danger

Science says the real danger is in how we do it

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A very typical gesture in our daily lives is to reuse the bottles we use to drink water or any other beverage. Something that is usually done to reduce the carbon footprint that can be caused by using a bottle only once and throwing it away. But at a time when microplastics are the order of the day, the truth is that it makes us think If reusing a bottle is harmful to us. But we are not only talking about the plastic bottles that we buy in the supermarket with water or any other liquid such as a soft drink, but also the classic bottles that we are used to seeing in many places that They promise to keep you warm or cold inside.. Its plastic construction can set off alarm bells after seeing how microplastics have been found in the testiclesthe breast milk and other parts of the bodyit is logical to think that if we use the same bottle twenty or thirty times in the end we are consuming this type of substance. The fear of microplastics. Little by little they get to know each other details about the effect that the consumption of microplastics has about our health, especially fertility. This means that we basically have to question the containers from which we consume food in order to ‘protect ourselves’ from its bad effects, as can occur in these bottles in container containers. The problem. Popular belief states that reusing bottles could pose a significant risk due to the alleged accumulation of bisphenol A (BPA) and the proliferation of dangerous bacteria if they are not cleaned daily. However, current scientific evidence intensely qualifies these statements, distinguishing between real risk factors and unfounded precautions. The release of bisphenols. Several studies have evaluated the migration of BPA and phthalates from reused bottles. under real use conditions. A recent experiment from 2021 simulating daily use in more than 20 types of bottles concluded that no migration of bisphenol A was detected in the stored water, even after several weeks of reasonable reuse. And the most interesting thing is that the classic aluminum bottles used as thermoses were also included. Other scientific articles agree: the release of BPA depends fundamentally on the type of material, exposure to high temperatures and extreme wear, not on the mere fact of filling them with tap or refrigerator water. Bottles suitable for food use, well maintained and not subjected to excessive heatdo not dangerously increase exposure to BPA. This logically changes radically if liquids are poured at high temperatures, which can cause more microplastics to be released. This is why you must always take into account the temperature of the liquids that are stored, so that it is the same as the original liquid that was stored. But there are also different opinions. In this case, food technologist Luis Ribera, director of the Saia food safety consultancy, has warned of the risk of reusing bottles manufactured for single use, as reported by El Confidencial. ​Although he goes further by stating that the real danger lies in the microorganisms that can appear in these bottles. Bacteria and bottles. Precisely, it is also a recurring theme, since logically on the surface of the bottle you can accumulate different common microorganisms like for example Escherichia coli either Staphylococcus. This is something that can be common, especially when a sugary drink has been stored, which leaves a substrate on the plastic walls, as if it were a Petri dish. But the key in this case to avoid the accumulation of bacteria logically lies in hygiene. Recent studies show that regular cleaning Soap and water is enough to keep the bottles safe. In cases in which high levels of bacteria have been reported, the analyzes always point to the lack of frequent washing or the use of cracked containers, rather than the rational reuse for drinking water as many of us do at home to avoid having to buy more bottles. Is it dangerous to reuse bottles? With this evidence, we can have several clear conclusions. The first of them is that there is no health prohibition when it comes to using bottles that are reusable and that have been manufactured to contain water. The second is that the associated health risks are almost exclusively due to poor hygiene habits or extreme wear and tear of the packaging. And the third is that if a bottle has not been manufactured to give it more than one use, Yes, we must be careful with its reuse.. In this way, neither the migration of bisphenol A nor the “bacteriological danger” justify throwing away your bottle after a single use, as long as it is used sensibly and basic hygiene is maintained. Science supports responsible use and regular cleaning, debunking some of the alarmist discourse around reusing plastic bottles for tap water. Images | charlesdeluvio Nigel Msipa In Xataka | The true size of the microplastics that populate our lives, exposed in this disturbing graph ​

