takes

“It takes two years to learn to speak and sixty to learn to be silent”

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Whether or not you are part of their legion of userssomething must be recognized about X, the old Twitter: it has become a gigantic social laboratory. Also definitive proof that it is often less difficult for people to open their mouths (or type) than to think beforehand about what we are going to use them for. It doesn’t matter that it’s the last game of the League, the war in Iran, a video of kittens or issues as sensitive as euthanasia: There will always be someone willing to take out their phone and share their opinion, even if that opinion has just been formed. Hence in this world verbose Ernest Hemingway resonates strongly: “It takes two years to learn to speak and 60 to learn to be silent.” Speak and be silent. The history of Philosophy (thus, with capital letters) is full of good ideas… and suggestive phrases of uncertain origin and dubious attribution. We have told it more times. A quick Google search arrives to find alleged statements by Marcus Aurelius, Da Vinci or Marie Curie (among a very long list of thinkers) whose authorship is impossible to confirm. Something similar happens with the sentence that concerns us today. We have been putting the phrase “It takes two years to learn to speak and sixty to learn to be silent” on Hemingway’s lips for decades when in reality it is impossible to know if he ever uttered it. In 2019 Quote Researcher tried to confirm it and came to three conclusions. First, it dates back to at least 1909, when Hemingway was still a boy from Illinois. Second, that it has been associated (with variants) with other intellectuals, including Mark Twain either Lydia Allen DeVilbiss. Third, it is very difficult to go beyond the two previous conclusions. The value of each word. In view of all the above, we might ask ourselves why pay attention to a proverb of diffuse authorship. The answer is simple. Perhaps we cannot confirm if it came from Hemmingway’s lips (or pen), but it certainly connects with the style of a novelist who was characterized by concise sentences and maximum economy of language. In the works of Hemingway every word counts. And that is also a valuable lesson if we think about the fact that humanity (or at least a large part of it) has never had it so easy when it comes to expressing its opinions and participating in public debate. The torrent of public opinion is so powerful that it has even overflowed and has been carried forward the 140 characters of Twitter. In defense of silence. If Hemingway’s supposed phrase has been captivating us for more than a century, it is not only because of its ironic point. To a large extent it also connects with an idea that has permeated philosophy since the time of Pythagoras, to whom another similar phrase is attributed: “Listen, you will be wise”. People express themselves naturally. It is part of our elemental baggage, which we develop during the first years of life along with other skills such as walking. The complicated thing, in fact, is to do the opposite: embrace silence. In silence you think, reflect and listen, tasks that often require active effort. “It takes sixty years to learn to be silent,” reminds us Hemingway sarcastically, implying that silence is a complex virtue that we must work on and takes a lifetime to master. Is it that important? Yes. Educated in a world in which from a very young age we are instilled that ‘he who remains silent grants’ it is easy to forget it, but silence is sometimes an art. To begin with, it requires self-control. It is not always easy to remain silent. As they comment our colleagues TrendsIt also requires discipline, tolerance and a certain dose of humility and generosity. Against polarization. In exchange, silence offers us other things. It leaves us more room for reflection, to form more informed opinions and, above all, to measure our words and avoid regrets. In the age of networks, the debate held from anonymity and with society increasingly polarizedalso helps to ask certain questions: Can I contribute something to the conversation? Am I sure of what I’m going to say or will I just contribute to generating noise? What repercussions might what I say have on others? The virtues of silence and contemplation have been defended by many thinkers throughout history, from Pythagoras to the Stoics (including Epictetus either Marcus Aurelius) to the great humanists of the Renaissance. Even neuroscience has endorsed the advantages of giving yourself some time before opening your mouth. I already said it Aristotle himself in another equally ingenious phrase: “The Wise Man never says everything he thinks, but he always thinks everything he says.” Images | Wikipedia 1 and 2 Via | Trends In Xataka | “A place of joy with pain”: the phrase that summarizes the Aztec philosophy to be happier in this life

It takes 7,000 GPUs to simulate a tiny quantum processor. Although it may not seem like it, it is excellent news.

