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We have to start calling what is happening in Venezuela by its name. The “other” US bombers have arrived

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May America return to “walk” bombers strategic actions against Venezuela gives shape to an idea: this is no longer a tactical whim, it is a military campaign that moves on a dangerous border between ambiguity and prelude of something of greater significance. Not only that: the presence in the air, sea and territorial periphery of a country without the capacity for military parity introduces a geopolitical message directed towards third partiesand places the region before an unprecedented scenario. The visible phase. United States has done it again. Now they have been B-1 Lancer (long-range bombers, high payload and supersonic speed) from Dyess (Texas) to the outskirts of Venezuelawithout entering sovereign airspace but close enough to constitute an unequivocal signal of availability of remote fire. These flights are added to previous demonstrations with B-52 and F-35B, and are part of a expanded deployment which includes eight warships, a submarine, P-8 maritime patrol, MQ-9 Reaper and a squadron of F-35s already advanced in the theater. The novelty is not the capacity but the frequency: what used to be an annual exercise has become a sustained cadence that Pentagon officials already hint will grow, under the operational argument of surveillance and destruction of boats, but with a clear transition potential to fixed targets ashore. What the bombers reveal. Air traffic scans showed pairs of B-1 with BARB21/22 and nodal planes (KC-135 for replenishment, RC-135 ISR and a E-11A BACN) composing architecture of command, link and persistence typical of complex operations, not symbolic gestures. The immediate precedent of the B-52 in the same areadescribed by the Department of Defense itself as a “demonstration of attack”, reinforces the reading that Washington is setting up an environment from which it will be able to strike from outside the Venezuelan tactical range without the need to preposition bombers in regional bases, exploiting the strategic autonomy of the heavy wing. The E-11 BACN The bridge and options. The campaign against suspicious vessels (with at least seven confirmed attacks on speedboats and a submersible since September) complies a double function: produces immediate kinetic effects and, at the same time, normalizes the use of lethal power without explicit congressional authorization on targets politically designated as “narco-targets.” Trump openly declared that, once the maritime phase has been exhausted, the attacks could move to land against distribution or production facilities, and former USAF officers admit that the B-1 platform is ideal for that scenario. The Republican-dominated Congress has blocked attempts to limit presidential authority, and the line between war on cartels and strategic coercion of the regime has been blurred. deliberately blurred. A B-52 and two F-35Bs seen flying together during the “bomber strike demonstration mission” last week The background. Before reappearing heavy wing on the Caribbean, Washington had consumed three cycles without success: maximum sanctions, political negotiation and recognition of a parallel government. They all failed in dislodging Maduro, protected by a Cuban counterintelligence apparatus and armored by alignment with Russia, China and Iran. The turn to military coercion (destroyers with Tomahawk, embarked special forces, ISR means and precision fire) replicates a repertoire with long and bumpy genealogy in Latin America, but here with a deliberately ambiguous purpose. The Caribbean without law. The Pentagon has sunken vessels alleging narcoterrorism, with no specific congressional authority to equate cartels with al-Qaeda-type threats. Trump came to contemplate blows on the ground that would produce high-impact viral images, but without a sure path to a stable political outcome: the available force (some 10,000 troops) is not enough for a conventional invasion, and a surgical assault to capture Maduro would entail catastrophic risks if it failed. The limits and fragility. I remembered a few hours ago the financial times that the recent history of the United States in “nation-building” after the use of force is poorand in Venezuela the vacuum after a forced decapitation could be occupied by hard factions of the apparatus or consolidate Maduro himself if a failed operation gave him an alibi for deeper repression. The legitimate opposition is fragmented or in exileand institutional continuity after a crash would be uncertain. The main weight of the warning lies not so much in the probability of an immediate attack as in the fact that, by declaring the war open to “narco-terrorists” and pointing to Maduro as one of them, the administration has crossed a line from which it is difficult to retreat without showing strength. The strategy. If you want, the bomber flyover In the face of Venezuela, it functions as an element of psychological pressure, as an enabling infrastructure for a rapid kinetic leap, and as an extra-regional message to those who support the regime. Until now, the legal elasticity of this “anti-drug” framework has served to go through it lining barriers to the use of force without declared war. Now, with the appearance of heavy wingWashington points out that coercion has left the discursive plane to settle in the closest thing to a real architecture of the theater. Image | USA, USAF In Xataka | The US has several warships deployed off Venezuela. Venezuela has a Soviet missile capable of penetrating them In Xataka | Satellite images leave no doubt: there are 10,000 soldiers and unusual artillery pointing at the same place in the Caribbean

Having many children sounds great as a way to preserve the species. Until you start passing genetic mutations

