Spanish

The extreme stress of the Spanish water network explained from within

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The images have flooded social networks this weekend: the Aldeadávila dam “turbinating at full capacity” with the Duero river descending with enormous force, or the Iznájar reservoir recovering its splendor in a matter of days. They are hypnotic images that hide a much more tense and calculated reality. While the citizen sees natural spectacles, the engineers see a fight against the disaster. In the midst of this “festival” of storms that has shaken the peninsula this month of February, One phrase sums up the situation better than any other. It is pronounced by José María Sanz de Galdeanodirector of Hydrological Planning and Works of the Basque Water Agency (URA): “The dams were not designed for floods, but today they are key to cushioning them.” These infrastructures, designed decades ago so that water comes out when you turn on the tap or to turn on the light, have become—almost by historical accident—the last line of defense between the perfect storm and the safety of the populations downstream. A winter concentrated in a few days. To understand the magnitude of the event, we must first look at the Basque Country, where the orography and intense rains have tested the system. As explained by Sanz de Galdeano in the SER ChainEuskadi has faced a winter marked by episodes of very intense rain concentrated in very few days. The situation has forced the activation of the two major Basque regulatory systems. On the one hand, the Zadorra system composed of the Ullibarri-Gamboa reservoir and the Urrunaga dam. On the other hand, the Añarbe system is responsible for supplying the Donostialdea area. It is not a local phenomenon. It is a symptom of a broader hydrometeorological pattern that has affected the entire peninsula. While in the Tormes system, reservoirs like Santa Teresa are close to 80% and release water preventively to defend the city of SalamancaIn the south the situation has been even more drastic. In Andalusia, the Iznájar reservoir—the giant of the community— has doubled its reserves in just two weeks, going from a critical 25% to exceeding 50%, something that had not been seen in a decade. The intensity has been such that the AEMET even warned of scenarios of soil saturation with impacts “some of the highest in the world”, causing water to gush directly from the ground in places like Grazalema (Cádiz). forcing preventive evacuations. From supply to “lamination”. The relevant thing about these weeks is not only that it has rained, but how we have managed that rain. Sanz de Galdeano puts his finger on the sore: “These infrastructures were built primarily for water supply, not specifically to laminate avenues.” However, its immense storage capacity has made it possible to change its function on the fly. Dams have acted as giant shock absorbers. “They have sufficient volume to play with reserves, create space and retain water at the most critical moments,” says the director of URA. Sanz de Galdeano’s warning has scientific support. A study on the effectiveness of dams in the face of climate change confirms that infrastructure designed with “historical data” They are operating blind to the new reality. Old models did not account for this extreme variability; under severe warming scenarios, the risk of large dams overflowing could multiply by up to 17 compared to historical records. The conclusion is technical but terrifying: the effectiveness of a dam decreases dramatically under extreme hydrological regimes if adaptive management is not applied. This excess water has had an unexpected side effect on the energy market: Spain’s “battery” it’s so loaded (117% more stored hydroelectric energy than last year) that nuclear energy is no longer competitive. The Trillo plant, for example, has been disconnected from the grid because, given such an abundance of turbineable water, the numbers simply “did not add up.” Choreography of floodgates. The precision mathematics that decides how much water reaches your home. The management of these crises is a precision choreography that Sanz de Galdeano graphically defines as working “with one eye on the river and another on the sky.” The technical key lies in the “reservoir”: the empty space that is deliberately left in the reservoir before the rain arrives in order to swallow the flood. The director of URA details how it is applied this differently depending on the capacity of each system: In the Zadorra (High regulation): These dams control 60% of the upstream basin. This allows for drastic intervention. The figures from Sunday night are the best example: 260 cubic meters per second of furious water entered the system, but the floodgates only let out 54. That difference (more than 200 m³/s retained) is the flood that was avoided. In Añarbe (Less regulation): Here the dam only controls 23% of the basin. Most of the river water circulates freely, so there is less room for maneuver. Even so, the strategy is the same: when the river goes high, floodgates are closed to retain “as much as possible.” All this is done under administrative coordination complex but fluid between URA, the Ebro Hydrographic Confederation and that of the Cantabrian Sea. Not all barriers are the same. In this context of saving dams, a reasonable question arises: why then are some dams on Basque rivers being demolished? Sanz de Galdeano makes a crucial distinction between large regulatory infrastructures and small weirs. “These are not large infrastructures like those of Zadorra, but rather low-rise structures that have no real capacity to manage avenues,” he clarifies. The elimination of these small obstacles responds to two logics: Environmental: they allow fish and fauna to ascend the river, improving ecological health. Hydraulics: Although it may seem contradictory, these small walls can raise the water table in local floods, worsening the problem instead of solving it. However, large dams have their own silent enemy: sediment. Experts and organizations like Greenpeace warn that torrential rains They drag tons of mud that accumulate at the bottom of the reservoirs, subtracting their real capacity (that “hole” that Galdeano spoke of) and … Read more