This is the “danger zone” we enter after the massive death of corals

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The Earth has officially entered a grim new era. climate reality. According to a shocking new reportthe incessant increase in heat in the oceans has pushed the corals from around the world beyond its limit, causing a unprecedented large reef mortality because of this climate change. Something that is not good news at all. This event, according to scientists, marks the first climate tipping point we have passed as a planet, directly threatening the livelihoods of nearly a billion people. The report. This data has been collected in the “Global Tipping Points Report 2025”, prepared by an international consortium of more than 200 researchers. And the truth is that they are not at all positive, since they suggest that even in the most optimistic scenario, where global warming does not exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, practically all warm-water coral reefs will exceed a point of no return. This makes their loss “one of the most pressing ecological losses facing humanity,” although the disappearance of corals is only the tip of the iceberg. Experts point out that since 2023 we have witnessed how the temperature has increased more than 1.5 °C compared to the pre-industrial average. In this way, exceeding the 1.5 °C limit now seems quite inevitable and could occur around 2030, something that puts our planet on the brink of an abyss. What are ‘turning points’. These points are nothing more than critical thresholds. Once crossed, the climate system is pushed into a new paradigm, triggering effects that will go on in a chain. Specifically, we talk about events such as widespread death of the Amazon rainforestthe collapse of the Greenland ice sheets or the collapse of the circulation of Atlantic southern overturn (AMOC). The Amazon, in particular, is in a critical situation. The report warns that not only warming threatens the forest, but also the combination of this with deforestation. With 1.5°C warming, only 22% deforestation would be enough to reach its point of no return. The current figure is already at an alarming 17%. All is not lost. Despite the bleak outlook, the report identifies a silver lining, which is nothing more than a paradigm shift that, unlike the negative ones, triggers a cascade of beneficial changes. Since 2023, the world has seen very rapid progress in the adoption of clean technologies, especially in two key areas: velectric vehicles and photovoltaic solar energy. Accompanied by a drastic drop in battery prices, these factors are beginning to reinforce each other, accelerating the energy transition in a way that few anticipated. The problem. According to the report’s authors, it lies in governance systems. From national policies to multinational agreements, such as the from Pariswere not designed to address turning points. They are designed to manage gradual, linear changes, not abrupt, cascading collapses on multiple fronts at once. But these turning points are really threatening, so they point to a series of immediate actions to be taken in all countries to avoid a catastrophic situation. In this case they point to the following: Reduce emissions of short-lived pollutants such as methane and black carbon. Accelerate efforts to remove carbon from the atmosphere. Making global supply chains sustainable. Develop mitigation strategies for climate impacts. The message is clear and forceful: what we have done so far is not enough. Researchers urge not to look away. As Milkoreit concludes, “even having a reader have the courage to stay with the problem is work, and I want to recognize that work.” Images | quinguyen Chris LeBoutillier In Xataka | In the fight against climate change, we have developed the air conditioning revolution: ionocaloric cooling

The eruption of a volcano was synonymous with danger 100 years ago. Today has made Iceland a theme park