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The complexity of quantum computers It is extraordinary. In their construction it is possible to rely on several very different strategies, such as, for example, superconducting qubits, ion traps or neutral atoms, among other technologies, but they all have something in common: to a large extent its power is a consequence of its complexity. Of the complexity inherent in any device designed to take advantage the laws of quantum physics. The surprising thing is that, despite its sophistication and exoticism, it is already possible to accurately simulate a small quantum processor using conventional hardware. In fact, has achieved it a research group from the Quantum Systems Accelerator and the Division of Applied Mathematics and Computational Research at the University of California at Berkeley (USA). This is not the first time that a quantum processor has been simulated, but until now no one had managed to do it by emulating every physical detail before its manufacture. A new era begins in quantum chip design Here’s a shocking fact: the Berkeley researchers I mentioned in the previous paragraph have carried out their simulation of a quantum chip using the Perlmutter supercomputer, which contains 7,168 NVIDIA GPUs. To achieve their purpose, they used almost all of these GPUs for 24 uninterrupted hours, so it is evident that the computational effort was titanic. But they got it. They managed to model a multilayer quantum chip 10 mm wide and 0.3 mm thick, accurately simulating how signals travel and interact within this processor. This statement from Andy Nonaka, one of the scientists at the Berkeley Quantum Systems Accelerator, express clearly Why this milestone is so important: “I am not aware of anyone who has ever performed physical modeling of microelectronic circuits at the full scale of the Perlmutter system.” “I’m not aware of anyone having ever done physical modeling of microelectronic circuits at the full scale of the Perlmutter system. We were using almost 7,000 GPUs (…) We divided the chip into 11 billion grid cells and were able to run over a million time steps in seven hours, allowing us to evaluate three circuit configurations in a single day. These simulations would not have been possible in this time frame without the complete system” What really what makes the difference is precision with which they have managed to carry out the design and simulation of their quantum processor. “We perform a full-wave physics-level simulation, which means we care about what material is used in the chip, its design, how the metal is wired (using niobium or other types of metal wires), how the resonators are built, what the size, shape and material used are (…) We care about those physical details and we include them in our model,” Nonaka says. A priori we can conclude that using almost 7,000 GPUs for 24 hours with the computational effort and energy expenditure involved in this process to simulate a quantum chip just 10 mm wide and 0.3 mm thick is not a success. But yes it is. Thanks to this technology, it will now be possible to design quantum hardware in less time and in a more efficient way. Bert de Jong, director of the Berkeley Quantum Systems Accelerator, invites us to look towards the future of quantum computing with optimism: “This unprecedented simulation is a critical step in accelerating the design and development of quantum hardware. More powerful, higher-performance chips will unlock new capabilities for researchers and open new avenues in science” Image | Generated by Xataka with Gemini More information | ScienceDaily In Xataka | We already know what the chips that will arrive until 2039 will be like. The machine that will allow them to be manufactured is close

Artemis II takes off successfully and humanity returns to the Moon after more than 50 years

