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the largest streaming music service is not working

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It’s Tuesday afternoon. You probably just finished the work day and are on your way home. Good time to listen to your favorite music, right? Well, if you are trying to do it with Spotify, we have to tell you no: it is not a matter of your mobile phone or your Internet connection. The largest streaming music platform on the planet is down. She has been my companion Amparo Babiloni who gave the alert. Your app has stopped responding when trying to play music online, while songs included in playlists downloaded for offline listening continue to work. So this drop can be an especially annoying problem if you don’t have a Premium plan or if you haven’t previously downloaded music to your device. 27 SPOTIFY TRICKS – Control all your MUSIC like no one else! Spotify also has a web player, a practical option if you don’t want, or can’t, use its application, available on computers, televisions, consoles and, of course, mobile phones. In our case, when trying to access the service from the browser, we have encountered the message “Error 503 first byte timeout”. For now, Spotify has not offered an official explanation for the crash, although the error message gives you an idea of ​​what may be happening. The warning appears when the server receives the request, but takes too long to return the first response. In other words: it is usually related to temporary saturation, a partial outage, maintenance tasks or an internal server failure. If we look at Downdetectoranother good way to follow in real time what is happening with popular services, we see that the problems with Spotify began around 5:52 p.m. this Tuesday and were growing rapidly. After 6:00 p.m., there were already hundreds of reports from users indicating problems with the service. In development. Images | Spotify + Nano Bana | Screenshot In Xataka | What is Cloudflare, how it works and why a crash or block causes half the Internet to fail

The incredible story of the tallest building on the planet that ended up becoming the largest swimming pool in the Soviet Union

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During the coldest winters of the Soviet Union, there was a place in Moscow where thousands of people they continued bathing outdoors while huge clouds of steam completely covered the landscape. In fact, from some points in the city the silhouettes of the swimmers could barely be distinguished among the artificial fog. For many foreign visitors, that scene seemed more like something out of a science fiction movie than in the center of a Soviet capital. I don’t remember spaces that have given so much, literally. The cathedral that Stalin erased from the map. Yes, for decades, one of the strangest places in Moscow was that huge smoking circle where thousands of people swam under the snow without thinking much about what had existed there before. The fascinating thing is that that place had first been the largest orthodox cathedral of Russia, then the land chosen to build the tallest building on the planet and finally the outdoor pool bigger. Today, on that same site, it rises again a gigantic cathedral golden Few stories explain so well how architecture can become an ideological battle permanent between empires, revolutions and erased memories. The monument that celebrated the defeat of Napoleon. The story began after Napoleon Bonaparte’s withdrawal from Russia in 1812, when Tsar Alexander I promised to raise a huge cathedral in honor of Christ the Savior as thanks for the survival of the Russian empire. The project went through decades of delays, design changes and ideological disputes until it became a gigantic cathedral orthodox partially inspired by Hagia Sophia of Constantinople. Its construction took more than forty years and the final result completely dominated Moscow skyline with huge golden domes visible from the Kremlin. The building represented the union between religion, monarchy and Russian imperial power at a time when the country was trying to project itself as a great European power. The ancient Cathedral of Christ the Savior Stalin wanted to erase the old Russia and build something greater. After the Revolution of 1917the Bolsheviks began a fierce campaign against religion because they considered that the new Soviet society couldn’t share space with symbols of the old imperial order. Churches were closed, confiscated or reused as warehouses, cinemas or homes, but the Cathedral of Christ the Savior It was too visible to survive. In 1931, by direct order of Joseph Stalin, the building was demolished with explosives to make way for to the most delirious project of Soviet architecture: Palace of Soviets. The plan was to build a 415 meter colossus crowned by a gigantic statue of Lenin about one hundred meters high, a building so enormous that it would have surpassed any existing skyscraper on the planet. The objective was not only architectural. Stalin wanted to physically demonstrate that Soviet communism had forever replaced the old, religious, tsarist Russia. This is how the Palace of the Soviets would have looked The tallest building on the planet never came into existence. The architect Boris Iofan He spent years obsessed with that monumental project, designing enormous auditoriums, stepped terraces and spaces designed to glorify the Soviet State and its leaders. It was excavated a gigantic crater next to the Moscova River, the foundation work and part of the metal structure began got upbut reality ended up destroying the Soviet propaganda dream. The terrain was difficult, water continually flooded the area and the German invasion of 1941 definitively paralyzed the works. Much of the steel accumulated for the building ended up reused in fortifications and bridges during the war. What should have been the greatest architectural symbol of world communism ended up becoming a huge muddy hole in the middle of Moscow. Then something even more surreal happened. Instead of resuming the project after the war, the Soviet regime made a completely unexpected decision: transform that immense circular foundation into a gigantic public swimming pool. This is how the Moskva swimming pool was born, inaugurated in 1960 under Nikita Khrushchev. The place became the outdoor pool bigger of the Soviet Union and possibly the world, with 130 meters in diameter and capacity for thousands of people. The water remained heated even in winter, creating huge clouds of steam over the center of Moscow as citizens swam surrounded by snow and sub-zero temperatures. For entire generations of Soviet people, that space stopped being a religious or political symbol and became simply an everyday place where they could learn to swim, meet with friends or escape the cold. The most famous swimming pool in Moscow and its legends. The gigantic circular pond acquired over time a almost mythological fame. The dense columns of vapor made visibility difficult in winter and began to circulate rumors about accidents, drownings and alleged “suicide cults” linked to the ancient sacred ground where the destroyed cathedral had stood. There were also stories about humidity and corrosion that the complex caused in nearby buildings and nearby museums. Still, millions of people used the pool for decades and for many Moscow residents that place ended up forming an inseparable part of their personal memories, even if they knew that they were literally swimming over the ruins of one of the most important temples of imperial Russia. The Cathedral of Christ the Savior restored on what was the largest pool The fall of the USSR changed everything again. With the Soviet collapse, Russia began to recover religious symbols and nationals who had been persecuted for decades. Maintaining the gigantic pool turned economically unsustainable due to the enormous cost of heating and electricity, while a movement grew that demanded the reconstruction of the original cathedral. In 1994 the pool was emptied and demolishedand soon after began an accelerated reconstruction financed by donations and institutional support. He new temple was built in just a few years and consecrated in 2000 as a almost exact replica of the building destroyed by Stalin. For many Russians, that reconstruction symbolized the return of religion and Russian historical identity after the Soviet period; For others, it … Read more

