children

Do not leave everything as an inheritance to your children

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Bill Gates has been one of the 10 richest people in the world for decades. However, recently the Gates fortune has fallen several places on the list of millionaires, according to Forbes. That fall in the estimation of his fortune It is not because the founder of Microsoft has made a mistake in his latest investments, but because of a plan that he has been executing for more than two decades. Donate 99% of your fortune through the foundation which he created with his ex-wife Melinda French Gates. This foundation has already donated 100 billion dollars. Your fortune will not be your legacy. That of Bill Gates is only one of the best-known cases of billionaires who have made the decision to do not leave the fortune who have amassed their children throughout their lives. He veteran investor Warren Buffett, Mark ZuckerbergMick Jagger, Lauren Powell Jobs and the singer Sting have also declared their refusal to leave his empire as an inheritance to their children. In one recent interview for the BBC on the occasion of the presentation of his latest book Source Code: My Beginningsthe millionaire recognized that he was not going to leave his fortune as an inheritance. Despite leaving them only a small percentage of his fortune, now estimated at about $103.9 billion, the millionaire assures that your children will not be poor. “They won’t be,” Gates said. “In absolute terms, they will do well, but in percentage terms it is not a gigantic number.” Indeed, 1% of something doesn’t seem like a big deal, but 1% of 103.9 billion is 1.03 billion dollars. A not inconsiderable inheritance. 100 billion dollars. According to what the millionaire told the BBC, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation was facing the 25th anniversary of its founding, reaching a round figure: 110.9 billion dollars. donated to projects philanthropists from around the world. “We have donated more than 100 billion,” Gates noted, “but I still have more to give.” Currently, the millionaire’s donations to the foundation that bears his name exceed 63.9 billion. The remaining 40,000 million have come from periodic donations from third parties, such as those of his friend Warren Buffett, who every year allocates several billion dollars to the foundation. What the Gates Foundation declares. According to the latest data made public By the Gates Foundation, as of the fourth quarter of 2025, the foundation had donated $90 billion and had a trust capital of $110.9 billion. Of those $90 billion that the Gates Foundation claimed to have donated from its creation until 20235, $63.9 billion had come from Gates’ coffers. Buffett’s contribution since he began collaborating with the Gates Foundation in 2006 has been $47.9 billion. From these figures, and in the absence of the Foundation publishing its 2026 accounts, it is clear that, in reality, Bill Gates would have barely contributed 500 million more to his foundation during the last year, while his fortune has remained stable during the last year. The responsibility of wealth. The founder of Microsoft claimed in his interview to have been greatly influenced by the philanthropy that his parents had exercised throughout his childhood. His mother often told him that “with wealth comes the responsibility of giving it away.” Bill Gates, inspired by his parents and by Philosophy of Chuck Feeneydecided to join forces with Warren Buffett to found the initiative The Giving Pledgein which several dozen millionaires have committed to donate at least 50% of his fortune to philanthropic purposes. Names like Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, MacKenzie Scott or, the last to sign his commitment, Sam Altman, form part of this select club who believes that getting rich must be accompanied by a commitment to society that has allowed them to achieve it. A version of this article was published in February 2025. In Xataka | Lawyers and notaries agree: “When making a will it is wise to leave specific assets to each child and the home to only one” Image | Flikr (Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office)

Pediatricians agree on new food fads for children: “It can cause nutritional deficiencies”

