planted

Spain planted millions of eucalyptus trees to have cheap wood. 90 years later, we have confirmed that they are a green desert

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If you usually move around the Cantabrian coast, you are surely already familiar with that long and stylized tree that is so abundant in its mountains. However, the eucalyptus already covers 30% of the forest area in areas such as northwest Spain. The omnipresence of the eucalyptus is the result of a forestry policy that started in the 40’s whose main objective was to supply the paper industry: it was cheap, it grew quickly, so it had all the potential to be the ideal candidate to repopulate unproductive forests. Decades later, a scientific study of the University of Santiago de Compostela and the CSIC has put numbers to suspicions: For the fauna, these plantations are almost a desert. The environmental cost of the ubiquitous eucalyptus. This research analyzed 240 areas of native Atlantic forest and eucalyptus forest in the Parque Natural das Fragas do Eume and They found an abysmal difference in richness and abundance of birds. In short: the more eucalyptus there is, the fewer birds live in that area and it is no coincidence. Mature eucalypts cannot replace mature trees as functional habitat and their foliage offers very limited support for birds. The most affected are those that eat insects and those that breed in the holes of old trees, such as the great woodpecker or the great tit. The eucalyptus does not generate enough insects to feed on, it has no undergrowth and it is cut down before it forms the cavities that these birds need to nest. On the less bad side, they have also found a fairly simple solution that does not involve eradicating the eucalyptus: simply letting wild vegetation grow in some areas, without clearing it. Why is it important. Because the role of forest birds is important in the balance of the ecosystem: they regulate insect pests, help in seed dispersal and act as an indicator of environmental health. In fact, the EU Birds Directive 2009/147 obliges member states to conserve bird populations in good condition and this study documents that this obligation is being breached in the most eucalyptus of Galicia and the Cantabrian coast. The situation is more complicated than it seems because already in 2017 the scientific committee of the Ministry for the Ecological Transition recommended include eucalyptus in the Catalog of Invasive Exotic Species in 2017, but the proposal was rejected due to the economy behind it: in Galicia this sector generates 2.5 billion euros annually in wood and paper pulp and employs more than 19,000 people, according to the report A Cadea Forestal-Madeira de Galicia 2025 prepared by XERA. It is a complete conflict of interest. Context. The eucalyptus arrived to the Iberian Peninsula in the 19th century for ornamental and medicinal purposes, but its true boom arrive with the repopulation plans of the Franco regime and the commercial demand for cellulose. Parque Natural das Fragas do Eume, the place where the analysis was carried out, is one of the last remaining coastal Atlantic forests on the Iberian Peninsula. There, eucalyptus plantations are currently the second largest type of forest: 1,340 hectares, only behind the native forest. But the species has already colonized its surroundings. In any case, the problem with eucalyptus trees is not local: in Portugal the eucalyptus already covers more than 800,000 hectares and is the most widespread forest species in the country. according to data from the National Forest Inventory of Portugal prepared by the Instituto da Conservação da Natureza e das Florestas. It is also under scrutiny there due to its relationship with large fires. In fact, on a global scale the scientific community has been documenting for years the impact of eucalyptus on Mediterranean and temperate ecosystems outside its native Australia. In detail. Eucalyptus is a silent killer: it releases chemicals that prevent the growth of other plants under its canopy (allelopathy), which eliminates native shrubs and with them, the insects that feed the birds. Furthermore, since it is cut down every ten or fifteen years, it never ages enough to develop the holes needed for nesting by cave birds such as woodpeckers. The problem does not stay on land: dead eucalyptus leaves release oils and toxic compounds when they reach river courses, harming aquatic insects and amphibians that form the base of the river food chain. Yes, but. The damage to the diversity of the eucalyptus is a reality as undeniable as its socioeconomic importance: it is an economic vector and population fixation in these rural areas and eliminating or restricting its cultivation would have a notable impact in communities where alternatives are not abundant. Hence, the study itself does not call for its eradication, but for something simpler and more practical: leaving strips of vegetation uncut within the plantations so that the native flora can recover and the birds can return. It is a low cost solution that has already proven to be effective in other European contexts. On the other hand, there is the limitation that the study has been carried out in a single forest and is focused on birds. Not all species respond the same. In any case, science does not say that eucalyptus is evil, only that covering 30% of your forests with it has a serious biological toll. In Xataka | The Iberian Peninsula is being invaded: more than 1,200 exotic species have come to stay In Xataka | The Ebro is filling with brown prawns, an invasive species that we are going to find more and more on our plates. Cover | Flickr