Jeff Bezos’ superyacht is one of the largest and most expensive in the world. Now it is for sale for a curious reason: parking

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At more than 127 meters in length, Jeff Bezos’ superyacht is one of the largest in the world. In fact, it is so big that even caused some problems to its Dutch builder when he was trying to take it out to sea from the shipyards. The ship was so large that it did not pass under a bridge, over which it was even considered disassembling it. It was just the first of the problems that Jeff Bezos was going to have with the size of his ship. According to advanced Page Sixnow the millionaire would be considering putting the Koru up for sale. The reason has nothing to do with the price or its maintenance. The problem is that the boat is so big that it doesn’t fit almost anywhere, and wherever it manages to get in, everyone instantly recognizes it. A huge boat with a price to match. The Koru is a three-masted schooner more than 70 meters high. built by the Dutch shipyard Oceanco and delivered to Bezos in April 2023. At 127 meters in length, it was for a time the second largest sailboat in the world and is currently among the largest in its category. In fact, it is so big that when it approaches Miami, Jeff Bezos’ usual place of residence since his move in 2025, the luxury sailboat must moor. along with large cargo ships and oil tankers because it doesn’t fit in the nearby marinas. Its construction cost around 500 million dollars and is accompanied by a support ship called Abeona, valued at another 75 million dollars. According to calculations of Robb Reportkeeping both vessels in operation costs about $30 million a year. Practically pocket change for someone who could spend a million dollars a day and still it would take more than 548 years in ruining. The problem: parking. According to a source close to the millionaire consulted by Page SixBezos considers that the yacht has become “too big to manage.” But it’s not just about the size: the Koru has become so popular thanks to its owner, that it is impossible to maintain privacy where it anchors. Hide a sailboat the size of a ten-story building off the coast it is not a simple task. One of the drawbacks of the Koru’s size is that, for example, the millionaire could not even get close to it. the marina of Monte Carlo during the last Monaco Grand Prix, a sporting event in which millionaires watch the cars pass by without even getting off their yacht. The Koru, on the other hand, had to settle for remaining anchored far from the moorings and use a small boat to get to land due to its enormous proportions. Something similar happened during the celebrations prior to the Jeff Bezos’s wedding and Lauren Sánchez in Venice, where the Koru had to remain anchored in the middle of the Venetian lagoon because it didn’t fit at the moorings near Venice. A sale without an official price and many unknowns. At the moment the sale has not been confirmed by any intermediary or by the founder of Amazon himself, and it is also not clear if the Abeona support ship will be part of the sale agreement. What does seem certain is that Jeff Bezos could be tired of all the inconveniences involved in operating a boat of that size, and would be considering buying a somewhat more discreet and manageable superyachtwhich does not cause so many “parking” problems. In Xataka | We already knew that superyachts were floating mansions: Roman Abramovich’s is a fortress with an anti-missile shield Image | Oceanco, Smithsonian

