it is important. Current estimates place 43% of 8,200 million World inhabitants in rural areas -And 3,526 million people- and if we take into account that it is a percentage that has underestimated between 53% and 84%, we are not talking about little population, precisely. And it is essential to know exactly how many we are for a simple reason: the redistribution of resources. No data. The lack of precise demographic records can affect political decision making. Ritter sets the example of social decisions. “In many countries, there may not be enough available data at the national level, so they depend on the global population maps to support their decisions: do we need an asphalted road or a hospital? How much medicine is needed in a specific area? How many people could be affected by natural disasters such as earthquakes or floods?” Making quick accounts, in the best scenario – the 53% deviation in the rural population – we would talk about 1,869 million people who would not have counted. In the worst case, in the 84% not registered, we would talk about 2,962 million people. In Nature’s study, they put an example Paraguay, which in the 2012 census may have left out a quarter of the population. Reviewing the methods. In the analysis of the team, there are countries that come out better than others. They put Finland as an example of reliable data, even in rural regions, because they began bringing digital records of the population 30 years ago. However, in countries in which this conscientious digital registry has taken longer to be implemented due to crisis of any kind, … Read more

In 1938 Franco commissioned an experiment with prisoners in a monastery of Burgos. Thus began the search for the “communist” gene

by

In the list of darker experiments that once launched in Spain there is one that continues to remain in the top positions. It happened at the end of the 1930s inside an architecture that today is historical heritage, A abbey trapped on the outskirts of Burgos. The basis for carrying out the study started from a premise as simple as Martian: The communist, is born or done? In search of the “red” gene. Between 1938 and 1939, In full Spanish Civil Warthe Franco regime undertook one of the most sinister experiments in its history. Under the direction of Psychiatrist Antonio Vallejo-NájeraHead of the psychiatric services of Franco’s army, a study that sought to find a biological predisposition to Marxism, what he called the Marxist fanaticism biopsiquism. The purpose of this research was to demonstrate that communism and democratic ideologies were not the result of a conscious choice, but rather of A hereditary biopsychic tara, a mental inferiority that could be identified. Context: The regime psychiatrist. Vallejo-Nájera (1889-1960) was One of the most influential figures of Franco’s psychiatry. With training in Germany, where he came into contact with Nazi psychiatry, he developed a racial and genetic theory applied to the Spanish context, arguing that Marxism was the result of mental inferiority and that it should be eradicated from the root. In 1938, Franco assigned him the direction of the Psychiatric Services of the Francoist Armywhat allowed him to lead A pseudoscientific program based on eugenics, xenophobic psychology and coercive psychiatry. San Pedro de Cardeña became its experimentation laboratory, where international republican prisoners and brigades were subjected to evidence in order to “decipher” the communist psyche. Facade of the monastery The excuse. The study, financed and approved by Franco, It was developed for ten months, analyzing those prisoners of war through psychological testsanthropomorphic measurements and behavioral evaluations. Your conclusionspublished in the Spanish magazine of Medicine and War Surgery, would serve as justification for one of the most brutal policies of Franco: the systematic separation of the children of Republicans of their families to avoid their “ideological contagion”, the segregation of prisoners and The consolidation of a dictatorship that relied on scientific manipulation to eradicate dissent. The “study.” The epicenter of the investigation, as we said before, was the then concentration camp of San Pedro de Cardeñaan old monastery in Burgos that was converted into a detention center for Republican prisoners and International Brigades Members. The Vallejo-Nájera study divided prisoners into five large groupseach analyzed with preconceived hypothesis about their “biological degeneration.” Namely: International Brigadistas: It was sought to contrast their characteristics with those of Spanish prisoners to identify differences in the “origin of Marxism.” Spanish Republican prisoners: considered key to finding the “red gene.” Republican dams: it was claimed that their political participation responded to uncontrolled sexual impulses. Catalan prisoners: analyzed as “doubly dangerous” for their “Marxist fanaticism” and “antispañolism”. Basque prisoners: considered an “anomalous” group, as they were Catholics, but “contaminated by the revolutionary element.” Plus: the analysis included cranial measurements, facial studies and personality tests, all with the intention of finding common physical and psychological features between The Marxists. The results were not only biased, obvious, but served as an ideological basis for justifying the persecution and extermination of Republicans. Pseudoscientific conclusions. After months of “research”, Vallejo-Nájera He published his conclusions in the Spanish Magazine of Medicine and War Surgery. Among its most aberrant and extreme postulates, there were assertions such as Marxism is linked to mental inferiority. According to the psychiatrist, the communists were mostly “antisocial psychopaths” and His segregation from childhood would prevent society from “suffering its plague”. He also stressed that Democracies promote resentment. In his vision, democratic regimes allowed the “social failed” to triumph through public policies, in contrast to authoritarian regimes, which favored the most suitable. I also thought that Marxism was a racial phenomenon. Influenced by Nazi ideology, man proposed the need for “racial purification” to eradicate the elements considered “dangerous” to Spain. For all this, he indicated that The militarization of society was the only solution. In other words, he defended a model in which military discipline had to permeate all institutions, from school to the theater, to guarantee the “superiority of the Spanish race.” The role of women. Another of the darkest aspects of his study was the characterization of republican women as An “irrational” and “dangerous” being. According to Vallejo-Nájera Women participated in politics only for uncontrolled sexual impulsesand Marxism in women was a consequence of their “weak mental balance”, which made them more prone to cruelty. In fact and as we said, I thought that religion was the only one that could act as a brake to avoid its moral “corruption.” These ideas were also used as a justification to restrict women’s participation in public life and to establish a model of a woman submissive to the service of the homeland. The theft of children: applying the study. We indicate it at the beginning. One of the most abominable legacies of Vallejo-Nájera’s theories was The implementation of a forced separation system of the children of Republicans. His theory suggested that Children from Marxist families had to be separated from their parents to avoid its “ideological contamination.” What happened? That The reasoning resulted in the systematic theft of babiesa practice that continued even after Franco. In fact, it is estimated that thousands of children were taken from their families and delivered to institutions or families related to the regime, in what is considered one of the greatest crimes of Franco. Gestapo and Nazism. The San Pedro de Cardeña experiment was not carried out in isolation, but It was attended by members of the Gestapo and German scientists who conducted tests in Republican prisoners. This collaboration reflected the ideological and methodological links between Franco and Nazism, especially in the use of psychiatry as a tool of political repression. (Re) discovering the experiment. The truth is that, for decades, Vallejo-Nájera’s investigations were forgotten, protected by the silence imposed by Franco. So it … Read more