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There are many diets that we find on social networks in recent years that advocate be really restrictive with certain foods and nutrients that demonize. The problem is that these restrictive diets designed for adults with the aim of making them look healthier are causing nutritional deficiencies in children, as pediatricians themselves already point out. The alert. The Spanish Association of Primary Care Pediatrics (AEPap) has been clear in its latest report pointing out that ‘nutritional fads’ have made a strong impact on children’s nutrition and can cause “nutritional deficiencies.” And the culprit is the adoption of restrictive diets such as prolonged fasting or the exclusion of gluten without receiving advice from specialists. But these diets are not limited to adults who want to lose weight or improve their health, but are generally applied to all members of the household. And this is explained by Dr. Marta Castell, pediatrician at the Campanar Health Center in Valencia, who point to the following: More and more families come to consultation with a proactive interest in the healthiest eating pattern, but also with great confusion between scientific evidence and fads such as 2-exclusion diets or ‘superfoods’ without clinical evidence. The enormous amount of information they receive becomes massive and often contradictory. The problem of extrapolating it. Restricting food groups without clinical justification has a very high physiological cost during the growth stages that the little ones in the house are experiencing. This is why pediatricians warn that the withdrawal of essential nutrients without a prior diagnosis of intolerance such as lactose or celiac disease is dangerous. And this practice can interrupt the caloric intake and essential micronutrients for the child’s body and especially for correct physical and brain development. The recommendations. Here the medical institutions they point because one should avoid diagnosing alleged eating pathologies at home, and apply a restriction without the advice of a specialist doctor. But in addition, one should avoid applying nutritional advice aimed at adults to minors that is disseminated by content creators without scientific endorsement on social networks. One of the clearest pieces of advice that the Vithas Medimar Hospital points to in its web is that “the best prevention against obesity and malnutrition is to recover a diet rich in vegetables, fruits, legumes, fish, nuts and seeds, and free of ultra-processed foods.” Veganism. The scientific debate does not criminalize dietary choices such as veganism, but requires absolute rigor in its pediatric approach. Something important to highlight is that a child can be perfectly healthy following a diet without animal consumption, but this “does not consist only of raw fruits and vegetables,” explains pediatrician and neonatologist Miriam Martínez Biarge, who describes poorly planned diets as “reckless.” From the clinical point of view, the Spanish Society of Out-of-hospital Pediatrics and Primary Care warns that in the vegan population there is a high risk of vitamin B12 deficiency. This deficit can have “serious neurological consequences,” being a particularly critical risk in infants breastfed by mothers who do not take supplementation. For this reason, clinical guidelines recommend the possible supplementation of vitamin B12 in the event that foods fortified with it are not consumed. Images | Helena Lopes In Xataka | Being vegan makes you biologically younger, but not for the reason you think: the hidden key to calorie restriction

Spain counted on immigration to reverse its demographic drama. Now immigrants are also stopping having children

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I had never lived so many people in Spain. Not at least since there are official records. A few days ago the INE revealed that at the end of the first quarter of 2026 the country had around 49.7 million residents, “the maximum value in the historical series.” In reality there is little surprising about it. The INE takes time using that tagline in its statements on population, in which it also insists on another idea: if Spain is moving in record numbers it is basically thanks to the increase in people of foreign origin. The balance between births and deaths in the country is far away to be good. The problem is that this demographic salvation table shows symptoms that it will not work indefinitely. What has happened? What Funcas just published a studysigned by Héctor Cebolla and María Miyar, which basically analyzes whether Spain can rely indefinitely on migration to save it from the demographic winter. In fact, the report of think tank seek (literally) explore “the limits” of immigration for “demographic adjustment.” It is an important topic for two reasons. First, because the arrival of foreigners has become the great engine of population growth in Spain. Second, because despite the increase in the registry and the fact that the INE has been registering for some time record numbers of residentsthe truth is that the Spanish demographic engine is not exactly oiled. In 2025, the INE counted 446,982 deaths and 321,164 births, which leaves red numbers vegetative growth. And what is your conclusion? That although the migratory flow is acting as a demographic lifeline, we cannot trust that its effects will continue forever. “Immigration has made it possible to sustain population growth and cushion aging, but it has done so through a mechanism that requires continuous and increasing flows, loses effectiveness over time and does not correct the underlying trends of demographic imbalance,” comment María Miyar Busto, director of Social Studies at Funcas. It is not about denying the positive effects of immigration, but about “recognizing the limits of the model” and placing it “in its rightful place in the analysis of public policies.” Above all, thinking about the future in the medium and long term. “The short-termism that dominates the debate on the benefits of immigration has not allowed the analysis of the long-term consequences and has favored the absence of an explicit demographic strategy,” duck Onion. Why this warning? Because after analyzing data on migratory flows and tables of age ranges, birth rates and population growth, Funcas researchers have reached several worrying conclusions. For example, they have proven that although Spain manages to attract a significant number of immigrants, it is not as effective when it comes to retaining them. They have also confirmed that the population of foreign origin shows signs of a progressive aging and that over time their demographic patterns (such as birth rates) end up being similar to those of Spanish families. What does the data say? To begin with, Spain has a problem when it comes to determining the migrant population. The country is attractive enough to attract foreigners, but only a portion ends up putting down roots here, contributing to the demographics and economy. And to show you a button: although between 2002 and 2024 they entered Spain almost 15 million of people, the population only increased by seven million. That leaves our country in a peculiar situation. Spain is the main recipient of immigration in Europe in relative terms and between 2013 and 2023 it absorbed 16% of the immigration that arrived on the continent, however for years its retention rate has been one of the lowest in the region: 51%. That, remember Funcasforces Spain to maintain “high inflows to sustain a population that is constantly renewed.” Why is that a problem? Because for the model to continue supporting Spanish demographics, it requires “growing and uninterrupted” migration, something complicated every time that population arrives from countries (especially in America) who are also aging. Is it the only warning sign? No. The study de Funcas also questions whether immigration will serve to rejuvenate the registry. Researchers calculate that the foreign population that has already turned 55 years old shot up by 42% between 2021 and 2025. This is almost 20 percentage points more than the growth recorded by the immigrant population between 20 and 54 years old, which increased by 25%. What’s more, the think tank It is estimated that around a quarter (22%) of immigrants have already blown out the 55 candles. How young are the immigrants? “The population born abroad is no longer a young population, but rather less aged than the native population,” they respond from Funcas, which also warns that this “gap” between residents born in Spain and abroad will reduce as the immigrants who moved to Spain at the beginning of the century, between 2000 and 2008, before the great brick crisis, approach retirement age. To underline this idea, the research center provides a revealing calculation. “In absolute terms, the increase in the immigrant population aged 55 or over between 2021 and 2025 (42%) means that more than 615,000 people of that age were added to the Spanish population, a figure equivalent to the population of Malaga, a dynamic that anticipates greater pressure on the health and dependency systems,” slide. The phenomenon is especially clear in Spain, one of the EU countries where the most adult immigrants arrive. If you look at 2024, only 13% of new residents were under 15 years old. At the opposite pole, 18% were over 55. Do they behave differently? That is another of the keys that Funcas focuses on. If we Spaniards ourselves resist having large families or move to rural areas…Why should immigrants, people who often face a more complex economic starting point and lack a family support network, act differently? Onion and Miyar even talk about a “Spanishization” of reproductive behavior. Despite the significant increase in the number of women of childbearing age, the total number … Read more

