history

We have been asking who is the oldest person in history to be recorded on video for years. And maybe it’s a Pope

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The history of art is the history of its protagonists. And that includes both its great creators, so let’s talk about painting, sculpture, poetry or music, as well as their patron, muses and models. Da Vinci It has been fascinating for years to historians, but it is difficult to address their biography without explaining at least past who was Lisa Gherardinithe woman who probably inspired the celebrated ‘Mona Lisa’. The same goes for the enigmatic Elisa to which Ludwig Van Beethoven dedicated her catchy Bagatela Woo 59 either Margherita LutiRafel’s great muse. With photography and cinema something similar happens. And although their origins are more recent than those of painting, music or sculpture, historians who take care of their study face questions equally complex and fascinating: who was The first person to go out in a photo? And the oldest? Who is it The oldest voice captured in a support that allows us to reproduce it? And if we talk about cinema, Who is the oldest person filmed? Did technology and art arrive in time to capture in a recording the gestures and movements of someone born in the eighteenth century, which saw the French revolution wave War of Independence from the US? And if so, can we see it? The “vestustos” of the image and sound The question is fascinating because photography has allowed us to see static images of people born in the 18th. This is the case of Conrad Heyera veteran of the US War of Independence that was born in 1749. He was portrayed in 1852, with more than 100 years, thanks to the technique of daguerreotype, so There are those who believe which is the most ancient person (not the first photo, eye) photographed. The title nevertheless has some “but” than another. Heyer’s image is fascinating, but Other experts think that if we talk about vetustez the merit of being the oldest person portrayed with a camera is John Adamsa worker of Worcester born a few years before Heyer, in 1745. Other sources speak of a slave named Caesar, protagonist of a 1851 daguerreotype conserved in New York Historical Society and who in theory was born in New York in 1737. If what we are talking about is about the voice, the story is equally fascinating. We keep A recording 10 seconds from 1860 Taken with a spell and that is attributed to Édouard-Léon Scott by Martinvillea French inventor born in the Paris of 1817. Again if what we are talking about is of antiquity, perhaps The most ancient voice that we keep engraved is nevertheless Helmulth von Moltkea Prussian marshal who lent several recordings at the end of the 1880s. The surprising thing is when Moltke was born: in 1800. And at the dawn of the cinema? Who is the oldest person than we keep a moving recording? The answer is complicated again, although equally surprising. At the end of the 1870s EADWEARD VERYBRIDGE elaborated in A protopeic in which you can see the gallop of a horse with your rider. Your identity? Some sources They point to C. Marvinborn In 1839. If it scratches in the origins of the celluloid it is, however, to meet even older “actors”. And also some other surprise. For example, It is usual that when talking about the oldest person ever filmed, the looks are directed to one of the great personalities of the nineteenth century, the Pope Leo XIIIwho also holds the merit of having been The first Pope filmed. The movie, by William Kennedy Dickson For the Biograph company, was shot in 1898 (there is who attributes it to Vittorio Calcina and the date in 1896) and although it is fascinating and iconic, any Oscar will hardly win. After all, he shows the Supreme Pontiff in more or less everyday situations: on a car or sitting in a chair in the Vatican gardens while making a blessing in the camera. The really surprising is not however What does Leo XIII doif it is the first pontiff recorded in a movie or who, when and where he took those images for history, but the year of birth of the Pope: Leo XIII He was born in the Lacio region with the name of Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci in March 1810. That is, for ten years he was not a character of the XVIII. Does that become the oldest person ever filmed? Depends. For some The answer is yes. For others that merit is not so clear. In the articles that address the subject, there is talk of a Rebecca Clark allegedly born in 1804 or Mammy Louof the same year. However, there would be an older candidate, a figure that once aroused much less interest than Leo XIII and to which, therefore, it is also more difficult to follow the historical clue: dismiss. That your name does not tell you anything is understandable. Despina was an old woman from the Balkans who among other tasks dedicated the hours to spinning wool in the company of her daughters. In 1905 it ended up portrayed in A brief movie that lasts a few seconds. The important thing is its date of birth: it is said that Despina was then 114, which would have been born at the end of the 18th century, In 1791. How did an old woman from Avdella end, then part of the Ottoman Empire, recorded spinning wool for the subsequent and turned into a key figure in the history of cinema? Simple: because it was the grandmother of Ianachia and Milton ManakiBalkan cinema pioneers and film authors ‘The weavers’. We already said it at the beginning: the history of art is the history of its creators … and of their circumstantial protagonistsamong which there are farmers, war veterans, shoemakers, centennial spinners and even a 19th -century Pope. Images | Wikipedia 1 and 2 In Xataka | Who was the oldest person ever photographed?