Italy planted millions of fir trees to protect the Alps. 90 years later they have discovered that biodiversity has been reduced by half

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The ecologist Aldo Leopold wrote a phrase that would end up defining all modern conservation in 1949: “maintaining each piece is the first rule of ecological intelligence.” He said it decades before science could measure it, but today studies like the one in the Alps Italians demonstrate the extent to which removing pieces of an ecosystem can seem invisible… until generations pass. A forest that seemed like a solution. In the 1930s, Italy by Benito Mussolini He decided that the best way to stabilize the Alps was to cover them with trees. The logic seemed impeccable: stop erosion, ensure wood for the future and display an image of order and national productivity. For this they chose norwegian sprucea fast-growing conifer, straight trunk and profitable wood. Thousands of hectares of alpine meadows and native forests were razed to plant dense, homogeneous rows of this species. For decades, that decision was sold as a forestry engineering success. From afar, those green forests looked healthy. But almost a century later, science has discovered that beneath that appearance a silent impoverishment was hidden. Ninety years later, the ecological bill. The studyled by ecologist Gianalberto Losapio and published in the journal Ecology, analyzed two areas of the Italian Prealps, near Lake Como: Monte Bisbino and Vicere Alp. There, the researchers They compared three habitats Neighbors: spruce plantations, native deciduous forests and traditional alpine grasslands. During five months of field work they identified 136 plant species and 201 arthropod species. The results were devastating. In plantations there was a median of only seven plant species per plot, compared to 18.5 in native forests and 37 in grasslands. Translated: more than 50% less diversity than in natural forests and almost 75% less than in the pastures. The problem of planting only one type of tree. The big mistake was believing that more trees automatically equaled more nature. Monoculture works well to produce wood, but It’s an ecological trap. When a landscape is filled with a single species, complexity disappears, because each plant, insect and microorganism plays a role in the ecosystem. Reducing this variety implies reducing resistance to diseases, pests or extreme phenomena. In the Italian Alps, diverse landscapes were replaced by uniform blocks coniferousand the result was a brutal simplification of the ecological network. What seemed like reforestation ended up being a substitution of biodiversity for productivity. A: Location of the study sites. B: Satellite image of the Monte Bisbino site. C: Satellite image of the Alpe del Vicerè site. Satellite images B and C represent the location of the fixed plots. “SM” = monoculture spruce plantations, “DF” = native deciduous forest and “GR” = grassland (prairie/mountain grassland). Map data: Google, Maxar Technologies Darkness as a silent weapon. The norway spruce It has a key characteristic: it is perennial. While beech, maple or chestnut trees lose their leaves and allow light to reach the ground in spring, the spruce maintains a closed canopy all year round. It is not trivial. In fact, that difference changes everything. Many alpine plants flower precisely in that window of early light, before the forest canopy closes. Under a spruce plantation, that opportunity disappears because the ground remains in constant shade and many species simply cannot survive. That is, it is not an open competition, it is a physical and permanent exclusion. The ground was also transformed. There is more, because the damage did not remain on the surface. Spruce needles acidify the soil as they accumulate over decades. The researchers found 25% more organic carbon in these plantations, although that did not mean greater fertility. It was just the opposite: organic matter decomposed more slowly, a sign of lower biological activity. Not only that. The balance between carbon and nitrogen also I was upsetindicating slower and less efficient nutrient cycling. In simple terms, the forest continued to accumulate remains because the system had lost the capacity to recycle them. It was a stuck ecosystem. A poorer and more fragile forest. Beyond the number of species, scientists measured something even more important: the “functional uniformity”that is, how ecological roles are distributed within the plant community. In spruce plantations, this index was 30% lower than in natural forests. That means less balance and more vulnerability. It’s not just that there are fewer species, but rather that entire functions within the system are missing. Some niches were left empty and many ecological jobs stopped being done. In other words, the forest is still there, but it works worse. It didn’t even create a new ecosystem. The researchers of the study said that one of the most revealing findings was verifying that these plantations they did not generate a new community adapted to the spruce. In fact, no specialized boreal species appeared nor a new equilibrium built. No, what they found was a version mutilated of the original forest: the same species as always, but less numerous and diverse. The spruce did not bring new life, it simply eroded what already existed. The insects resisted better, but with nuances. The only less alarming data appeared in the soil arthropods. Its diversity barely varied between plantations and natural forests. Reasons? Scientists believe that this due to their mobility and their ability to move between nearby habitats. Be that as it may, even here there is caution among experts. Soil chemistry suggests that microbial activity and the finer network of underground life have also changed, although they were not directly measured. The surface may give an image of partial recovery, but the subsoil continues to tell another story. The global lesson that comes too late. If you also want, what happened in Italy is not a historical rarity. Today, a good part of the global reforestation commitments continue exactly this model: plant quickly, cheaply and uniformly to meet climatic and accounting objectives. According to previous studies cited by the authorshalf of the areas committed to forest restoration in the world are monocultures of non-native species. Although it is an efficient formula in the short term … Read more