To achieve the milestone of building the largest drone industry without China, Ukraine has found an explosive ally: Taiwan

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In the midst of the Cold War, several Western engineers they were surprised upon discovering that some of the most reliable small electronic components on the world market came from an island that barely made the big geopolitical headlines. Decades later, that silent specialization in manufacturing tiny and apparently invisible parts would end up becoming one of the industrial capabilities most coveted on the planet. The war that changed an industry. For decades, Taiwan was known primarily for making chipselectronic components and invisible parts that ended up inside telephones, computers or servers spread all over the planet, but modern wars are beginning to push that industrial capacity towards another, much more explosive terrain. The Guardian said that what is happening between Ukraine and Taiwan reflects a quiet change that barely existed a few years ago: the creation of a new technological alliance born directly from drone warfrom Chinese pressure and the desperate need to produce millions of cheap, autonomous and combat-ready systems. Ukraine wants to break its dependence on China. The war forced Ukraine to build at full speed a gigantic industry of drones capable of feeding a front that consumes absurd quantities of devices every month. The problem is that much of the global supply chain remains dominated by China: Motors, batteries, navigation systems, electronic components and rare earths continue to depend heavily on Chinese manufacturers. As we said, kyiv began to consider this dependence as a strategic risk When suspicions grew about indirect support from Beijing to Russia and fears grew of possible export restrictions. There Taiwan began to appear as an alternative unexpectedly important. His huge experience in semiconductors, microelectronics, electronic integration and advanced technological production made it one of the few places capable of supplying critical parts without being completely dependent on the West or trapped under direct Chinese control. For Ukraine, finding industrial partners outside of China stopped being a commercial issue and became literally a matter of survival. And Taiwan found Ukraine. While Ukraine seeks to produce millions of drones, gradually moving away from China, Taiwan observes the conflict with another concern: the possibility of one day confronting Beijing on its own territory. That coincidence of threats is creating a relationship ever deeper between both worlds. In fact, The New York Times said what Taiwanese engineers They send drones to Ukraine to be tested directly in combat, American companies transfer designs born on the Ukrainian front to Taiwanese production and former Taiwanese soldiers who today fight in Ukraine return home telling how modern war really works. Many Taiwanese militaries are beginning to discover that traditional doctrines are completely outweighed by swarms of FPV drones, unmanned maritime systems or cheap ground robots capable of destroying multimillion-dollar vehicles. Ukraine is thus becoming a kind of university improvised military for Taiwan, one where the lessons do not come from simulations but from a real front where every mistake costs lives. The new military industry no longer resembles the old one. One of the most profound changes of this war is that military production no longer depends solely on gigantic state factories or large traditional contractors. Ukraine has developed more than one hundreds of local manufacturers of components while constantly adapting its systems to specific front-line needs. Ukrainian companies modify drones, software and guidance systems at a much higher speed to the Western classical industry. Taiwan fits perfectly in that transformation because it has exactly what Ukraine needs to accelerate that production: advanced electronics, specialized chips and flexible industrial capacity. Several Taiwanese companies already operate from Poland or Lithuania to indirectly supply kyiv, while Taiwanese drone exports to Europe have skyrocketed massively. In parallel, American companies are using Ukraine and Taiwan like two extremes of the same industrial chain: Ukraine provides combat experience and accelerated development, and Taiwan provides technological capacity and scalable manufacturing. The obsession with building drones outside of China. Both Ukraine and Taiwan share another priority that is becoming almost an industrial doctrine: building supply chains at the expense of Beijing. The problem is much more complicated than it seems because even many components manufactured outside China still use materials, batteries or magnets that depend from Chinese suppliers. Even so, both territories try gradually reduce that exhibition. Taiwan wants to build a drone industry completely disengaged from China by 2027 and increase its own production of rare earth magnets, while Ukraine continues to shift production within its borders. There is no doubt, the challenge is gigantic because Chinese products continue to be much cheaper and more abundant, but strategic logic is beginning to outweigh the economic cost. In the middle of a war, the priority shifts from buying the cheapest to ensuring the supply chain continues to function when the next crisis hits. Building something bigger than drones. If you also want, the most important thing in this relationship may not only be the production of drones, but the emergence of a new technological and military axis informal between two territories that live under permanent threat from much larger neighbors. Ukraine contributes real experience of war, proven tactics and a brutal speed of innovation under extreme pressure. Taiwan contributes industrial capacitysemiconductors and access to critical technologies that the West does not produce quickly enough. The result is beginning to look like something much more ambitious: an entire international network of distributed military production where private companies, engineers, volunteers and manufacturers work beyond official diplomatic limitations. Even the Ukrainian government recognize as drone factories based on Ukrainian designs are popping up outside its borders, including one in Taiwan. One more thing. Ultimately, what the war is accelerating is an idea that a few years ago would have seemed improbable: that to build the largest drone industry on the planet outside chinaUkraine has ended up finding one of its most valuable and strategic allies in Taiwan. Image | x, Trydence In Xataka | Today in “the war in Ukraine beyond all comprehension”: drone pilots are training with ‘Grand Theft Auto’ In Xataka | Ukraine has barely … Read more