“We are willing to further strengthen cooperation with the Spanish parties”

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Europe continues to discuss how to deal with China. Spain, meanwhile, has already opened all its doors. Several times. The International Department of the Chinese Communist Party (an organ of the Party, not the State) has made Madrid a mandatory stop for its parallel diplomacy. At the end of January, Vice Minister Ma Hui toured the offices of the PP, the PSOE, the PCE and the Catalan Generalitat. No one closed the door. Why is it important. China is not looking for ideological allies in Spain, what it is looking for is access. Their strategy is to build relationships with whoever governs today but also with whoever can govern tomorrow. The CCP’s International Department maintains contacts with more than 600 parties around the world because it does not understand colors, only influence. And Spain, due to geography, economy and political predisposition, has become its bridgehead in southern Europe. Between the lines. Zapatero once again appears as a key piece of this network. Ma Hui, a veteran diplomat and former ambassador to Cuba, met him first, before anyone else. It is not coincidental. The former president maintains recurring contacts with CCP structures, appears at Party-sponsored forums in Beijing and operates as an unofficial facilitator. A role that raises questions about transparency and red lines in international relations, especially for someone without official position but with privileged access, which we now know is is on the payroll of a Chinese manufacturer to help it deploy in Europe. The contrast. Trump has based part of his legislature applying tariffs and generating uncertainty with them. China, meanwhile, has wanted to position itself as its opposite, as a guarantor of tranquility. It has presented its Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) in Madrid as a model of stability. Yes, but. Spain is moving with respect to China faster than the rest of Europe. Pedro Sánchez plans his fourth trip to Beijing between April 13 and 15. And this pace makes Brussels uncomfortable because it is trying to coordinate a common European position towards China. Spain can clearly benefit economically from this stance, but at some point we will have to ask ourselves what we are giving up in exchange. The money trail. China no longer only pursues markets in Spain, it pursues political legitimacy: Ma Hui participated in a forum Chinese Chaira think tank geographically close to Atocha but strategically very close to Beijing. These spaces, halfway between academia and propaganda, normalize the Chinese presence in European decision-making centers. They say they want to “learn about state management.” In reality, they build a network of interlocutors that facilitate their strategic interests. ¿Main loser? The common European position. If Madrid negotiates on its own, Valencia too, and Barcelona the same, China does not need to convince the European Union. It is enough to fragment. Bilateralize what should be multilateral. And Spain, with former leaders operating as unofficial liaisons, facilitates that strategy. In Xataka | China has found a way to gain influence in Africa without shooting a single shot: build ports as if there were no tomorrow Featured image | Jordi Moncasi, Li Yang

The Spanish philosopher who defends that what is important is in the simple things of everyday life