He planted 16,000 trees and turned it into an anti-rich sanctuary

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What of send everything to fry asparagus and go live on an island It is something that, more or less, has occurred to everyone. Now, whether you do it is another thing. If we talk about buying an island, the circle is already closed to a few and although the story we are going to tell is not from today and does not have current prices, the reality is that the 8,000 pounds that Brendon Grimshaw paid for the small island of Moyenne in 1962 (approximately 200,000 pounds today, about 230,000 euros) they gave him to buy almost three houses in his native Britain. He would have had real estate to speculate on, but the world would not have the Moyenne National Park. But let’s start at the beginning. Brendon Grimshaw was a British journalist who, after starting his career in popular newspapers such as the Batley News and the Sheffield Star in his native country, moved to Africa, where worked in important media such as the East African Standard magazine or the Tanganyika Standard. At the age of 37, he made a drastic decision: he was on vacation in the Seychelles when he made the decision to acquire an island of just nine hectares. Why buy an island? There are those who say that more than a vacation, he was looking for a purpose in life: to demonstrate his peace and love for nature. The BBC mentions “protect Moyenne from excessive urban development” as its initial objective, but it must be said that Until 1973 he continued working as a journalist and visiting the island on vacation. From that date on, he said goodbye to his profession and moved there to create a natural paradise that would last over time. The Sheychelles were beginning to emerge as a tourist destination and although it was abandoned, it would be a matter of time before someone arrived and set up a resort. And he changed Moyenne from top to bottom. The island had not been inhabited for half a century, except for a family of fishermen, and was in a scruffy state as a result of negligence and excessive human intervention: impenetrable thickets where invasive species reigned, as he himself says in the documentary. A Grain of Sand (which before it was a book). Note: globally the concept of environmentalism and care for the environment was being forged and was beginning to take off (the first “Earth Day” dates back to 1970). He was not alone in this mission: he worked hand in hand with the local René Antoine Lafortunea 19-year-old young man from that family of fishermen. Throwing everything away and setting up a five-star hotel is much easier than restoring an ecosystem, something that It took him a lifetime, literally.because Grimshaw died in 2012. René died younger, in 2007, leaving Brendon as a true Robinson Crusoe for five years. A restoration plan that took a lifetime Its areas of action can be divided into three: massive reforestation with native species, tackling the rat infestation and introducing some infrastructure. In A Grain of Sand narrates how the undergrowth was so thick that a coconut that fell from a tree did not reach the ground and that only four tall native trees remained that stood out, counted for the BBC in an interview. So planted by hand more than 16,000 trees of species such as mahogany, palm trees and other endemic species that had disappeared from the island. In the documentary he tells how the silence impacted him due to the absence of fauna: the absence of native fruit trees and the dense layer of scrub made it not an attractive place for birds, which are looking for a nesting place with food and safety. The reintroduction of native species and the restoration of the flora attracted more than 200 species of birds. Grimshaw also explained that when he arrived, there were also no giant tortoises that are now emblematic of the island: he introduced and bred Aldabra giant tortoises (Aldabrachelys gigantea) from other islands of the archipelago, which he later marked to continue their growth. Today there are more than 120 copies. Less striking but also very useful was that They built almost five kilometers of trails to improve accessibility. Practically with pick and shovel. In the 1980s, offers flooded in to buy the island, including that of a Saudi prince, who is said to have offered up to $50 million. Brendon Grimshaw’s response did not give rise to negotiations: “the island is not for sale“. The former journalist was getting older and had no children, so in 2009 and when Lafortune had already died, he arranged for the government of the Seychelles will declare to Moyenne as the Moyenne Island National Park to find legal protection for the island and its preservation. Today Moyenne has an essential biological importance for the Sheychelles archipelago: it serves as a seed bank and refuge for species, since while other islands are plagued with resorts, there there are no shops, restaurants or hotelshardly a basic restaurant for those taking an excursion to the island from neighboring islands such as Mahe. In Xataka | An atoll in the South Pacific has become a magnet for millionaires. Its great attraction is not its beaches, it is its banks In Xataka | A billionaire bought an island in Hawaii for himself and his friends. So the locals had to leave Cover | Jean-Francis Martin and documentary A Grain of Sand on YouTube