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Exactly one year ago, Iceland took a unexplored path In his fight against mass tourism: in essence, tell the truth to the visitor. Thus began a marked campaign For a slogan: “No one will save you if you fall”, which unequivocally came to confirm the hordes of the dangers of getting too close to an erupting volcano. Today, Iceland wonders if it was worth “opening” both the world. The awakening that changed everything. In 2010, when Eyjafjalajökull volcano interrupted air traffic European with an ash cloud that paralyzed the continent, Iceland went from being a remote island and evoked in Nordic sagas to become a global stage. The images of glaciers, black beaches and hot springs spread by international chains aroused the curiosity of the world in a country that had just suffered the blow of The financial crisis. With the campaign Inspired by Icelandthe government and tourism industry They took the moment. From then on, the landing of low -cost airlines and Viral phenomena In social networks (including a Justin Bieber video clip between waterfalls and aircraft remains) they catapulted the island to essential destination. Mass tourism. In just fifteen years, the number of visitors went from less than half a million to More than 2.3 million annuallymultiplying the local population several times during the high season. Tourism revitalized villages, generated employment and transformed the economyto the point of becoming the Main motor of the country. Locations Like Vikonce agricultural, they saw how the stables gave way to guest houses, improvised coffees in school bus and attractions of adventure. Immigration accompanied This boom: in some municipalities, foreigners are already a majority, and the arrival of new residents has even caused an unexpected “baby boom”. For many mayors and local businessmen, current problems are preferable to the decline of peoples that previously seemed condemned to abandonment. The identity dilemma. However, obviously not everything is good news. Tourism has contributed economic vitality, employment and infrastructure, but also tensions. Farmers complain about visitors who enter their lands or feed horses without permission, even causing deaths of animals. In Vikthe massive arrival of foreign workers has altered the social and urban fabric, with prefabricated homes that change traditional aesthetics. Even in schools they have had to Put posters to prevent tourists from photographing children. In the environmental plane, basic systems as the sewer They have been overwhelmed. Many Icelanders recognize the prosperity that tourism has given them, but they wonder how much local culture can resist without diluting. Iceland as theme park. More than a decade later that Eyjafjalajökull Cover the European sky with ashes and put the country on the global map, many critics argue that the island has run the risk of becoming in a “volcanoes theme park.” The geysers, glaciers and mountains of fire are today part of an itinerary Almost prefabricated, driven by low -cost airlines and Instagram selfies, which concentrates crowds in a handful of iconic landscapes while other regions remain outside. What was previously perceived as an indomitable and mysterious territory has become a tourist decoration subject to the logic of rapid consumption, where the eruption that attracted the world was transformed In advertising claim permanent. For many Icelandic, the paradox is evident: the volcano that saved the economy now threatens to devour the essence of their country. The future. Thus, academics and analysts propose Diversify the routes and offer deepest experiences linked to the history and culture of the country, to prevent tourism from reduced to a handful of “postcard places.” Regions such as Western Fjords or Fisheries North are still relatively on the sidelines, although the opening of direct flights could change the situation. The issue, according to many Icelanders, is not to close the door to visitors, but rethink the model: Attract those who want a longer and more conscious experience, instead of fast visits dictated by social networks. The national phrase Þetta Reddast (“Everything will work out”) reflects the resilient optimism of the country, although now faces the most uncomfortable question: Can Iceland continue to receive the entire world without sacrificing what made it unique? Image | Pexels, Berserkur In Xataka | “No one will save you if you fall into the volcano”: Iceland reopens one of its greatest claims with the best anti -tourism slogan In Xataka | In Barcelona, ​​the anti-tourism movement is adopting a radical tactic: harass tourists down the street

The danger of using AI chatbots for everything is real: MIT has discovered the “cognitive debt”

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A MIT study He has shown that chatgpt and similar tools generate what they call “cognitive debt”: students who resort to them for total use end up writing better, but thinking worse. Why is it important. The study contradicts the belief that AI is like a calculator: a simple support that frees us for more complex reasoning. Actually, these tools can atrophy the brain connections that build critical thinking. The facts. 54 university students have spent months writing essays, divided into three groups: Grupo LLM, which used Chatgpt. Search motor group, which used Google. And group Solo-Cerebro, without external tools. The researchers measured their neuronal activity with electroencephalograms and the results have been overwhelming: those who used a neuronal connectivity systematically lower in all frequency bands. Compared to the group that only used its brain, there was a lower activation in key networks that connect parietal, temporal and frontal regions, fundamental for attention, memory and semantic processing. In Xataka 81% of interviewers suspected the traps with AI in interviews: 31% have confirmed it without a doubt and they have put a brake The contrast. The essays generated with AI received better notes, both from teachers and evaluating algorithms. But their authors remembered worse what they had written minutes before and felt a minor authorship about their texts. When they forced the usual users to write without help, their brain patterns showed that dependence on external support. They had lost ability to reactivate the necessary neural networks to write independently. How to walk without support after years doing it with crutches. Yes, but. The students who learned to write without ia and then used it for the first time maintained their engagement neuronal They even showed better memory and reactivation of broad brain areas. The key difference: You need to know how to think before you can think with machines. In perspective. This pattern replicates what we see in other professions: The subway driver who feels alienated because the train drives alone. Translators turned into machine editors. 3D creatives that only retouch what the AI ​​generates. {“Videid”: “X9R6K72”, “Autoplay”: False, “Title”: “Chatgpt Pulse”, “Tag”: “Technology”, “Duration”: “67”} The threat. The study also analyzed university students who already had developed writing skills. The effects could be more severe in adolescents who are still building these cognitive abilities. As a Dartmouth teacher said: we run the risk of creating “an educated generation with AI shortcuts” that lacks independent thinking skills. And now what. The sequence matters more than technology. First, you learn to think. Then, you learn to think with machines. The brain needs to build those Neuronal highways before being able to delegate selectively in AI. The study concludes that educational interventions should “combine the assistance of AI tools with learning phases without tools” to optimize both immediate skill and long -term neuronal development. Outstanding image | Xataka In Xataka |What happens if the software doesn’t matter when you are the largest company in the software world (Function () {Window._js_modules = Window._js_modules || {}; var headelement = document.getelegsbytagname (‘head’) (0); if (_js_modules.instagram) {var instagramscript = Document.Createlement (‘script’); }}) (); – The news The danger of using AI chatbots for everything is real: MIT has discovered the “cognitive debt” It was originally posted in Xataka by Javier Lacort .

