days

Our brain is “rotting” based on infinite scrolling. Someone has left their cell phone for 14 days to see if there is a way back

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Today it is a reality that most of us live glued to a screen, and this is something that is documented in studies that point out, for example, that on average we review an average of 200 times the phone throughout the day, which is equivalent to looking at it approximately every five minutes. In fact, 46% of users consider themselves “dependent” on the device and 53% say they have never spent more than 24 hours without it. But what really happens in our heads if we decide to cut corners and return to the analog era? A test. To answer this question, CNN journalist Bill Weir decided to test this premise to commemorate Apple’s 50th anniversary. In this way, for 14 days Weir kept his iPhone in a box and replaced it with a basic phone like the ones we had 15 years ago, with which we could only send SMS with a non-touch keyboard and a low-resolution camera. From here the sensations he had were observed, but a group of scientists behind him were also monitoring his brain through brain scans. The results. After two weeks of disconnection, the journalist’s reaction times improved by 23%, and his brain activity also increased significantly, causing his brain connectivity to become more coordinated and organized. Subjectively, Weir experienced a much better recovery in his ability to concentrate and also noted a sharp decrease in the need to consume social media after the first week. The changes. It is no coincidence that the term “brain rot”, translated as brain rot, was crowned the neologism of the year in 2024 for the Oxford dictionary, since it is a concept closely linked to be swiping all the time with your mobile. And clearly the excessive use of smartphones and all the applications they contain is leaving a physical mark on our brain anatomy. It’s proven. MRI-based research, including a National Library of Medicine publication in 2023, they point out that problematic smartphone use is associated with a reduction in gray matter in the brain. And if we go into something more specific, it was seen that there was a smaller volume in the anterior cingulate cortex, the orbitofrontal cortex, the fusiform gyrus and the striatum. These areas are fundamental for emotional regulation, decision making and impulse control, making these alterations similar to those observed in addictions to harmful substances such as drugs. And supported. A study published in 2025 analyzed individuals for 72 hours without a mobile phone using functional magnetic resonance imaging, and the results indicated that withdrawal triggered brain activations identical to those of addictive withdrawal syndromes, followed by notable cognitive improvements. Digital amnesia. Beyond anatomy, our daily cognitive abilities are in free fall, and science suggests that the average attention time before an interruption has gone from about 2.5 minutes to about 47 seconds, blaming the accelerated digital pace here. And the culprit again is the smartphone, since a study published in 2017 analyzed to 520 participants and demonstrated that the simple presence of the smartphone on the table, even face down, consumes and exhausts our cognitive attention resources. This is why we should opt for better control of the time we dedicate to social networks or the smartphone in general, since the benefits of quitting are many. Images | freepik In Xataka | Smartphones are destroying our memories. The big question is whether we should care

China has closed a huge chunk of sky for 40 days. And all we know is that space is bigger than Taiwan

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In aviation, advisories restricting the use of airspace usually last just a few days and are linked to very specific operations, while areas without altitude limits are reserved on rare occasions due to its impact on air traffic. In strategic regions of the planet, any prolonged alteration in these patterns is often interpreted as more than a simple technical measure. It just happened in China. An unprecedented air closure. China has closed for 40 days (from March 27 to May 6) a huge maritime airspace without offering any clear explanation, delimiting areas through aeronautical warnings which are normally used for short exercises but in this case they are unusually prolonged. To give us an idea, the extension of that space exceeds the size of Taiwan, which makes the measure difficult to fit within operational normality. The official silence and the scale of the movement suggest a deliberate decision that goes beyond simple air traffic management. What these notices really mean. The NOTAM (Notice to Air Missions) are designed to warn of risks or temporary restrictions, but their usual use is far from the current scenario, since they usually last a few days and are linked to specific, clearly identified maneuvers. Therefore, the combination of an extraordinary duration and the absence of explanations points more to a position of sustained activity more than a specific exercise. A priori, this implies that airspace control is being used as an active tool within a broader strategy. A key space on the regional board. counted the wall street journal A few hours ago, the affected areas extended from the Yellow Sea to the East China Sea, covering areas in front of South Korea and Japan and being located in strategic corridors for any military operation in the region. Although they are far from Taiwan (several hundred km), their location does not seem coincidental and fits with scenarios where the air route control would be decisive. The scale of the reserved area reinforces the idea that this is not a limited trial, but something with deeper operational implications. Signs in the midst of a tense context. The closure also coincides with a moment of high tension in the Indo-Pacific, with military movements in Japan, pressure about Taiwan and diplomatic activity relevant in parallel. Not only that. It also occurs after a striking pause on Chinese military flights near Taiwan, followed of its resumptionsuggesting a recalibration of activity. In this context, the measure can be interpreted as a way to send strategic messages without the need for explicit statements. Ambiguity as a strategy. In short, and although there are precedents for similar airspace reservations, they had never been so long nor so widewhich marks a clear difference compared to previous practices. If you like, this ambiguity also allows China to maintain operational flexibility, test scenarios and, ultimately, generate uncertainty among its rivals without publicly committing. The result is a signal that is difficult to interpret, one that, possibly or precisely because of this, multiply your impact strategic. Image | LG Images In Xataka | In silence, China is making giant strides in a race that until now it was not leading: space. In Xataka | The US opted for the quality of the F-35 rather than quantity. China opted for the opposite and it is already a problem