In 2014 it was inaugurated as the largest solar thermal power plant in the world. 12 years later they want to close it after incinerating birds

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The huge Ivanpah solar thermal power plant, opened in 2014 in the Mojave Desert, was almost closed after just 11 years of operation. An end accelerated by its history of technical, economic and environmental problems that, however, was paralyzed in January of this year after the agreement of all those involved. Context. Concentrated solar thermal energy, once considered one of the most cutting-edge technologies for clean electricity generation, is not going through its best moment. Especially in Nevada, where the Crescent Dunes fiasco was already very public. The concentrating solar thermal system uses thousands of mirrors, or “heliostats”, that follow the path of the sun to concentrate its light on central towers. In these towers, the extreme heat is used to heat water and produce steam, which drives turbines connected to electrical generators. The Ivanpah case. The Ivanpah plant was built with an investment of $1.6 billion in loans from the U.S. Department of Energy and long-term contracts from major electric companies. It was the largest solar thermal power plant in the world until the inauguration of Port Augusta in Australia. 11 years after its inauguration, the enormous solar thermal plant began to close after failing to meet its initial expectations. The lack of profitability condemned it, at least a priori. A succession of rulings and complaints from environmental groups about its impact on wildlife accelerated its end, approved by the US Department of Energy. Continuity. However, the decision was reversed in January 2026 by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). Ivanpah will remain open. Their argument is that uncertainty in federal renewable energy policies forces us to prioritize the reliability of the current electricity supply. In addition, the commission seeks to prevent the enormous investment in infrastructure already made from being lost, despite the high operating costs and the serious environmental impact on local fauna. The measure ignores the previous agreement between the companies to close the plant and save money for users. A priori, it will remain open until its contract expires in 2039. A complex technology. One of the main problems has been the difficulty of keeping the mirrors precisely aligned. The technology, which requires exact tracking of the sun, has proven to be unstable and unreliable in practice, says a CNN report. The maintenance of the complex mechanisms and the management of the turbines in turn generate high operating costs, which has caused concentrated solar thermal to lose competitiveness compared to other renewable technologies, especially photovoltaic solar, whose prices have plummeted. A bird cremation machine. The criticism is not limited to the technical aspects. The Ivanpah plant has been questioned for years for its environmental impact, especially on desert wildlife. Environmental groups denounce the irreparable damage to the habitat of species such as the desert tortoise. But also the death of birds that are incinerated by the intense rays concentrated by the mirrors. A second Crescent Dunes. The case of Crescent Dunes, also occurring in Nevada, reinforces this image of failure of solar thermal energy. This project, which was intended to be one of the milestones in innovation and energy storage using molten salts, ended up becoming a multimillion-dollar waste. Developed by the Spanish group ACSpromised continuous production of electricity, even during hours without light, thanks to thermal storage in salts. In practice, Crescent Dunes never managed to deliver the promised amount of energy and ended up going bankrupt due to engineering and management problems. In the shadow of photovoltaics. In short, the rapid fall in prices of photovoltaic technology and its lower impact on wildlife have made concentrated solar thermal obsolete. While solar panels have been gaining efficiency and reducing their installation and maintenance costs, solar thermal plants have lagged behind in terms of competitiveness, which has led investors and electricity companies to reconsider their bets on this type of projects. In Xataka | The first central tower solar plant to be commercially exploited is in Seville: a pioneer that has survived other more ambitious ones In Xataka | Chile has one of the most valuable skies on Earth. Renewables are putting it on the ropes In Xataka | China’s largest solar park is doing much more than generating energy: it’s greening a desert Image | Pexels