Nano Banana is not just a great creator of images with AI. It is the greatest danger to Photoshop and company

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Google has been playing hiding place with what is a great threat to Photoshop, at least in its photo editor facet. For weeks, a mysterious tool called “Nano Banana“He has been appearing anonymously into test platforms, leaving amazed professional users. Google finally confirmed that this experimental model is yours and is integrating it into Gemini. Why is it important. We are facing the beginning of the end of the layers, masks and tools that have defined digital design for 30 years. You change the color of a shirt without distorting the face. You add elements without reinventing the background. In 2 seconds, no 15. For professional uses it is not ready. For first sketches or for domestic use, it is perfect. 10 Google applications that could have triumphed The difference is persistence. Other models generate from scratch with each Promptbut Nano Banana remembers. You can strain about the same image dozens of times. Some examples. Let’s see what can be done with Nano Banana (if you want to know how to try it, We have prepared a guide). Everything has been done are the Prompts that we attach, without more. Original photo: “Create an image with this man but in a Valencian people of the 50s, with clothes, appearance, hairstyle, environment, etc. that are credible for the time.” “Now in the 2050 futuristic Shanghai.” “Now he returns to the original photo and adds this man by his side, posing together for the photo.” “Now back them as two Roman gladiators in the amphitheater.” Let’s go with something else. This Apple announcement in Las Vegas, deployed a few years ago. “Modifies the announcement text to say ‘2×1 in all iPhone models until the end of stock’”. Another different. We give you these two images. “Put this man the red shirt that attached to you.” “Now place him in Mestalla.” “Put a black cap and remove the clock.” All at the blow of Prompt And very fast, more than chatgpt. The money trail. Nano Banana has a cost of $ 0.039 per image of 1024 x 1024 pixels. Adobe has already announced that he will integrate the model in Firefly and Express, as reported Business Insider. His argument (“we offer all the models in one place”) makes sense, although something defensive also sounds. Those who pay dozens of dollars a month for a license to make editions will begin to be renewed. Now it is possible to generate Mockups In minutes, not in days. Some Ecommerce They will stop needing so many photographic sessions. A teacher can create a better adapted diagram than that of publishers. Everything with Prompts of text. In Xataka | Browsers prepare for the most radical transformation in their history. One in which the IA will be Outstanding image | Xataka

Deepseek put China on the AI ​​map. The danger is that this revolution stays in a day flower