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Men do not have a limit marked by nature in which a ‘stop’ is applied when it comes to having more offspring (such as if women have), although little by little it is becoming more complicated. But even if there is no such limit choosing to become parents at an older ageis not the most recommended due to the great risks it has, as pointed out a published study in Nature magazine recently. Risk age. The idea that the age of the mother It is a crucial factor for the baby’s health is deeply rooted in the collective consciousness and has been seen to Older age is associated with diseases such as Down syndrome. However, science has been accumulating evidence for years that the father’s age also plays a fundamental role. We already knew that about 80% of new genetic mutations (those not inherited from either parent) come from the paternal germline. What we didn’t know was the magnitude of the mechanism that accelerates it. Selfish sperm. The team of researchers from Wellcome Sanger Institute in the United Kingdomled by Raheleh Rahbari and Matthew Neville, has put a name and surname to the problem: selfish selection of spermatogonia. In simple terms, this means that certain genetic mutations not only alter a gene, but give a competitive advantage to the stem cells that produce sperm (spermatogonia). These mutated cells replicate faster and more efficiently than their healthy counterparts, so they will predominate ahead of the gametes that are suitable. As a result, as the years go by, the percentage of sperm carrying these “selfish” mutations increases exponentially, not linearly, and this results in a man in his early thirties having 1 sperm in every 50 with a disease-causing mutation. But when you reach the age of 70, this figure shoots up to 1 sperm in every 20. How it has been seen. To reach this conclusion, scientists needed highly precise technology, since right now standard sequencing methods have an error rate that can make it difficult to see a specific mutation. This is where a technique called duplex sequencing (NanoSeq). Its operation is very simple, since instead of reading a single strand of DNA, this method reads both strands of the double helix. If a mutation is detected on both strands in exactly the same place, it is virtually impossible for it to be a machine error. It is a real mutation. Thanks to this precision, they were able to analyze more than 35,000 mutations in the sperm of 81 men between 24 and 75 years old. In this case, the results identified more than 40 key genes where these selfish mutations tend to occur. Most are associated with serious neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism itself or even increasing the probability of suffering from cancer throughout the offspring’s life. Genetic sanctuary. Interestingly, the study revealed a surprising fact when comparing the mutations in the sperm with those in the blood cells of the same men. In the blood, the impact of lifestyle was evident: men who smoked, drank alcohol excessively or were obese had a much higher mutation burden. However, no correlation with these factors was found in sperm. The mutations accumulated at a rate eight times slower and seemed immune to the individual’s habits. This suggests that the testicles function as a biological “sanctuary,” a protected niche that the body strives to keep safe from harmful environmental factors. Family planning. Logically, when making the decision to reproduce this changes many things, since to avoid this accumulation of mutations it would be interesting to do it the younger the better. Both in the case of men and women. But the reality we have in our society is that family conciliation has not yet been achieved, and this means that becoming mothers and fathers has to be delayed. In this way, the study points to the possibility of including sperm freezing at an earlier age if considering having children or considering genetic screening techniques for elderly parents. Although all this has a cost behind it. In Xataka | Someone thinks they know why fertility is plummeting around the world: men and women are doing “better” separately

Openai has just changed the chatgpt rules with Pulse. Stop waiting questions and start anticipating your daily life