The 16E iPhone looked like a stumble. In the end it has been decisive for Apple to achieve an unpublished milestone in its history

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Apple has been in the smartphones market for almost two decades, but I had never managed to lead global sales in a first quarter. That has just changed. Between January and March 2025, the Cupertino company has been at the top of the world ranking, ahead of Samsung and with Xiaomi completing the podium. Counterpoint Research has been in charge of putting figures and context to the new Apple milestone. The keys? An unusual launch calendar for the company, a solid growth in emerging markets and a good global behavior just before the earthquake of the tariff war driven by the United States. At the top of the podium. Apple led global smartphones sales in the first quarter of 2025 with a 19% market share. In addition, it achieved a 4% increase in units sold compared to the same period of the previous year. In second position Samsung appears, which obtained 18% and experienced a 5% drop in units sold. Xiaomi, meanwhile, maintains third place with sustained growth. Its evolution has been progressive: in the first quarter of 2023 it had 12% of the market, in 2024 it rose to 13% and in this start of 2025 it has reached 14%. Although its position has not changed, the constant improvement in quota reflects a difficult to ignore rise. An unusual launch. A key part to understand Apple’s leadership This quarter is at the launch of the iPhone 16E. The device was announced on February 19 and reached stores just a week later. Although it is not usual to see new iPhone in this section of the year, there are precedents: The iPhone is original It was launched in March 2016, And the third generation also did it in March, but 2022. An iPhone discussed, but sold without brake. Although the 16E iPhone has not fully convinced those who expected a more competitive proposal in quality-pricethe truth is that its market performance has been remarkable. It is a model with a more accessible approach, but with a hardware reinforced to be compatible with Apple Intelligence. Despite doubts, its launch has had a strong reception. A trimester of contrasts. The global market grew by 3% year -on -year in this first quarter, promoted by China, where “public subsidies reactivated demand, and for recovery in emerging markets such as India, Southeast Asia or Latin America. On the other hand, markets such as Europe, the United States or even China showed signs of exhaustion, according to the analysis firm. A market that does not stop. Samsung started the year with a slower pace due to the delay of Galaxy S25but sales rebounded after its launch and that of the new A. Xiaomi series, meanwhile, reinforced its presence in both new markets and in its country of origin. Vivo became the brand that grew most among the top five, while Oppo maintained fifth place thanks to good results in India, Latin America and Europe. Other manufacturers also gained ground, although they were out of the top five. Huawei was the largest seller in China during the quarter. Honor and Motorola also grew strongly in several international markets, intensifying competition in segments where great global brands predominated. Tension on the horizon. Although the quarter leaves positive figures, the immediate future is not clear. The threat of new tariffs, driven from the United States, has forced brands such as Apple to move file quickly. The company came to charter flights from India to mitigate possible problems. At the moment, exemptions have appeared on stage, but uncertainty persists. Images | Thai Nguyen | Medhat Dawoud | Ricardo Aguilar (Xataka) In Xataka | If the question is “who will win if prices for tariffs up” the answer is: “Second -hand mobiles”

Balatro has been the last great breath of fresh air in the independent video game industry. This is its history

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At the end of 2021 a developer with alias “LOCTHUNK“He dedicated his three weeks of vacation to create a multiplayer card game that was based on the poker but went further and created as a Roguelike video game. He called it Balatroand after a year and a half of development he published a first beta version in Steam. Its creation began to call the attention of some increasingly important youtubers, and the snowball was getting bigger and bigger. So much so that in its final launch, on February 20, 2024, Balatro sold 50,000 copies in two hours. At the end of the localshunk day he had sold 119,000 copies of his game in Steam, with total revenues of more than one million dollars. Balatro’s popularity is still exceptional, although its launch was not exempt from problems. The European ages rating system, Pegi, described it as a game not suitable for children under 18. LOCTHUNK He complained of the unfair of that qualification: your card game It does not include bets Or transactions with real money, and finally got the qualification to be Pegi 12, that is, suitable for children aged 12 years old. Since its definitive launch, Balatro has made history. He was nominated for Goty 2024 (Game of the Year), in addition to winning several awards in the independent video game category. By January 2025 I already exceeded the Five million units soldFor example. The game, which was initially available on PC and consoles, ended up appearing for iOS and Android in September 2024. And in all that time, something surprising: Locothunk has managed to maintain its anonymitysomething he confessed had been a success for him. Maybe one day we know its true identity, but what is clear is that Balatro has ended up being a phenomenon within an industry little accustomed to the success of small independent productions. In Xataka | The most addictive game of recent times is ‘Balatro’: construction of decks disguised as a poker and with millionaire sales

