plant

If something did not need the Ukraine War it was to enliven the conflict in an occupied nuclear power plant. Russia thinks different

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The paradox of the largest nuclear power plant in Europe is that it has been closed for three years and everyone wants to “open.” Without going far, the United States was the last nation to hint that it would be delighted to restart her. The problem is that it is in Ukraine, although Taken by Russiaand in the middle of a war whose end does not stick. Moscow knows that he has an energy pressure tool, but some satellite images have revealed much more. The space betrays. The story took this week The New York Times. Through new satellite images analyzed by Greenpeace and verified by the American environment, it has been revealed that Russia is building more than 80 kilometers of electric lines in the south busy of Ukraine with the aim of connecting the Zaporiyia nuclear plant to its own energy network. Covert reopening. This maneuver, until now without Russian official confirmation, represents the clearest signal until the intention of Moscow’s intention to reactivate and exploit the largest central in Europe, forcibly in the first bars of the invasion. Although its six reactors were gradually turned off (the last in 2023) for security reasons and due to nearby fightingRussia seems determined to return it to operationchallenging the warnings of international experts that consider that operating it under these conditions would be a nuclear risk first order. The Russian Plan seeks surround the current damage In the old 750 kilowol lines that connected the central with the Ukrainian network, two of which are going through areas under Kyiv control, and two others that have been useless or deteriorated by the war. Unprecedented use. If specified, this would be the First time in history in that a power at war restarts and uses an occupied nuclear plant for its own energy benefit. Russia, through the state Rosatom, has openly shown Your ambition: its general director He said recently that the dream of reactivating Zaporiyia is still alive and that there is already a technical plan to return the plant to full capacity. The Russian intention does not seem to maintain territorial control of the complex, but to integrate it directly into the national electricity network, possibly and According to the Timesconnecting it with the Russian region of Rostov, which would require even more infrastructure. As we said at the beginning, the United States proposed a peace plan that included the return of the plant to Ukraine under international management (specifically American), In an attempt to avoid its use as a geopolitical tool. Russia He rejected sharply said option. Various risks. No doubt, we don’t talk about simply pressing the “ignition” button. In fact, the possibility of reactivating the central has awakened alarms Among nuclear experts. Since his shot, much of the Ukrainian technical staff has fled, leaving the plant No qualified operators. In addition, the Kajovka dam hole months ago (widely attributed to Russia), it eliminated the main source of water from the reactor refrigeration system and spent fuel, raising thermal and fusion risks in case of a failure. For its part, the Minister of Energy of Ukraine He warned that any Russian unilateral attempt to restart reactors could have unpredictable consequences. To all this is added The possibility of sabotage, military attacks or operational failures in a plant already located in an active combat zone. The consequences of a nuclear escape would not be limited to the region: the impact on the environment, human health and the energy stability of Europe would be unpredictable (and possibly devastating). A high voltage piece. As we have coming countingthe status of the Zaporiyia plant has become a power sheet in the peace negotiations. While Russia progresses (slowly) in her Technical reconnectionThe United States and its allies press to include their status in the terms of any future solution. The satellite images Recent, which reveal transmission lines advancing near the town of Shevchenko and towards a key substation linked to the complex, confirm that Moscow not only wants to retain control, but to turn the plant into a Active source of energy for your network. If you want also, snapshots from space reveal a deeper strategy: to consolidate the economic and energy control of the territories occupied as part of a Possible post -stroke. However, any attempt by Moscow to reactivate the plant without international consensus not only defies the rules of war law, but also brings us an unpublished threshold of nuclear insecurity. Image | Planet Labs, Via Greenpeace In Xataka | The largest nuclear power plant in Europe has been closed by the war in Ukraine. Now the United States wants to reopen In Xataka | We already know a hole that Russia has left in Ukraine: the Chernobil shield is still open and there is no money to close it