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You get a notification to the mobile. It is not the calendar or mail: it is from Chatgpt. It’s called Pulse and, According to OpenAi“investigate proactively“To give you a personalized summary of the day with thematic cards that you can get quickly or open for more detail. The grace is that you stop waiting for your question and advance with ideas and next steps, learning from your chats and your feedback And, if you decide to connect them, of apps such as the calendar. The result is a Briefing Matinal that tries to fit with your routine before it starts. Pulse arrives as a view and, for now, is only available in the ChatgPT mobile application for payment users in THE PRO PLAN. It does not replace the usual model, but is presented as an addition: the assistant maintains the option to answer on demand questions, but adds a new functionality. With this movement, Openai takes the first step towards an assistant who aspires to be present before even the user invoices it. Of the chatbot that responds to the assistant who advances Every night, the system analyzes recent conversations and interactions history to prepare a set of cards with information selected These cards are presented the next day in the application as a daily summary that can be browsing in seconds or expanding to obtain more context. The content expires at the end of the day unless it is saved in the history of chats. In addition, each card can be opened to request clarifications or following steps, so that the experience is not limited to reading, but connects with the usual conversation. Personalization is built on simple signals. The user can give a thumb up or down, ask that the next summary include a specific topic or modify what is not useful. Pulse collects that information and applies it in the next night cycle. Openai points out that all adjustment history is accessible and reversible: it can be consulted or erased when desired. To reduce risks, each set of cards undergoes safety checks that block problematic recommendations or contents that violate the platform standards. One of the characteristics is in the possibility of COnectar Gmail and Google Calendar. In doing so, press can suggest an agenda scheme for a meeting, remember the purchase of a birthday gift or recommend restaurants based on a scheduled trip. These integrations are deactivated by default and are managed from the configuration. Openai insists that they improve the relevance of suggestions, although they also expand the surface of personal information that the assistant handles. The examples are varied and very everyday. Openai mentions from tips to prepare a quick dinner to reminders linked to a trip or training suggestions for a triathlon. In the Chatgpt Lab, several students commented that the utility of Pulse became evident when they began to guide it with concrete requests. One of them reported that, after talking about how to organize his calendar in Taiwan, the system offered him practical steps to optimize train journeys that would not have looked for himself. Openai has been working on the security of his chatbot for some time. Even so, cybersecurity experts warn that the risk never disappears completely. Radware documented a case in which an altered mail managed to The in -depth research function of chatgpt will filter sensitive data. Vulnerability was already corrected, but the example reminds that integrating personal information into such an assistant increases exposure and demands to keep caution. For now, Pulse is in a view phase and only those who have the Pro subscription in the mobile app. OpenAI warns that not always right: Reminders of already closed projects or little relevant suggestions may appear. The idea is to collect that early use to correct failures and refine the model. If everything progresses as planned, the function will open first to Plus clients and then to the rest, in a progressive deployment. It is a launch that fits a broader strategy: to make Chatgpt become a daily assistant and not only a specific tool. OpenAi seeks to increase the time of use and take a step towards the more personal relationship With the application. The movement also marks distance in front of competitors such as COPILOT of Microsoft or Claude of Anthropic, which until now have prioritized professional or productivity uses. According to Reutersthe company also works on a browser with AI that would reinforce this commitment to accompany the user in more facets of their digital life. Images | OpenAI In Xataka | Microsoft has never been so valuable throughout its history. And he has never been so close to the abyss

The digital detox has been fashionable for years. It’s time to start talking like what is: a myth

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Social networks have helped us in many aspects of our life, allowing us for example to strengthen some social relationships, or taking a way to express our creativity. But all this has come with a price to pay. A cost that has noticed our mental health, which has led many to try with a time to “digital detoxification.” The problem is that it may not be too useful strategy. Not so effective. Withdraw a time from social networks It is not an effective “disconnection strategy”according to a meta -analysis carried out by a Belgian team of researchers from the universities of Antwerp and Gante, at least if we are looking to improve Our well -being. The good news: at least we do not have indications that disconnection does us badly. “The findings (…) suggest that temporarily separating ourselves from social networks may not be the approximation (…) optimal to improve individual well -being,” Write the teamwhich also points out in his study the need to continue research on alternative disconnection strategies. Ten studies. The new work is a meta -analysis, that is, a “quantitative study of studies.” The team conducted a systematic search for scientific literature that addressed the relationship between social media abstinence and one or more than three variables: positive and negative affections, and vital satisfaction. They found 10 quantitative works with a total sample of 4,674 participants. The analysis showed no significant effects of refraining from social networks in any of the three variables studied. The team also did not find indications that the duration of the period of “Digital detoxification“It will be relevant. The details of the study were published In an article In the magazine Scientific Reports. Need to investigate more. The team emphasizes the need to advance in research on this issue. According to the team itself, the study presents one of the usual problems in the meta -analysis, and is the diversity in the methodologies followed by the works included in it. A radical change. Social networks have remarkably changed how we interact with technology, for better and for worse. The problems that this poses have appeared so suddenly that our ability to adapt, to look for solutions with which to repair the possible damage has exceeded in many contexts. In Xataka | How to recover the concentration that social networks and multitars have taken us Image | Xataka with Gemini

Microsoft opted everything to OpenAi to win the AI ​​race. Start realizing your mistake