Taiwan produces 90% of the world’s advanced chips. Its natural gas reserves last exactly 12 days

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In global energy markets, alarm bells do not always ring loudly; Sometimes all you have to do is watch where the boats are sailing. While the West observes the already known Third Gulf War With a mixture of horror and remoteness, Asia is suffering the direct impact. The colossal Ras Laffan facility in Qatar—which processes about a fifth of global liquefied natural gas (LNG)— has suffered damage by 17% of its infrastructure after the Iranian attacks. 12 days. At the exact center of the geopolitical target is Taiwan. The island has a practical monopoly on the world’s most advanced chips, but its “silicon shield” hangs by an extremely fragile logistical thread: an energy supply chain whose legal security threshold requires a minimum of just 11 to 12 days of natural gas reserves. The fatal panorama in Asia. Asia is on the front line of this fuel crisis as it buys more than 80% of the crude oil that transits through the blocked Strait of Hormuz. The nations of the region have had to quickly dust off the survival manuals of the COVID-19 era. Philippines has become the first country in declaring a state of “national energy emergency”, warning of an imminent danger and turning to coal to reduce costs. In South Korea, the government has asked its citizens Take shorter showers, use public transportation, and avoid charging your phones at night. Sri Lanka declared on Wednesdays as a holiday to save fuel, and in Thailand, officials have received the order to take off their suits, use the stairs and telework. china from chill. However, the contrast with China it’s abysmal. While its neighbors panic, the Asian giant observes the chaos coldly. Five years ago, Xi Jinping ordered to secure the country’s “energy rice bowl.” Today, thanks to a massive accumulation of sanctioned crude oil (bought cheaply from Russia or Iran), the shielding of renewables and a vehicle park where electric cars are the majority, China has built an invisible Great Wall that isolates it from fossil volatility. A trade war against the clock. This hydrocarbon drought not only turns off the lights, but paralyzes the industry. According to Commonwealth Magazinethe petrochemical and plastics sector has been the first major victim. The giant Formosa Petrochemical has had to issue force majeure notices after running out of raw materials, and prices of key materials such as ABS (used in car parts) have soared by up to 50%. At a logistical level, a trade war has broken out ruthless battle between Europe and Asia to seize the few available LNG shipments. Spot prices in Asia have doubled, and ships originally sailing to Spain or France are diverting their course to the Pacific in the face of more lucrative offers. In this Darwinian scenario, South Asia is acting as the global “shock absorber”: price-sensitive countries, such as Pakistan or Bangladesh, cannot compete and are forced to destroy demand or paralyze industries, leaving gas available for the giants that can afford it. To mitigate the blow on their own streets, governments like Japan They plan to inject billions in subsidies, while Taiwan has committed to absorb 60% of the increase in crude oil prices. Taiwan’s “Achilles heel” and the check on chips. If there is a critical point in this crisis, It is the island of Taiwan. In 2025, Taiwan relied on imports to meet 95% of its energy needs, including more than 99% of its oil and natural gas demand. Before the war, it received more than 38% of its annual natural gas supply and approximately 70% of its crude oil from the Middle East. The structural problem is time. While nations like South Korea have the capacity to store gas for 52 days and Japan for three weeks, Taiwan is walking on the wire. As pointed out Bloombergis an almost non-existent room for maneuver for an island where electricity generation based on natural gas has expanded to almost 48%. An immediate buffer. To avoid collapse in the short term, the Taiwanese Ministry of Economy has acted quickly with a checkbook. Minister Kung Ming-hsin has confirmed that supply planning is already covered for March, April and May, and they have even secured half of their replacement agreements for the month of June. Away from the imminent blackout, the island’s reserves have managed to remain above the safety threshold of 12 days since the fighting broke out. However, this short-term patch does not turn off the alarms. The real danger lurks in the summer, when high temperatures historically trigger electricity demand. A prolonged blackout: global chaos. The semiconductor sector contributes around 20% of Taiwan’s GDP. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), which produces about 90% of the chips most advanced in the world (vital for AI and military technology), alone consumes approximately 9% of all electricity on the island. But gas is not the only missing input; Added to this is the disruption in the supply of secretive but vital raw materials such as bromine and helium (a third of which is processed in Qatar). The experts They warn that if the interruption of helium exceeds 14 days, the chip production lines will go into technical stoppage. With summer just around the corner and electricity demand about to skyrocket, the island operates at its limit. The pressure is so immense that the historically reluctant Taiwanese government is already openly debating the reactivation of nuclear energy, recognizing that the explosive growth in electricity demand linked to the development of Artificial Intelligence is changing all the rules of the energy game. The geopolitical board: opportunism and contradictions. Beijing has not been slow to intervene. Taking advantage of the panic, the Chinese government has thrown a poisoned lifeline. According to Chen Binhua, spokesperson for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, collected in South China Morning Postthe Asian giant offered the island a stable, abundant and cheap energy supply in exchange for accepting “peaceful reunification.” Taipei’s response was blunt: Vice Minister of Economy, Ho Chin-tsang, rejected the offer, calling it “cognitive … Read more