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Artemis II It has taken off successfully and we are not facing just any launch. What we have seen marks the return of beings humans heading to the Moon more than half a century after the last missions of the Apollo program, a milestone that for decades seemed reserved for the history books. This time, furthermore, it is not just about returning, but about taking a crew further from Earth than any human being has gone in more than half a century, in a mission designed to validate NASA’s deep exploration system in real conditions. To understand the dimension of this takeoff, it is worth stopping for a moment at what exactly Artemis II is. The mission represents the first crewed flight of NASA’s new exploration system, which combines the Orion spacecraft, the SLS rocket and the Kennedy Space Center’s ground systems. For approximately ten days, the astronauts will evaluate the behavior of the ship in real deep space conditions, something that until now had only been tested without people on board. NASA itself raises it as an essential step to pave the way for future missions designed to return to the lunar surface. The journey that returns humans to the lunar environment Before reaching this moment, what we have had has been a countdown with some tension. In the hours before, the teams had to review an anomaly in a temperature sensor of a battery of the abort system, which NASA attributed to an instrumentation problem and which, according to the agency, would not affect the launch. Added to this was another incident in the flight termination system, the safety mechanism that allows the rocket to be destroyed if it deviates from its trajectory and poses a threat, a problem that placed the mission in “no go.” Both setbacks were left behind before takeoff and are now part of the background of a day that finally went ahead. The planned flight path of Artemis II Over the next few days, what we will see will be a relatively short, but very demanding mission. After launch, the spacecraft will first enter a high orbit around the Earth for about 24 hours to check that all systems are working correctly, before beginning the journey to the Moon. From there, the crew will perform various maneuvers, including a manual control test and approach to the upper stage of the SLS, to validate Orion’s behavior in real situations. The plan is to circle the Moon and return without setting foot on our satelliteon a journey of about ten days designed to rehearse each key phase of the trip. The crew of Artemis II If you look at the crew, What we find is a very measured mix of experience and symbolism. Reid Wiseman is the mission commander, accompanied by Victor Glover as pilot and Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen as mission specialists, four profiles who have already experienced space first-hand. Together they have accumulated 660 days in orbit and 12 spacewalks, which fits with a mission in which every decision counts. Added to that is something that also weighs: Koch will be the first woman to travel to the Moon and Hansen the first non-American to do so, opening a new stage in who is part of these trips. There is a detail that touches us a little more closely and that we should not lose sight of. Part of this mission also passes through Spainspecifically by Tres Cantos, in Madrid, where Airbus Crisa has designed, manufactured and validated the Thermal Control Unit of the European Service Moduleintegrated into Orion. This system is responsible for supplying air and water to the crew and maintaining the temperature within appropriate levels for both the astronauts and the equipment. It is a discreet piece within the whole, but without it it would not be possible to sustain a mission like this in safe conditions. In development. Images | POT In Xataka | The Artemis II astronauts will carry out experiments in what will be their own study models

How to ask for European aid that almost no one takes advantage of and ends in June 2026

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There are still a few months left for the stifling heat, but to insulate ourselves from both the cold of winter and the high temperatures of summer, it is vital to have efficient windows. We know it is not a small investment. However, there is a lifeline: an EU-funded Next Generation EU grant program that pays you up to 40% of the bill for changing your old windows. The problem is that perhaps you had not heard about this and the general deadline to execute the works sets a non-negotiable limit of June 30, 2026. What are the conditions? At the state level, aid is framed in the Aid program for actions to improve energy efficiency in homes. As explained by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agendathe objective is to reactivate rehabilitation in a country where more than 81% of buildings have a poor energy rating (letters E, F or G). The program’s numbers are resounding and go straight to your pocket: The subsidy covers 40% of the cost of the action, with a maximum limit of 3,000 euros per home. The minimum investment must be equal to or greater than 1,000 euros. The requirement is that the home must be the habitual and permanent domicile of the applicant (owner, usufructuary or tenant), which is accredited through the registry. The technical objective is to achieve a reduction of at least 7% in the energy demand for heating and cooling, reduce the consumption of non-renewable primary energy by 30%, or replace elements of the façade in compliance with the Technical Building Code (CTE). The good news is that simply replacing old windows with PVC or aluminum models with thermal break and low-emissivity glass is usually enough to comply with the CTE route without having to undergo a comprehensive renovation. But is it as simple as it seems? Here come the problems. The main obstacle to this aid is purely bureaucratic. The most common and tragic mistake that users make is starting the work blindly. The usual process is usually: the owner calls the installer, changes the windows and, with the work already finished, calls a technician to do the energy certificate, thinking that that is enough. Big mistake. The guidelines are non-negotiable: to justify the subsidy it is mandatory to have an energy efficiency certificate prior to the work and another one afterwards. Both must be signed by a competent technician and carried out with the same official program. Without this documentary demonstration of the “before and after”, help is lost suddenly. The aid map in 2026. The distribution of this program works under the “simple competition” model: whoever arrives first and meets the requirements gets it, until the funds are exhausted. Being managed by the Autonomous Communities, the map is a puzzle. According to the data collected by the regional resolutions, this is the scenario of the main windows that remain open: Aragon: Keep your call active until June 29, 2026but with a specific provision aimed at municipalities of up to 5,000 inhabitants and for buildings prior to the year 2000. Canary Islands: They keep direct aid and tax deductions in force, remembering that the action must be completed before June 30, 2026. Estremadura: They have a specific regional program for rural areas (municipalities with up to 10,000 inhabitants) open from March 1 to June 1, 2026. They cover 50% (extendable to 70% due to vulnerability or young/large families) with limits of up to 14,000 euros for single-family homes. Rioja: Its call opened on February 17 and will last until June 29 2026. Pay attention to the information: here the actions must already be completed at the time of requesting help. The Basque Country: Play in another league. It has its own aid for particular works unrelated to the Next Generation framework, with deadline open until December 31, 2030. For their part, the communities of Andalusia, BalearicsCastilla-La Mancha, Valencian Community, Galicia, Madrid, Murcia and Navarrethe windows are already closed. The perfect move: how to combine aid with personal income tax. For those who arrive on time, the operation is round. According to the Royal Decree-Law Approved by the Government, these direct subsidies are fully compatible with tax deductions in the income tax return (IRPF), valid until December 31, 2026. How does this double advantage work? Imagine that changing the windows costs you 8,000 euros and you receive the maximum subsidy of 3,000 euros. When filing your income tax return, you can apply a deduction (20% or 40%, depending on the energy savings achieved) on the remaining 5,000 euros that you have paid out of pocket. The only legal limit is logical: you cannot deduct from the Treasury the money that Europe has already financed you. From insulation to forced ventilation. Taking advantage of this injection of funds is a golden opportunity, but isolating as much as possible has consequences. By installing ultra-efficient windows, the home becomes so airtight that The regulations already require mechanical ventilation systems to renew the air without losing the accumulated heat. In short, the bureaucracy is clear and the clock is ticking. Changing your windows before the funds run out is not just spending 3,000 euros, it is the definitive step to turn your house into a thermal shelter Image | freepik Xataka | The US has resurrected a part of the Manhattan Project that had been abandoned for decades: purified enriched uranium