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In April 2019, a small group of Openai engineers flew to Seattle to make a demo of a GPT-2 Supervitaminated Version A Bill Gates. Microsoft’s co -founder was impressed, and made clear his intention to invest in the company led by an almost absolutely unknown Sam Altman. In Redmond, Gates’ opinion took into account, and shortly after the events precipitated. The company’s cto, Kevin Scott, wrote an email Shortly after, in June, Nadella already Gates to warn of the danger of being behind. He was “very, very worried.” Nadella agreed. A month later, on July 22, 2019, Microsoft advertisement a Investment of 1,000 million dollars In OpenAi. That seemed love at first glance. That money promoted Openai’s efforts, which continued to develop its models and that in August 2020 launched an amazing GPT-3 But without opening it to the general public. Two years later, the bombing: OpenAi announced chatgpt without knowing that this would detonate the current AI fever. This divorce can be very expensive to Microsoft The initial impact was amazing, and Chatgpt became On the fastest platform he had grown up in history of the Internet. In two months he had already attracted 100 million users, and Microsoft, wanting to take another step in that idyllic relationship with Openai, redoubled its commitment to the company. Or multiplied it, because in January 2023 advertisement a multimillionaire investment that is estimated – although the figure was never detailed— at 10,000 million dollars. That investment It seemed to be perfect For both companies. Among other things, Openai obtained access to Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure to train their models and offer them to the general public (inference). Meanwhile, Microsoft gained priority access to OpenAi models, which it could sell as if they were his. That is just what they did, first with GPT-3 as a Github Copilot baseand then Freaking of other “co -drivers” that were nothing more than a chatgpt rehash. And there began the problems for Microsoft. Above all, because little by little that theoretically idyllic relationship He began teaching his seams. The convenience marriage was no longer so satisfactory for both parties. On the one hand, Openai kept asking for more and more money and better conditions when using the Microsoft computing cloud. On the other, Microsoft, OPENAI’s totally slave For his AI options, he began to look for alternatives. Both decided to look for alternative plans. Openai searched Change girlfriend and of Alliesand After the rumors In April 2025 he announced the greatest financing round in history, which amounted to 40,000 million dollars. For his part, in Microsoft, knowing their Openai absolute dependencethey began to move in March 2024, when they created their own division of AI and put in front of it To Mustafa Suleymanco -founder of Inflection AI and before Deepmind. The objective: to develop their own foundational models to avoid being chained to OpenAI. How was the thing? For now, OpenAi very well. To Microsoft, not so much. The company led by Sam Altman has not stopped growing in users and In income. At the moment they are still insufficient to make it profitable, but there is a clear thing: Nowadays Chatgpt is what Google went to searches. There are options, yes, but for the vast majority of users, (almost) do not count. I may launch of GPT-5 has been disappointingbut still Altman’s strategy to sell promises and Hype -with the Stargate megaproject in front – it works. But for Nadella and yours are much more complicated. Despite Copilot’s absolute integration in all business areas, Microsoft is almost an “coupled” in the world of AI. A pay. Your own modelsPhi-3 and Phi-4 are interesting for their “Edge AI” (artificial intelligence that runs at home, as in our mobiles), but their performance and capacity has made them almost a laboratory experiment. The gigantic infrastructure of Azure is his great asset to make them indirect leaders of AI, but Suleyman’s leadership It is committed to the simple reason that the results of the Microsoft strategy are not especially visible. It doesn’t matter if Microsoft has a powerful Trojan horse in Windows to infiltrate AI solutions in the company: who are winning that battle They are Anthropic and, of course, OpenAi. Meanwhile, Suleyman himself published on his blog An article warning of the dangers of treating AI as a person and ensuring that we are close to seeing a “apparently conscious” that can aggravate that problem. It is a valid and important argument, but it leaves Microsoft just like it was: without its own models and without changes in a strategy of doubtful success. In spite of everything, Microsoft also has its badges For Microsoft the only consolation is that its gigantic investment in OpenAi gives you the right to participate in the benefits of that company. In fact, the tense current relationship between the two adds to Openai’s intentions of becoming a profit company. That has implications for the future of the relationship, and In The Information indicated that Altman has proposed yield to Microsoft 33% of the company But renouncing future benefits. Participation is enormous and very juicy for Redmond’s, especially now that Openai is valued in 300,000 million dollarsbut there is much more at stake. In fact, in that potential divorce the one that seems to be winning is Openai, which has some of the best foundational and popular models in the world (GPT-4O, GPT-5), and who is the beautiful girl in the market: everyone wants to stick to it. Meanwhile, Microsoft is staying absolutely behind in the market, at least compared to its rivals. Let’s see: Google: It has invested a lot and well in own models (Gemini, Deepmind) and has a gigantic infrastructure, software and data. Not to mention Android and his search engine, AI entrance door for billions of users. XAI: Although less remarkable, the startup created by Elon Musk has managed to stand up with a Grok with a very different approach –zero censorship– which has managed to integrate with some … Read more