Europe has finished its spectacular cryogenic plant

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The cover photography of this article was taken just a month ago in the vicinity of ITER (International Thermonuclear Experctor reactor), The experimental reactor of nuclear fusion that an international consortium led by Europe is building in the French town of Cadarache. What we see in this image is A cryogenization plantand it is a fundamental installation to bring this very complex machine to fruition. It is paradoxical that Iter needs an extreme cooling plant. The plasma confined in your vacuum camera which will contain the deuterium and tritium nuclei that will intervene in the fusion reaction will reach a temperature of at least 150 million degrees Celsius, so a priori may seem strange that an installation is expressly designed to generate an extreme cold. But it is not. It has all the meaning of the world if we keep in mind that superconductor magnets, Creobombs and thermal shields need to reach a temperature of up to -269 degrees Celsius. Iter’s cryogenic plant is an engineering prodigy The superconductor magnets placed on the outside of the vacuum chamber of this nuclear fusion reactor have the responsibility of generating the magnetic field necessary to confine plasma inside. They are also responsible for controlling and stabilizing it. These magnets weigh 10,000 tons and are manufactured in an alloy of niobio and tin, or niobio and titanium, which acquires the superconductivity when cools with a supercritical helium until reaching a temperature of -269 ºC. Superconductor magnets acquire superconductivity when they reach a temperature of -269 ºC This requirement justifies the need to put a powerful cooling system like the one that has devised Europe for Iter. In the construction of this experimental nuclear fusion reactor, the US, Russia, China, India, South Korea, Japan and the United Kingdom are also involved, but the Cryogenization Plant has been commissioned by Fusion for Energy (F4E), the organization of the European Union that coordinates Europe’s contribution to Iter developmentthe French company Air Liquide and technicians integrated in the structure of Iter. In this photograph we can see the nitrogen compressors installed in the Iter cryogenic plant. This extreme refrigeration installation will be responsible for supplying liquid helium to 4.5 Kelvin (-269 ° C) to superconductor magnets and criobombs, and also gaseous helium at 80 Kelvin (-193 ºC) to thermal shields. Creobombs are empty ultraalt devices that are responsible for eliminating gases inside the vacuum chamber. In order to do so, they must work at an extremely low temperature. And, on the other hand, the thermal shields are responsible for protecting some critical elements of the reactor, such as superconductor magnets, the heat that emits the confined plasma inside the vacuum chamber. Iter’s cryogenic plant has an area similar to that of a football field (just over 7,100 m²) and contains several 26 -meter high storage tanks. These figures help us intuit how enormous this critical installation is. As we just checked, Without it, nuclear fusion would be absolutely impossible. This Grigory Kouzmenko statementF4E manager, invites us to tie Iter’s future with a reasonable optimism: “We have entered the most exciting phase of the project, in which all the efforts of previous years finally are specified and we can benefit from the collaboration based on the confidence between all the parties.” Images | Fusion for Energy More information | Fusion for Energy In Xataka | From today Spain has the key to nuclear fusion: Granada’s particle accelerator is already a reality

The digital attack that paralyzed a nuclear plant without bombs and without anyone seeing it

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More than a decade ago, the world discovered a new type of weapon. I had no eyes or soldiers. Only lines of code. It was called Stuxnet and was able to sabotage an Iranian nuclear complex without internet connection. A computer worm that destroyed centrifuging designed to enrich uranium. Without alerts. No explosions. Without anyone knowing, at first, what was happening. All that we tell in our New Xataka episode presentsAvailable in the Xataka YouTube channel. Our partner Jota García, who reconstructs step by step how an operation of this caliber is told. The story starts in Natanz, an underground installation, hidden under tons of concrete in full Iranian desert. “From the outside it seems not special (…) but underground, thousands of centrifuging work work in full performance,” he says. Who decided to act? And why wasn’t a direct military intervention chosen? Apparently, with Iraq’s precedent, that road was ruled out by the country that wanted to stop this Iranian project. The alternative was Develop malware With a concrete mission: destroy without being seen. “And if instead of attacking with soldiers, we attack a computer virus?” Jota says. The trick? Infiltrate a simple pendrive in a completely isolated network. Once inside, the worm camouflaged. I watched. I expected. And only if I found the right industrial controllers, I went to action. “He didn’t attack immediately. He moved silently, analyzing everything around him.” Thus he managed to sabotage about a thousand centrifugators without the technicians being able to explain what he was failing. But there was an error. Malware spread out of Iran and ended up arriving in the West. What happened then? Who discovered the code? And what did they find inside? In the video we review how an investigation of The New York Times connected Stuxnet with the NSA, the CIA and the Mossad. Also the clues that analysts found in malware. “Stuxnet exploded four 0-Day vulnerabilities at the same time. An irrefutable proof that there was not a group of normal hackers.” Since then, nothing has been the same. Stuxnet was the first great digital attack with physical consequences. “Stuxnet was the first notice. The first great warning that the next wars can be invisible. ” Today, security threats are still present. We see them in hospitals paralyzed by Ransomware, sabotaged pipelines, In bank malware that empties accounts. Even USB pendrives remain a real threat in many organizations. Did you know this story? To what extent do you think We are protected today? We invite you to give the play in our video and leave your comments. Images | Xataka In Xataka | This hacker began to collaborate with the secret service after being arrested. What nobody knew is that he kept stealing big