North Africa was outside the bronze age map. A metallic waste has been put in the center of history

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If we look at the map From the Bronze Age, we observe that much of Europe and the Middle East are the protagonists of the period of the Ancient bronze. For a long time it was estimated that Egypt was the only focus of Metallurgical development In Africa during the Bronze age. For years, we thought that the rest of the territories were empty and it was with the Phoenicians when settlements and metal development began. We were wrong. And young archaeologists have shown that Morocco was more connected to other Mediterranean regions of what we thought. And the Kack Kouch settlement is the test. The Phoenicians. The Maghreb was an absent zone in the debates about late prehistory in the Mediterranean region. It was known that he received some influences from the European bronze, but they were pieces, because they did not produce their own metallurgy until the colonization of the Phoenicians. Morocco arrived around 800 AC, founding colonies such as Lixusbut it turns out that there were already stable settlements on the Mediterranean coasts of Africa. In North Africa, the representation is Egypt … and it ended Kach Kouch location Kach Kouch. In 1988, a team formed by Moroccan and Spanish researchers discovered the settlement of Kach Kouch. It was an important finding, since the survey made in 1992 revealed that, at some point between the VIII or VI ac centuries, there had erected a half -hectare camp with cabins built with mud. It was probably an agricultural people and the researchers said that, probably, Kach Kouch had been founded by Phoenician sailors to control access routes to the Mediterranean from the Lau River. Why the Phoenicians? Because the remains found belonged to amphorae of this culture that would have served to transport wine, oil or wheat. Frozen. After the 1992 excavation, the archaeological site had not been analyzed again, until now. He Kach Kouch Archaeological Projectled by researchers from the National Institute of Archeology of Morocco, set out to reach the bottom of the settlement. Literally. The SE development In two phases – in 2021 and 2022 – and, although the archaeological interest was present in both, one of the objectives was that the students of the institute be formed in archaeological methodology. What they found was far beyond what would be expected of training practices: Kach Kouch was not a Phoenician settlement, but had centuries there. Through drones, differential GPS, 3D models and radiocarbon dating, the team of researchers discovered that three phases of occupation had been given in the settlement. Occupation phases | Image of The Conversation, H. Benattia Ancestral occupation. These occupation phases were between 2200 AC and 600 BC and the researchers They have isolated The three phases due to the remains they found. First phase: Between 2200 and 2000 AC the remains are scarce, such as ceramic fragments without decorating, a flint lasc and bovine bones. It could have been a sporadic occupation, but existing. Second phase: Between 1,300 or 900 AC the occupation would have already been stable with circular housing and warehouses, evidencing a sedentary society. Kach Kouch would be agricultural, mainly, due to the silos and grinding stones found. For the remains, it is estimated that they cultivated barley and wheat that complemented with the breeding of sheep, goats and cows. Third phase: Between 800 and 600 AC here and the Phoenicians have played a role. This external cultural influence brought elements such as ceramics to lathe and iron tools, which were mixed with local architecture and stone buildings. From left to right: plant remains, carved bones, flint lacquers The metal. Therefore, the new discovery indicates that, centuries before the arrival of the Phoenicians, Kach Koach was already a stable settlement. But there is a key piece that reveals that the first bronze object found in the region could have arrived through the broader exchange networks of the Mediterranean: among the important recent discoveries, a bronze fragment dated between 1110 and 920 ac This is the oldest bronze evidence in the Maghreb area and, although the phrase is very manida, it is something that changes everything in the archeology of North Africa because the fragment is a waste of the function in a mold, but it is the oldest bronze object known in North Africa if we do not have Egypt into account. In the image on the right, we see a rest of an amphora. On the right, objects A a are grinding tools. E a g are the metal remains so relevant The Phoenician influence. Hanza Benattia is one of the authors of the study, as well as the director of the Kach Kouch archaeological project and, as explained in The conversationevidently the Phoenicians played a role in this story. During the VIII and VII AC centuries, the inhabitants of the settlement had the same material, architectural and economic culture they had during the previous phase, but contact with the Phoenicians introduced new cultural practices. “For example, circular housing coexisted with other squares made of stone and framework of wood and mud, combining phenistic and local techniques,” says Benattia. In addition, he points out that products such as vine and olive tree began to be cultivated, and that was when they began to use ceramics made around and the use of iron objects. This is the first thing that was found in 1992 and for what was considered that the settlement was Phoenician. However, the archaeologist points out that, towards 600 BC, the settlement was abandoned. There is no evidence of violence, so social or economic changes would have pushed the inhabitants to other more prosperous close settlements. To look for. It is curious how a simple waste from a material that should not be there changes the historical perception not only of a specific place, but of a region. As we said, the Magreb was excluded from the conversation about the late prehistory of the Mediterranean, but as Benattia points out, this discovery “not only … Read more