There is an F-35 stranded in Japan and nobody manages to start it

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In the middle of July a news began To “get ball” in the United States and the United Kingdom. A brand new F-35b by Lockheed Martin and belonging to the British Navy was stranded more than a month In India. Since then until now, the almighty American company has happened to the problems: Negative of Spain For the purchase of a lot of fighters, the doubts from other countries And finally, a Second F-35 stranded. The problem is that there continues, without leaving Japan. An emergency detour. A F-35B of the United Kingdom, deployed aboard the aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales within the framework of the Highmast operation, Continue stranded In Japan after having forced an emergency landing at Kagoshima airport on August 10 due to a technical failure in flight. The device was transferred to a shooting street and no injuries were reported, although six commercial flights They suffered delays. Engineers of the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force have already inspected it and confirmed that it is waiting for spare parts to be repaired, reviving doubts about the fragility of the global supply chain of the supplies of the supplies of the supply of F-35 programdespite the fact that both the body of American Marines and Japan operate the same model in the region. A problem history. As we said at the beginning, the episode occurs shortly after another detour, This time in Indiawhere a second F-35b British was stranded for more than a month, and adds to the long list of incidents associated with the furtive plane. Although the British Ministry of Defense insists that both failures They are not related and that these types of situations are part of the routine of naval operations (where it is often safer to take land in nearby airfields than to try a risky apontaje on the aircraft carrier), the truth is that the coincidence has intensified the Public and political scrutiny About the program. The memory of 2021 accidentwhen an F-35B of the HMS Queen Elizabeth crashed in the Mediterranean for the obstruction of an air intake, it is still weighing on the reputation of the hunt. The operation and strategic role. The Highmast operation It represents one of the most important deployments of British naval aviation in the Indo-Pacific, with 18 F-35b embarked, from RAF squadrones and Royal Navy, to which at least one device of the US Marines body is added. The campaign already included maneuvers in Australian waters during the TALISMAN EXERCISE SABREand later joint exercises in Japan and South Korea under the name of Hightower. One of the milestones was the first operation of British fighters from a Japanese ship, the Kagaadapted to receive Stovl aircraft such as the F-35B, a symbolic gesture of the growing naval cooperation in the region against China. A “of all” hunt. For Lockheed Martin, the story puts them again in the Diana in a month of August complicated where the news has happened with the hunt as the protagonist. The funny thing is that we talk about a combat plane that, being “made in USA”, is actually built under A multinational program. Yes, the F-35 Lightning II is actually the most international combat program in history, with more than 1,900 suppliers spread over a dozen countries. Conceived since its origin as a multirrol plane for the three branches of the country’s armed forces and for strategic allies, established association levels: The United Kingdom as the only partner of Level 1, Italy and Netherlands at level 2, and Australia, Canada, Denmark and Norway at level 3, to which Japan and Israel are added through special agreements. Most devices are assembled in Fort Worth (Texas), but there are assembly and verification centers in Cameri (Italy) and Nagoya (Japan), with production lines adapted to regional demand. The European contribution. The United Kingdom is the Major foreign taxpayerresponsible for about 15% of each plane and 10% of development costs. Companies such as Rolls-Royce (manufacturer of the F-35B lifting system) and Martin-Baker (ejectable seat supplier) complement the decisive participation of Bae Systemswhich produces rear fuselages, queues, electronic warfare systems, antennas and much of the mission software. Italy, through from Leonardonot only manufactures optical components, radios and motor parts, but also hosts the only European final assembly line. The Netherlands, With GKN FokkerThey produce flaperones, braking systems, electrical wiring and manage spare parts for more than 500 European fighters. The rest. Australia manufactures Vertical lines, actuating systems and more than 700 components in the state of Victoria, with more than 70 local companies involved. Norway provides air-air pylons and vertical edges, while Finland supplies front fuselage sections. Japan assembles its own F-35a in Nagoya and produces some pieces domestically, although it is not clear how many are exported. Israel, unique case, not only manufactures components valued at more than 2,000 million dollars (such as external wings, fuel deposits and electronic warfare systems), but also The F-35i Adir operatesthe only authorized version to be deeply modified, with plains, weapons and its own communications. Contractors in the USA. In the United States, Lockheed Martin coordinates and assembles airplanes, but the bulk of the content comes of associated giants. Northrop Grumman produces central fuselage, AN/APG-81 radar and communications systems, with a participation between 20 and 25% per device. RTX, through Pratt & Whitney, supplies the F135 engines, while Raytheon provides armament and advanced sensors. Other actors such as Honeywell, L3harris or Curtiss-Wright have key papers in specific systems. The great absent is Boeing, whose X-32 lost the contest in front of Lockheed X-35; Today its role is limited to minor work as a subcontractor, while concentrating its efforts in the F/A-18 Super Hornet, the F-15Ex and its F/A-XX future. Between symbolism and fragility. Back to the case in Japan, that two fifth generation fighters have been out of service during the same cruise does not constitute an operational disaster, but it does feed the Vulnerability perception in a program already controversial for their cost overruns, … Read more

LaLiga can no longer monetize her matches in Spain. So start playing them where: USA