Hyundai aims to automate 40% of his new plant in the US. THE KEY TO GET IT: ATLAS HUMANoid Robots

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Robots have been in the automobile industry for decades. They have welded, pressed and assembled pieces without rest. But despite that long career, many tasks were still in human hands. That is starting to change. Robots are less and less clumsy: They are more skilled, more versatile and, most importantly, much cheaper to manufacture. And that opens the door to a new phase. Hyundai wants to be in charge of that change. On your new plant HMGMA (Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America), located on the outskirts of Savannah (Georgia, USA), the company has proposed to automate 40% of the vehicle assembly process before the end of 2025. According to Nikkei Asiathe objective is to transform this factory into an intelligent environment, where artificial intelligence and data are key from logistics to the final assembly. A connected and flexible ecosystem. The plant is designed not only as a assembly line, but as a demonstration of everything Hyundai is able to do with technology. The brand defines it as “a highly connected, automated and flexible manufacturing system”, prepared to adapt to changes in demand and optimize each phase of the process. That is why it is no coincidence that starts focused on the production of electric and hybrid vehicles, with an estimated initial capacity of 100,000 units a year, which will grow to 500,000 when it is at full performance. The Metaplant aspires to become one of the referents of the automobile industry of the present and the future. Atlas enters the scene. In that technological deployment, the focus is on a very concrete protagonist: Atlas, Boston Dynamics’s humanoid robot. It is not any robot. It is a completely electric model, designed to move as a human and work in the same space as humans. Atlas is the successor of the famous hydraulic model that we saw mortal somersaults. But this time, the approach is another. It is prepared to lift heavy objects, install parts and adapt to what happens around you in real time. Hyundai describes it As a robot with “athletic intelligence”, and that translates into sensors, algorithms and a structure designed for complex tasks that one person could only do. Boston Dynamics is already part of the Hyundai group. This movement makes sense because Boston Dynamics is not just any partner: It is part of the Hyundai group since 2021. Since the company was made, the South Korean firm has been integrating its technology within its vision of “progress for humanity.” A vision that includes autonomous cars, urban air mobility, robotics in logistics and, of course, new ways of manufacturing. Boston Dynamics has been working with biped and quadruped robots for years, and now faces the challenge of taking them to the commercial field. If Atlas works in this plant, it will mark a before and after. Because it is no longer just impressing in a viral video: it is about a robot being useful and productive on a large scale. What tasks will the robots perform? Hyundai has not detailed all the works that Atlas will assume, but, according to the aforementioned Asian newspaper, it has confirmed some: move heavy objects, install doors in vehicles and collaborate in physical tasks that require strength and precision. The objective is clear: to free human operators from repetitive or demanding works. Now, that does not mean that Atlas is just as agile as an expert operator. For now, it is not. Just see some assembly line videos To ask ourselves if robots will be as skilled as humans. Atlas will not be the only one in the plant. They will also deploy The well -known spotdog -shaped robots that also manufactures Boston Dynamics. Its function will be to monitor production lines, inspect bodies and identify possible structural defects. And next to you they will live more classic automation systems: welding robots, presses and heavy machinery. A context marked by the tariff war. This deployment does not happen in a vacuum. It arrives in the middle of the commercial war between the United States and China. The administration Trump has imposed a 145% tariff To many products from China and maintains a base rate of 10% for most commercial partners, including South Korea. That is why Hyundai has decided to bet on American territory. Has announced An investment of 21,000 million dollars in the United States over the next four years. A strategy that seeks to protect its position in the North American market and, at the same time, gain margin of maneuver against geopolitical uncertainty. Of course, automating more does not necessarily mean hiring more. Hyundai’s expansion is accompanied by strong robotization. And that raises questions about employment. Will less operators be hired? Will new roles emerge within factories? The advance is indisputable, although it does not guarantee new jobs. Images | Hyundai In Xataka | Duolingo inaugurates a new era: when human talent is no longer essential