Openai lifts the greatest financing round in history. It is a demonstration of the blind faith that the world has in AI

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Yesterday Openai gave colossal news. With the title “New financing to develop the AGI” announced that it has completed a new round of financing. Not only new: it is the largest in history for any private company. The figures here are more dizzy than ever, and they talk to us again of extraordinary expectations. We keep waiting for everything from AI, and OpenAi is taking advantage of it very well. Historical Financing Round. Never in history a private company had raised a similar financing round. Openai has raised 40,000 million dollars, an absolutely colossal figure. In October 2024 they already built 6,600 million dollarswho joined the “multimillionaire investment“Microsoft made in January 2023, and which is estimated was 10,000 million dollars. The Redmond company already He had invested 1,000 million dollars in 2019 and other 2,000 million In 2021. But they have to become ‘for-profit’. OpenAI will receive 10,000 million dollars immediately. Of these, 7,500 million dollars will come from SoftBank, while the other 2.5 billion will arrive from an “investor union.” The remaining 30,000 million will arrive at the end of the year, they indicate In CNBCbut only if the company manages to do the Transition to a company ‘For-Profit’that is, a company with profit. If they fail they will lose a quarter of the investment round. Of the total round, about 18,000 million dollars will be dedicated To the Stargate project. They are worth as much as Coca-Cola. The financing round causes the “post-money” assessment (after the round) of OpenAI to rise to 300,000 million dollars. It is already as much as Coca-ColaNovo Nordisk, Chevron or LVMH and more than Asml Samsung or Nestlé. Only Spacex (350,000 million dollars) is worth more in the private companies sector, and with this OpenAi round it is put to the Tiktok level According to CB Insights. 500 million in love with chatgpt. In the Openai announcement he indicated how they currently have 500 million weekly chatgpt users, a really remarkable figure that makes it clear that the growth of users continues to be produced at a remarkable pace: a month ago the figure was 400 million users. The Ghibli phenomenon shows. The chatgpt phenomenon made Openai take only two months to reach 100 million users (Instagram took 26). Yesterday Sam Altman indicated how in the last five days they had grown up in one million users, but after The phenomenon of the Studio Ghibli style images They grew up in a million users … in just an hour. But AI still does not be profitable. The financing round responds to that almost blind bet in the potential of the AI, but the current reality is clear: this technology is not profitable. The companies are burning money as if there were no tomorrow To develop it, but its training and operational cost is huge. Openai herself estimates that It will not be profitable until 2029and until then it will continue to lose more and more money without stopping. In Openai, yes, they expect income They triple In 2025 to 12.7 billion dollars, but they will continue to lose money. Gasoline for the AGI? Openai’s ultimate goal is to develop a General Artificial Intelligence (AGI) that overcomes human intelligence in all areas. The problem is that it is not clear that neither they nor anyone succeeded, but precisely that is about this bet: that it will be OpenAi to achieve it. To do so, the impact at the social and economic level is potentially the greatest in the history of humanity, but once again, we insist: here everything is unknowns, and the AGI could take years or decades to arrive … if it arrives one day. SoftBank, Openai’s new girlfriend. The other remarkable element of this investment round is the final turning point that occurs in the OpenAI alliances structure. Since 2019 his great ally was Microsoft, but That non-dilio was seen the seams months ago. The relationship between both companies is now much weaker, and each one It takes time preparing a “cordial farewell”. Microsoft has participated in this round, they claim in CNBC, but has done it with a totally secondary role. SoftBank, meanwhile, becomes the great OpenAi patron and trusts a good part of its future to the success of Altman’s company. Image | Nibor With Midjourney In Xataka | Openai will abandon altruism. Your new profit will completely change your financial reality and that of your investors

Thus was born Changan, the company that manufactured the first Chinese car in history