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Anyone who has visited Bruges and wandered through its streets has ended up coming across a wonderful little park surrounded by white houses. He Belgian city beguinage It is, along with twelve others spread throughout Flanders, a World Heritage Site since 1998 and no wonder. Although “it is not known how this movement began,” as Silvana Panciera explainedsociologist and author of a book about them; The truth is that since the 12th century and for centuries, “they proposed that women exist without being wives or religious, emancipated from any male domination.” The curious thing is that the beguinage, like convents and religious writers, are becoming fashionable. Very fashionable. And no, I’m not talking about the Catholic ‘revival’. In recent weeks, the temporary “coincidence” of ‘Sundays‘by Ruiz de Azúa or ‘Lux‘ from Rosalía, had raised the murmur that “Catholicism was back“But, really, I don’t talk about that. As books like ‘Mystics’ by Begoña Méndezwe are talking about something deeper: something that, behind the Catholic trappings, speaks directly to an entire generation of young women. Something that, in the words of Jorge Burón“opens common horizons instead of individual ones.” Saint Teresa was right. Saint Teresa of Jesus may be the most important Spanish thinker in all of history and, very often, readings that are excessively attached to the Christian background prevent us from appreciating the philosophical power that is hidden behind it. Today, when the tensions between personal life and professional development are especially intense in a generation of women that has abandoned traditional frames of reference without yet embracing new ones, Teresa de Cepeda’s ideas are especially relevant. “Between the pots.” A well-known example is in the ‘Book of foundations’when he says that “…understand that, if it is in the kitchen, the Lord walks among the pots, helping you internally and externally.” In that passage, Teresa defends that there is no war between inner life and outer work, that the underlying criterion is not what we do, but how we do it. However, it is not a defense of “everything doesn’t matter.” On the contrary, what he rejects is the automatic superiority of the “elevated” over the “everyday.” Seeking God (the meaning of life, who we really are) is not something we demand the most absolute solitude: It is something that must be done wherever it is necessary. Where it touches. It is not a cliché: a few days ago we argued that the feeling of the end of the era, acceleration, saturation, existential anxiety or problems of legitimacy are something inherent to our days. The feeling that the future is a fiction is the order of the day. Therefore, it can surprise no one that Saint Teresa is more alive than ever encouraging us to take charge of our day. Image | Teresa, the body of Christ In Xataka | The Catholic Church changed the psychology of Europe. Unintentionally, it sparked an era of technological innovation

The sun never set in the Spanish empire. AI is achieving that in some companies neither

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There was a time when the Spanish empire did not set the sun. Their domains ranged from the colonies in America, to Europe and Southeast Asia. In the 21st century, global technology startups are recovering that model to develop your AI-based products 24 hours a day. When a team in San Francisco is finishing its work shift, its work continues in Europe, and then moves on to Asia, ensuring that development does not stop. The “follow the sun” model is not new, but the combination of distributed remote work and the development of AI has turned it into a formula to stay ahead of the competition, without exhausting the workforce. The IBM empire in the 90s. In the 90s, IBM was an empire on which the sun did not set either. He IBM giant was one of the first to try the “follow the sun” model (Follow The Sun or FTS) with a team of five offices spread over different time slots to chain days and shorten software development times. This model is based on the concatenation of days. Each group works during its normal day. When this ends in an office, the day begins in the next time slot that collects the witness of the work of his colleagues. The process is repeated throughout the day, synchronizing the journey of the star through the sky with the different work days throughout the planet. Although in principle this model ran into some difficulties due to the poor performance of the connection networks of the time, IBM refined the process and managed to reduce projects by up to 67% by coordinating three offices in the United States, Australia and India. A model that makes sense with AI. Today, Silicon Valley has stepped on the accelerator pedal of AI and new startup founders technologies have embraced days “996” in which all hours of the day that are dedicated to product development they are few. As and as I pointed out analyst and software engineering expert Gergely Orosz, in the context of high competitiveness in the development of AI models experienced by the startup ecosystem on the west coast of the United States, more and more companies are choosing the “follow the sun” model to add normal days for teams in different countries. Thus, a model designed in Europe is tested on equipment in Asia at night and reviewed in California the next morning. The development machinery does not stop. Global clients, local attention. Likewise, the clients of these technology companies are spread all over the world, so offering a technical support service is complicated if it has to be done from a single location. According to data From Zendesk, 73% of customers switch to competitors due to bad experiences with support servicesso the distributed remote system allows the change of time slot so that the service adapts to the languages ​​and local culture of each region. The user who needs help always speaks to someone during their normal hours, no matter where they live. ​The push for AI and remote work. The rise of AI has improved the efficiency of the system at its most critical moment: shift change. This was one of the points that was most difficult for IBM managers to polish in the 90s. AI tools have helped unite shifts with chatbots that resolve doubts to employees, agents who summarize conversations with customers, prepare error reports or give solution ideas based on the context of the information that has been collected throughout the shifts, so as not to lose details when changing teams. Companies that have opted for this model in which the sun does not set highlight that products are developed faster, there are fewer unresolved cases by the support service and customers see the company as always available. Companies, especially technology companies, opted for elimination of teleworking and back to the office. However, no one said that this office should be on the same continent as that of their colleagues. A new evolution of remote work. In Xataka | Three Spanish companies tell us how they fared after implementing a work utopia: the four-day week Image | Unsplash (James Harrison)