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Deepseek R1 was eating the world At the beginning of the year. This Chinese model, apparently out of nowhere, caused A true shock In the AI ​​industry, but since then there has been movement. Actually there has been one, but the disturbing thing is precisely what that movement has been. Hi, Deepseek v3.1. The startup advertisement Last week the launch of Deepseek V3.1, a new version that stood out for being an improved hybrid of Deepseek V3 (fast response) and Deepseek R1 (reasoning). There was also good news in terms of their performance: according to the Benchmarks published by those responsible, it was significantly higher than their predecessors. Visible (but non -dramatic) improvements. In the “model card” (model card) that those responsible offers In Hugging FaceDeepseek v3.1 (in reasoning mode) proved to behave slightly better than Deepseek R1-0528, —Your previous version, more powerful-in areas such as programming or in mathematical tests, but some users who have tried it there comment That except in those areas, the model is worse and “it behaves poorly when following instructions or prompts provided by users.” Others confirm it and They assure which is useful for programmers, but not for other areas. It also has limitations on its multimodal support, and focuses on the text instead of providing more options for another type of interaction, for example from voice, image, video or audio messages. A Chinese model for Chinese chips. But even more interesting it was that Deepseek V3.1 has been designed and launched with a clear objective: avoiding the dependence of foreign chips. The FP8 precision used makes this model behave very well In the next -generation Chinese chips. The strategy seems very interesting for the startup, which could thus have a very aligned model with the priorities of the Chinese government. This is: use local models for local chips as much as possible. And R1, what? From there some doubts arise. The first, which affects Deepseek R1, the model with which the startup “broke” the market at the beginning of the year. The company has eliminated all references to this model in the characteristic of “deep thought”, which has generated doubts about the potential appearance of its expected successor, a hypothetical Deepseek R2. Loses users. But while that theoretical model comes – if it does – the company faces a more immediate threat. As they point out In SCMPDeepseek is losing users (or at least relevance) in recent months. In the first quarter of the year its market share within the scope of the IA Open Source models used on the PPIO cloud platform was a spectacular 99%. However, in the second quarter that percentage has dropped to 80%. Fierce competition. That fall relevance has an obvious reason: its local competitors are squeezing. And a lot. Among them is the family of models Qwen from Alibaba, but Also others like Kimi-K2-Instructof the startup Mosohot AI – in which Alibaba has also invested – which is becoming one of the most popular models of recent weeks. Delays and deceleration. Precisely the focus on being able to make the most of future Chinese chips seems to be the reason that this hypothetical Deepseek R2 is being delayed. At least that is the hypothesis that consider In Financial Timeswhere they revealed that the startup has failed when trying to train with Huawei chips. The situation has made them Training with Nvidia chipsand that are using the Huawei Asce for the inference stage, that is, the interaction with the model via web or API by users. But this attitude is “very Chinese”. We may in Western countries we are accustomed to a much more frantic pace and that we expect constant updates and improvements with an eye on the short term. In China, philosophy is usually the opposite, and companies adopt A long -term strategy even if immediate benefits are lost. Maintaining a low profile is also usual among those companies, which try not to make much noise … until they do, as Depseek has already demonstrated. Thus, we will have to remain very attentive to the activity of this startup, because surely he will be working to continue being one of the protagonists of the AI ​​panorama. Image | Tim Reckmann In Xataka | Deepseek has suggested that Nvidia chips no longer needs. We believe to know who is buying them

Nvidia has to deal with the absolute distrust of several US legislators. His plan in China is in danger