Four days (or more) of unlimited data is a huge price

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Nobody likes to be left without Internet, but much less when we are traveling. If you don’t want to use roaming or public WiFi, you can always buy a SIM card at the destination, although this can be a hassle and not cheap. The solution? A eSIM installed on your mobile and you forget about problems. You have a very good option with eSimFLAG: if we use the code ‘XATAKA’ we will get three days free contracting at least four days of unlimited data. eSimFLAG – 4 days of unlimited data The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Unlimited data in more than 170 different destinations This promo is quite interesting if we plan to travel soon, such as next Easter. The code that we indicated above is already active and will be until next April 17so we have plenty of time to use it. For example, if right now we contract seven days of unlimited data in Japan and use the code ‘XATAKA’, it will only cost us 15.60 euros (outside of the promo, 27.30 euros). So with all destinations. Why choose an eSIM instead of a conventional SIM? In line with what we told you above, the key is in comfort. It installs in just a few minutes on your mobile, without having to use the typical spike that comes in the boxes. In addition, you install it once and forget it, so if you travel again in the future and use eSimFLAG you will not have to install it again. Another important point is the peace of mind that an eSIM provides in this type of case. Since you are paying for unlimited data, You will not have any scare in the form of a kilometer bill as could happen if you use your company’s roaming. And, if you set it up at home before leaving, you’ll already have Internet once you get off the plane. eSimFLAG offers its service in more than 170 countries, so it is very useful. Having unlimited data, We can continue using WhatsApp or Google Maps at our destinationmaking the trip a much more comfortable and simple experience. And if you do it at a reduced price with this promo, all the better. Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | eSimFLAG In Xataka | eSIM in Spain: all operators, compatible devices, prices and conditions (2026) In Xataka | eSIM or virtual SIM: what it is, what advantages it has and what is its compatibility in Spain

“You would have had the same right to work 360 days as 539”