I have detected the exact moment in which things in Marvel began to fail and that has culminated in ‘Captain America’

by

Until the weekend, when the public’s opinion begins to fly over the Internet (which in the end is the one who pays and the one that interests Disney, since the consensus of criticism and public they generated ‘Infinity War‘ and ‘Endey me‘It is unlikely to be repeated again), we will not know if’Captain America: Brave New World‘It is a failure or a triumph. What we can analyze is at what point in the history of MCU Things began to twist. The majority opinion. We can all be more or less agree that there is an MCU stage with a more or less positive balance (which goes from acceptable to the glorious, according to the fan’s enthusiasm) that begins in ‘Iron Man’ and extends until ‘ Endgame ‘. And from there, things began to twist, with stages 4 and 5 mainly disastrous that led to the first Marvel box office failures, to a possible “Superheroic fatigue“And at the time of current uncertainty. But there are nuances. Matiz one: Not the whole field is oregano. 23 films, which is said soon, make up the MCU from ‘Iron Man’ to ‘Endgame’ (well, to ‘Spider-Man: Far from home‘). It is statistically impossible for all to be round, and we cannot even agree on our appreciations. For example, for the signer ‘Iron Man 3’ it is one of the peaks of the MCU, many would say the opposite, and I think it was a mistake that Marvel did not continue to cultivate that way. And there are a multitude of bland films, which are celebrated just because they are in the context of very grossing productions and well considered: ‘Iron Man 2’, ‘Thor: The dark world’ or ‘Avengers: the era of ultron’ are some of them . Matiz two: Not everything is horrible from phase 4. And on the contrary, there are innumerable films (and series) to celebrate from ‘Endgame’: ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of madness‘It is hilarious, and the generally hated’Quantumanía‘ either ‘The Marvels‘They are failed films but with a very claimable personality. And of course, there are multiple remarkable moments in ‘Wandavision‘,’Knight Luna‘ either ‘Agatha, who if not?‘ The authentic problem. The drama of phases 4 and 5 is that they do not have that very pleasant style of the first three stages of going in one direction and with a purpose. Perhaps it became like this, perhaps not, but the feeling that ‘Endgame’ is designed from the first appearance of the Avengers is there, and that does not exist in phases 4 and 5. Of course, there are threads that connect everything, like The theme of the multiversos, but there are many films (‘Shang-Chi‘,’Thor: Love and Thunder‘,’Wakanda Forever‘), which seem to air shots, as looking for new charismatic heroes that replace the Avengers. And as in ‘Brave New World’, the feeling that is a useless effort floats. The movie hinge. And Marvel’s first failure, ‘Eternals‘It is the key point. Marvel had loose films previously, and possibly any did not give up at the box office as they expected, but ‘Eternals’ is the first one that forced them to go back. They wanted the group to become a new avengers, but a team capable of supporting the weight of several films: they raised sub -brains that would last in other films, and new characters seen fleetingly, such as Starfox, of which we did not return namely. Marvel reculled in his plan, and the worst thing is that he saw that he could reculate and the public accepted it, which multiplied the test movies, the ideas that were isolated in a film and the failed experiments. A world that played the mirage of being compact and coherent became one where neglect and carelessness predominates. Header | Disney In Xataka | The first trailer of ‘The fantastic 4: first steps’ reveals the key ingredient for Marvel’s future: its villain