His parents built the Chinese economic miracle by working 12 hours a day. Their children have decided not to work almost at all

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Working twelve hours a day, six days a week, was common in Chinese companies, especially in the technology sector. It is what is known as day 996 and fortunately, the government banned it in 2021. They did not expect that that same year a new concept called Tang Ping and it means just the opposite: doing the minimum to survive. Lay down on the couch. Its literal translation is ‘lie flat’, but we like the creative translation better. Tang Ping It is a social phenomenon that arises as a rejection of the culture of overwork and endless days that barely leave time to sleep. A person who follows a lifestyle Tang Ping He works the minimum necessary to survive and does not have great ambitions; He doesn’t want to buy a car or a house, he spends little on food and he doesn’t want to get married or have children. The latter has not been any fun in Beijing. National security concern. We have talked about the birth rate crisis that China is going through and how the government is doing literally everything for get young people married and have children, so this movement goes against everything they are promoting. The government’s discourse on this trend has taken on a more severe tone. Last April, They published an official warning in which they stated that it is an “ideological infiltration” financed by “hostile anti-China forces” with the aim of “eroding the minds of Chinese youth.” They have turned a lifestyle into a political act that must be repressed. The safety net. They count in Baiguan News that, to understand the rise of this trend, two social mechanisms must be understood. The first is that the parents of these young people were born in the 60s and 70s, so their professional career grew along with the economic development of the country and they are currently the richest demographic group in the country. This means that if their children have financial problems, they can provide support. The second factor is deflation, which is making everything cheaper. In China it is possible to eat for just 1 or 2 dollars in exchange, which makes it viable to live while spending very little money. If we add that youth unemployment is at 16.9% and job opportunities are shrinking, it is the perfect breeding ground for lying down. The generational contrast. The parents of these young people grew up in poverty and, if they worked 72 hours a week, it was not out of pleasure, but out of pure necessity and fear of continuing to be poor. That fear was the engine of Chinese economic growth and allowed the next generation to grow in the abundance that their parents built. The difference is that these young people do not feel that raising the country depends on them, nor do they feel the fear that drove their parents, and many have decided to put their well-being before their professional career. Image | HANVIN CHEONGUnsplash In Xataka | We have been talking about “day 996” in Chinese companies for years. The reality is more complex: “day 323”