OpenAI takes a step back in the AI ​​race to completely recalibrate

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OpenAI Sora has closed. His generative video AI that he has proudly shown on numerous occasions and which earned him a juicy $1 billion deal with Disney it no longer exists. The news fell like a bomb a few hours ago followed by the withdrawal of that billion-dollar Disney investment. Although there are those who point out that OpenAI is in trouble, those problems are not so much economic as lack of direction, and closing Sora seems only a step backwards in the long-distance race of OpenAI and AI. Go public this year and start harvesting after everything planted. In short. It’s the news of the day. Less than a year and a half after launching it, OpenAI says goodbye to Sora. In his day (February 2024, how time flies) we were amazed at what this generative AI could do. It was just 60 seconds of video and had some huge flaws, but it was one more step in the artificial intelligence race that positioned OpenAI at the forefront of the industry. Then other competing models arrived, culminating with a Seedance 2.0 that has consumed the entire Internet to plagiarize absolutely anything. Like all the others, wow. Issues. But although striking, Sora was a tool that didn’t seem to add up. While other services have integrated their generative AI models within an ecosystem or applications (the aforementioned Seedance 2.0 in suites AI or in the video editor CapCutfor example), Sora was there, away. The aforementioned contract with Disney was worth it, but it did not seem to be part of something larger, of a “creative suite” (if generative AI can be classified as such). He simply existed, and the worst thing was that others were passing him on the right. Eggs in many baskets. It was, in short, another product of an OpenAI that had eggs in many baskets. It was reaching dizzying numbers in different rounds of financing, setting up data centers, buying a lot from NVIDIA (depending a lot on NVIDIA, too) and launching products like crazy. OpenAI wanted to touch all the keys: And there are some other products, as well as a super app to integrate all that that was not being integrated into other sites. The philosophy was simple: if we are in everything, something will work, but the result has been the opposite and, as my colleague Javier Pastor said a few days ago, wanting to be the bride at the wedding and the dead man at the funeral It is having consequences. The competition tightens. While OpenAI diversified and allocated resources to touch all suits, Anthropic (which is not just a rival, it is a public enemy) was dedicated to two things. It’s not that Anthropic doesn’t have a browser or a video generator: it’s that they don’t even have an image generator. In exchange, what they do have They are functional, precise models and that they do things very well, especially in the field of amateur development with the vibe coding. Focusing on one thing and doing it very well is something that the market is seeing valueto the point that Anthropic is raising a lot of money in different recent financing rounds. In a short time, it has gone from being valued at 183,000 million to arrive up to 380,000 million, and that has had all the fuss with the United States government and the loss of contract with the Department of Defense. Money, too. And money moves everything, and while ChatGPT sweeps the consumer segment with more than 2.5 billion daily queries, you have to wonder how many paying users there are. Where the money really is, which is in business use, Anthropic controls the market with 32% compared to OpenAI’s 25%. And in programming, the distance is astronomical: 42% compared to 21%. In fact, OpenAI has seen how your business share has fallen from 50% in 2023 to just 25% today. As we say, this is where the greatest potential for growth and commercial performance is, and OpenAI is realizing that being focused on so many fields has caused them to be distracted. Or what is the same: they have covered more than they could bite off. Public company. The closure of Sora responds to a multitude of factors, but in the background there is something more important. NVIDIA has already said that the millionaire mega-rounds are overand it has done so just before the expected IPO of both OpenAI and Anthropic. When both go on the stock market, they will have to face another financing model. They will need products that generate profits to attract investors to buy shares, and right now, the one that is best positioned is Anthropic. OpenAI has a lot, but nothing makes it complete. Anthropic has less, but it is very efficient, and getting rid of Sora seems like a move to release ballast before becoming a “public” company (in the American concept). They have to focus their shooting, focus their teams (something they themselves have recognized) and stop wanting to be too much at once without having a clear strategy. Because they are becoming another example of being a pioneer It doesn’t always mean you’re the best. and that, if you don’t get your act together, competitors who have a clearer roadmap will eat your toast. Only time will tell if the strategy works, but at the rate things are going, it won’t take too long to find out. In Xataka | The worrying thing is not that AI is going to take your job in the future: it’s that it is preventing you from finding one now