the technical imbalance that is silently killing Spanish reservoirs

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In a window of just 72 hours, Spain’s water reserve has experienced unprecedented growth. The data has gone from 693 cubic hectometers in one day, shooting up to 2,349 hm³ in just three days. However, behind this photograph of abundance and a blue-tinted map of Spain, Greenpeace has warned that we are facing an optical illusion. What we see shining in the sun is water, yes, but what accumulates at the bottom, invisible and silent, is mud. And there are more and more. The denunciation of silent death. The environmental organization Greenpeace has issued an alert: The useful life of Spanish reservoirs is running out. This is not an imminent risk of the concrete walls collapsing – the dams are sound from a civil engineering point of view – but rather what they call a “dramatic loss of operational efficiency.” The underlying problem is the calendar. The bulk of our hydraulic infrastructure was built during the dictatorship (1950-1975). This means, according to the data managed by the organization, that “a large part of the dams is now crossing the threshold of their theoretical project useful life”, estimated between 50 and 75 years. The concrete holds, but the steel mechanisms, such as valves and drains, suffer the passage of time. The physics of “solid avenues.” To understand why reservoirs are losing capacity, we must look at the violence of recent rains. As explained by the organizationthe new explosive storms fall on highly eroded basins. The water carries tons of earth, stones and debris into the reservoir. Older infrastructures lack the agility to manage this mix. The technical data is alarming. According to reports from the Ministry for the Ecological Transition (MITECO) and the CEDEX (Center for Studies and Experimentation of Public Works), the Ebro River has radically changed his behavior. Before the dams, the river transported 5.16 million tons of sediment per year to the Delta. Today, trapped by concrete walls, it only allows 0.37 million tons to pass through. The rest remains trapped, reducing the useful space for water. Chronicle of an ignored obsolescence. This is not an unforeseen accident; It is the result of managing the climate of the 21st century with tools from the mid-20th century. Greenpeace insists the dams operate under “climatic pressure for which they were not designed.” In the province of León, iconic reservoirs such as Villameca (inaugurated in 1946) or Barrios de Luna (1956) were designed under stable climatic parameters that have little to do with with the current extreme variability. Experts have been warning for years: geologists from the University of Barcelona They already warned in 2018 that the uncertainty about the real amount of sediment is high, because monitoring the bottom of all the swamps is complex and expensive. When the mud becomes a threat. This accumulation of materials is not just a capacity issue; It is a physical security risk that is already showing its most dangerous side in the south. While we celebrate the rain, a silent battle is being waged in Huelva against toxic sludge. Just a few days ago, the Military Emergency Unit (UME) has had to be deployed in “anticipation” in the mining ponds of the province. There, torrential rains—which have tripled forecasts in some areas—have saturated the terrain to the limit. The risk is no longer just that the reservoir will lose site, but also the liquefaction of the sludge: that the pressure of the water converts the solid waste into an uncontrollable tide. It is the most graphic reminder that our infrastructures, whether water dams or waste ponds, are suffering stress for which they are hardly prepared. From the dredge to the forest. If the reservoirs are full of mud, logic would dictate removing it; but the economic reality makes it unviable. CEDEX technical notes cited in the context of the Greenpeace complaint show that the cost of extracting The sediment “far outweighs the cost of preventing it.” Cleaning a small reservoir of just 10 hm³ could cost between 50 and 150 million euros. If the sludge needs pretreatment before going to the landfill, the price skyrockets. For its part, the MITECO has started “pilot tests” to mobilize sediments in the Mequinenza-Ribarroja section, with a budget of 1.2 million euros, but they are surgical interventions in a systemic problem. For Greenpeace, the solution is not in concrete, but in the mountains. “The solution does not end at the dam or reservoir, it begins in its surroundings,” they say. The organization demands an urgent hydrological-forest restoration, where a healthy riverbed and a basin full of trees act as a “sponge.” The roots retain the soil and prevent the mountain from falling apart when it rains heavily and ending up at the bottom of the swamp. The risk of illusory guarantee. The EU Nature Restoration Regulation, approved in 2024, obliges Spain to present a National Plan by August 2026. It is the last opportunity to change the strategy. Julio Barea, head of water at Greenpeace, issues a final warning that should resonate beyond the current rain: “The technical obsolescence of our reservoirs will make us increasingly vulnerable to the next great water crisis.” If the bottom drains are not modernized (so that the mud can leave) and the headwaters of the rivers are not reforested (so that the mud does not reach), the “water guarantee” will be a statistical fantasy. Image | freepik Xataka | Far from Grazalema and the reservoirs, Andalusia has another serious problem: completely collapsed mining ponds