spanking children with a cane

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When it comes to applying rules, in Singapore half measures are not worth it. That’s something the rest of the world has learned the hard way. viral news like the one that has been starring for a few weeks (much to his regret) Didier, a young Frenchman who risks two years in prison for vandalism. The reason: take a straw from a vending machine, lick it and place it back on the display, a ‘feat’ that he recorded and ended up circulating on the networks. With this backdrop, it is better to understand why Singapore is in the news for its peculiar way of combating bullying in schools. While organizations like the WHO either UNICEF increasingly deny physical punishment, in the Asian city-state they have decided to demand the power of the rod. What has happened? That Singapore has shown that it does not mind swimming against the current when it comes to education and pedagogical strategies. While much of the world moves away from physical punishment in classrooms (in Spain they take time banned and the EU has campaigned against them), in the Southeast Asian city-state they have just claim its usefulness to bring certain students into line. And not in a discreet way or away from the spotlight. It was the Minister of Education himself, Desmond Lee, who has been in charge to claim the benefits of a good spanking (literally) in the Singapore Parliament. He did so this week, in response to questions from several deputies and with extensive arguments that can be consulted directly on the official website of the ministry. Is it something new? Yes. And no. What is new are the guidelines issued by the Singapore Government to combat bullying. A few weeks ago, on April 15, the department headed by Lee published a series of guidelines ‘anti bullying‘ prepared after a year of work and interviews with 2,000 people. The Government’s idea was to establish a series of clear recommendations on to do in cases like the one recently shook an elementary school where three children threatened to kill a classmate and her mother. These guidelines include physical punishment for aggressors, which reveals the Government’s commitment to a measure that actually has little novelty. The country’s School Regulations, published at the beginning of the 90s, already included its article 88 the possibility of applying “corporal punishment” to certain students with “a light cane on the palms of the hands or the buttocks, over the clothing.” What does the Government say? In your parliamentary responsethe head of Education has been very clear: the idea is not to simply spank, but to do it as a last resort and in a controlled manner. “Our schools use corporal punishment as a disciplinary measure if all others are inefficient and given the seriousness of the situation,” argues the Executive, which also clarifies that “strict protocols are followed to guarantee the safety of the student.” For example, spanking must be approved in advance by the principal, must be administered by authorized teachers, and the center will take into account “factors such as the maturity of the student or whether the punishment will help him learn from his mistake.” Singapore Legal Advice remember that the rod cannot be used without rhyme or reason: the law does not allow more than three blows. Do we know anything else? Yes. Lee wanted to make it clear that it is not about simply spanking, but about corrective measures being part of a much larger strategy. “If applied, it is never administered in isolation, but always as part of a set of disciplinary and restorative measures.” “The centers will monitor the well-being and progress of the student after the punishment and advise him to reflect and learn,” insist the minister In case there were any doubts, the Government argues that there is research that “shows that children learn to make better decisions when there are clear limits reinforced by firm consequences.” Does it apply to everyone? No. The Government refers to what is included in the school regulationswhich clarifies that corporal punishment, inflicted with a cane, can only be applied to boys. The girls get off the hook, which doesn’t mean that breaking the rules or harassing other classmates gets them free. Other penalties are reserved for them: expulsions, having to stay after classes or a drop in grades, among “other school disciplinary measures.” Education insists that in general the idea is to apply “a graduated disciplinary system” and that the cane is only used with boys “in cases of serious offenses”, when everything else fails. “This is not a new measure, it has been used for quite some time,” underlines the ministry. Regarding the ages of children who can be spanked, Guardian precise that the measure is also limited (although only slightly): it is restricted to students who are at least nine years old. But… Does it work? For Singapore education authorities the answer appears to be ‘yes’. In fact from the ministry fencing a curious argument: although it recognizes that there are studies that show that “frequent and poorly administered corporal punishment” can have “negative consequences”, they relate these practices above all to what happens in homes and “unregulated environments.” “The context in our schools is very different. Our centers use corporal punishment as a disciplinary measure if all other alternatives have proven insufficient,” he says. Things are quite different if we ask the WHO, which just last year published a report warning of the “risks” of corporal punishment of children. “The consequences can last a lifetime and impair physical and mental health, education, and social and occupational functioning,” argues the organization, dependent on the United Nations. According to their calculations, there are around 1.2 billion minors (between 0 and 18 years old) in the world who receive corporal punishment at home each year. In schools, it is estimated that it occurs between a quarter and a half. Does it only apply to children? That is one of the great … Read more

They dedicate four times more time to their children, but mothers are still on the brink of collapse