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Münich, March 2025. The departure pistol for the arrival of Changan to Europe. This Chinese automobile group confirmed the arrival of Deepal, one of its brands with a clear premium approach to Europe. He did it with him Deepal S07an electric Berlina that bets on a great technological load. 15.6 -inch central touch screen, adaptive cruise control with lane centered (which is equivalent to a level 2 of autonomy) and good performance with an electric motor of 216 hp and a 79.97 kWh capacity battery. The presentation demonstrates how far Changan has arrived. The company is the Chinese manufacturer by sales volume and its journey in Europe will begin in the main markets (Norway, Netherlands or Germany, among others) before their arrival in Spain, which is expected for 2026. But Changan Not only one more company in the Chinese car market. Changan’s story goes back, even, until the nineteenth century and this is one of the reasons that led him to produce the Changjiang Type 46, the first Chinese car in history. It all starts in the nineteenth century To understand what Changan is for China you have to go back. Far back. Between 1636 and 1912 the Qing dynasty ruled the country. Obviously, in almost three centuries of history of a country can happen. But what happened in the second half of the nineteenth century in China is that the region was immersed in all types of war conflicts. Finished in 1842 the First opium war In which the Chinese Empire had tried to snatch the drug trafficking of this powerful opioid, various revolts were happening until, in 1956, the Second Opium War began. A contest that united to the United Kingdom and France against China and that ended with the Imperial Palace burned and China capitulating. In that context, a little later from the end of this Second War, Changan would be born. The technology company was in charge of 1962 to supply military material to the Chinese Empire while it remained in front of the country. The company began working under the name of Shanghai Foreign Gun Bureau (Arsenal of Foreign Weapons of Shanghai) and in 1865 it was already the main arsenal of the country when it moved to Nanjing. The continuous instability of the zone caused the growth of the company. Between 1894 and 1895 there was the First Sin-Japanese War. With her the military media were reinforced and although Japan defeated China, in 1899 it was estimated that 1,700 people worked for the arsenal that was ultimately the origin of Changan. The company ended up surviving the fall of the Qing dynasty and with the Second Sino-Japanese war, Arsenal was transferred from Nanjing to Chongqing for fear that after the fall of Shanghai the weapons could fall into the hands of the Japanese. That company, which had changed its name again to adopt that of The 21st Arsenal, also remained standing with the Foundation of the People’s Republic of China by Mao Zedong. In fact, this was renamed The State-Owned Factory 456. That is, it was reflected in the name that the company was owned by the Chinese state. That is when the company expands its production and a subsidiary called Chongqing Changan Automobile Company. That subsidiary is responsible for carrying out the Changjiang Type 46. Considered the first Chinese production car, it leaves the doors of the factory on April 5, 1958 and remained unalterable until 1959. The car was evidently a military vehicle. It was, in fact, a copy of the Jeep Willysthe classic American military vehicle that has remained in the collective imaginary after World War II. The original model was devised by Willys-Overland and quickly demonstrated its qualities in the field with its permanent 4×4 traction and because its hardness and agility. Taking only the essentials, the car weighed just over a ton and passed over any land. In the Chinese case, production was poor At first (only 36 units in the first year) as a result of a country that dragged an important technological development. But the production remained stable until 1963 and, little by little, more than 1.1000 units came out of the assembly lines. He Changjiang Type 46 He had the capacity to transfer six people, with a 2.2 -liter four -cylinder engine. Its weight was 1,150 kg and its consumption was not very high for the time, with about 13.7 l/100 km. Its maximum speed was 115 km/h. Although the production started hesitantly, little by little the car was making a hole to the point that in 1963 the Chongqing facilities are transferred to Peking by order of the Chinese state. The transfer forced the production to stop as it was decided to disassemble the installation completely and take it to the new city, instead of building a directly there. We talk about transferring a factory over almost 1800 kilometers that separate both cities. Already in Beijing, Changan continued manufacturing military vehicles until In the 80s signs an agreement with Suzuki And it enters the Personal vehicles and the commercial transfer of goods or people with minibuses. The turn would later deepen Companies like Ford and Mazda when both companies shared developments. This last collaboration has remained until today and is the architect that today we can see the Mazda 6ea car that was born to the Chinese public initially fruit of collaboration between Japanese and Changan and that we will finally see on European soil very soon. Photo | CHANGAN and Mazda In Xataka | Family and friends keep asking me if “it is worth buying a Chinese car.” This is my answer

Spacex will launch next week the first polar space flight in history. Your client: A Bitcoin tycoon