In 1995, a Peugeot 205 GTI crashed in Sweden. Then began a world revolution in road safety

by

It is estimated that 9,344 people died in traffic accidents in Spain in 1989. It was a real barbarity and a historical peak that, luckily, it seems that is far from repeating. These last ten years, Spain has moved among the 1,145 deceased in 2023 and 1,873 of 2014. They are still too many and a problem that several countries have tried to address. One of them was Sweden, which in the 90s proposed the ambitious goal of ending road deaths on their roads. His plan was baptized as ‘Vision Zero’, and it is something that has not only been exported to the rest of the world, but has changed the way in which manufacturers and authorities address both the construction of vehicles and roads. The accident that changed everything. In BBC Podemos read The case that convinced the Swedish authorities to start raising better road safety measures. A car crashed near an exit ramp when I was on its way to Ikea. The accident occurred against a concrete post that protected a lamppost and fulfilled its function for furniture, but caused the five passengers to lose their lives. At that time of 1995, Claes Tingvall had already been promoted to the Head of Road Safety of the Swedish Administration and remembers two things: that driving a three -door Peugeot 205 GTI and that, with the wet road and surely due to the speed of the vehicle They did Aquaplaing. The limits of security. At that time, vehicle security technology focused on what he baptized as “measures to mitigate the second impact.” Manufacturers focused on safety measures such as better children, airbags and safety belts. Come on, passive measures that, in addition, did not take into account what happened outside the vehicle (such as pedestrians or obstacles). Tingvall told BBC that it was insufficient, since “the car cannot solve everything” and realized that road deaths from traffic accidents were a mixture between the car itself, driver’s behavior, the safety features of the safety of vehicle and road conditions. Measures. In fact, Tingvall believes that the authorities were responsible. The reason was that, when he went to the transport authority to ask what would be done after the accident, he was answered that they would quickly replace the concrete with … a new one. It was not enough, so Tingvall demanded to eliminate all these posts and create “clear areas” on the sides of the roads so that, if someone leaves, does not clash against a wall. The authorities were not very convinced, since this would be to admit that the road design was wrong. In addition, all criminal punishments were focused on the reckless driver, but little by little they convinced that something should change and raised a new road safety approach called … ‘Vision Zero‘. Swedish road of 2+1 ‘Vision Zero’. “How many deaths should we have a long -term objective?” That was the question that Tingvall’s policy and Minister of Infrastructure made to the official. His response was: “zero.” It is something that caught the minister to her surprise, but the movements to achieve this utopian target with a bill presented in the Swedish Parliament in 1997 began. The objective was to have zero deaths on the road and was something that involved not only cars drivers and manufacturers, but also the authorities. A clause was very clear in this, since officials could no longer design roads for idealized drivers that are never distracted or exceed the limit. Said like this: “If road users do not properly assume their part of responsibility, for example, due to the lack of knowledge or skills, or if personal injuries occur or there is a risk that they occur for other reasons, system designers must take measures additional to prevent people from dying or suffering serious injuries. “ “Do not pretend that there are laws that you know that everyone will comply with. You would never do that in aviation or in other areas where you really care about security ” – Claes Tingvall Strategies. Ok, the theory is fine, but what does ‘Vision Zero’ imply? The project is based on the maximum that life and health can never be exchanged for other benefits for society and support In four principles: Ethics: Road safety is a responsibility and no death or serious injury due to a traffic accident should be considered inevitable. Responsibility: Both system designers (which includes authorities, engineers and legislators) and road users share responsibility for road safety. Security: the human errors are inevitableso the system must be designed to minimize the consequences of these errors. Change You have to promote better systems, strategies, infrastructure and speed limits to reduce the probability of fatal accidents. Roads 2+1. Within these strategies when designing roads, programs such as “Roads 2+1” come into play. Its name can be enigmatic, but basically it is roads that are not highways/highways, but they have three lanes. Thus, there is a lane in the direction, but also a central one that is the one that is used alternately to advance, reducing the probability of a frontal collision. This is something that minimizes driver’s frustration, maneuvers such as “look” to see if you can advance and also reduce the amount of insecure maneuvers we perform on the road. It is something that is already being tested in several countries, including Spain with cases like that of the National 121-A in Navarra. And roundabouts. Another measures that proposes This strategy is one that is extremely common in European countries, but not so much in others such as the United States. And those are, for some, complicated roundabouts. The reasoning is simple: at a crossroad, there is always a route in which the speed is greater than in which it is crossed, so it is easier for there to be accidents. In a roundabout, although there may also be a mess due to the use of lanes and intermittent, all who approach the roundabout and circulate within it must … Read more