the Honor Robot Phone dances to your music as well as takes photos of you

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Over the years I have seen innovations that passed through mobile phones in a flash. The motorized cameras They were one of them: they became popular between 2018 and 2020 and then disappeared from the market as if they had not existed. Until Honor has arrived with his Robot Phonea phone that maximizes the bet of the original motorized cameras. The brand brought its latest innovations to Barcelona, ​​although the presentation had a bitter taste. The foldable Honor V6 It will still take a few months to arrive and the robotic mobile does not even have a date. Its state is experimental, it cannot be touched. It does allow you to invoke the camera using gestures. A gimbal tied to a smartphone Vivo has been including its gimbal mechanism in the X family for years, a three-axis stabilizer that simulates the stabilization accessory. But Honor’s bet is radically different, since the Robot Phone includes a authentic gimbal. And orchestrated with AI. The idea behind the phone is to offer automated photo and video taking without us having to worry about keeping the person in focus or following them. The Robot Phone can do all that without the need for extra accessories: the rear camera deploys when commanded. Either from the phone settings or by gestures: The front camera must recognize the palm of the hand, like the photo application does to take a selfie without touching the phone. Once the detection is made, an icon appears on the screen to notify you. At that moment you have to turn your hand so that the robot camera comes out. The robotic arm is activated by coming out of its rear socket and facing the user. The process between detection and the moment the camera is active takes about ten seconds. It’s not fast, it still needs some polishing. The gimbal of the robot camera consists of three axes with motors developed by Honor itself. The brand assures that they are the smallest in the world and that it has achieved reduce its size by 70% with respect to similar engines. The result of including this motorization is a very small, versatile and, according to Honor, very robust accessory. They use the experience and materials they already use in the hinges of the V-foldings. More than a camera Instantly attention-grabbing, you don’t expect a robotic arm to come out from behind a phone. That surprise ends up leading to empathy: Honor highlights the robot’s ability to interact with the user. For example, you can follow the rhythm of music by moving your head up and down. Or emphasize the conversation when we interact with the AI. Honor proposes different use cases for the phone. It is a camera that follows the action, that avoids shaking and that can pan without moving the mobile. In addition, it is capable of becoming a co-worker thanks to AI: it can become a work co-pilot. All thanks to Honor AI already Gemini. No specifications at the moment As a proof of concept, we still don’t know much more about its technical sheet other than that it has a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 as a processor and a 200 megapixel sensor for the robotic camera. The mobile has a solid construction (probably aluminum), straight edges and a screen that will not be far from 6.7 inches. It will be a premium range with all the law. It is a risky concept and I don’t quite see its more practical side, but the curious one. For video recording I think it’s an excellent idea, also for those who want to record everything: the Robot Phone can identify the environment and react to what it sees. AI action tracking is one of its best capabilities. It is still somewhat clumsy in practice, it is difficult to interact with the camera and You can see that the software is a bit green: The robotic camera did not always appear when making the hand gesture. And you had to close the capture application to try again. Live stuff. The return of motorized cameras under the protection of AI I remember having tested many mobile phones with cameras that were hidden in the phone to ensure that the entire screen surface was usable. He OPPO N3 He was one of the first, Asus Zenfone 6 It is another of the models that brings back the most memories: it allowed you to follow people taking advantage of the movement of the camera. The Honor Robot Phone has gone much further. It is a mobile phone that is unlike any other, at least for now. It offers different solutions to all those who use the phone to record video. And embrace the great presence that AI is having in all technological devices. Because, if robots are one step away from get to our housesthe advance could well be the Robot Phone. If the cell phone one day comes to make my bed, I’ll sign it. Images | Ivan Linares In Xataka | Best Honor phones in quality price. Which one to buy based on use and six recommended models