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Let’s imagine for a moment the classic picture of a living room in the 1950s. The father, fresh from work, barricades himself behind the newspaper or asks for silence to listen to the radio. His parenting figure is peripheral, an economic provider whose emotional absence is normalized. Let’s now jump to 2026. Today’s father kneads gluten-free pancakes on a Tuesday morning, manages the third grade WhatsApp group, reads positive discipline manuals and monitors every millimeter of his offspring’s cognitive development. If we traveled back in time, today’s fatherhood would be unrecognizable to a father from the “Silent Generation.” However, this revolution, which a priori should have created the most balanced generation in history, hides a deep structural trap. If today’s parents sin something, it is not that they are absent, but rather the opposite. And this hyperpresence – crossed by a fierce demand of class and gender – is triggering the anxiety of children and causing unprecedented exhaustion, especially in women, who continue to support the invisible scaffolding of the home. The sociological data is compelling. According to analyst Derek Thompson in your newsletterparents millennials in the United States spend approximately four times more time caring for their children than parents of the generation of the baby boom. The hours of male involvement have taken a historic leap. However, this phenomenon is deeply fragmented by socioeconomic status. The research of economists Guryan, Hurst and Kearney They already warned of an astonishing paradox: The higher the educational level and purchasing power, the more hours are invested in parenting. The famous study The Rug Rat Race (The Rat Race)created by Valerie and Garey Ramey, hits the nail on the head by explaining why. This hyper-involvement responds, to a large extent, to the anxiety to ensure the future success of minors in the face of a savage academic and labor market. It has become a status symbol; a frenetic competition where free time is sacrificed on the altar of extracurricular activities. In Spain, this desire for presence has been supported by the institutions. From Moncloa trace the evolution: we have gone from the ridiculous two days of paternity leave prior to 2007, to consolidating ourselves in 2025 as a European reference model with 19 paid and non-transferable weeks per parent (and 32 weeks for single-parent families). The father, by law and by cultural change, is at home. But what happens behind closed doors? In Spain, the dynamic is identical. Studies on time use like those of the sociologist Pablo Gracia confirm that Spanish parents with higher education dedicate significantly more time to the physical and interactive care of their children. A will to be present that has also been supported by the institutions. The Moncloa figures trace undeniable progress: we have gone from the ridiculous two days of paternity leave prior to 2007, to consolidating ourselves as a European benchmark with 19 paid and non-transferable weeks per parent (and 32 weeks for single-parent families). The father, by law and by cultural change, is at home. But what really happens behind closed doors? The mirage of the distribution Headlines celebrating the “new super dad” demand critical reading. Researcher Eve Rodsky, author of Fair Play, warns in the magazine Lounge of the trap of traditional surveys: they measure execution time, but ignore cognitive effort. Today’s men “help” more, yes. But the mental load—conceiving, planning, and continually anticipating family needs—continues to fall on them. Today’s mothers feel, in Rodsky’s words, “overwhelmed and bored” by having to act as directors of a project where their partners often act as kind subordinates waiting for instructions. The x-ray of this inequality in Spain reveals an exhausting panorama: Chronic overload: 78% of Spanish mothers declare themselves overloaded, assuming 64% of domestic tasks, regardless of whether they work outside the home. according to data from Make Mothers Matter. Class gap and vulnerability: The situation becomes dramatic for single-parent families and women with precarious jobs, who lack the network and resources to outsource care. Fear of penalty: A report of TELOS evidence that, when push comes to shove, more than 90% of mothers use up their entire birth leave, compared to 85% of fathers, still inhibited by the culture of corporate presenteeism. This systemic pressure to achieve everything invariably results in burnout or parental exhaustion. The psychologist Silvia Álava It is estimated that 7 out of every 10 Spanish parents They are exhausted by the effort to achieve perfection. Worse still, clinical research on this syndrome (such as the psychometric analyzes of Suárez, Núñez et al.) warn that extreme exhaustion ends up causing serious emotional distancing. It is the final paradox: parents try so hard to be present that they end up emotionally disconnecting from their own children for pure mental survival. The bill is paid by the minors We live in the era of “helicopter parents” and “lawnmower parents”: those who, as illustrated in the magazine International School Parentthey compulsively pave the way so that children do not even stumble. And the great irony of this intensive parenting, spurred by the suffocating showcase of social media, is that it is devastating those it seeks to protect. The great irony of this intensive breeding is that it is devastating those it is intended to protect. A Norwegian review of 38 studies has detailed that between 70% and 90% of research associates excessive parental control with profound mental distress in children. Avoiding frustration deprives them of the tools to be functional adults. A Norwegian review of 38 independent studies makes it clear: Between 70% and 90% of research associates excessive parental control with profound discomfort in children. Avoiding frustration deprives them of the basic tools to be functional adults. In fact, neurology confirms that taking constantly Decisions for children stunt the development of their prefrontal cortex, the area of ​​the brain responsible for solving problems and regulating emotions. The brain literally needs to fall down to learn to get up. In Spain, the clinical alarms are ringing loudly: Psychiatric admissions: The magazine … Read more