In 2028 they will build a nuclear power plant on the moon

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Yuri Ivanovich Borísov, former Vice Minister of Defense of Russia and currently at the head of Roscosmos, the Russian Space Agency, confirmed in March 2024 that China and the country led by Vladimir Putin planned to install a nuclear reactor on the surface of the moon. Russia’s long experience in the development of nuclear infrastructure is beyond doubt. And China, although it has later reached this industry, has scientific capacity and resources necessary to get airy. Its plan is to have the International Lunar Research Station (known as Ilrs for its acronym in English). Russia and China will operate it jointly, but for this installation to come to fruition it is essential to develop an energy source that guarantees a stable and sustained supply over time. This is the need that precisely aims to solve these two nations building A small nuclear power plant On the lunar surface. The starting gun will arrive in 2028 Pei Zhaoyu, the chief engineer of the Chang’e-8 mission, has confirmed This week how relevant Russia’s participation is in this project: “An important issue for the Ilrs is the energy supply. In this field Russia has a natural advantage because in regard to nuclear facilities, and especially sending them to space, leads the world even ahead of the US.” The Chang’e-8 mission will give the authentic departure gun to this very ambitious program. The International Lunar Research Station will be permanently inhabited from 2030 And it is that China plans to launch it in 2028 with a double purpose: initiate the preparation of the lunar base that will be permanently inhabited from 2030 and explore the construction of the nuclear reactor that will be responsible for the main delivery of energy to the station. As we have seen some lines up, both facilities They should be finished in 2035. Interestingly, the Chinese government has not yet officialized its approval of this plan, but the statements of Pei Zhaoyu corroborate that The collaboration of Russia and China is already underway. In any case, the country’s nuclear scientists led by Xi Jinping already have a preliminary design of their nuclear reactor ready. And it has some novel features. To elaborate it have been inspired by both NASA’s design and the old Soviet nuclear reactor Topaz-II. Your proposal will use Fuel bars Ring -shaped uranium dioxide; A double cooling system that will use liquid metal (NAK-78), and that, on paper, will be able to maintain the reactor core below 600 ºC; And finally, a moderator of Ititrio hydride neutrons that according to Chinese technicians is more efficient than conventional zirconium hydride moderators. Meanwhile the US is preparing His return to the moon through the NASA Artemis program. Its purpose is to place two astronauts on the lunar surface in 2027 and start from this milestone the construction of a sustainable lunar base. This installation will have large solar panels, but photovoltaic energy It is not enough to ensure supply Because on the moon the night endures for between fourteen and fifteen terrestrial days. For this reason The US is also developing a nuclear reactor known as FISION SURFACE POWER (FSP) that will be able to deliver 40 kW of power. Image | China National Space Administration More information | Interesting Engineering In Xataka | We are building nuclear spacecraft again. NASA believes we will need them