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The dispute that Eeuu and China hold It is deeply conditioning the business of many Chinese companies, such as Huawei, SMIC or Hua Hong semiconductor, but is also affecting a very important way To some western companies. The Dutch ASML and the American Nvidia They are in all likelihood that are facing the greatest challenges as a result of the pulse maintained by the American and China administrations. The Chinese market is essential for both, but the sanctions that have approved US governments and the Netherlands They prevent them from selling their customers led by Xi Jinping a good part of their product porpholio. Even so, both companies are doing what is in their hand to defend their economic and commercial interests, and dispense with the Chinese market is not one of its options. In fact, Nvidia has officialized His intention to put a specialized installation in the design of integrated circuits in Shanghai (China). Some legislators consider that Nvidia’s plan is a threat to the US The newspaper The Wall Street Journal It has been made with a letter in which the Republican senator by Indiana Jim Banks and the Democratic Senator for Massachusetts Elizabeth Warren are directed directly to Jensen Huang, the general director of Nvidia. In this text these legislators argue that the installation that Nvidia plans to open in Shanghai represents a direct threat to US national security due to the possibility that China acquires the ability to design avant -garde GPU for artificial intelligence (AI). “No American company should be helping the Chinese Communist Party to close the gap in artificial intelligence,” Nvidia has responded immediately. There is too much at stake to take this light attention call. A spokesman for this company has expressed that its purpose “It is simply to rent a new space that the company’s employees can use after the return to work after the Coronavirus pandemic. The scope of work will not change“However, Nvidia’s official justification does not seem convincing for Warren and Banks. In fact, this last legislator has declared that “no American company should be helping the Chinese communist party to close the gap in artificial intelligence.” It is evident that this is an accusation of full -fledged Nvidia. A very serious accusation that complicates the future plans of the company led by Jensen Huang in China if we are in mind that the manifesto is backed at least by a senator of the Republican party and a senator of the Democratic Party. In addition, this claim comes at a very important moment for Nvidia. The engineers of this company have just concluded The development of a GPU With Blackwell microarchitecture aimed at replacing to the H20 chip whose sale in China has been prohibited by the last sanctions package of the Department of Commerce. The Nvidia Plan is that TSMC starts the manufacture of this GPU expressly intended for the Chinese market in June, but at the current situation it would not be surprising at all that the Department of Commerce prevents its delivery to Chinese clients in Nvidia. We will see what happens finally, but the panorama does not paint anything well for the company led by Jensen Huang. Image | Nvidia More information | The Wall Street Journal In Xataka | The US gives Huawei a great opportunity: to get its new chip for AI with the Nvidia market in China

No one has been aware of the danger of some commercial flights in the US. A phone off three years is to blame

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The scene is still remembered for the unlikely. On January 29, a mobile camera recorded what seemed unthinkable. In the middle of the night, on the Ronald Reagan National Airport in Washington, a military Black Hawk helicopter approached until face a plane American Airlines Commercial. 67 people died becoming the most deadly plane crash in the United States since 2001. It has now been known that the danger was much greater. Dead line and silence. The American media They have launched A news shocking. For more than three years, a direct (and criticism) communication line between the air controllers of the Reagan National Airport and the Pentagon Heliport Tower has remained completely inoperativea without the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to know. This disconnection, confirmed by A senior FAA official Before the Senate, it came to light only after an incident that occurred on May 1, when two commercial planes were forced to abort their landing due to the presence of an army helicopter that flew in circles on the Pentagon. The line, managed by the Department of Defense, had disconnected in March 2022 And it was not detected until after the event, which reveals an alarming lack of coordination between the agencies responsible for the most restricted and sensitive airs He left 67 dead. Bureaucratic clashes. What’s doubt, the finding has unleashed visible tensions Between the FAA and the Department of Defense, with mutual accusations on whom it breaches the security protocols. While the Secretary of Transportation has pointed out violations by the military, they insist that they have respected the current restrictions. In the Senate, figures like Tammy Duckworth, former Black Hawk pilot, and Dan Sullivan expressed their outrage at the Lack of clear answers and the apparent institutional passivity. The commission listened to how the airport drivers, both the day of the January accident and in the recent May incident, assumed multiple functions simultaneouslya practice that increases the workload and reduces operational safety margins. FAA’s own air traffic deputy director, Franklin Mcintosh, acknowledged that the agency He did not know that the line was dropped and that it should have detected it much earlier. A chain of failures. Apparently, after the January accident, the FAA restricted the routes Helicopters near the airport, but military, police and doctors flights have continued to operate, causing more conflicts with commercial traffic. According to McIntoshthe agency came to suspend the agreement that allows military helicopters to fly without prior authorization from FAA, but the army announced on its own the suspension of flights to the Pentagon while reviewing their procedures. The problem? That the May incident showed that the problems persistand that the army continues to operate on compromised routes without full coordination. The lack of transparency by the army, referring to the sensitive nature of its missions, has hindered supervision efforts, and former NTSB researchers and FAA warn that this opacity It is no longer sustainable Under the current scrutiny. Errors and more errors. Explained the post That the situation in the Washington area is not an isolated case. During the same audience, the Senate also addressed the technical and personnel problems at Newark airport, which has suffered days of delays due to lack of controllers and unreliable technology. Despite the statements of the Secretary of Transportation ensuring that the airport is safe, it transpired that He diverted a flight from his wife In Laguardia, which sowed doubts about the confidence in air infrastructure. But there is much more. Fortune told that a commercial flight had to perform an evasive maneuver after approaching dangerously Four military fighters that were directed to a ceremonial act in Arlington, and all because of a coordination error between regional controllers and the Reagan tower. In total, at least have been registered 85 quasi collisions In that same airspace during the three years prior to the January clash, a figure that should have activated at least institutional alarms much earlier. A system under pressure. In summary, the prolonged disconnection of a critical line between two maximum risk facilities, combined with the slowness in institutional responses and the fragmentation of the command between civilians and military, seem to evidence A system under stresswhose fissures, as has already happened In JanuaryThey may have mortal consequences if urgent measures are not taken. That direct line between the Pentagon and Reagan became, by omission, in symbol of a fractured command chain. That without having something that many means of the country also pose: the fact that on the most powerful capital in the world, in a scenario of growing tension like the current one, it continues to depend on ordinary telephones to avoid another air tragedy. Image | Bigbirdz In Xataka | The incredible history of Kansai’s Japanese airport: was built on an artificial island and has been sinking for years In Xataka | We have been waiting for years at airports for years. Tiktok’s “airport theory” believes that it has been a mistake