The world wants to verify the age of children so that they do not access social networks. Children’s solution: paint a mustache

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The United Kingdom presume to have one of the strictest legislations in the world when it comes to protecting minors from social networks. The curious thing is that young people are managing to demonstrate that age verification technology has a unique Achilles heel: an eyebrow pencil. Look, I have a mustache. The British country has been forcing platforms to implement age verification measures in accordance with its Online Safety Act for months. However, a recent study from the NGO Internet Matters reveals that the limits imposed by these platforms are surprisingly easy to overcome. In fact, one of the methods is especially striking, because some children simply use an eyebrow pencil to paint a mustache and thus look older than they really are. Children 1 – Machines 0. This agency surveyed 1,000 children and parents in the United Kingdom and although it showed positive effects after activating these measures, it also made it clear that many children saw these systems as an easy obstacle to overcome rather than as a way to keep them safe. 46% of minors believe that the measures are easy to overcome. Only 17% believe that they are very difficult to avoid, while 19% say they do not know. Source: Internet Matters. Cheating machines is trivial. 46% of the children surveyed indicated that These age verification systems are easy to overcomeand only 17% found them difficult to avoid. There are several methods to overcome these systems, but most are simple. For example, using video game characters like ‘Death Stranding’ to show them in front of cameras trying to verify their age. Also show IDs of other people when asked, or simply use false birth dates. (At least) One in three skips the controls. But not everyone uses these methods: although the aforementioned 46% say that it is easy to overcome these systems and another 17% say that they are neither easy nor difficult, “only” 32% admit to having used some technique to overcome them. Of course, it is one thing that only 32% admit it and quite another that these figures are representative taking into account that they are confessing that they are doing something that they should not do. Methods vary, but many use fake birth dates or log in with their parents’ or siblings’ accounts. Complicit parents. The effectiveness of the Online Safety Act depends largely on the family environment, with data suggesting that at least a quarter of parents are uncooperative. The study indicates that 26% of parents have allowed their children to ignore or overcome these age verification systems, and in fact 17% admit have actively helped their children to evade these controls while 9% simply turn a blind eye. It’s not that big of a deal. Many parents justify this “help” by indicating that they understand the risks of their children accessing these platforms, but prefer to supervise the use of services such as TikTok or video games themselves. The idea: allow your children to bypass restrictions to play with friends or stream, but theoretically under your supervision. The failure of putting doors to the field. It’s not just that age verification systems are easy to overcome: The thing is that they do not eliminate risks completely either. In the Internet Matters study, almost half of the minors surveyed (49%) indicated that they had recently encountered toxic material on the Internet. This makes it clear that even children who do not try to bypass these controls still encounter inappropriate content. There are those who advocate going further and push for the end of online anonymity. Image | Jeremiah Lawrence In Xataka | The EU has just ready its app to verify age on the internet. And Ursula von der Leyen warns: “There are no more excuses”

In the US they throw Molotov cocktails at their creators, in China children dance with robots