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There is a reality in the system unemployment protection in Spain that not many active employees know about and that directly affects their pocketbooks. The extra time you spend working within certain margins does not always translate into more days of contributions when it comes to apply for unemploymentand the “leftover” days of contributions are not saved for a future benefit. SEPE itself has clarified this explicitly on its official website. An example of the way in which this estimate is made is that someone who has worked 420 days ends up receiving exactly the same amount of unemployment benefits as someone who has worked 360 days. Not one more day. This is how a system works that does not grow proportionally, but in steps, and understanding it can make a real difference in your work decisions. How the section scale works. The contributory unemployment benefit is not calculated day by day based on contributions. Instead, the SEPE applies a scale of sections included in the article 269 of the General Law of Social Security. The mechanism is as follows: each range of contribution days corresponds to a fixed block of benefit days. The first legal minimum section to access unemployment starts at 360 days of contributions and extends up to 539 days. Whoever falls within that interval, regardless of whether they have 360, 420 or 539 accumulated days, receives exactly 120 days of benefits, that is, the right to four months of unemployment benefits. To make the jump to the next step and access 180 days (six months), it is necessary to have contributed at least 540 days. The section that “engulfs” 179 days of trading. The complete table published by the SEPE and supported by current regulations shows how the sections are distributed along the entire scale. In all cases, the principle is the same: within each section, it does not matter if you are on the minimum or maximum day. This means that, in the first tranche, a worker with 539 days of contributions receives the same benefit as one with 360. The difference between the two is 179 days of contributions which, for unemployment purposes, do not generate any additional rights. The system openly recognizes this logic and, according to the example provided on the official SEPE website, “when you credit a total of 420 days, the section that covers between 360 and 539 days of contributions is applied to you, so you are entitled to 120 days of benefits. You would have had the same right if you worked 360 days or the maximum of the section, in this case.” Quoted period Delivery time From 360 (minimum) to 539 days 120 days From 540 to 719 days 180 days From 720 to 899 days 240 days From 900 to 1,079 days 300 days From 1,080 to 1,259 days 360 days From 1,260 to 1,439 days 420 days From 1,440 to 1,619 days 480 days From 1,620 to 1,799 days 540 days From 1,800 to 1,979 days 600 days From 1980 to 2,159 days 660 days From 2,160 days 720 days (Maximum) The remaining days are not saved. One of the points that generates the most confusion among workers is what happens with the “excess” days of contributions within the section. The SEPE’s response is clear and does not allow for nuances: days that exceed the minimum established by the section being accessed are not accumulated or reserved for a future benefit. This means that, in the example of the worker with 420 days of contributions, the 60 days that exceed the minimum threshold of 360 simply disappear once the unemployment benefit is requested and consumed. As explains the SEPE on its own website: “The remaining days cannot be saved for another benefit.” The “step” rule and its practical implications. Understanding this mechanism allows workers to identify which section they are in and how many days are left before they make the jump to the next section. Contributing more days without reaching the threshold of the next step does not add anything in terms of benefit, so the additional effort is absorbed by the current section without any return in the form of more benefit time when unemployment is requested. In other words, if someone has 500 days of contributions and loses their job, they will be in the same bracket as someone with 360 days, but they will only have 40 days left to jump to the 540 step, which would give them the right to two more months of benefits. Know this logic of sectionsallows you to make more informed decisions about your employment situation and know what benefits correspond to you. In Xataka | Aid of 480 euros from SEPE for people over 52 years of age: how to request online the aid that you continue to receive even if you find a job Image | Community of Madrid, Unsplash (Spencer Davis)

If the oil apocalypse becomes a reality, Spain has known for years how long it can last: 92 days