We have been reading about the danger of arsenic in rice for years. So much that we run the risk of not believing it in the worst possible time

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Arsenic is one of the best known toxic elements. The fact that traces of this element can be found in the rice we consume sounds more alarming than it really is: today only very high consumption of this food could involve health risks. The problem is that this can change in the future. Growing concentrations. A new study has pointed out that the increase in temperatures and carbon dioxide concentrations (CO2) in the atmosphere can favor the absorption of arsenic in rice crops. This would translate into a greater presence of the element in the dishes elaborated from this cereal. A change whose impact could be significant around 2050. This increase in arsenic concentration could especially affect the population in Asia, where rice represents a higher portion of the food consumed. “Our results suggest that this increase in arsenic levels could significantly raise the incidence of heart disease, diabetes, and (cause) other non -carcinogenic effects,” he said In a press release Lewis Ziskka, co -author of the study. The risk of arsenic. Arsenic is considered a heavy metal despite chemically belonging to the semimetal group. He Risk level which implies its presence depends on several factors, for example on the fact of the molecular structure in which it occurs (its organic structures are less dangerous than the inorganic ones). And, of course, it depends on the dose. The risk posed by this element has to do with its accumulation in our body. Its presence can lead to problems in development among the youngest, and in adults it has been related to skin disorders, bladder and cancer of lung. 28 Rice varieties. The team responsible for the study analyzed the effects on the rice of an average increase of 2º Celsius at the temperature and the associated increase of atmospheric CO2. Did it in 28 varieties of this cereal, modeling the evolution of its inorganic arsenic content over 10 years. From there, the team estimated the health impacts that this accumulation could produce in the populations of seven Asian countries around 2050. The result: a drastic increase in cancer cases and especially the cases of bladder cancer. Among the countries studied, China would stand out, which could see more than 13 million new cases of cancer associated with arsenic exposure. The details of the study were published In an article In the magazine The Lancet Planetary Health. Not everything is lost. In its study, the team raises some possible adaptation measures dedicated to reducing the future impacts of this problem. The team suggests hybridar varieties of plants to favor those that absorb less, introduce improvements in soil management in rice fields, and improve food processing practices. They also propose consumer -centered measures: education and minitor, they explain, they could play an important role in reducing the impacts of this growing presence of arsenic. The occasional alerts we receive regarding arsenic levels in rice could make this more difficult, by turning this problem into a “Pedro and the Wolf story”: a non -existent problem that we pay attention today could become a real problem that we ignore in the future. In Xataka | What is really happening with white rice (and to what extent should we worry) Image | Shayan Ghiasvand