A year ago Barcelona began to fine those who walked loose dogs. It has more than 340 fines

by

Throughout 2024 the agents of the Urban Guard of Barcelona imposed 341 fines For an infraction that has little to do with circular In an incorrect way or dirty the streets. No. The reason that (on average) made them get the ball almost daily was to meet neighbors who walked to their dogs without strap in areas that are not allowed to do so. The figure is interesting because 2024 was the first year in which the new restriction was applied. It is not known how much 341 fines were collected, but the norm provides penalties of Between 100 and 2,400 euros. The data: 341 fines. The figure He has revealed it The newspaper of Catalonia and It is confirmed By Betevé: Throughout 2024 the Urban Guard imposed 341 fines for people who walked their dogs loose through the streets, parks and other public spaces of the city. The data is interesting for two reasons. The first, its number. In Barcelona there are many dogs, it is estimated that Between 102,600 and more than 180,000depending on the source that is handled, but still 341 sanctions continue to assume almost one per day. Premiering ordinance. The second reason is that 2024 was the first year in which Barcelona applied its New Ordinance on pets, in which among other issues it is required when and where dogs can be released. Do not respect it translates into sanctions ranging from 100 to 300 euros or even They reach 2,400 In severe cases, such as walking a dangerous dog without a strap or buzal. The City Council began applying these corrections to offenders in December 2023when the moratorium that had applied until then. New sanctions, old norm. Actually the regulations on the pets of the Catalan capital is quite previous. The ordinance of protection, possession and sale of animals (OPTV) It was approved in Xabier Trias timesbut its application was accompanied by a conditioned moratorium to be resolved by certain slope fringes, such as the famous (and controversial) “Civic and Responsible Tendency Card”. Another pending measures was the creation of what was called “shared use zones” (ZUC), areas in which dogs could be loose certain hours a day. The idea, as its name indicates, is that in them the pets in freedom, their owners and other passersby. And how was it? The “Civic Tenure” card He did not go aheadbut in March 2023 The Barcelona City Council announced the final approval, the decree that defined the 225 spaces in the city for dogs, including the ZUC. Of course, the local government already warned that the new guidelines would take nine months to enter into force, which would not move into practice until December of that year. The exact date was on the 18th. From that moment on the police He started fine To the owners of the dogs that walk to their pets without respecting the ordinance. More than 900,000 m2 for walking. According to the calculations, then by the City Council, in Barcelona there are more than 900,000 square meters for the dog recreation, sum of the 116 “Pipicanes” That already existed, the 109 ZUC areas and the beach of Levant. The result, about 5.4 m2 per dog. “The threshold of a minimal recreation zone in each neighborhood is increased and it is achieved that 95% of the citizens who live with dog can have a space less than 10 minutes from home,” He presumed the session in 2023. In The 109 ZUC Dogs can walk unleashed, but adjusting to certain rules and only during certain time slots. The measure did not completely convince the owners of the dogs, who in 2023 complained that the number of areas without a strap was very limited. “They are poorly thought. There are concentrations of dogs well above the desirable,” He warned to The country A spokeswoman for Spanish. Less complaints. The first year of application of the ordinance and activation of ZUC areas in Barcelona leaves more than that balance of 341 fines. In fact The newspaper Precise that there is another much more positive reading: a sensitive fall in the number of complaints recorded by the presence of feces and urine in the streets. Analyzing equivalent periods of 2023 and 2024 verified that 4,341 to 3,955 was passed. In addition to brand new ZUC, the Consistory has decided to distribute bags and bottles for the urine. And in other cities? Barcelona is not the only city that has regulated how and where to walk pets. In Madrid for example The Ordinance It details that in public spaces animals must be accompanied and “driven by chain or resistant cord.” The norm It allows them to be loose, but only in areas limited by the City Council itself or in parks and gardens, although respecting schedules that change slightly winter to summer. Zaragoza is another example. The general rule It is that the dogs are subjects, although “exceptions” are contemplated, such as the spaces prepared by the Consistory or the landscaped parks and squares with some extension and have the approval of the local authorities. The owners must also respect certain schedules. As for sanctions, Barcelona Nor is it the only city ​​that It has fined Already to pet owners for leaving them loose without respecting the municipal ordinance. Images | Leah Hetteberg (Unspash) and Babak Habibi (UNSPLASH) In Xataka | The domestication of cats remains a mystery. But we are closer to knowing where and why it happened