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On April 10, A man threw a Molotov cocktail at Sam Altman’s mansion, CEO of OpenAI. In his pocket he carried an anti-AI manifesto and the names of other tech leaders. Meanwhile, in China, humanoid robots danced with children and received applause from the public at the Spring Festival Gala. Public opinion of AI. When we talk about the AI ​​race between the US and China we usually focus on technology; who has the best modelsthe goings-on with the chips…There is another angle from which to look at this competition, and that is public opinion: how citizens are valuing these innovations. And in this, China is winning. Pessimism vs optimism. In a complete Stanford University report published by Rest of Worlda section is dedicated to public opinion on AI and the data are very different between both countries. To the question “Products and services that use AI excite me,” only 38% of Americans answered yes, while in China they got 84% positive responses. It is not a small difference, we are talking about China getting the highest score and the United States is almost at the bottom of the list Other countries also showing enthusiasm towards AI are Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore, all in Asia. In the case of Spain, with 45% we are a little below the global sentiment, which is 53% globally. Trust in regulators. It was another of the points of the report and here the United States received the worst score. Only 31% of respondents trust that the US government regulates AI correctly. Not surprising, since the Trump administration’s strategy to win the AI ​​race It is precisely deregulated. The survey does not collect this data about China, but it does indicate that other Asian countries such as Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia have high trust in their regulators. Rejection of AI is growing. The Molotov cocktail thrown at Sam Altman’s house is not the only violent act sparked by growing anti-AI sentiment. A few days earlier, an Indianapolis councilman who voted in favor of building a data center woke up in the middle of the night to hearing gunshots. Thirteen shots were found at his door and a message that said “no data centers.” We have also talked about cases of attacks on robotaxis in San Franciscowith passengers inside. The consequences. The study links optimism and confidence with faster adoption of AI. In the United States the adoption rate is 28% while in Singapore it reaches 61%, more than double, and it also has the highest number of AI researchers per capita. Meanwhile, the migration of talent to the United States has plummeted since 2017 and it is at a minimum. Furthermore, opposition to the construction of data centers, motivated by pollution and energy consumption that they produce, is delaying many projects. Image | Xataka In Xataka | There is a new migratory movement among the technological elite: the Chinese talent that succeeded in the US is returning home

As children we were taught that Jupiter revolved around the Sun. Technically we were deceived

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If you are over 30 years old, you probably learned in school that there are nine planets that revolve around the Sun. Then you found out that there were eight, because suddenly Pluto lost its planet category and became a dwarf planet. As if all that were not enough, now I am here to tell you that Jupiter does not revolve around the Sun. Sometimes not even the Earth does. We have been deceived or, rather, we have been told everything quite simplified. It is not the center, but the barycenter. There is a lot of talk about the gravitational attraction that large objects exert on smaller ones. The Sun on the Earth, the Earth on the Moon, the Earth on the people who walk on it… However, smaller objects also exert a certain gravitational pull on larger ones. It is tiny, sometimes imperceptible, but it is there. Therefore, although it is the Sun that dominates the planets of the Solar Systemeach one of them also pulls a little bit of it. This means that the center around which they all rotate is not in the center of the Sun, but at a point slightly separated from it, known as the barycenter. To understand it better. All objects have a center of mass. Broadly speaking, it is the point where we assume that all its mass is concentrated. It does not mean that all the mass is there, but for practical purposes, when doing calculations, it is considered that that is where it is concentrated. Because of how external forces interact with the object, it is right at the center of mass where it is best kept in balance. For example, with an elongated object of homogeneous mass, such as a ruler, the center of mass will be its actual center. If we try to hold the ruler on a finger, the easiest thing to do is to place the finger right under its center. There it stays better in balance. On the other hand, in a hammer, where the heaviest thing is its end, its center of mass is there. In the case of the Solar System, the barycenter is the point where the mass of the system is concentrated. Logically, it is very close to the Sun, since 99.86% of the mass of the system corresponds only to the king star. However, there is influence from other masses, so it is a little far from the solar center. The case of Jupiter. If the Sun is 99.86% of the masses of the Solar System, Jupiter accounts for 70% of the remaining mass. Therefore, individually it is the one that deviates the center of gravity the most. This means that the barycenter around which both Jupiter and the Sun itself move is outside the solar surface. Jupiter does not revolve around the Sun, but around a point that does not even cross the sun. The case of the Earth and the Moon. In the case of the Earth and the Moon there is also a barycenter. The Earth is much larger than the Moon, but the Moon also has mass and exerts some power over it. For this reason, the barycenter is not right at the center of the Earth, but 5,000 kilometers from it. It is still within our planet, but not as centered as we usually think. Jupiter and the Sun are a more extreme case, which is why the center of gravity is completely outside the Sun. The Earth does revolve around the Sun…sometimes. The Earth is much smaller than the Sun. If they were alone in the Solar System, the center of gravity would be practically in the center of the Sun. But of course, they are not alone. All planets act on the point where that center of mass is located. And the thing is, it’s a center of mass that moves as these planets move. Something similar happens to what happens when all the sailors on a ship move around the deck. The ship’s center of mass can change. In the case of the Solar Systemthe most influential sailors are the gas giants. That is, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. When these align, they pull the center of gravity outward and the Earth does not rotate around the Sun. In short, no, the planets do not rotate exactly around the Sun. But we are not going to get fancy explaining it at school either. Don’t feel like you’ve been fooled, they’ve just simplified it for you. Image | NASA | Martin Jediny (Wikimedia Commons) In Xataka | A planet has just disappeared: NASA’s Hubble telescope has captured a violent cosmic event that changes everything