Digital serendipia is in danger of extinction. Internet understands us too well

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Serendipia, that valuable finding that happens while we were looking for something else, It is in the process of extinction if we talk about the Internet. The increasingly precise recommendation algorithms have locked us in bubbles of very comfortable convenience, but also sterile. We no longer lose ourselves on the Internet – from there the “navigate” -. And that is the problem. I think of my adolescence, in the first decade of this century. An any night, listening to Rock & Gol, who combined rock and football, wanted to hear comments on that glorious stage of Valencia, but suddenly something different sounded. It was not the commercial pop of melancholic latest adalescents (“I loved it so much …!”), Nor the first Reggaeton that we met. Was ‘E-Pro’, from Beck. Those four minutes changed my perception of what music could be. Today I do not seem to me from the other Thursday, but at that time it made me want to hear a type of music that until then did I know. It was an accident, a fortuitous collision with something that I had never actively looked for because I didn’t even know that it existed. He simply reached my ears without ever having reproduced anything similar. Today, with Spotify suggesting songs millimetrically refined to my tastes – declored and inferred, Grrr – I wonder Where are those transformative accidents for current adolescents. It is a paradox: the more sophisticated the technology becomes to “meet us”, the less opportunities we have to know something really new. Our algorithms have confused “relevance” with “familiarity”, offering us barely noticeable variations of what we already consume. As Antonio Ortiz said in “Internet was dopamine, AI will be oxytocin“, We have optimized platforms to maintain our attention, not to expand our horizons. Captive, not creative. When was the last time you discovered something really unexpected in your Feed? Not something tangential to your usual interests, but something totally new, discordant, something that made you rethink ideas and expand towards a new taste. The digital explorer of yesteryear, which sailed hyperlink in hyperlink to the final P2P, has been replaced by the passive consumer that slides the finger in an infinite flow of pre -healing content. In its improvement, The algorithms have eliminated friction, and with it, the generative spark of the disagreement. It is not good news. The horny is that this algorithmic refinement comes just when we need divergent thinking. The real innovation, which changes paradigms instead of optimizing the existing, arises precisely from unexpected connections, from the collision between disparate ideas. Silicon Valley was built on serendipias: Stewart Brand finding inspiration in the native Americans to create the Whole Earth CatalogSteve Jobs captivated by calligraphy which would end up deeply influencing the design and DNA of the Mac. Until the very concept of hypertext he was born from an analogy with how the human mind works: not linearly, but by unexpected associations. It is not just a matter of innovation. Also of civic health. Before, physical newspapers forced us to pass pages where we found, unintentionally, discordant opinions with ours. Now Discover is in charge of filtering. Now, ours feeds They are so Tunis that can spend months without giving ourselves with an idea that really confront our convictions. The algorithm, in its eagerness to maximize our permanence time, serves only what confirms our presuppositions. Or in the case of X, What will make us foam through our mouths. This overallization of digital consumption has created a strange phenomenon: we had never had access to so much information and yet our mental worlds are increasingly narrow. The variety has been sacrificed at the altar of personalized experience. It is still symptomatic that some of the most powerful voices after these designs They do not want to put their own creations in the hands of their children. We go to an internet where each click It is premeditated, where the following recommendation is predictably interesting. In the name of efficiency we are sacrificing that glorious digital disorder That, like garbage DNA in our genome, could contain the germ of the next great innovation or simply those findings that change the cultural consumption of the rest of our life. I wonder how many songs of Beck – not songs by the Californian musician, but the concept of music that breaks with our previous beliefs – we are missing, especially today’s teenagers, trapped in loops of algorithmically perfectly perfectly sterile content. Maybe it’s time for demand the right to digital serendipia. To ask ourselves if we want an internet that understands us too well or one that may still surprise us. In Xataka | Shy from the world, we are losing the Internet Outstanding image |

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