Wind turbines planted in the middle of the ocean were a maintenance challenge. Until the scanner drone appeared

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Until very recently, performing a “health check” on an offshore wind turbine was a complex, slow and, above all, expensive logistical process. The industry standard dictated that to inspect the blades, the turbines had to come to a complete stop while specialized technicians traveled by boat to perform manual inspections. This practice represents a direct interruption in the generation of clean energy and loss of income for operators. However, this scenario has changed thanks to Danish startup Quali Drone, which has successfully completed the first contactless drone inspection of a fully operational offshore wind turbine. The landmark in the Baltic Sea. The setting for this advance has been the Rødsand 2 offshore wind farm, operated by RWE since 2010 off the coast of Denmark. There, the AQUADA-GO project team showed that it is possible for a large drone to fly autonomously at a short distance from the blades while they rotate at high speed. As detailed by RWEthe solution has gone from a laboratory experiment to an operational concept successfully demonstrated in real offshore conditions. “We have shown that it is possible to inspect offshore wind turbines with a drone equipped with a visual camera while the turbine is operational,” says Jesper Smit, CEO of Quali Drone. More in depth. To operate in the hostile conditions of the sea, no conventional equipment has been used. The drone is an advanced hardware platform designed for high-precision missions. State-of-the-art sensors: The drone is equipped with high-resolution cameras, infrared thermography and artificial vision systems. Autonomy and precision: It uses mission planning software and an online data infrastructure that allows the drone to track the movement of the blades autonomously. Digital Twins: The technology employs “Digital Twins” to document errors and ensure reports meet industry standards. Subsurface Inspection: Unlike traditional optical methods, this system can scan the internal layers to find damage that is not visible from the outside. Beyond the drone: what the human eye cannot see. The drone is not limited to taking photographs; It is an advanced diagnostic platform. As Xiao Chen explainsassociate professor at DTU (Technical University of Denmark), have developed artificial intelligence models that use algorithms deep learning to identify anomalies. This “digital brain” is capable of detecting everything from surface erosion to internal structural fractures through the use of thermography. Additionally, the AI ​​model learns with every flight: each inspection feeds the system with new data, making it smarter and more accurate each time it is deployed at a wind farm. A paradigm shift. This breakthrough is not just a technical feat; It has profound economic and environmental implications. According to Energy Cluster Denmarkthe impact of the AQUADA-GO project is summarized in compelling figures: Cost reduction: Savings in inspections of at least 50% are estimated in the future. Energy efficiency: By not stopping the turbines, green electricity production is maximized and the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) is reduced by 2% to 3%. Safety and Climate: The risk for workers is reduced by avoiding the deployment of ships and technicians at height, also cutting CO₂ emissions associated with maintenance by between 30% and 50%. Economic driver: This technology is expected to generate between 33 and 55 new full-time jobs and increase the revenue of the companies involved by up to 230 million Danish crowns after commercialization. Towards a smart wind industry. What started as scientific research in Denmark is today a “market-ready commercial solution”, in the words of Jesper Smit. The ability to monitor blade health continuously and without interruption could be the missing piece to make offshore wind energy even more competitive and safer. Image | RWE Xataka | Northern Europe has launched itself into offshore wind. The problem is that there are countries that ‘thieve’ wind