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Incredible things happen by mixing large heritage with the spacex’s launching ability. The First private extravehicular activity either The manned flight to the highest altitude from the Apolo program They were two great milestones of the Polaris Dawn mission. But the new Fram2 mission will achieve something that had never been done, not even by space agencies. Fram2 will be the First spatial flight manned in polar orbit. The first time a ship will take its occupants to fly over the polar caps. Commanded by Chun Wang, a Chinese-Maltés entrepreneur who made fortune with Bitcoin mining, the four crew will be the first humans who observe first-hand the north pole and the southern pole of the earth from space. The never seen To date, there has never been a space flight with astronauts in polar orbit. The highest inclination reached by a manned mission was 65 degrees and the Soviets achieved in 1963 with the Vostok 6. Spacex mission aspires to achieve a pure polar orbit of 90 degrees. To access a polar orbit, the ship must be launched north or south, passing on inhabited land regions. The fuel spending is greater and, in case of emergency during takeoff or re -entry, it will be more complicated to guarantee a safe landing and the rescue of the crew. The launch of the mission, aboard the Crew Dragon ‘Resilience’ ship of Spacex, is scheduled for Monday, March 31 at 23:30, local time of the 39A launch platform of the Kennedy Space Center, in Florida. Spacex will have to land the propeller of the Falcon 9 rocket in Bahamas For this mission. Who travels Fram2 mission crew The person behind the mission is Chun Wang, the co -founder tycoon of F2POOL, one of the largest Bitcoin mining companies that exist. Stake Fish has also founded, an Ethereum stake platform. They are very profitable businesses, taking into account that a flight on board Crew Dragon of Spacex costs about 200 million dollars. Wang was born in China. Acquired the nationality of Malta in 2023 With a gold passport. Vive Svalbard (Norway), but flies almost daily with the aim of visiting the 249 recognized countries and territories of the world. Next to him will fly a Norwegian cinematographer, a German scientist and an Australian doctor: Jannicke Mikkelsen: He will be responsible for documenting the mission. With experience in filming under extreme conditions, it has registered polar flights and other projects in remote locations. Rabea Rogge: Mission pilot, focused on polar robotics research for your doctorate in Norway. He has directed satellite missions and works with advanced technologies in the Arctic. Eric Philips: Doctor and specialist in the mission, contributing years of expeditions to both poles and the prestige of their participation in polar guidelines. The crew has received An intense eight -month training which included microgravity simulations, rescue techniques, first aid and coexistence tests in small spaces, including an experience in the Alaska desert to ensure its adaptation to extreme conditions. Three to five days FRAM2 crew with their space costumes The ship that will transport the four crew on this journey is the Crew Dragon “Resilience”, which has already flown in three missions: Crew-1, Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn. On this occasion it will be equipped with the Cupola module, a glass dome that will offer panoramic views of the poles. The Fram2 crew They will do scientific research on atmospheric phenomena and collaborate with Spacex in studies for future long -term space flights. The itinerary of three to five days includes 22 scientific experiments. Among them Spacexray, the first radiographs made to human beings in microgravity, and Study Egresss, with which they will evaluate their ability to perform maneuvers to get out of the ship after their removal and secure it without help from rescue equipment. Images | Spacex In Xataka | Polaris Dawn is a success: Spacex has just changed the rules of the game with the first commercial space walk

The price of coffee lives one of the biggest climbs in its history. The UN thinks that the worst has not yet happened