Dates, time and how to watch the semifinals of the Spanish music festival online

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Let’s tell you when and how you can watch the semi-finals of Benidorm Fest 2026, the popular annual music competition. Until now, this contest was used to decide who would go to Eurovision, but even though they will not attend in 2026, the contest continues, and this week the semifinals are held. In each of these two semi-finals, after the performance of the artists, the vote of the public and the jury of experts will arrive, and with the sum of all The artists who go to the final will be decided. Each semi-final is on a different day, and we are going to explain how you can watch them. Dates and times of the Benidorm Fest semi-finals There are two semi-finals of the Benidorm Fest 2026, and they will be held on February 10 and 12. Therefore, as usual, the first will be on Tuesday and the second on Thursday of this week. Then, The final will be on Saturday February 14. Each of the programs will be held at the Palau d’Esports l’Illa in Benidorm. The two semi-finals They will start at 11:00 p.m.right after the program “The Revolt”and will last until 1:20. On both days, the contest will begin at the same time. In each of the semi-finals there will be a group of eight aspiring artists who will perform their songs for the first time. These are the participants of the first semi-final: KITAI – Love scares you María León ft. Julia Medina – Ladies and the Tramp Luna Ki – Love Bomb Greg Taro – Velita Izan Llunas – What are you going to do? Dora & Marlon Collins – Rakata Tony Grox & LUCYCALYS – T AMARÉT AMARÉ Mikel Herzog Jr. – My half Kenneth – Eyes don’t lie These are the participants of the second semi-final: ASHA – Tourist KU Minerva – I will not cry again Tightrope walker – SOBRAN GILIPO**AS Dani J – Dancing you The Quinquis – You don’t love me Atyat – Dopamine Rosalinda Galán – Mataora MAY – Touch me Miranda! & bailamamá – I wake up loving you How to watch the Benidorm Fest semi-finals The semi-finals of this new edition of the Benidorm Fest will be broadcast by Spanish Television La1. This means that you will be able to watch it for free on any television where you have this channel, whether it is DTT or streaming services with access to television channels. You will also be able to watch the semifinals through the Internet, specifically through the the RTVE Play website or mobile applicationwhich is available in rtve.es/play. There, at the time the broadcast begins, you will have the option to watch the semifinals live. Another option available is to see them from apps for smart devices. You can do this with the official RTVE Play app on Google Play for Android, and in the App Store for iOS. These applications are also available on all Android and iOS-based platforms, including devices with Android TV or Apple TVs. There are also official applications for Smart TVs from the main manufacturers. And as an alternative, you can also use applications that allow you watch DTT live online on any device, such as TiViFy, DTT Channels and other similar alternatives. In Xataka Basics | Free TV and DTT channels for your TV: guide with 26 services and apps with hundreds of channels without having to pay

The electric car needs cheap batteries. And a Spanish region is closer to giving it to them: Extremadura