The 2026 Minotaur Prize takes a turn towards dark fantasy in Ancient Egypt with ‘The Shadow of the Black Lotus’

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This year the Prize celebrates a very special edition: twenty years since what has ended up becoming the most important award for fantasy literature in the Spanish language began to be awarded. This year the winner has been Africa Vázquez, who proposes with his novelto ‘The Shadow of the Black Lotus’ a dark fantasy story set in pharaonic Egypt that will go on sale next March 25. 216 manuscripts have competed for this edition of the award, mostly from Spain, in search of the 6,000 euro prize of which the award consists. The Minotaur is an award of international scope and this year proposals have come from countries throughout Latin America, especially Argentina and Mexico. Even so, the winner África Vázquez is from Zaragoza. She is not new to literary awards: her first novel already won, when she was only 17 years old, the Jordi Sierra i Fabra Prize. Since then he has published more than thirty books between Spain and Latin America, and has won various literary awards, including the Kelvin 505 at the Celsius 232 festival. In this work he has opted for travel to the remote past, with the story of a embalmer embarked on revenge which will take her to places as inhospitable as Waset, City of a Hundred Gates and capital of the Ta-Mri, with the intention of infiltrating the court of Pharaoh Nekht-en-sen. In ‘The Shadow of the Black Lotus’ you will discover that the secrets hidden in the heart of the Nile will not only shake the foundations of an empire. The earth rots, plagues come, and the secret behind it all seems to lie beyond the land of the living, in the depths of the Underworld. We are facing an epic and dark mythological fantasy story in a reinvented Egypt, where a priestess of the goddess Isis will plot revenge of ancient proportions. A dazzling journey The jury, made up of Sabino Cabeza (winner of the previous year), Laura Díaz (literary popularizer and writer), Fernando Bonete (university professor, author and prescriber), Judit Bertran (cultural journalist and editor of El Periódico) and Francesc Gascó (doctor in Paleontology and cultural popularizer) have praised Vázquez’s book. According to the jury, it offers a “millennial Egypt So carefully detailed you can even smell the embalmers’ ointment and the perfume of the lotuses of the Nile” Vázquez stated upon receiving the award that “in my novel I have poured all the passion I have felt for Ancient Egypt since my parents, at the age of thirteen, gave me the immense gift of taking me and my older sister to discover the wonders of the Nile. Later, when I had turned twenty-seven, I returned to sail through those ancient waters to receive another gift that would change my destiny.” The author assures that “perhaps that is why in ‘The Shadow of the Black Lotus’, a novel in which death and darkness are so present, there continues to be a light and a life that refuses to go out.” In Xataka | Conan has become an archetype and has survived for decades thanks to an unusual strategy: refusing to evolve