They only needed sun and plant waste

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After staying the practically empty gas reserves, Europe is trying to find a way to reach November with the fully controlled situation and Without relying on Russia. To do this, he has put his goal to import gas from USA either Accept an offer from Chinabut, perhaps, the key is closer than they imagine: in Extremadura. A pioneer gas plant. A year ago The construction began of a 100% renewable natural gas pioneer center in myjadas, Extremadura. This project, developed by the German company Turn2X, will begin operating in May. Totally renewable. The myjadas plant will use a technology known as Power To Gas (P2G). This process consists of combining green hydrogen – obtained by water electrolysis with renewable energy – with biogenic carbon dioxide – proceeds of the decomposition of plant waste or biomass. By together both elements through the reaction of Sabatier, high purity synthetic methane gas is obtained. This synthetic natural gas, created without resorting to fossil sources, has been successfully tested in the Extremadura gas distribution network, According to the newspaper. But let’s not confuse. Although in Spain there are already several plants that They generate biomethanea renewable gas obtained by decomposing organic waste, the case of myjadas goes further. While the conventional biomethane captures the gas generated during the decomposition of waste, this new project does not start from organic matter. Methane is synthesized from scratch by the combination already described, which opens a new route for renewable gas production. The choice of Extremadura. Although the project is not exempt from challenges for The cost of green hydrogen and large -scale production, the choice of Extremadura as an epicenter responds To the numerous sunny hours which offers the territory. In addition, as the German company has detailed, regional agencies have proposed investments and aid throughout the process. Going further with hydrogen. The great bet of Spain and Europe is being green hydrogen. Specifically, in Spain It is positioning himself As one of the great players in this sector, with projects such as the H2Med, a corridor that will connect the Iberian Peninsula with France and Germany to transport renewable hydrogen. Turn2x initiative is significant, since it demonstrates how green hydrogen can go beyond its use in the industry and become a key raw material for other energy sources, such as renewable natural gas. Spain is not only betting on green hydrogen: it is transforming it into concrete solutions. And Extremadura is, today, one of his most promising laboratories. The implementation of this plant not only validates a disruptive technology, but demonstrates that the country can lead the transition to a renewable natural gas, less dependent and more sustainable. Image | Turn2x Xataka | An island in Japan has revolutionized its vehicles. They have turned cow droppings into hydrogen fuel

It was an abandoned nuclear power plant. Now he has a second life as the most silent acoustic laboratory on the planet

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Two gigantic cooling towers of almost 150 meters high flank what clearly seems to be a nuclear power plant in a rural Washington area. It is actually the acoustic laboratory NWAA Labs, one of the most silent buildings on the planet. An abandoned nuclear power plant. The laboratory was built on the vestiges of a pharaonic project that never saw the light, the nuclear washington Projects of Elma. Plants 3 and 5, part of what was intended to be the largest nuclear energy complex in the United States, were abandoned in the 80s without fissting a single atom. Designed to resist all kinds of impacts and earthquakes, the structures would have been extremely expensive to demolish, so the NWAA Labs adapted to them. The reactor is the reverberation chamber, the turbine room is the anecoic chamber and the old reactor control room is the laboratory control room. The facilities, still marked, remain a “disturbing” maze. The ideal facilities. The NWAA Labs is a project by Ron Sauro, an electrical and mechanical engineer formed in Stanford that combined its beginnings in NASA with being the keyboardist of the group The Rivieras, authors of a gold record in 1963. After a life designing sound systems, Sauro saw the unique potential of this nuclear power plant abandoned to bombing proof. The outer structure, with walls of 1.5 meters thick and eight layers of reinforcement bars, is designed to support an earthquake of magnitude 10 and the direct impact of an explosion of 10 megatons on its roof. The interior structure is isolated from the surrounding terrain by a ditch that minimizes the transmission of vibrations and noise. In another ditch within this, a circular and steel circular container is erected, originally intended for the nuclear reactor. The entire installation rests on a sandstone layer of more than 3,000 meters thick. An almost absolute silence. Thanks to these structures, the NWAA Labs presumes to have the two largest reverberation cameras in the world. Salas where the sound bounces up to 28 seconds without absorbent material, which allows to measure the sound power of a source or the absorption capacity of a material. In addition to the reverberation cameras, the laboratory has anechoic cameras designed to absorb sound and simulate a space without reflections. In these rooms, silence is almost absolute. The background noise is -43 dB (below the human hearing threshold). In the old turbine room, 198 meters long by 106 wide by 24 high, the reflections take so long to arrive (more than 160 ms) that do not interfere with some measurements. Who uses this laboratory. The NWAA Labs performs tests for the audio industry. The speakers are 20% of their business: over here more than 3,000 speakers of some 300 professional brands and high fidelity have passed. But it is also offered to other industries, which prove construction materials, acoustic insulation here, and even noisy washing machines or aircraft cabins. The laboratory also attracts musicians, video game and filmmakers, fascinated by their acoustics and post-apocalyptic aesthetics. Image | Walter Siegmund (CC By 2.5)

The largest nuclear power plant in Europe has been closed by the war in Ukraine. Now the United States wants to reopen