Cloudflare is planted in Italy due to blockades. In Spain, the conflict with LaLiga points to the same underlying problem

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We are witnessing firsthand how what began as an offensive against unauthorized party broadcasts has transformed into something much broader, a dispute over who can decide which parts of the internet are turned off and how. In Italy and Spain, judicial and administrative resolutions that apply current legislation are endorsing or ordering measures that operate at the network level, measures that, as they are now being applied, may not distinguish between an infringing service and legitimate services that share infrastructure. This scenario has brought to the fore cloudflarea company whose name has been sneaking into the technology conversation for some time. Here we must be clear. What unites the cases of Italy and Spain is not the type of content, but the logic that supports them: to stop the unauthorized dissemination of matches, it has been decided to act where the network becomes vulnerable, in the intermediaries that connect the public with the servers. It is not a button in the hands of a government, but rather a fit between laws, judges or regulators, rights holders and different actors who execute the measure. That strategy allows you to block quickly and with massive range, but it also has collateral damage. Behind every block there is a clear sequence. In Spain, LaLiga takes its requests before a judge and it is the courts that authorize the operators to execute the cuts. In Italy, rights holders enter domains and IPs into Piracy Shield and it is AGCOMthe Italian telecommunications and media regulator, who reviews these signs and converts them into administrative orders that providers must apply. When an authority orders a block, it is not simply saying “close this page”, it is choosing at what point in the journey the connection between the user and the server is interrupted, according to the limits established by current legislation. This can be done by preventing the website name from being translated into a technical address, directly blocking that address, or asking an intermediary to stop serving the data. In this invisible journey there is a particularly sensitive piece, the system that translates website names into technical addresses that computers can understand. Every time we type a URL or tap a link, a DNS resolver responds with the correct IP so the connection can be established. If this translation is interrupted, the page is no longer accessible even if the server continues to function. That is why DNS has become a very attractive lever for blocking, because it allows access to be cut off quickly and without directly touching the content. What is 1.1.1.1 and why is it in the center. Among the many DNS services that exist, there are some open to the public that do not belong to any national operator, and the best known is 1.1.1.1, managed by Cloudflare. It serves as a widely used public DNS resolver that users and applications use to translate domain names into IP addresses. That scale is what makes it especially sensitive in this debate, because any intervention on it is not limited to a country or a specific network, but can have much broader effects. A modem with network cables The company explains For years it has been able to comply with court orders that force it to act on specific clients or on its distribution network, because there it is controlling its own service within a jurisdiction. What it rejects is modifying open tools such as its public DNS by administrative decisions of a single country. In his approach, that would mean that a national authority could change how a basic piece of the internet works for users around the world. Italy, the Piracy Shield system and controversies. The Italian model does not just cut individual pages, but entire pieces of the route along which traffic circulates. Through Piracy Shield domains and IPs are ordered to be blocked and, according to the regulator itselfthe framework also expressly includes public DNS services and VPN providers as obligated parties when they are involved in the accessibility of that content. Cloudflare Global Network Map The problem is not only that the system blocks a lot, but how it does it and with what margin for rectification. Its quick reaction logic prioritizes cutting access while the event is happening, and that increases the risk of affecting third parties when acting on shared parts of the network. AGCOM quotes as balance that since February 2024, more than 65,000 FQDNs, that is, fully qualified domain names and about 14,000 IPs, have been disabled. That clash took concrete form at the end of 2025. In a decision taken on December 29 and recently notifiedAGCOM imposed a penalty of more than 14 million euros on Cloudflare for failing to comply with a previous order issued on February 18, 2025. According to the regulator, the company had to deactivate the DNS resolution of certain domains and the routing of traffic to IP addresses indicated through Piracy Shield, or apply equivalent measures to prevent users from accessing that content. Spain, the judicial path. As we mentioned above, in Spain the system is not based on an administrative regulator, but on a resolution from a commercial court obtained by LaLiga. On December 18, 2024, the Commercial Court No. 6 of Barcelona authorized blocking measures against addresses used to broadcast matches without rights. On March 26, 2025, that same court rejected the challenges and left the order in force. That is what allows access operators to execute these blocks during matches under the direct legal coverage of a judge. The way that order is executed in practice explains many of the complaints that have arisen in Spain. Access providers block entire IP addresses, not just specific domains. This mechanism explains why so many legitimate services end up dragged down by these blocks. Instead of deactivating a specific domain, operators sever an entire IP address, which is often shared by hundreds or thousands of websites. It’s a bit like boarding up the entrance to a building … Read more