IBM has made the largest quantum chemistry simulation to date. It is a success for quantum computers

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The prototypes of quantum computers currently available are gradually breaking down some barriers. These machines have a weak point: they make mistakes. This is the reason why Ignacio Cirac, the Spanish physicist who, together with Peter Zoller, developed the theoretical basis of quantum computing, holds that the correct thing is to identify them as prototypes to differentiate them from the fully functional quantum computers that will hopefully arrive in the future. During the conversation we had with Ignacio Cirac in June 2021, the director of the Theoretical Division of the Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics he explained to us who believed that quantum computers will be very valuable tools in the field of quantum chemistry to, for example, design drugs. Just five years after that conversation, a very important milestone has occurred that invites us to scan the horizon of this discipline with a very healthy optimism. And a group of researchers from IBM; the RIKEN Center for Quantum Computing, in Japan; and Cleveland Clinic, in the USA, have carried out the largest quantum-classical chemistry simulation carried out to date. It’s a very important achievement for a reason: it represents a huge leap in the way quantum computers can be used alongside classical supercomputers to study real-world chemistry problems. “This result is a dream” Dr. Kenneth Merz, the leader of this research, assures that the result obtained by the team he leads is a dream. Until now, the most ambitious simulation that had been possible in this area using a quantum computer recreated a protein with only 303 atoms. However, Merz’s team has managed to simulate two biologically relevant proteins (T4-Lysozyme and Trypsin), as well as the molecules to which they bind, in a completely realistic aqueous environment and reaching 12,635 atoms. To make this possible, they have used two quantum processors that add up to 94 qubits, executing 9,200 circuits over more than 100 hours and collecting 1.3 billion measurement results. The quantum data were subsequently processed with the Japanese supercomputer Fugaku. In this area, the calculation capacity of quantum computers makes a difference, although the merit does not belong exclusively to these machines. The strategy that these scientists have developed consists of dividing large molecules into smaller, more manageable groups. The strategy these scientists have developed is to divide large molecules into smaller, more manageable groups. Classical supercomputers solve the simpler regions, while quantum systems address the more complex and computationally demanding parts. The results are then recombined to obtain a global image of the molecule. To carry out this simulation, the researchers introduced improvements in both classical and quantum techniques. However, one of the most important innovations they have developed is the improvement of the way in which the system identifies which parts of a molecule require detailed quantum treatment, which reduces the overall computational cost. As we have just seen, we are facing a very important milestone, although we need to put it in context. And, despite its value, the strategy that these researchers have developed still does not surpass the best classical approaches. However, it demonstrates that quantum systems can already contribute to the resolution of significant scientific problems, especially when integrated with existing computing infrastructure. Image | IBM More information | Interesting Engineering In Xataka | Beyond AI, US semiconductor manufacturers face the real battle of the future: quantum chips

The megacity you haven’t heard of is in China and aspires to be the largest in the world