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At the beginning of the Ukraine War, the first thing the Russian Army did It was taking control of the largest nuclear power plant in Europe: Zaporiyia. During these three years, the Kremlin has established a military base and has been the objective of attacksso it has remained closed. Recently, the United States has decided to reopen this booty. Your part of the cake. There was no agreement with any of the two parties around To the rare earthsnow the focus is positioned in the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. In a telephone call, Trump suggested to Zelenski that the United States could help to manage, and possibly possess, Ukraine nuclear energy plants, according to a statement by the US presidential administration to which which has had access Reuters. All this to guarantee the energy security of Ukraine. The problem with “property.” From the same medium They have pointed out that the problem came with the word: “property.” The Ukrainian president has revealed that he would have no problem that the US investing money, only in the Zaporiyia nuclear power plant to rebuild it once again recover it. However, reject in a resounding way Give the central because they do not want to lose energy sovereignty in the country. A strategic central. The control of the largest nuclear power plant in Europe has reinforced Moscow’s power over the region, making it an energy pressure tool. According to The Washington PostRussian Foreign Minister has declared that the transfer of the central to any other nation is “impossible”, a position that highlights the strategic importance. A great loss for Ukraine. The largest nuclear plant in Europe is a great booty of war. In fact, for the nation of Zelensky it has meant a very large loss, since before the occupation it represented 20% of the country’s electrical production, such as They have reported in The Washington Post. In addition, the Ukrainian nation is now forced to allocate its limited resources to avoid a nuclear crisis. However, since the Russian occupation it has remained closed. Security problems From the closure of the plant, both parties They have accused mutually bombarding her repeatedly, so they had to close it for the risk of attacks and the growing concern for the integrity of cooling systems. Until today, the nuclear power plant has not produced energy again and has been negatively reflected in the Ukrainian electricity network. Can it be reactivated? The central was operated by Energoatom a Ukrainian public society. Its executive director, Petro Kotin, has warned in an interview for The Guardian on the problems that exist safely restart the Zaporiyia nuclear power plant. The senior executive stressed that there is a lack of trained personnel, the damage to infrastructure and the insufficiency of cooling water, after the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam in 2023 reduced access to the water of the Dnieper river. In an assumption that Ukraine recovered control of the central, Kotin explained that the restart process would take a long time between two months and two years, depending on the state of the nuclear plant. Moscow’s position. Russia has made it clear that it has no intention of giving control of the Zaporiyia plant and has plans to reactivate the plant, but it has not yet specified when it would happen. According to The Washington Postthe future of the Zaporiyia plant remains one of the main challenges that will define not only the energy balance of the region, but also the course of the Ukraine War. Image | DPA Germany Xataka | A Russian drone has opened one of the greatest engineering works. The problem: it was the sarcophagus of Chernobil reactor 4

TSMC always said that making chips in the US was more expensive than doing it in Taiwan. His Arizona plant denies it

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Morris Chang is not infallible. No one is. This veteran Taiwanese engineer formed in the US is One of the most respected experts in the global semiconductor industry. After all, he founded TSMC at a historic moment, 1987, in which Taiwan occupied a very discreet position in the integrated circuit production market. His cunning is undeniable. After all, objectively has made very successful decisions at the head of TSMC. However, their forecasts are not always accurate. And is that on several occasions He has pointed out publicly That the production costs of their plants located outside of Taiwan will double in the future, which will have a direct impact on the price of the chips. This increase is a consequence of the increase in the price of energy, of the cost derived from workers’ salaries and the impact that inflation is having on the price of essential raw materials. Processing a wafer in Arizona costs TSMC less than 10% more than doing it in Taiwan In mid -April 2024 CC Wei, the executive who at that time held the reins of TSMC, clarified Morris Chang’s statements anticipating that the increase in costs derived from the manufacture of integrated avant -garde circuits in the plants that the company has outside of Taiwan would be assumed by both TSMC and its customers: “If my client wants to manufacture in a specific area (outside of Taiwan) then definitely TSMC and the client himself will have to share the increase in costs (…) We are already discussing it with our customers.” The performance of a lithographic node is crucial because it reflects its valid chip production capacity Chang and Wei’s statements have caused many analysts in the integrated circuit industry to follow the steps that this company has in Phoenix (Arizona) very closely. This avant -garde chips factory We were surprised in October 2024 When Rick Cassidy, the president of the TSMC American division, confirmed that its initial production performance had surpassed that of the comparable factories that TSMC has in Taiwan. The performance of a lithographic node is crucial because it reflects its valid chip production capacity, so that a high performance has a very beneficial impact on the competitiveness of semiconductor manufacturers. What was not yet clear was if the cost derived from the production of these semiconductors was perceptibly higher than that of comparable chips manufactured in Taiwan. Now an interesting report of Techinsightsthe respected Canadian analysis company that revealed that Huawei and SMIC had managed to produce Integrated 7 Nm circuitsshed light on this matter. According to G. Dan Hutcheson, Techinsight’s analyst signed by the article, producing a 300 mm wafer on his new Arizona plant costs TSMC less than 10% more than manufacturing that same wafer in one of its Taiwan facilities. It is explained by something that we should not overlook: the cost derived from labor represents less than 2% of the total cost. Salaries are much higher in the US than in Taiwan, yes, but Chips factories are highly automated. And equip them with the lithography machines that require essentially costs the same in the US and Taiwan. There is no doubt about one thing: they are good news for American customers of TSMC, among which are Apple, Nvidia, AMD or Broadcom. Image | TSMC More information | Techinsights In Xataka | TSMC is willing to take control of Intel chips factories. What you don’t want is to do it alone