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Faced with the logistical blockage of Hormuz that threatens to drown the global economy, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has decided to press the red button. The organization has proposed the largest release of oil reserves in its history: about 400 million barrels. To put it in context, this figure is more than double the 182 million barrels that were injected into the market in 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Spain, as a member of the IEA, will not be left out. How to collect Europe Pressthe vice president and minister for the Ecological Transition, Sara Aagesen, has confirmed our country’s support for this plan. If the proposal is approved unanimously, Spain will contribute to the market the equivalent of about 12 or 12.5 days of its national consumption. The Spanish bunker. All this movement leads us to the big question: how much margin does Spain really have if the situation becomes entrenched? Legally, there is a global obligation to maintain minimum security stocks equivalent to 92 days of sales or computable consumption. According to calculations of The CountryAdding all the capacities, the country has about 105 days of autonomy. This safety mattress works through a mixed system: The Corporation of Strategic Reserves of Petroleum Products (CORES) must maintain 42 of those dayswhile the remaining 50 days are maintained directly by the industry. Currently, CORES custody more than 5.4 million cubic meters of stocks. It’s not just crude oil. To be truly useful in a crisis, CORES reserves are composed by 54.4% diesel, 29.2% crude oil and 6.0% kerosene. stocks They are strategically distributed by Spanish geography. The Levante area accounts for 44.8% of the total, followed by the central area with 19.2% and the northern area with 17.7%. The objective of these reserves is not to replace normal long-term supply, but to inject fuel into the market to stop sudden price increases and buy vital time to reorganize logistics and trade routes. We can’t relax. Just because we have a margin of three months does not mean that we are invulnerable. Spain is a country with almost absolute foreign energy dependence. In 2024, national oil consumption was 1,322,492 barrels per daybut own production barely reached 76,947 barrels. Our net crude oil imports represent more than 100% of our consumption. Furthermore, our economy she is addicted to black goldespecially to move. The transport sector is responsible for 71.1% of the final consumption of petroleum products in Spain, with diesel/diesel being the undisputed king, accounting for 61.1% of that consumption. The Iranian asphyxiation has a crack. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have activated a logistical “antidote” capable of rescuing up to 7 million barrels per day. The main asset is East-West Pipelinean oil pipeline connecting eastern Saudi fields with the Red Sea port of Yanbu. The machinery is already in motion, there is already an “army” of at least 25 supertankers sailing towards Yanbu to load this crude oil. Adding to this effort is the United Arab Emirates pipeline, which provides up to 2 million additional barrels directly to the Gulf of Oman. The refinery factor. But the macroeconomy hits a wall, Saudi oil pipelines transport crude oil, not diesel. As analyst Arne Lohmann Rasmussen warns, the real danger is the deficit of distillates. If Europe does not have enough refineries to process that oil in time, the desert pipelines are of no use. This is where the CORES bunker win the game. The 54.4% of already refined diesel that Spain stores is the only thing that guarantees that the trucks do not stop. In short, the Saudi “antidote” prevents total collapse, but our reserves buy the 100 days of peace necessary to avoid seeing the pump in the clouds. If diplomacy fails, not even the bunker will avoid the historic scare. Image | Volgotanker Xataka | The price of oil has plummeted overnight. The one at the gasoline pumps will remain the same