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They are not easy times. That is the summary when we have some Eggs in full price escalationthe triggered cocoa Due to illegal gold mining And a coffee that has achieved historical values. In the case of coffee we have been anticipating the storm for months, with a product that was Marking maximums in the stock market and with brands absorbing the coup until have stopped doing it. And, in the middle of that uncertain panorama on the price of coffee, the United Nations arrives to tell us that the worst has not yet been. What about coffee? A set of factors, actually. To the difficulties of transporting raw coffee, aggravated by the increase in freight due to conflicts such as the Red Sea, these last crops are added. Vietnam and Brazil are two great coffee producers worldwidebut the climatic phenomena known as the boy and the girl have affected coffee spots -coffee plants. Both phenomena affected similar forms to countries so remote, causing the same in both: higher temperatures and droughts in some producing areas, as well as an alteration of the rainy season that fall torrentially in a short period of time. As a result, the harvest is poorer and quality can also be seen injured. Maximums. That the two largest coffee producers reduce their production is something that affects the rest of the industry. On the one hand, Arabica coffee is the most coveted among specialty coffee producers and is usually more expensive, with Astronomical examples such as Geisha Café. On the other, although the robust is usually cheaper, specialty coffee is already being created with this variety and something more important: it is the basis of something as consumed as instant coffee. As a result, in the New York ICE bag, the Arabica increase 70% in 2024 and an additional 25% in the first months of this 2025. In the case of the robust, the record is got On January 31 with $ 5,840 per ton in the London Stock Exchange, with increases of up to 6% in a single day. Prices also increase for producers and exporters. As we read in Reutersall the main territories experienced increases in 2024 compared to the levels of 2023. And not small: Ethiopia 17.8%. Kenya 12.3%. Brazil 13.6%. Colombia 11.7%. Indonesia 15.9%. Vietnam 5.8%. Bit with delay. The problem is that the price does not rise for producers, toaster and exporters while for the customer. For example, prices achieved In the bag a few days ago they are those of the cargo that will be delivered in May of this year, and it will be from there when the ‘domestic’ price will continue to increase. And it will not be the last climb. In his last report About the state of coffee, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization -Fao- estimates that coffee prices increased 3.8% in December 2024 in Europe at a retail level, 6.6% in the United States. The dynamic is that a 1% increase in international coffee prices cause an increase of 0.24% at a retail level after 19 months, with 80% of the accumulated impact transmitted in the following 11 months. In the case of the United States, this 1% increase in the international price translates into an increase in the retail price of 0.20% after 13 months. In the case of the US, 80% of the accumulated impact is transmitted in eight months. “Inelastic”. This word is interesting, but it is simple to understand: it is the one that defines goods that do not have substitutes and that, therefore, no matter how the price increases, consumers will continue to buy them. Well, in its report, FAO ensures that “given the inelastic nature of coffee demand, it is unlikely that consumption decreases significantly in both markets” -American and European. That is, as there are no alternatives to coffee, no matter how much prices upload us, consumers will continue to acquire this product. Nor is there anything to intervene because, as FAO herself concludes, coffee consumption represents less than 1% of the annual household spending. From the US National Coffee Association they do not share this, affirming that “the great price increase eaten the liquidity of the customers. They do not have all the money to buy what they need” and ensure that they have sold 30% less of the production when, at this point, they would no longer have reservations. It all depends on three countries. Until now, we have talked about the increase in coffee price for wholesalers, but if we are going to the price that consumers pay, FAO estimates that, in December 2024, a coffee was 6.6% more expensive than in December 2023 in the United States. In the case of the European Union, the increase was 3.75%. Therefore, and taking into account that delayed coup of the price increase in coffee, it seems that the worst is yet to come. From FAO they see this as an opportunity for greater research in technology, research and development of the coffee sector and, above all, to increase the climate resilience of coffee. Although there are many coffee, Vietnam, Indonesia and Brazil producers are the authentic monsters of the great market, but climate change is leaving us two lessons. One is the one that is causing the scarcity and increase of current prices: more unpredictable climatic events on dates that unravel coffee cultivation, therefore affecting crops. On the other hand, it is also an opportunity. We are already seeing that there are those who insist on growing coffee outside Coffee beltwith coffee trees growing wildly in Sicily and Plantations in Andalusia or Catalonia They are testing the viability of growing coffee in such unavailable conditions. Final of the tunnel in sight? What is clear is that the world is thirst for coffee and, with a China increasingly passionate For this drink, it is urgent to have a much more stable stage. In Reuters We read that there are also those who take the … Read more