In 536 the sun began to shine less than the moon. The small ice age began then began

by

The year 536 is sometimes called “The worst in history”, But this year only marked the beginning of a small ice age. An era of about 15 years in which sunlight was almost unable to reach the surface of the earth. Small ice age. For years it has been discussed what happened in the year 536 that triggered the “small ice age of late antiquity” (Lalia) that lasted until the 550s. The volcanic eruptions of this year and 541 or comet dust had been considered as possible causes, but we had A third hypothesis: An unknown underwater eruption. From historiography to the rings of the trees. From this era of darkness we have record through different sources: some historiographic, such as medieval texts in which there is talk of a sunlight so faint that it barely stood out about that of the moon. Others, more “modern”, such as the analysis of Tree rings. These rings appear as a result of the oscillations in their growth rate, a consequence of the succession of the seasons of the year and factors associated with it, such as the abundance of water. Or the hours of light. The suspects. And the hours of light were not abundant at this time. The cause of this long winter of 15 years would have been in a denser atmosphere full of dust or gas that would have prevented solar radiation from reaching the northern hemisphere. However, we are not sure what our atmosphere overshadowed. Volcanic activity has been the main suspect in the case. We know that the most powerful volcanoes can expel gases in such quantity that they can alter the terrestrial climate, usually for short periods of time. During this decade and a half we had proof of three volcanic eruptions, a “cataclysmic” eruption in 536, caused by a volcano in Iceland; and two others also relevant in 540 and 547. However, there are experts who consider that these three eruptions were not the cause of this small ice age, something else was needed. Submarine volcano. And that “something” could have been an underwater volcano. Is The hypothesis defended by an American team of researchers composed of Dallas Abbott and John Barron. They reached this conclusion when studying Greenland ice samples in which remains of marine microorganisms of tropical waters were found. According to this hypothesis, underwater rashes would have led to the atmosphere not only the gases of these events but also remains of sediments and marine life. An underwater eruption would also have vaporized a large amount of water that would have passed to the atmosphere. Huge consequences. All this would have had severe socio -economic consequences. Historical records speak of years in which cereal crops did not even allow bread, or snowfall in full summer. Towards the year 541 the so -called “Plaga de Justiniano” began in Egypt First epidemic Black plague of the Middle Ages. In the Iberian Peninsula this period of darkness could have unleashed The first of the crises that would end up resulting in the fall of the Visigothic kingdom and the Muslim conquer. Image | NOAA/National Science Foundation In Xataka | We believed that the huge eruption of Hunga Tonga had something to do with global temperature records. We didn’t even get closer In Xataka | Something weird happens in the Teide: although experts do not see signs of eruption, they insist that you have to follow it closely

Log In

Forgot password?

Forgot password?

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

Your password reset link appears to be invalid or expired.

Log in

Privacy Policy

Add to Collection

No Collections

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