It’s been going up for days and we already have queues at the low cost

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The conflict between the US, Israel and Iranand its consequent tension in the rest of the Middle East countries has been generating uncertainty in the energy markets for weeks. The barrel of Brent has risen nearly 30% so far this year, 8% this Monday alone. Goldman Sachs has revised its forecasts upwards and prices at Spanish gas stations have already chained five consecutive increases. In Spain, we are preparing for a gradual rise in price of gasoline. So much so that already long queues have been detected at service stations in some parts of the country. One of the most striking examples has been this Costco in Sevillewhere his gas station is flooded by a flood of cars. A scenario that recalls, with important nuances, what happened in 2022 with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. what’s happening. At the end of 2025, the price of fuel was giving some relief to drivers throughout Spain. Just like they count From El Motor, 95 gasoline had fallen by about 3.5% and diesel by more than 5% since November. However, this trend has ended in the most devastating and undesirable way possible: with another war. Image: Dieselogasolina.com (data extracted from the Ministry of Ecological Transition) According to the data from the Dieselogasolina web portal extracted from the Ministry of Ecological Transitionthe average price of 95 gasoline in the Peninsula and the Balearic Islands stands at €1,557/l this March 4, compared to €1,531/l the previous day. Diesel has gone from €1,492/l to €1,539/l in the same day. Five consecutive increases that coincide with the escalation of war in the Middle East. A bottleneck. As you’ve probably heard or read, most of the problem has to do with the Strait of Hormuz, which has stopped its traffic due to this escalation of war and which is where approximately 20% of the world’s production of crude oil and liquefied natural gas transits. The barrel of Brent reached close to $80 in the first days of March, after accumulating nearly a 30% increase so far this year, as share The Vanguard. Europe does not import Iranian crude oil directly (90% of Iran’s exports go to China), but the blockade of the Strait affects the global reference price, and that price does reach European suppliers. What the experts say. Goldman Sachs this week revised upwards its forecast for the second quarter of 2026, in which it expects Brent stands on average at 76 dollars per barrelten dollars more than his previous estimate. The bank warns that risks are “significantly skewed to the upside,” as share the WSJ. And the bank points out that if exports through the Strait of Hormuz remained restricted for five more weeks, Brent could reach $100. Àngel Hermosilla, general secretary of the Col·legi d’Economistes de Catalunya, points out told La Vanguardia that the energy market is “very volatile and very sensitive to any political action,” and that the impact could be felt at the pumps in a matter of days. And so it is, for now. On the other hand, the engine shared the words of Nacho Rabadán, spokesperson for the Spanish Confederation of Service Stations (CEEES), who explained to Trece that the suppliers have already communicated to the stations “an extra cost of between 10 and 12 cents per liter for the delivery tanks this Wednesday.” That is the purchase price for the gas stations, not the final price to the driver, but it anticipates that the increases will end up being passed on. Rabadán remembers what happened in 2022 with the start of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, at which time some stations held prices when the liter was around 1.80 euros, assuming losses, but then replacing the product “cost them up to 3,000 euros more per tanker.” On the other hand, the Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU) esteem that, if Brent stabilizes around $80, a rise of between 8 and 10 cents per liter could be expected in the coming weeks. Beyond the deposit. Eduard Conti, specialist in personal finances, counted La Vanguardia that when fuel prices rise, this affects all economic sectors, including food transportation, airline tickets, industrial manufacturing, etc. Conti points out that in Spain, inflation is currently around 2.3%, but the CPI has accumulated a 23% rise in the last five years. For his part, Philip Lane, member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank, recognized in an interview with the Financial Times that “the magnitude of the impact and the implications for inflation in the medium term depend on the extent and duration of the conflict.” It hasn’t really gone up yet. Prices, although on the rise, are still far from the historical highs recorded by the Ministry of Ecological Transition: 95 gasoline reached €2,152/L and diesel reached €2,106/L. “I hope that we do not reach two euros, although the truth is that the oil market has been very strange for years. The only thing I can say is that for us, the fact that it is only the fifty-third highest increase in history is already good news,” counted Rabadan. Cover image | engin akyurt and Juan Carlos Toro In Xataka | The US has launched its most ambitious weapon against Iran in the last decade: a missile that does not need fighters or warships