The Rafale takes advantage over the US F-35 and the Russian Su-57E

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India has launched one of the most ambitious military acquisition movements in recent years, a process that, due to its economic volume and strategic dimension, clearly transcends the national sphere and fully connects with the industrial and geopolitical balances that Europe observes. Although the decision still does not amount to a signed contract nor does it close all the technical details, it points a direction within a board where several powers were competing. In that initial context, France appears well positioned to occupy a central role if the next phases of the process progress as planned by the Indian authorities. On February 12, 2026, the Defense Acquisition Council chaired by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh granted the so-called “Acceptance of necessity” to a set of acquisition proposals valued at around Rs 3.60 lakh crore, a figure roughly equivalent to €33.5 billion. In the case of the Indian Air Force, this preliminary approval includes the purchase of MRFA (Multi Role Fighter Aircraft), identified as Rafale in the statement, in addition to combat missiles and a high-altitude aerial system intended for intelligence, surveillance and persistent reconnaissance. The move that can change India’s aerial balance It is advisable to stop at this administrative nuance because it defines the real scope of the advertisement. We are not facing a contractcalendars, final prices or closed technical configurations, but before a resource that authorizes the armed forces to begin the formal acquisition process within the approved budget framework. From there, commercial phases, technical negotiations and industrial adjustments usually begin that can last for months or even years before leading to a definitive signature. Beyond what was confirmed by the Indian Government, some specialized media provide additional elements that help outline the potential scope of the program. Defense News claims that the approved proposal would include the purchase of 114 Rafale. In any case, the institutional approval occurs a few days before French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to the Indian capitala calendar that suggests the existence of political and industrial talks still developing. This possible French role cannot be understood without the competitive context in which the process has developed. The proposal linked to the Rafale coexisted with offers presented by The United States with its F-35 and Russia with the Su-57Etwo platforms that aspired to occupy the same space within the Indian aerial modernization program. To understand why this platform now occupies the center of the debate, it is worth briefly focusing on what exactly the Rafale is within the panorama of contemporary combat aviation. It is a twin-engine fighter conceived from its origin as a multirole aircraft, capable of operating from both land bases and aircraft carriers and taking on missions ranging from air superiority to reconnaissance or deep attacks. The device entered service with the French Navy in 2004 and with the Air Force in 2006, and has demonstrated its capabilities in real operations since 2007. Within this general architecture, the Rafale is not a single closed model, but a family of aircraft with a high degree of common elements and adaptations depending on the operating environment. Dassault Aviation distinguishes three configurations that share a cell and mission system, but respond to different needs for deployment, training and on-board use. Rafale C: single-seat version operated from land bases, designed for conventional combat missions within the air force. Rafale M: variant adapted to operations on aircraft carriers, with structural modifications such as reinforced landing gear and landing hook for naval use. Rafale B: two-seat configuration also based on land, used both for training and for missions that require workload sharing between two crew members. Beyond its external configuration, a good part of the Rafale’s international positioning is based on its technical capabilities. which describes its own manufacturer. Dassault Aviation maintains that the aircraft can take on a full spectrum of combat missions, from air superiority and defense to close support, reconnaissance, anti-ship strikes or nuclear deterrence, supported by a broad suite of sensors and systems such as digital flight control. fly-by-wire or the automatic terrain collision avoidance system. Specifying which aircraft the Indian Air Force would actually receive remains, for the moment, an open question. In this sense, it is necessary to point out that there is no official public detail that confirms the specific version of the Rafale or the exact set of systems and weapons that would accompany a possible order. Where there is a greater definition is in the naval field. The agreement for the Indian Navy includes 26 devices of the M variant. Another important fact is that India already operates 36 Rafales incorporated since 2020 and deployed in different bases. As we can see, the current photograph combines indications of a strategic inclination with a still open process, where the final signature and definitive configuration are still pending negotiation. Images | Dylan Agbagni (CC0 1.0 Universal) | Dassault Aviation In Xataka | A strange night noise was disturbing Alcalá de Henares’ sleep. Until the mystery was solved