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In the world there are big, huge, huge cities and then others that are almost a country in themselves, like Jing-Jin-Jithe huge conurbation that has been taking shape in northern China for years. And “country” can be taken in its most expansive sense. If they are fulfilled the forecasts launched by its promoters more than a decade ago, the megalopolis will host between 110 and 130 million of inhabitants, in addition to a robust business muscle. Its size will also take away the hiccups: is spoken of more than 200,000 km2double that of all of Portugal. It may sound like science fiction, but there is a very simple explanation: Jing-Jin-Ji is not a city founded from scratch, but a new way of understanding and organizing Beijing, Tianjin and the province of Hebei to shape an urban titan. Rethinking Beijing. Although it does not reach the levels From Tokyo, Delhi or even Shanghai, Beijing is one of the most populous cities on the planet. Its stable population easily exceeds 20 million of people, more than all Romania or Netherlands. That huge number of people move every day to go to school, the doctor and of course to companies that may be close by. several hours of their houses. If we add to that the role of Beijing as the capital of one of the greatest potentials in the world, the result is an (almost) impractical megalopolis, polluted and in which complications the services. To face such a challenge and prevent the exodus from the countryside from ending up collapsing the city, in recent years the Government has resorted to several solutions. One has been limit the population. Another is to rethink Beijing itself so that it is no longer just the capital of China or a mere metropolis, but part of a much larger conurbation. The objective is twofold: to relieve pressure on the capital and to promote a new industrial hub, one capable of replicating the success achieved in the Yangtze River Delta or Guangzhou and Shenzhen area. A new giant: “Jing-Jin-Ji”. With this premise, a decade ago the Chinese authorities decided to go for what is probably one of their most ambitious projects: Jing-Jin-jia word that hides a nod to the cities of Beijing, Tianjin and Ji, which is how the province of Hebei is traditionally known. That business card speaks for itself idea. The idea is strengthen the bond between those three territories in northern China, distributing part of the crushing burden that now falls on the capital, improving communications and betting on a distribution of specialized roles. The story of Jing-Jin-Ji can soar at least to the National New Urbanization Plan presented by the Government for the period 2014-2020. In it, China, a nation already accustomed to megacities, advocated the promotion of a dozen “urban clusters.” The greatest of all would be Jing-Jin-Ji, in which Beijing would embrace (in an almost literal sense) with Tianjin, which is another of the biggest cities of the country and nearby cities in Hebei province. More than theory (and politics). The project received Xi JinPing’s blessing just 12 years ago, in April 2014and was sold with a display of astonishing data. Its objective was neither more nor less than to bring together a region of more than 215,000 km2 in which some 130 million people would live in 2050, generating a powerful industrial and commercial hub. It could have remained just that, an ambitious idea, but a quick review of the newspaper library confirms the extent to which China was determined to push it forward. The following year, in 2015, The New York Times confirmed that Jing-Jin-Ji was beginning to become a reality. Shortly after Guardian informed of the plans to create Xiongan, a large city located just under 100 km from Beijing that would allow the urban framework of Jing-Jin-Ji to be articulated. It was just one of the measures to consolidate the new megalopolis. The most effective of all was the reinforcement of rail and road communications. In 2016, China actually approved an ambitious investment plan to build kilometers and kilometers of roads and reach the middle of the century with about twenty of railway lines. Is it just infrastructure? No. Improving communications is a fundamental part of Jing-Jin-Ji, but not the only one. Another, equally important, is the distribution of roles between the regions. He starting point It was simple: Beijing would consolidate itself as a political, cultural and technological center while Tianjin would establish itself as an export port and manufacturing hub. As for Hebei, there was a commitment to also orient it towards industry and wholesale trade. In the background, slide China Briefingthere was the desire to bet on industrial clusters focused on emerging sectors, such as electric vehicles, the biopharmaceutical industry or robotics. To achieve this distribution, of course, it was not enough to set guidelines on paper. In 2015, the Beijing authorities announced his plans to refocus the capital, moving certain services, such as wholesale markets and administrative offices, out of the urban center and moving some services to suburban areas or even to Hebei province. The importance of gestures. Perhaps the best proof of the extent to which the Government wants to keep the project alive is that, from time to time, the Chinese press publishes articles reviewing the progress in the creation of Jing-Jin-Ji. It happened in April 2024coinciding with the tenth anniversary of the presentation of the plan, and it happened again in 2025, when CGTN He published an article to make it clear that Beijing’s suburban dream is advancing little by little. His chronicle highlights the increase in economic production in the region, the opening of new stretches of road that allow travel times to be cut, the reinforcement of public transport or collaboration at an economic level and when providing services. The local press also highlights that the region “has become an innovation center” capable of attracting companies. Of course, there are also important challengeshow to achieve greater … Read more