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It’s just the go-ahead but it’s a key go-ahead. It is what will allow Yuneng International Spain New Energy Battery Material SLU to launch a project in Mérida to produce lithium iron phosphate (LFP/LiFePO₄). In other words, Mérida will be key to producing essential materials for the manufacture of LFP batteries. Batteries that aspire to be essential in the popularization of the electric car. Merida. It was the place chosen by Yuneng International Spain New Energy Battery Material SLU to build a factory that can produce lithium iron phosphate. The project will be located in the Expacio Mérida business park and will extend across 467,000 square meters after the Government of Extremadura has confirmed the approval of the environmental declaration for this factory. The project aims to have financing of 800 million euros and generate 500 jobs to produce the planned capacity of 50,000 tons per year of these materials. In the first phase they will mobilize between 116 and 125 million euros of investment creating about 160 direct jobs, they point out in Motorpassion. Why is it key? The production of lithium iron phosphate is essential for LFP batteries. Batteries are made up of modules and these, in turn, are made up of cells. In each cell there is an anode and a cathode. It is in the cathodes of LFP batteries where lithium iron phosphate sheets are located. Without them, the batteries would not work. In batteries of this type there are small lithium particles on the anode (negative pole). These particles move to the cathode (positive pole) through a liquid electrolyte found inside. This is when the electric current is generated which is then used by the motors to move the wheels. LFP Batteries. LFP batteries are one of the big promises of the electric car to make models cheaper and popularize this technology. It is a technology that offers less autonomy than NMC (cathode formed by nickel, cobalt and manganese) or NCA (nickel, cobalt and aluminum) because they have lower energy density. However, these batteries are cheaper because lithium and iron are cheaper than nickel or cobalt. And, in addition, they are safer and better resist load cycles so they will be more durable. This is essential for smaller cars, which will have less autonomy and must undergo a greater number of charging cycles but with the backpack of not being able to raise its price. Estremadura. In recent years, Extremadura has become relevant in the electric car supply chain. In addition to this lithium and iron phosphate production plant, in Navalmoral de la Mata (Cáceres) it is already rising a plant to produce complete batteries. This factory was designed to produce NMC batteries but has pivoted to produce LFP accumulatorsso both industries can be connected when the time comes. Additionally, the region is rich in lithium. Next to Cáceres it is believed that there are one of the largest deposits in Europe. The mine that should exploit this deposit has encountered the opposition from some neighbors and environmental platforms which has paralyzed the project. However, up to three of the seven projects that the European Commission wants to carry out in Spain for the exploitation of minerals and rare earths They are in Extremadura. The cheap electric car. To popularize the electric car, China has been betting on LFP batteries for years. In Europe, most electric cars have opted for batteries that include nickel or cobalt because they allow greater charging and discharging power and autonomy but are more expensive. Over the years, this has changed. Renault works with LFP batteries for the entry-level range of electric cars such as the Twingo or the Renault 5 (in the future). Tesla also uses them in the more modest versions of Model 3 and Model Y. In Spain, CATL is going to manufacture this type of batteries in Zaragoza for the smaller Stellantis cars. And Volkswagen too has this type of accumulator in mind for its most affordable electric cars that will come out of the Martorell line. Photo | Mercedes and Google Maps In Xataka | Europe has its hope in the 25,000 euro electric car and Volkswagen already knows who will manufacture it: Spain

In 1901, a Spanish man had one of the ideas of the century: invent the remote control before television