If the war with Iran lasts more than five days he will not win it

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In major conflicts, strategists used to say that wars are not won only on the front, but in the factories. During World War II, for example, Washington produced more planes in a month than some countries in an entire year, and that industrial difference ended up tipping the balance. Today, that same logic re-emerges in a different and much more accelerated form, one where the speed of production can be as decisive as precision on the battlefield. A war that is measured in warehouses. The war between Iran, Israel and the United States It has stopped revolving around the conquest of positions or classic air superiority and has transformed into something much colder and more arithmetic: a race to see who runs out of ammunition first. An analysis that, in fact, was already circulating before Washington’s initial attacks and that after the first day it became clear. Tehran would not try to compete in air dominance or sustained strategic bombing, but in something simpler and potentially devastating: launching enough missiles and drones to force its enemies to spend more than they can replenish. The question, therefore, is no longer who hits the hardest, but who can sustain the rhythm the longest. The prior notice. As we said, even before this new escalation, senior US officials they had warned that previous conflicts in the region had dangerously eroded interceptor reserves. Systems like THAAD, Patriot either Standard Missile had already been used intensively in previous episodesand the data pointed to significant percentages of the annual stock consumed in a few days of combat. Behind this idea there is a reality: manufacturing these interceptors is neither fast nor cheap, and the industry has been working for years. showing difficulties to increase the rate of production. The problem was not hypothetical: the depth of magazines (the so-called magazine Depth) was already a cause for concern before this open phase of the conflict began. The economic equation: millions against missiles. In other words, Iran has turned cost into your main weapon strategic. In the first few moments alone, it launched hundreds of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and more than half a thousand drones against targets in Israel and the Gulf. Although the interception rate in places like the United Arab Emirates has been extraordinary, around 92%the bill is brutal. While Tehran invests hundreds of millions in its salvos, defenders they spend billions in interceptors that cost between four and five million dollars per unit, often firing two or more for each incoming threat. In the case of drones, the contrast is even sharper: platforms that cost tens of thousands force the use of expensive interceptors. in hundreds of thousands or more. For every dollar Iran spends, its adversaries may be shelling out between five and ten, and in some segments the ratio skyrockets. up to twenty to one. Submunitions and saturation. Far from reducing the pace, Iran has begun to use some of its most advanced missiles, capable of releasing submunitions during reentry and expanding the impact area, further complicating interception. Videos broadcast In networks they show launchers firing nine or eleven interceptors against a single missile, sometimes without success. The daily figures are eloquent: between 200 and 220 Iranian missiles launched per day against at 700 or even 1,000 interceptors fired by the coalition. Despite massive bombing raids on Iranian bases, mobile launchers and air defenses, launch capacity remains high, with hundreds of missiles and drones still available. The war is becoming a duel of logistical resistance rather than a contest of surgical precision. Four or five days: the critical window. At this point, various analysts agree that, at the current rate, interceptor reserves could be depleted in a matter of minutes. four or five days. This estimate does not arise from speculation, but from a simple intersection between Iranian launch cadence and coalition defensive consumption. Each interceptor fired is one that cannot be replaced immediately; Its manufacture can take months or years. If the conflict extends beyond From that window, the balance could quickly tip, not because Iran manages to destroy all strategic objectives, but because the shield that protects them begins to empty. The American problem. Hence, the disturbing idea for the United States is that if the war with Iran lasts more than those five days, its chances of winning would begin to descend. Not necessarily in immediate territorial or political terms, but rather in the more tangible realm of available ammunition. Every Patriot, THAAD, or naval interceptor fired in the Gulf is a resource that would also be crucial in a hypothetical conflict with China or North Korea. If the campaign becomes a protracted exchange, technological superiority may be neutralized by simple cost arithmetic and production time. Iran appears to have chosen a economic war in the form of missilesand contrary to what it may seem, that choice gives it a structural advantage: it can afford to waste cheaper projectiles for longer than its adversaries can afford to fire theirs. Numbers war. The question that summarizes this phase of the conflict is brutally simple: What will run out first, the Iranian launchers or the coalition interceptors? So far, neither intensive bombing nor the elimination of key targets have reduced decisively Tehran’s launch capacity. Meanwhile, defensive warehouses are being emptied at an accelerated rate. From that prism, the war is no longer decided only in the sky over Tehran or Tel Aviv, but on assembly lines and in the industrial capacity to replace what was fired. Image | Glenn Fawcett, Gieling, Rob In Xataka | The US used one of the oldest practices of war to bomb Iran: reverse engineering with an unprecedented weapon In Xataka | To sink a US aircraft carrier required a weapon that Iran did not have. The arrival of China has just changed everything

Germany wanted to see if working four days a week was efficient. 70% of companies think so