donations from parents to children have skyrocketed

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In the offices of Valencian notaries there is a procedure that has been gaining weight in recent years, and at an astonishing speed: the donations from parents to children who want to have their own home. Since 2019, the region’s members have confirmed a “boom” both money deliveries (they have almost quadrupled in just over five years), and home transfers, an operation that has also multiplied. The objective is always the same: to help young people get their head into a market increasingly expensive…and inaccessible. It makes sense if we take into account if we see who buys in the region. What has happened? That the Notarial College of Valencia wanted to accompany the presentation of its new statistical portal (a tool valid for the entire country) of a series of data on the residential market in the region. Among all of them there are three especially interesting ones that are connected to each other. The first is the gradual rise in housing prices, the second is the negligible weight that young people have in the buying and selling market and the third is the boom in donations from parents to children, both of houses themselves and of sums of money. How much is donated? Increasingly, this shows that family support has become a key ‘key’ for young people to open the doors of the market and make the leap from tenants to owners. The data is clear. And they leave little room for doubt. According to Valencian referees, home donations from parents to children have doubled between 2019 and 2025: from 3,015 they have gone to 7,776. In short, they have skyrocketed 158% in five years. That’s if we’re talking about properties themselves. If we look at monetary donations, those that are based on money and that facilitate the payment of deposits or the signing of mortgage loans, the increase has been even more pronounced. How much have they increased? Those kinds of donations have almost quadrupled. If in 2019 Valencian notaries managed just under 3,000 operations in which parents gave money to their children to facilitate the purchase of a residential property, last year that figure had already climbed to almost 11,100 operations. 279% more in just five years. This boom was registered in all provinces. In Valencia it went from 1,647 to 5,370; in Alicante, from 844 to 4,012; and in Castellón from 432 to 1,712. Regarding the average amount of donations, in 2025 they exceeded 75,000 euros. Does it only occur in that region? No. In fact, the data from the General Council reflect that it is a fairly widespread trend in Spain. In 2025 the group processed more than 225,300 donations throughout the country, a data that can be analyzed from several angles. To begin with, it is the highest indicator since at least 2011 and far exceeds the 85,300 operations a decade ago. If that were not enough, it marks a clear upward trend: between 2023 and 2024 donations registered an increase of 15.2%, a drift that was consolidated with another 13% in 2025. At the end of 2025 the General Council I already warned that donations and inheritances were “consolidating themselves as instruments of access to housing”, a phenomenon that connects with an even larger trend: the Great Wealth Transfer. His statistics were again incontestable. Home donations went from 32,623 in 2017 to 54,735 in 2024. Residential property inheritances also drew a similar curve: from 335,888 they rose to 403,854. What is the reason? To answer that question we must recover the two keys that we pointed out at the beginning of the article: the increase in housing prices and how this increase has been closing the doors of real estate agencies to young people. Again according to the data managed by notaries, the cost of residential m2 (both in new and second-hand homes) has skyrocketed in the last decade in the Valencian Community. In 2025 it stood at 1,676 euros, 69.1% more than in 2013, when that same indicator reached minimum levels dragged down by the brick crisis. If we look at the specific case of Valencia, per m2 is even more expensive: 2,489 euros. In Alicante it has climbed to 1,889 and in Castellón to 1,297. How does that affect young people? More expensive prices require a greater capacity for savings and debt, something that is not always within the reach of young people. Especially if they are tenants before making the leap to owners. In 2024, a study by Infojobs concluded that Spaniards spend on average 47% of your salary gross payment of the rent for your home, which far exceeds the spending threshold recommended by experts and strangles the ability to save. With this backdrop it is explained that donations and inheritances have come to play a key role as a springboard to make the leap to owner. Who buys? The ‘photograph’ provided by the notaries is once again quite clear. In 2007, young people between 18 and 30 years old they accounted for 21.58% of home purchases in the region. Now that percentage has plummeted to 8.39%, even below the national averagewhich is around 9.6%. As a reference, foreign buyers represent 36.9% of the total, although their weight is not the same throughout the territory. In the province of Valencia it represents 21.97% of the total buyers, while in Alicante it accounts for 51%. Images | Northleg Official (Unsplash) and Giuseppe Buccola (Unsplash) In Xataka | If the question is “why doesn’t Spain build more houses”, the brick industry has the answer: it is not profitable

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