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Televisions change, technologies change, but there are interactions that last despite the passage of years, decades and even centuries. An example of this is the remote controller, which has historically allowed us to interact with devices from a distance, although what we currently know is very different from the first concept of remote control. Although televisions did not become more common in the last decades of the 20th century, the concept of the remote controller appeared much earlier. Specifically, in 1901. And a fact that you may not know is that one of the pioneers of the remote control was a Spaniard, the engineer Leonardo Torres Quevedo. The controller anticipated the televisions The history of the remote control dates back, as we said, to the first years of the last century. In 1903, the inventor, mathematician and engineer Leonardo Torres Quevedo (1852-1936) conceived, built and patented the first remote control in history. He called it Telekino, and as one might thinkIt is far from the controls for televisionsand other devices we see now. Miniaturization was not a reality until much later and the Telekino took up an entire table. Telekino in Abra. Image: Torresquevedo.org Of course, the Telekino was not created with the idea of ​​controlling televisions remotely, which in reality did not become a reality almost until the incorporation of the cathode ray tube (withthe pushfrom Telefunken and other manufacturers). The idea was to control airships without anyone being in danger in the tests, but finally he tried it with boats as they recalled in the written edition ofThe Countryin 2007, when the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) recognized the invention by including it in its official list of milestones in the history of engineering. It was the first time that a Spanish creation became part of this list, in which we find inventions by Benjamin Franklin, Alessandro Volta and Guglielmo Marconi among others. Telekino, as you may have deduced, comes fromTV(from ancient Greek, “far”, meaning “at a distance”, “remotely”) andkinein(also from the Greek, “movement”), by the way. IEEE Recognition Plaque. Image: YouTube We already talked about Telekino inXatakaprecisely because of this historical recognition, also to remember that at the time it was not highly praised. In fact, Torres Quevedo himself would abandon the project as he did not receive sufficient support. The valuable legacy of Torres Quevedo One of the prototypes of the Telekino is located in the Torres-Quevedo Museum, in the Higher Technical School of Civil, Canal and Port Engineers of the Polytechnic University of Madrid. And thanks to a short (virtual) visit to that museum for the centenary of one of the Spanish engineer’s inventions we can discover more of them, also very relevant. Torres Quevedo is credited with nothing more and nothing less than the first Spanish airship, as well as the first ferry suitable for transporting people (or in other words, an open cable car for people). The invention was patented in 1887, and it would not be until 30 years later when it materialized, being launched on Mount Ulía in San Sebastián in 1907. Compensation also came in the form of international export, since the system reached neither more nor less thanto Niagara Falls. Thus, the callSpanish AerocarIt continues to operate today in the well-known region and celebrated its centenary in 2016, having completed more than 10 million transports without recording incidents. Torres Quevedo was also a precursor of modern computing with his Ajedrecista, considered the first chess computer game, and the electromechanical arithmometer, a calculator accompanied by a typewriter, a precursor to digital calculators. In Xataka | In 1925, procrastination was already a problem and someone found the definitive solution: the isolation helmet. In Xataka | We have been fascinated for years by the geniuses who come up with revolutionary innovations out of thin air. It’s always been smoke (function() { window._JS_MODULES = window._JS_MODULES || {}; var headElement = document.getElementsByTagName(‘head’)(0); if (_JS_MODULES.instagram) { var instagramScript = document.createElement(‘script’); instagramScript.src=”https://platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js”; instagramScript.async = true; instagramScript.defer = true; headElement.appendChild(instagramScript); – The news In 1901, a Spanish man had one of the ideas of the century: invent the remote control before television was originally published in Xataka by Anna Marti .

Who is Oesía, the Spanish technology company that has become the new major defense contractor

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Unless you closely follow the defense sector in Spain, surely the name Oesía will not sound too familiar to you. A few days ago, the company it was news because it will be in charge of providing “eyes” to the Pizarro infantry combat vehicles, and it is not the only defense contract it has recently won. What is Oesia?. It is a business group financed 100% with Spanish private capital, chaired by the Catalan businessman Luis Furnells, who in turn is the main shareholder. The company has taken an important turn in the last decade and has gone from offering consulting and digital transformation services to focusing on solutions and services for the defense sector through its different brands: Oesia Networks: is the original arm of the company dedicated to digital consulting and hyperautomation processes. Tecnobit: the jewel in the crown. It is the reference brand in optronics (infrared and night vision), tactical communications and simulation. Cipherbit: Oesía boasts that it is the first cybersecurity and secure communications brand certified by NATO. UAV Navigation: specialized in guidance, navigation and control systems for unmanned vehicles. Inster: focused on satellite communications on the move (SOTM) in land, naval and air environments. Who is Luis Furnells. He is a Catalan businessman and manager who has dedicated himself mainly to the technology sector. He has been in charge of the Oesía Group since 2012 and, since 2014, also of its subsidiary Tecnobit. On your resume We find companies such as BBVA, La Caixa and Telefónica, in which he served as Chief Information Officer. He also founded the consulting firm LUCARit, which was later integrated into Oesía. One of his recent objectives at the head of the group, embodied in the 2023-2025 strategic planwas precisely to consolidate its position as a reference company in the field of defense. And he is achieving it. Why it is important. Oesía, specifically its subsidiary Tecnobit, has been chosen by Santa Bárbara Sistemas to modernize the fleet of Pizarro combat vehicles. Tecnobit has also been selected for produce key components for the PAC 3 missileof Lockheed Martinone of the more advanced missile defense systems. Oesía will manufacture specialized wiring and harnesses, positioning itself as an important player not only in national territory, but in international defense programs. Oesía is not alone. The company is not alone in its entry into the defense sector. As they point out in Digital Economyone of the most important contracts they have signed with their subsidiary Cipherbit, was achieved through an alliance with Epicom, a company dedicated to the design of cryptographic and key solutions in National Security. Oesía owns 30% of Epicomanother 30% Indra and the remaining 40% belongs to the State Society of Industrial Participations (SEPI). cifras. He Rearmament report from the National Security Observatory includes the contract won as a result of the alliance between Cipherbit and Epicom, which is placed in 11th position with an amount of 167 million euros. Another Oesía contract of more than 25 million euros also appears in the same report. In the case of the contract with Santa Bárbara Sistemas to modernize the Pizarro tanks, we are talking about 264 million euros. According to Economía Digital, the awards to Oesía are of at least 192 million euros, almost what the company invoiced in 2024. Image | Army, Oesía In Xataka | A space war looms over our heads and Europe is the power that invests the least in defense technology