The 1803 map that aspired to summarize the entire history of humanity

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He 19th century It is still today one of the most fascinating periods in history. It produced numerous ideological, political and technical revolutions that forever shaped contemporary times. At the same time, he opened the doors of a world, expanding numerous discoveries, contacts between various civilizations and scientific advances. The change was structural and all levels. Hence the cartography also evolved. The dawn of modernity were plagued by graphic innovations that would give way to the cartographic crafts of our time. It was no longer simply to represent the world (after the century it would already be practically explored and uncovered in its entirety), but to locate the human being in it. Nature tamed, wasn’t it time for map To humanity itself? We have already seen how Illustrators like JH Colton either John B. Sparks They tried to do so through an innovative format: the river, a continuous current since the beginning of the times of which They would break down tributaries in the form of cultures and civilizations. Those were imaginative and prisoners of their time, plagued by a rampant Eurocentrism and full of historical and political clichés. However, they were interesting for themselves, because they aspired to capture in a single graph the passage of time. All the time. The work of both, but especially of Colton, would contribute to expand the explanation of history and social geography through graphic tools. But it wasn’t seminal. Such honor may correspond to the author of the probably first histomapa always: Friedrich StrassAustrian cartographer. Entitled Der Strom der Zeiten (The current of time), The Enlightenment would see the light as soon as 1803, time before Napoleon had raised his empire. The excellent graphic and bold finish of the representation would enjoy great success, being translated into several languages ​​and serving of remote influence for other activists, educators, geographers and illustrators (From Emma Willard until Eugene pick). Der Strom der Zeiten I drank in part of Joseph Priestly’s ideasBritish philosopher, and aspired to capture a vertical understanding of the history of human beings. Under the title of “History of the World”, part of a gray nebula of which cultures already known by then. The Greeks, the Assyrians, the Italians, the Chinese or the Phoenicians. Strass focuses your attention in European peoples and cultures, marginalizing the development or prominence of African or Asian empires. The beginning of everything. (David Rumsey Collection) Detail of the first villages. (David Rumsey Collection) The importance of the Roman Empire. (David Rumsey Collection) It was a common evil of the illustrators, intellectuals, scientists and European thinkers of the time. China and India monopolized half of the world’s population and half of its economic production for centuries. However, the Strass river quickly focuses on The Roman Empire Like the Muñidor of so many civilizations of the present, and from which numerous central states would arise to the development of Europe, such as Spain or France. Eastern cultures. (David Rumsey Collection) Latin kingdoms. (David Rumsey Collection) Taxes arise, unify and disappear as time progresses. Strass’s historical gaze was essentially elitist: he listed the monarchs and leaders based on their possessions (Felipe II and Carlos V become the longest river tributary of their time) in chronological way. To the right are felt Asian civilizations. Others, such as African or American, do not even appear. Der Strom der Zeiten It is an incomplete map of human history, but one of great relevance for the development of a different look at the passing of time and the position of the human being in it. And next to all this, it is still beautiful today. In Xataka | The way in which each European language counts up to 99, explained in an interesting map In Xataka | The lunar map of Johannes Hevelius, the first satellite cartography published in 1647

Samsung crosses one of the most difficult stages in its history. His problem is that he is not able to keep up with TSMC and SK Hynix

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Samsung is dealing with a complicated stage. These statements carried out just a few hours ago by Han Jong-Hee, general co-director of this South Korean company, diagnoses precisely What’s happening: “First of all I sin artificial intelligence (AI), which quickly evolves. “ This Mea guilt It is aimed at the company’s shareholders and expresses that the directive dome recognizes not having taken The appropriate decisions In recent years. “Our technological advantage has been compromised in all our businesses. It is difficult status quo Instead of generating disruptive changes, “says an internal statement written by Jay Y. Lee, the president of the company, according to Reuters. Loss of competitiveness is a big problem for Samsung Han Jong-Hee’s statements insinuate clearly that Samsung has not been able to get on the AI ​​train that currently leads the Taiwanese TSMC semiconductor manufacturer with hardly any opposition. This last company produces the integrated circuits for AI designed by NVIDIA, AMD, Broadcom and other companies, which has led it to lead the global chip manufacturing industry with an approximate quota of 60%. TSMC’s economic performance is perceptibly better than Samsung’s The company led by CC Wei He announced In the middle of last January their economic results during 2024, and are extraordinary. In fact, their income beat a record by increasing 34% compared to those obtained in 2023. Only during December 2024 the 8,400 million dollars exceeded, a figure that represents an increase of 57.8% compared to the same month of the previous year. The engine of these figures are precisely the semiconductors for AI applications. TSMC’s economic performance, as we have just seen, is noticeably better than Samsung’s. However, this is not all. And is that The also South Korean Sk Hynix Threatens Samsung’s leadership in the memory chip market. In fact, it has already exceeded the benefits of this last company thanks to the excellent reception that its HBM memories are having (High Bandwidth Memory), which are designed to work side by side with the GPUs for ia. In this situation the hope of Samsung to return to the path of growth resides in 2 nm chips. And the first green sprouts They have already arrived. The Japanese chips designer for the preferred networks (PFN) and a South Korean company specialized in the design of neuronal processing units (NPU) have already formalized orders for their lithographic node of 2 nm. In fact, Digitimes Asia ensures that the massive production of integrated circuits of 2 nm It has already begun in South Korean plants of Samsung. Whatever one thing we can be safe: 2025 will be the year of the semiconductors of 2 nm. TSMC starts from a very comfortable position, but with all probability Intel and Samsung will also put all the meat on the grill. Image | Samsung More information | SCMP | Reuters In Xataka | South Korea fears US reprisals. To avoid their old lithography equipment, they take dust on a warehouse

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