The battle for the Arctic has ceased to be a two thing. China has “planted” with five breaks against Russia and the US

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In March there was one of that news that rumbles in the geopolitical scene. Russia announced its decision to put its flag in the Arctic with a floating nuclear plant. And if any nation, call the United States, I wanted to say something, I was very delayed. In the background a strictly numerical theme: the Moscow fleet had eight “nuclear” break. And, suddenly, China has appeared. Unpublished deployment. United States, through the North Command (Northcom) and the NORAD, Watch The simultaneous presence of Five Chinese breaks operating in Arctic International Waters, in front of Alaska, a number that multiply by two and a half The current capacity of the US coastal guard in the region. The units, mostly research ships Like the Xue Long 2, the Ji Di and the Zhong Shan da Xue Ji Di, have been intercepted or survived by US media within the framework of the Frontier Sentinel operationdestined to counteract hostile activities, protect sovereign interests and promote respect for international maritime law. The deployment is part of a three -year trend of growing Chinese activity in the Arctic, facilitated by the thaw that opens routes such as The “Route del Norte”axis of the Chinese strategy of the “Polar silk route” To shorten in about 4,600 km The maritime journey to Europe. Arctic capacities and gap. Yes, despite not being an Arctic State, China already operates at least Five Rompehielos And it projects to build more tens, while Russia has dozens of units and the United Polar Stary and the Healy), to which the Storis on August 10 as provisional reinforcement. The rest of the 20 American breakwoods are domestic and They lack polar capacity. The Coast Guard warns which must expand and modernize its fleet to safeguard national security and maritime trade, aligning with the presidential guideline to acquire 40 new breaks. However, a new one is not built in the United States for half a century and current programs They suffer delayswith the first Polar Security Cutter postponed from 2024 A, possibly, 2029. The USCGC Healy helps to release an oil tanker with Russian ice flag near Alaska in 2012 Industrial response. Before the gap, the Trump government has assigned 4.3 billion of dollars for up to three new heavy breaks and 3.5 billion for medium units, in addition to promoting the ICE Trilateral Pact With Canada and Finland to meet the planned demand for 90 Rompehielos In the next decade. This agreement seeks Share informationform personnel and allow the joint acquisition of ships built in allied shipyards. In July, shipyards of the United States, Canada and Finland announced an alliance to produce Arctic Security Cutters, with a mature design and delivery capacity in 36 months after the award of the contract. Strategic competition. No doubt, the increase in Chinese and Russian activity in the Arctic reflects its growing interest in natural resources and strategic advantages of the region. Russia has massively reinforced its military infrastructureas in the Nagurskoye Air Base and the Trefoil Arctic Complexwhile the United States performs multinational exercise Arctic Edge 25 With own forces, from the United Kingdom, Denmark and local partners, although its ice operability remains limited by the shortage of breaking. The simultaneous presence of five Chinese ships in this sensitive area underlines the urgency for Washington to close the capacities gap if you want to maintain influence and access at the north end. Geopolitical importance. Plus: the thaw of the Arctic not only opens shorter trade routes between Asia and Europe, but It exposes reservations of hydrocarbons, critical minerals and new fishing grounds, all of high strategic value. For China, increase your footprint in the region gives you ability to influence In a space historically dominated by NATO Arctic States and members, in addition to reinforcing its global naval projection. For the United States, on the other hand, the Chinese advance and Russian supremacy In polar abilities they show the urgent need to invest in media that ensure the defense of their maritime routes, resources and presence in a scenario where geopolitical competence intensifies rapidly. Image | Us Coast Guard, USCG In Xataka | Eight Rompehielos have turned Russia into the power of the Arctic. Your secret: Nuclear force to operate all year In Xataka | The future of energy is floating in the Arctic: the ace under Russia’s sleeve is a nuclear plant