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LaLiga is about to get what she has been trying since 2018: playing an official game in the United States. Villarreal-Barcelona on December 20 in Miami It is the official recognition that European football has accepted that its future is to stop belonging only to the cities it represents. Why now. Several stars aligned to complete a long process: The game will be played seven months before the World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada. The country will be more receptive than ever football. Messi – precisely in Miami – is accelerating the consolidation of the MLS, against LaLiga’s interests. Television rights in Spain seem to have touched roof, it is a product marketed with an offer tension by The current model. There seems to be margin to raise prices for a business, that of football, which wants to continue growing so as not to be left behind the Premier League. And to stop the fugging of talent to the Premier itself or the Saudi league. Meanwhile, The US market offers the perfect combination To continue growing: More than 60 million Hispanics interested in football. High purchasing power. A Prime Time favorable that Asia cannot match. The equation. A game in Miami can generate 50 million euros direct compared to the 5 million it would generate in the Ceramic Stadium. With more than half of LaLiga’s income, coming from international rights, this is an anticipated movement. It was seen coming. LaLiga in fact He has been with physical presence for years in the United States by growing up there. No movement is a greater jump than hosting an official party. Not a friendly summer, but one with points at stake. The selection. Barça was essential to be a global brand that moves large audiences. Real Madrid is as much or more, but His very long open war with LaLiga He made his participation unfeasible. The Villarreal is also convenient: team attract enough (this year plays Champions) but at the same time manageable with its 20,000 members. Its president He has promised free trips to Miami For all the partners who want to attend. Those who do not want to travel will receive the return of 20% of the price of their fertilizer, although only one game will be lost, 5% of those played in the League. It is a patch that works for a club of its dimension in this first displacement, but it will hardly be sustainable if the parties abroad are normalized. The precedent. If everything goes as expected and LaLiga wishes, with FIFA and UEFA giving green light next to a RFEF that has already authorized it, there will be no turning back. In five years we can expect much more than a single match a year and not only in LaLiga, also in other important European leagues that seek to grow. Presumably, series A and Bundesliga. The transformation. Football is no longer a social ritual of citizen representation to become global content with consumers. The parties will go where the money is, not where the roots are. It is the same logic that the Club World Cup has taken to the United States and The Spanish Super Cup to Saudi Arabia. NBA and NFL They have been doing this for a decade. European football has simply defeated the taboo that caused the strong local roots of its clubs. And now what. This is not the end of the process but the beginning. Local fans who have paid fertilizers, t-shirts and television rights for decades will meet some games-in the case of Villarreal-Barça, perhaps the best of the season-playing thousands of kilometers. This is neither good nor bad per sealthough it will generate discrepancies among local fans who reject this model. It is the logical consequence of a sport that bills as a global industry but mostly continues to operate with local structures. LaLiga is not innovating, it is doing the same as other sports for ten years. The question is not whether this should happen or not, it has already happened. The question is what other European football traditions are about to fall. From Xataka We have contacted LaLiga to know its vision of this movement, but the organization has preferred not to make statements at the moment. In Xataka | The new Ibai football team already has a name and field. The problem is that the most important thing lacks: tradition Outstanding image | LaLiga