Meanwhile there are Spanish airports that will not see any of your planes

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Everything indicates that this year there will be a price increase in Ryanair tickets. The company has raised its rate increase forecast to 9% for its current fiscal year, which ends in March. All this while maintaining the strategy of reducing its operations in Spanish regional airports after the fight against Aena for airport taxes. What you have announced. Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary has confirmed in presentation of quarterly results that banknotes will rise between 8% and 9%, exceeding the 7% that had been predicted in November. According to O’Leary, this is due to the “strength of demand” and the shortage of supply in the European market, as share the Expansion medium. The company estimates it will carry 208 million passengers this year, one million more than initially anticipated. Why are prices rising?. According to account Ryanair’s strategy is linked to Europe’s limited capacity in terms of the lack of available aircraft. In addition, the airline’s reservations have reached record levels after Christmas, all the more incentive for the company to end up raising its fares, offsetting the 7% drop last year. The situation in Spain. Ryanair maintains its pulse with Spanish regional airports, which it accuses of applying high rates that make them “non-competitive.” Last October, the company already announced its third consecutive cuts in small airports in the country, eliminating 1.2 million seats. In its strategy, Asturias will be one of the most damaged airportssince Ryanair will completely cease its operations there. Redistribution. “We have allocated Ryanair’s scarce capacity to regions and airports that cut airport charges and encourage traffic, such as Albania, Italy, Morocco, Slovakia and Sweden, withdrawing flights and routes in high-cost and non-competitive markets such as Austria, Belgium, Germany and regional Spain. The trend will continue in summer 2026,” counted O’Leary. Leader in Spain. Despite the confrontation with Aena and the cuts in small airports, Ryanair was the leader in Spain during 2025 and even expanded the advantage it already had over the rest of the competitors. There is an explanation for this: while regional airports’ operations are declining, in the rest of the large cities they have grown. From Aena hold that, beyond the argument of fees, what Ryanair does is move its planes where it is most lucrative. Company numbers. Ryanair presented quarterly results marked by an 83% drop in profit until December, weighed down by a fine of 256 million euros imposed by the Italian regulatory body. However, in the three quarters as a whole, net profits increased by 29% to reach 2,392 million euros. For the full fiscal year, the airline forecasts a net profit of between 2,130 and 2,230 million euros, which would represent an increase of 35%. What’s coming now. Ryanair expects to receive the last four aircraft of an order for 210 Boeing in February, several weeks ahead of schedule. Looking ahead to 2027, the first 15 units of a new order for 300 Boeing 737 MAX 10 aircraft will arrive, more efficient and with 21% more capacity, which will allow the company to reach 216 million passengers next year. Its long-term goal is to reach 300 million travelers by 2034. In Xataka | In the middle of the ocean, 250 passengers on a plane learned that one of them was a stowaway. One shaped like a rat

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