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The four-day work week started in Germany as an experiment to search for the maximum productivity of companies without having an impact on an exhausted workforce and without the ability to reconcile family life. Two years after the start of this test, the data confirms that for the companies that participated it was not a simple test, but rather it has materialized in a change in the way of working that many companies have decided to consolidate. Now the monitoring report prepared by researchers from the University of Münster together with the consulting firm 4 Day Week Global. It analyzes what happened after the pilot test that began in 2024 and what subsequent effects it has had. The main conclusion is that around 70% of the companies that participated in that test continue to apply some model of reduction of working hours a year later. A known formula and a varied sample. The original four-day week project in Germany was built around to the 100-80-100 model: 100% of salary, 80% of time and 100% of productivity. This model of reduction of working hours is the same one that was carried out in Valencia in 2023, Portugal either United Kingdom. In the initial phase, 45 companies from different sectors participated, dedicated to manufacturing, insurance, technology, media, commerce or education. Furthermore, to be as representative as possible of the German industrial fabric, companies of different sizes were chosen: from micro-businesses with 1 to 9 employees, to large companies with more than 250 employees. The first data already gave clues. Researchers have been collecting data from participating companies and their employees since day one. A few months after starting the test, the companies were delighted with the results, to the point that in preliminary results73% said they would not return to the traditional five-day week. The new report provides the perspective that time gives and whether that initial impetus has been consolidated. Two years after the start of the test, seven out of ten companies that participated in the test not only maintain the four-day workdaybut they have integrated it into their normal operation. More than four days: flexible reduction of working time. One of the most interesting findings from the monitoring is that the four-day workweek model has evolved and every organization has implemented it adapting it to your needs. Not all companies have opted for a Monday to Thursday work week. Around 22% of the participating companies have adapted the initial scheme towards more flexible formulas: reduction of annual hours, alternate weeks or internal adjustments according to workload. The report itself speaks less of a “four-day week” and more of “reduction of work time“. The label matters less than the redesign of the work day and the elimination of superfluous tasks, fewer unnecessary meetings and greater autonomy of the teams. No impact on profits or productivity. In business terms, the German test has been a success since, despite having maintained 80% of the initial day, there have been no drops in either the level of profits or in productivity or slightly improved with respect to the starting point. That is, they have managed to do the same thing in less time. What it did have a strong impact on was the well-being of employees, where 90% reported improvements in the balance between personal and professional life. As a result of this improvement, employees reported feeling less stress and greater commitment to the company. 38% of companies indicated that sick leave and absenteeism of their employees had been reduced, while 56% claimed to have detected no changes. Lights and shadows in the reduction of working hours. Progress was also observed in job satisfaction and in the perception of the company as an attractive place to work. The study indicates that 87% of companies detected improvements in talent retention. For their part, 75% claimed that their companies now had a greater capacity to attract talent in selection processes. This, in a scenario of labor shortagerepresents a competitive advantage. However, as happened in other tests of the four-day work week, not all companies have followed the same evolution. About 30% stopped applying the initial scheme or returned to the traditional five-day week. The main reasons were operational, difficulties in coordinate with your clientswork peaks that are difficult to absorb or inflexible internal structures. In Xataka | Employees in Spain clear up doubts: working fewer days is better than working fewer hours, according to a survey In Xataka | Spain already has its first municipality with a four-day work week. It is not in Madrid or Barcelona, ​​but in a corner of Cádiz Image | Unsplash (Gonzalo Leon Jasin, Josue Isai Ramos Figueroa)

We have been hearing talk for days about the “storm of the century”, this is what AEMET says about it (and about the trend of fattening meteorological headlines)

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It’s curious. A “storm of the century” concept has been around for days and, in the last hoursa date has even been set: February 25 would be the moment in which the storm would reach the country’s coasts. And I say that all this is curious because, in short, it is inaccurate, a ‘journalistic hook’: a lie after all. This 25th changes time, yes. But what the models describe is more like an Atlantic front (with rain in Galicia and some instability in the Canary Islands), than a truly exceptional episode. But let’s take a look because there are more things to take into account. What do the models say? That is the big question: AEMET and the rest of the specialized media draw a very different scenario. Galicia stands out with relevant accumulations (we are talking about 20–40 l/m² in the area from A Coruña to Pontevedra), but little else: in the rest of the areas where it rains, the quantities are much more discreet. In most places, almost testimonials. On the other hand, it is also possible that it will rain in the Canary Islands, but (unlike the peninsula) it will be a DANA in Morocco. And then? So, nothing. We won’t have big announcements; neither by winds, nor by rain, nor by coastal problems. AEMET is worriedYeah; but due to the persistent rainfall that may accumulate in the northwest. For the rest, if there is any news on the table, it is that a phenomenon that has been somewhat missing is going to return: the haze. There will be no “storm of the century” and that, of course, is excellent news. After all, we come from a winter that has been nothing more than a huge chain of storms. This has led to a whole process of social desensitization that is forcing popular meteorological information to raise the threshold until it borders on (or settles into) sensationalism. And it’s not the best time to do it: as AEMET itself points outit is possible that we are approaching a new era of precipitation in Spain. Climate change is increasing precipitation extremes globally. It doesn’t seem like a good idea to play ‘Peter and the Wolf’ just when things are starting to change. Image | Torsten Dederichs In Xataka | We already know exactly how much climate change was to blame for DANA in Valencia (and the figures are devastating)

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