ASML, Airbus and Mistral are planted before Brussels. They ask that the application of the law of AI and notify the risks delay

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Europe already has its great artificial intelligence law. What is missing, according to several companies, are the concrete rules to apply it. Only one month after the first standards for the most advanced models, more than 45 large companies – among them ASML, Airbus or Mistral – enter into force – They have signed an open letter asking Brussels to “stop the clock” and postpone their entry into force two years. They point to an unrealistic calendar and the difficulty of competing with the United States or China. What exactly is EU’s artificial intelligence law? The European Union Artificial Intelligence Law entered into force on August 1, 2024after having been politically approved by the European Parliament and the Council in December 2023. It is the first comprehensive regulation of the world focused on this technology, and regulates from how the models are trained to what contexts can be used. The key is in its approach to risk levels: the greater the potential impact, more legal obligations. And what exactly Asml, Airbus, Mistral and the rest ask? They demand a pause two years before the most demanding parts of the law enter into force, especially those that affect high -risk systems and the general purpose models, whose first section is scheduled for August 2025. The reason: The standard is too complex, overlaps with other regulations and still lacks key guides for its application. ASML headquarters in Veldhoven Among those guides is the code of good practices, that had to have been published in spring and still does not be ready. Companies argue that without that document, and with this level of uncertainty, the law can become a brake for European innovation. “This situation puts at risk not only the development of European leaders, but the ability of all industries to deploy the scale required by global competition,” They warn. They also ask that regulatory quality prioritize against speed, and warn that continuing without changes would send a wrong message to the seriousness of Europe in its commitment to technological competitiveness. The names behind this initiative. The request does not arise from an isolated startup or from an informal group of companies. Behind is the EU AI Champions Initiative, a group that groups more than 60 European companies that claim to be committed to the development of a competitive AI and aligned with the EU values. Among its members are names such as ASML, Airbus, Mistral AI, Mercedes-Benz, BNP Paribas, Siemens Energy, Lufthansa, Philips or Publicis. Of course, not all members of the US Ai Champions Initiative signed the letter published this week. Images | Sigmund | Rawpixel | ASML In Xataka | After strictly regulating AI, the European Union has identified a problem: it has been too European Union