the incredible history of the largest castle in the world

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Europe is full of castles, but there are castles and castles and the one of the Teutonic Order in Malbork plays in another league: more than just a building, it is actually a superb Gothic brick complex built in the 13th century. In fact, It is the largest castle in the world on surface. To get the idea, it is four times that of Windsor. Furthermore, it is UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork stands imposingly on the southeastern bank of the Nogat River in northern Poland, and as interesting as its impressive construction and size is its history. Beyond being a witness to Central European history, this building was built by the Teutonic Knights, a militarized German Catholic religious order of crusaders that served to Christianize the entire Baltic coast for centuries. Among other things. A masterpiece of architecture. The intro has served to whet our appetite, but the Ordensburg Marienburg complex is architecturally a marvel: it comes with a huge palace, a monastery, three different castles and hundreds of auxiliary buildings. In essence, they are three castles separated by moats and towers, three castles in one. The castle began to be built around 1274 and reached its maximum splendor in 1406, that is, it took just over 130 years. The complex that had to expand to provide shelter to 3,000 brothers of the Order, thus becoming the largest fortified Gothic building in Europe. For its construction they were needed 30 million bricks. It was impressive inside and out: inside there were amazing innovations for the time, such as hot air central heating and an advanced sewage system. Its large halls have ribbed vaults that are authentic masterpieces of engineering secular gothic Entrance. Diego Delso Why was it built?. The construction of the Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork goes hand in hand with the history and future of said militarized religious organization. And at that time, the Teutonic Order was looking for a new Headquarters after its withdrawal from the Holy Land. After a time in Venice, in 1309 Grand Master Siegfried von Feuchtwangen transfer the seat of the Italian city at Malbork, in newly conquered Prussia. The main objective was to reinforce control over the area after the repression of the Great Prussian Revolt of 1274. Thus, that border area became the nerve center of a Monastic State that would govern much of the Baltic. In addition to its religious and military function, the castle was instrumental in establishing a monopoly on amber. thanks to your strategic location along the Nogat, allowing the Teutonic Knights to collect tolls from ships transiting the river to finance their military campaigns against the pagan peoples of Lithuania and convert the fortress into a commercial center integrated into the Hanseatic League. All this allowed them to ensure their economic power of the Teutonic State in the region. Historical context: the Baltic Crusades. Malbork reached its peak during the Baltic Crusades, a period when Germanic military orders sought the forced Christianization of the northeastern peoples of Europe. In this context, the castle not only acted as a military base: it was also its best visual propaganda. A complex of such dimensions is a financial and military ostentation to potential enemies. Come on, such an impressive architectural work shows that you have God on your side. Malbork became the most powerful manifestation of the Crusades in Eastern Europe. From 1309 it was the headquarters of the Order, a role it played until its decline at the beginning of the 15th century. This period coincides with the height of Teutonic power in the Baltic, with the fortress as the political, military and religious epicenter of a sovereign monastic state. Decline, destruction and rebirth. The Teutonic Knights were finally defeated decisively in the Battle of Grunwald on July 15, 1410 at the hands of the armies of Poland and Lithuania with the support of the Tatars. In 1457, during the Thirteen Years’ War, a Bohemian mercenary they sold the castle to King Casimir IV of Poland, becoming a Polish royal residence until 1772. However, the darkest chapter in its history dates back to 1945, on the verge of the end of World War II: the forces of the German army and the Red Army reduced more than half of the structure to rubble, as can be seen. see yourself in these photos. The landscape was so desolate that restoring it seemed like an impossible mission, but the process began in 1947 and is still continuing. Thus, with the passing of the year and the good work of specialists who have used historical documentation for a detailed restoration, they have managed, among other things, to recover the interior of Saint Mary’s church. In 1997 it was declared a World Heritage Site and since 1961 it has housed the Malbork Castle Museum. In Xataka | That Christian Friedrich von Kahlbut died in 1702 is nothing exceptional. That his corpse has not decomposed, yes In Xataka | We just discovered that a semi-legendary Nile king really existed thanks to a 17th century document found in trash Cover | Gregory

The US remains committed to stopping China. Now it has targeted the second largest Chinese chip manufacturer

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SMIC (Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp) is the largest Chinese semiconductor manufacturer with a global market share 5.32%. Only TSMC and Samsung surpass it. Currently this is the only Chinese company that has the necessary technology to manufacture 7nm integrated circuitsbut Hua Hong Semiconductor, China’s second largest chip producer, is developing the technology necessary to manufacture this class of semiconductors. The US Department of Commerce has confirmed without intending it that Hua Hong Semiconductor is very serious with its 7nm photolithography. And it has done so because, according to Reutershas notified the most important lithography and wafer processing equipment manufacturers in the US that they no longer have permission to deliver their most advanced machines to this Chinese company. The purpose of this US entity is clear: it aims to make it difficult for Hua Hong Semiconductor to conclude the development of its 7nm lithography. Lam Research, Applied Materials and KLA already have one more obstacle in China Department of Commerce technicians analyze export requests within the framework established by current regulations and approve or deny the sale of integrated circuits and wafer processing equipment to China. The current regulation is the most effective tool at the disposal of the US Government to try to slow down the development of China’s semiconductor industry and prevent it from acquiring the capacity to manufacture cutting-edge integrated circuits in the short or medium term. Hua Hong is preparing to start production of 7nm chips at its Shanghai plant Hua Hong Semiconductor’s division specializing in third-party chip manufacturing is called Huali Microelectronics, and it is preparing to launch the production of 7nm integrated circuits at its Shanghai plant. The sources that have revealed this information assure that Huawei has collaborated with Huali Microelectronics on this project, which invites us to reach two reasonable conclusions. The first is that Huali’s 7nm lithography is likely to play an essential role in GPU production capacity for artificial intelligence (AI) from both Huawei and other Chinese companies. And the second conclusion is actually a plausible hypothesis. And, like SMIC, Huali does not have access to ASML SVU teams. For this reason, it is very likely that with the help of Huawei it has developed security techniques. multiple patterning to be able to manufacture 7nm chips with the UVP machines in its possession. Lam Research, Applied Materials and KLA are three of the US companies that the Commerce Department has notified that they can no longer provide Hua Hong Semiconductor with their most advanced wafer processing equipment. China is a very important market for these companies, so presumably they are going to lose several billions of dollars in sales. Lin Jian, the spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has declared that his country expects the United States to stabilize global industrial and supply chains and keep trade functioning normally. Image | TSMC More information | Reuters In Xataka | TSMC is already the highest-earning chipmaker on the planet. It has beaten two semiconductor giants