When we start consuming drugs

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If we pulled the thread we can get an idea of to what extent our ancestors went to drug trancas. We knew, for example, that The barbarians They were so blind that we could explain much of the wars of antiquity. Even Two mummies They have told us to what extent the cocaine was established in past centuries. Now, some teeth aim to offer us the “beginning” of this historical consumption. The finding. A team of Thai researchers has managed to identify chemical remains of consumption from Betel In the dental plate of a woman between 25 and 35 years buried about 4,000 years ago In Nong Ratchawat, in the center of Thailand. The finding represents direct evidence oldest ever discovered of the use of Betel, a psychoactive practice that, despite being little known in the West, continues to be one of the most popular in the world, only surpassed by tobacco, coffee and alcohol. He studywhich was based on advanced liquid chromatography techniques coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS), analyzed 36 samples of mineralized dental plate of several burials of the bronze age, and three of them offered unequivocal positive results that coincide with the chemical profiles of the Betel prepared according to traditional methods. Make the impossible visible. The key to this advance does not reside solely in the identification of plant remains, but in the Applied Methodology. The positive sample contained traces of Arecaidine (from the Areca nut), Hydroxychavicol (from the betel leaf), and nicotine, probably due to the occasional use of tobacco as part of the mixture. For validate your resultsthe team led by Piyawit Moonkham replied experimental form The ancestral chewing process, using dry areca nut, betel leaves, pink lime paste, cortex of Senegalia Catechutobacco, and human saliva, with the aim of generating a precise reference with which to compare the ancient samples. Lost uses. This unusually detailed approach allowed detect molecules that do not leave visual trace and that would have been impossible to identify through traditional archaeological techniques. According to the co -author From the study, Shannon Tushingham, this strategy not only reveals lost uses of the past, but opens a new way to rebuild cultural practices through biomolecular waste, even when there is no visible indication of them. Archaeological Site in Nong Ratchawat where teeth samples originated A living tradition. He betelor more specifically the brunette of Betel, is the name that receives the preparation composed of the Areca walnut wrapped in the Betel leaf and usually accompanied by lime off. This combination releases Arecolinaan alkaloid substance that produces mild stimulating effects, as a feeling of alert, warmth and well -being. Despite its invisibility in the official drug history, Betel has a social and ceremonial role deeply rooted in many Asian and oceanic cultures. For millennia, it has been used in rituals Incidentally, festive events, and even as an element of community cohesion. The finding in Thailand demonstrates that this practice was already consolidated in Southeast Asia a thousand years before what was thought, challenging the linear narratives of cultural development and offering a new window to the intangible past. Legacy with consequences. The discovery is not exempt from Medical and Social Implications. Today, Betel is an extended habit in countries like Papua New Guinea, where 50% of the population chews regularly, and where the highest oral cancer rate on the planet has been documented. Chronic consumption has also been seenInculated to diseases Hepatic, metabolic syndrome, cirrhosis and renal damage. However, Betel too It has properties Antioxidants, antiparasitic, anti -inflammatory and antiseptic, which complicates its classification as a mere “harmful drug.” This ambivalence has fed its cultural permanence and has raised disparate responses in the different countries. Consume Betel. In Taiwanfor example, consumption has decreased significantly among young people URBANITAS Thanks to public health campaigns, but Betel is still linked to a very particular aesthetic: that of The bīnláng xīshī or “Bellezas del Betel”, young women dressed in provocative outfits that sell the product in road shop windows. This phenomenon, already in decline, has given way to a more conservative version, with major vendors in closed positions or night markets, but remains a living expression of cultural identity and historical memory. Knowledge in front of stigma. One of the axes of the study It consisted of stressing that practices such as Betel’s consumption They should not be reduced to the category of “drugs” under contemporary western standards. Far from that, they represent medical, spiritual and community knowledge transmitted for generations, often ignored by classical archeology. By identifying these chemical waste, the dental calculation analysis not only rewrites the history of the Betel, but also offers a framework to reassess many other psychoactive plants whose use has been invisible or repressed. As Moonkham statesUnderstanding the cultural context of the use of traditional plants is essential to recognize its true anthropological value and to generate a more nuanced dialogue around substance consumption. Fascinating, since the dental calculation has returned the image of an anonymous woman who, 4,000 years ago, shared with her community a practice that still survives. A silent evidence that human desire to alter awareness, share experiences and ritualize the body has roots as deep as History itself. Image | FFGGSS/Wikimedia Commons, Piyawit Moonkham In Xataka | The consumption of amphetamines in Spain is concentrated in an autonomous community. And we know it with a “single” trick In Xataka | The barbarians who assaulted Rome went to the eyebrows: drug use also explains the war in antiquity

Volvo does not start with the electric car and believes that his big problem is in Spain