The “Casas Clavo” that planted the progress of urban planning in China

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Imagine a small house with a couple of floors surrounded by huge blocks of homes. You don’t have to imagine too much, since we have seen it in Pixar’s popular ‘up’ movie, but far from being fiction material, such constructions exist, enduring firm before progress and concrete advance. They are the so -called “Casa Clavo”. It is a global phenomenon, but in China we find some of the most iconic cases that became a sample of popular resistance. Dīngzihù. When we talk about “Casa Clavo”, it is literal. The Chinese term “dīngzihù” comes to say precisely that. Dīngzi means “clavo” and hù is “family” or “home.” And it is an expression that refers to the owners who resist evicing their homes so that they are demolished, becoming that building into a nail that is difficult to get. It is a term that became popular with the modernization of the country. The new urban development projects needed land to build, so they offered economic compensations to the residents of these areas to leave their homes. Those who refused due to personal reasons or economic disagreements, saw how their house was the only one in the neighborhood that was stood, while huge moles of concrete were erected around them. In China, it is also curious because the phenomenon is relatively recent. Private property did not have much importance until not so ago, but in 2007 approved The first modern law of private property that hindered forced expropriation and empowered the owners. The only way to demolish a home was to justify the “public interest” of the new construction, and that is what originated a series of movements of the population to protect their homes. Wu ping. These ‘resistance’ movements are very media both for personal history and for the aesthetics of the new street, with small and traditional houses isolated in the midst of the new buildings. Several throughout these years have occurred, but if one perfectly reflects that struggle spirit, it is Chongqing in 2004. Wu Ping and Yang Wu refused to sell their property for the construction of a shopping center. The rest of the neighborhood was demolished, but his house endured and the photo is shocking: at the top of a mound, surrounded by excavation to start the construction of the complex as soon as possible. The marriage was the only one among 281 families in the area that rejected the moving to another area and declared that it was not “stubborn or rebellious -as they had described in the media.” I only try to protect my personal rights as a citizen, and I will continue until the end. “ Apart from why he did not want, in that house his family had lived for three generations. And do not believe that the contest was peaceful: the real estate developers cut the water and energy when they excavated the pit. For his part, Mr. Yang Wu, champion Marcial Arts, Nunchakus used to create an impromptu ladder to his house and threatened to hit anyone who tried to dislodge it. He also raised a Chinese flag on the property. After years of legal and media battle, they reached a millionaire agreement with the promoters and an apartment in the city center with a size similar to that of their old house. The house was demolished. Chinese resistance. Although the photo of the house Wu is, perhaps, the most picturesque, the case of that marriage is not Not much less unique As far as media noise is concerned. In Nanning, a small house was trapped in the center of a great avenue. Around the house, as if it were a roundabout, there was only asphalt and cars circulating. They ended up arriving at an agreement, but also left a photo for the story. Something similar occurred In Zhejiang, when in 2012 a five -story house was standing in the middle of a highway. Another 450 buildings were demolished, but the owners of this house considered that the compensation was ridiculous and could not buy an equivalent home. After greater compensation and land, they accepted and left their home, which was demolished. They will end up succumbing or not, something is clear: these examples are just a few of this sample of popular resistance in China, a defense of heritage and individual rights against a modernization that, in the Asian giant, has taken steps. Edith Macefield. But this of refusing to leave home so that they throw it is not something exclusive to China, and a case that you surely know, but not by this name, is that of Edith Macefield. In the American city of Seattle, the house of this lady caught the attention of half the world when she refused to compensate one million dollars to leave her home. The 84 -year -old lady at that time, received complementary offers, as free domiciliary care for the rest of her life, but did not give in: her house was not going to be demolished to build a shopping center. It was not for touching the noses: I was advanced and considered tedious to have to move. After several failures, the builders made the decision to raise the complex equally, but in a less hostile way than the cases we have seen in China. Three of the sides of the house with five -story high walls and Mrs. Macefield lived there until she died in 2008. The house is still there, empty, as a sign of that particular heroism. And why do I say that the house design and history may sound to you? Because it is the one that served as inspiration for Pixar to create the magnificent ‘UP‘. There are more stories on American soil, such as Thirsty Beaveran open bar in 2008 that was built in the middle of a field, but that in 2015 was surrounded by a huge floors building after its refusal to sell. And there it continues. Inspiration. As we say, there are other … Read more

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