Amancio Ortega has become the largest investor in the Ibex35 with only three investments

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Amancio Ortega is not only the richest man in Spainthanks to having founded the financial empires of Inditex and Pontegadeabut has also turned out to be the largest private shareholder in the Spanish stock market. And, furthermore, it is with an enormous distance compared to the second classified. To put it in context, Ortega’s investment in the Ibex35 far exceeds the State’s participation in this index. According to recent data published by EuropaPress Based on the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV), Ortega sweeps into first place, followed by the American giant BlackRock and the Spanish State, which slips into third position. Between the three of them they accumulate stakes that exceed 176,000 million euros in different companies listed on the Ibex 35. Ortega’s portfolio: only three companies, but almost 100,000 million. The key to Amancio Ortega’s dominant position is, of course, in the giant Inditex. The lion millionaire settled in La Coruñachannels its investments through its companies Pontegadea Inversiones and Partler Participaciones, with which controls 59.294% of the capital of the textile group that owns brands such as Zara, Massimo Dutti or Pull&Bear. Ortega’s participation, alone, already represents practically all of the 97,733 million euros that his investments in the selective total. The other two pieces of your stock market portfolio in the Ibex35 are the energy sector holdingswith 5% in both Redeia (owner of Red Eléctrica de España) and Enagás, the managing company of the national gas system. Although the investment weight in energy companies is significantly lower than in Inditex, both fit into Ortega’s investment strategy, which is committed to assets with stable income and regulated that they generate dividends on a recurring basis. BlackRock, the American giant that tries everything. The second investor in the Ibex35 by investment volume is BlackRock, the largest fund manager of the world. As and how to publish The Economistits commitment to the Spanish stock market extends to a total of 20 companies in the Spanish selective, with stakes greater than 1% in each of them, which together reach 41,308 million euros, which is equivalent to 3.7% of the entire capitalization of the Ibex. Its presence is especially relevant in large Spanish banks, with notable stakes in the capital of Banco Sabadell (with 8,199%), BBVA (7,158%), Banco Santander (6,861%), Bankinter (5,910%) and CaixaBank (4,980%). Its assets in Santander alone are already estimated to be worth more than 10,277 million euros. However, like Ortega, BlackRock is committed to diversifying its investments, with a notable presence in the shareholding of energy companies such as Iberdrola (6,254%) and Enagás (7,427%). The State, third shareholder of the Spanish stock market. The public presence in the Ibex35 is channeled through several instruments. The State Society of Industrial Participations (SEPI), Enaire and the Fund for Orderly Bank Restructuring (FROB) are the main investment vehicles that the Spanish Government uses to participate in large companies listed companies, especially those with strategic interest such as energy, communications or banking. In total, the State’s investments in the selective are valued at around 37,147 million euros. Among its most relevant positions, SEPI owns 10% at Telefónica20% in Redeia, 27.99% in Indra and 5% in Enagás, while the FROB controls 16.177% of CaixaBank and Enaire holds 51% of Aena. The latter, the stake in the airport manager, is one of the most valuable in the public portfolio, given the strong Aena stock market performance in recent years. In Xataka | With his profits from Inditex, Amancio Ortega has become something: the biggest real estate magnate on the planet Image | GTRES, Unsplash (Jakub Zerdzicki)

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