We have found a plant capable of producing 40 cannabinoids. A closer plant evolutionarily to lettuce that to hemp

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Cannabinoid compounds are closely related to gender plants Cannabishemp. A relationship that is manifested in the same name of these compounds, among which perhaps the most recognizable are THC (Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol) and the CBD (Cannabidiol). However, this link is not exclusive. The Lanudo umbrella. The Lanudo Umbed (Helichrysum Umbraculigerum) is a plant originally from South Africa that stands out for containing 40 compounds of the cannabinoid familymany of them disconodful so far. This plant belongs to the genre known as paper or helicriso flower, a genus very raised from cannabis, and closer to plants such as sunflowers or lettuce. Beyond the striking of this fact (as contrast, in the plants of the genre Cannabis More than 100 cannabinoid compounds can be found), the team responsible for the analysis indicates that the finding can help us in the development of new therapies linked to these compounds. “We have found an important new source of cannabinoids and developed tools for sustained production, which can help explore its enormous therapeutic potential,” pointed in a press release Shirley (Paula) Berman, member of the team responsible for the finding. Diverse therapies. Although in some contexts we do not have solid evidence of its effectiveness, the therapeutic use of Cannabinoids It has been extending as long as the study of its biochemical and therapeutic properties progresses. A context in which these compounds do highlight is that of the relief of nausea in people in aggressive treatments such as chemotherapy. Other potential uses are in the treatment of pain, anxiety and epilepsy. As explained by the team responsible for the new study, the fact that molecular receptors capable of interacting with these compounds are common in humans and extending beyond our brain throughout the body makes their potential huge. This also explains that your study is so extensive, covering from neurodegenerative diseases to cancer. Synthesizing compounds. If we want to develop treatments through these compounds, understand how they are naturally synthesized in plants is vital. That is why it is relevant to the fact that the team managed to reveal the biochemical process used by the plant in the production of these compounds. In his study, the team used high -resolution mass spectroscopy, with which he identified the Cannabinoids contained in the plant. He combined with nuclear magnetic resonance with the aim of finding the structure of some of the compounds found. From there, the team could reveal the biochemical “path” followed by the plant when it comes to synthesizing these cannabinoids. The details of the process were published In an article In the magazine Nature Plants. CBG. Of the 40 compounds found in the plant, only half a dozen are present in marijuana. In fact, the team points out, neither the THC nor the CBD are present in the Lanudo umbrella. The compound that is common to both plants is the CBG (cannabigerol). From the ritual to the laboratory. The discovery of cannabinoids in this plant is not entirely new. The clues that pointed to this fact date back decades. As explained by the team responsible for the new study, the Lanudo umbrella used to be used in rituals in which he burned to generate “intoxicating” fumes, which encourages us that the tracks were already there. In Xataka | The marijuana paradox: in full legalizing fever, we are increasingly clear than smoking it is harmful Image | Sagit Meir / United States Fish and Wildlife Service

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