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They said that “there was no future for internal combustion engines” from 2030. Last year they softened their expectations. And now they confirm that the transition to the electric car has been choking to the point that it will not be possible if in countries such as Spain a serious plan to electrify the country does not go ahead. Yes, we talk about Volvo. “It’s very difficult”. These words of Håkan Samuelsson, CEO of Volvo, summarize the feeling of the company with respect to the electric car. In an interview with the German media Die Zeitasked about the slow transition to the European electric car, which was expected faster, Samuelsson has responded to the following: There must be a clear sign that at a given time it is changing to electric mobility. But, of course, if there is no load infrastructure, especially in southern Europe, it is very difficult to implement it. A general concept is needed. Therefore, I can also imagine classify new hybrid vehicles with plug -in and long -range technology. In addition to southern Europe, a region in which Spain is undoubtedly, the CEO of Volvo also points out that “in certain regions of the world it is complicated for us, for example, in the west of the United States, with its own particularities. We probably need a few more years there. For electric mobility to succeed.” More loaders. With both answers, Samuelsson points directly to the load infrastructure as the main stumbling block to achieve the expected impulse with electric mobility. In the case of the United States it is evident. Tesla created a recharge network that held its first sales. Now, with your own loaders, your network is so good that has made manufacturers adapt to your bet. And in Spain we also have lessons to learn. Although we have improved and in Xataka We support that with the current volume of electric cars the reliability of the loaders than the pure power, According to ANFAC’s latest electromobility barometerin June 2025 we barely covered 17.5% of the total loaders that we should have installed at the end of the year. Tranquillity. Having a dense and reliable recharge network remains the main concern of those who do not dare to make the leap to an electric car. The ultimate goal is to be able to leave home without having to plan a route but that, right now, is not possible. And not only is it not possible, besides With a small battery electric carit is essential to be clear where, when and for how long to stop. Without a doubt, when one takes an electric car for a while it does not take time to adapt to its demands. Acquire the necessary knowledge to Do not pass hardships It is simple but that entrance barrier is still too high for those who want to disburse 30,000, 40,000 or 50,000 euros in a car and want to forget to pass anxiety for autonomy. But, above all, it is especially complicated among those who are looking for an electric car of 20,000 or 25,000 euros and know that they will have to Pay with some discomfort Your low price. What happens with Volvo? The problem for Volvo is that their electric cars do not advance to the expected rhythm and their plans were to stop selling combustion engines in 2030. In 2021, just four years ago, they said that “There is no future for internal combustion engines”. However, in 2024 they have had to admit that the transition to the electric car is being resisted more than the account and They already advanced that it was likely to maintain hybrid cars in the market for a longer time. Again, The low sales in the United States were key. Now, its CEO uncheck getting pressure so that countries take the initiative and put their efforts to create a solvent recharge network. Is something done? Yes, something is being done. First, countries have to give an acceleration to the recharge network forced by the European Union itself which has designed a plan to have fast loaders in the main routes of the continent in the short and medium term. In addition, you work to oblihar that the new loaders have Your own payment TPV systemwhich should facilitate adoption to the electric car. Right now, it is still necessary to have a good number of applications on the mobile if you load with different companies. And the government is also working for make cargo plugs visible With a new signaling on the roads. The ultimate goal is to go through the drivers that Spain is not a wasteland without loaders and that can be traveled with relative tranquility. One last curiosity. For Samuelsson “no, we were not too fast (about the jump to the electric car). For us, as a rather small company, the fully electric vehicle market is large enough.” Words hide a defense of their own legacy. The current CEO of the company already held this same position between 2012 and 2022. That is, the commitment to sell exclusively electric cars in 2030 was yours. After a small hesitation period, Samuelsson returned from his retirement to re -direct the Swedish company. A company that, on the other hand and by preference of its own CEO, is increasingly China: I want more cooperation from Volvo (with Geely). I want Volvo to remain independent, that is, with the headquarters in Sweden and that it is cited in the Swedish bag. But I also want to increase the value, the interest of the owners, and therefore more exchange within the holding company, to save money and introduce new technologies more quickly. Photo | Xataka In Xataka | Spain already has its first national map of cargo points for electric cars. We have tried it and we have opinions

To start, something that did not do in 50 years

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This year’s San Diego comic-with has been less striking than that of previous others. After the Marvel Holocaust with the Announcement of the return of Robert Downey Jr.in 2025 there has been neither Marvel, nor Disney, nor almost DC. So the attention has been monitored without problems George Lucas, which has spoken on the last day of the Convention of his collection of 40,000 comics and related articles at home and that he has finally found a way to use them. George Lucas in the house. Yes, George Lucas had never attended the convention in the more than half a century of life of the Comic-Con de San Diego. And no, he did not mention ‘Star Wars’ or ‘Indiana Jones’ at any time, franchises to which Lucas is already linked only pecuniary. Lucas approached the Hall H of the San Diego Convention Center to talk about his comics collection: 40,000 copies that he has decided that he will share with the world. A comic museum. To do this, he announced the Foundation of Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, which will open its doors in Los Angeles in 2026. In this presentation they accompanied the director and screenwriter Guillermo del Toro, the production designer of the prequels of ‘Star Wars’, Doug Chiang, and Queen Latifah as a moderator. The museum, which will direct Lucas in the company of his wife Mellody Hobson (with Del Toro participating in the Board of Directors), will include tens of thousands of works that the filmmaker has collected for decades, since he was at the University. Hit Nazis. During the presentation, attendees praised the ninth art in very different ways. Lucas described the “Temple for Popular Art” museum. Chiang said that “when I was a child, the art of the comic did not take seriously. They always told me: ‘Doug, one day it will happen to you.’ And I am very happy that it would not happen.” And Del Toro remembered comics as a propaganda piece advanced to other media: “The comics were the first to hit the Nazis“He said, remembering that they were made before films. Nothing ordinary people. Among the originals that will house the museum are works by authors as prominent as Charles M. Schulz, Jack Kirby, Norman Rockwell, Jessie Willcox Smith, Beatrix Potter or Frida Kahlo. With the museum, these pieces will finally find a place to be exposed, since Lucas refuses to sell them. The museum will also include part of Lucas’s archive linked to his films, with models, props, conceptual art and costumes. Since 2016. The museum has finally found its site in Los Angeles, but the project has been lying down for a while. In 2016, it was planned to be built in Chicago, near Lake Michigan. But an organization of the city, Friends of the Parks, filed a demand for Lucas for construction on private land, so they decided to transfer the project to Los Angeles. In Xataka | Before selling ‘Star Wars’, George Lucas imagined a megalómana series: 10 times more expensive than a saga movie

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