It takes away flights, but gives it 500 million to fix engines

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Ryanair is advancing the project of its future engine repair workshop in Seville with an investment of more than 500 million euros. Just like account ABC, the Irish airline, has signed a multi-year parts supply agreement with CFM International valued at around €800 million annually. This is good news for the Andalusian capital, and it would be even better if it were not for the fact that the same company also restructured its operations to eliminate several routes in Seville. industrial project. Ryanair is preparing an entire industrial infrastructure that will turn Seville into one of its two strategic maintenance centers in Europe. We don’t know its exact location yet, but the company says it will be operational by 2029 and will support the fleet operating in Western Europe. It will not be the only one either, since Ryanair will build a second similar workshop in a city in the eastern part of Europe, still to be determined. According to share From ABC, both facilities will allow the company to internally assume the maintenance of almost 2,000 engines of its Boeing 737, a task that until now was carried out by CFM International in centers outside Europe. The agreement with CFM International. The memorandum signed with the French-American manufacturer (50% owned by Safran Aircraft Engines and GE Aerospace), commits Ryanair to directly acquire all its spare parts to support a fleet that will grow to 800 aircraft, according to share the middle. The contract covers the CFM56-7B and LEAP-1B engines that equip the Boeing 737 Next Generation and the 737 MAX. Once the workshops are operational, the value of the agreement will exceed 1 billion dollars annually (839 million euros), according to CEO Michael O’Leary. Adding more industry. As well as mention In the middle, the repair center project adds to the heavy maintenance hangar that Ryanair has operated since 2019 next to the São Paulo airport, where it carries out comprehensive inspections of up to five aircraft simultaneously. However, both facilities will be separated. The hangar will focus exclusively on complete aircraft maintenance, while the new workshop will focus only on mechanical repair and engine supervision. According to share From ABC, it is expected that the infrastructure will have a useful life of at least 30 years. Route cutting. Not everything that Ryanair brings is good news for Seville, as the city will lose seven air connections this summer. São Paulo airport will go from 56 routes operated by the Irish airline to 49 destinations. Among the eliminated connections are Santiago de Compostela, Gran Canaria and Tenerife North in the national market, in addition to Weeze-Dusseldorf, Nuremberg, Frankfurt Hahn and Vienna in the international market. This withdrawal of operations at Spanish regional airports is no surprise. Ryanair focuses on its strategy reduce your operations in those airports that it considers “non-competitive” due to their airport taxes. The airline has eliminated 1.2 million seats in three consecutive cuts in the country’s regional airports, redistributing that capacity to markets such as Albania, Italy, Morocco, Slovakia and Sweden. The closure of bases in other Spanish airports indirectly affects Seville, according to explained the company to ABC, by eliminating connections that departed from those cities. cpartial compensation. Despite the reduction in destinations, Ryanair will add 17 weekly frequencies on 12 existing routes from Seville. Lisbon will add three new flights, Birmingham, Manchester and Bologna will add two each, while Edinburgh, Brussels, Catania, Bergamo, Milan Malpensa, Pisa, Ibiza and Valencia will add an additional weekly flight. Furthermore, just as share From ABC, the airline will add two routes with Poland this summer: Krakow and Wrocław. The weight of Ryanair in Seville. The Irish airline operates 40% of the air connections at this airport and one of every four planes that leave the terminal is its own. Just like account ABC, in 2025, transported four million passengers from São Paulo, an increase of 1,900% compared to the 200,000 20 years ago, when it began operating in the city. Cover image | Kevin Hackert In Xataka | “It’s inhumane”: a Canadian low-cost airline is already experimenting with ultra-narrow seats for its passengers

Amancio Ortega takes Pontegadea’s logistics business further than ever: to Australia

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In its efforts to expand the reach and diversification of its logistics businessAmancio Ortega, is leaving our antipodes, to buy a significant stake in an Australian logistics giant. This operation represents Pontegadea’s first entry into the Australian continent and strengthens the investment arm strategy of Ortega in the global logistics sector, an area that the millionaire has proven to control very well since it is the key to Inditex expansion as a global fashion giant. The Australian adventure of Amancio Ortega. According to information of Financial Review Spanish magnate, through his family office Pontegadeais going to join a group of investors led by the Macquarie Asset Management fund, to present a purchase proposal for 100% of the Australian technology giant. Qube logistics. The operation values ​​the company at 11.6 billion Australian dollars, which is equivalent to about 6.9 billion euros. This offer involves paying 28% more for each Qube share than the price at which it was trading just before the first proposal was made known. The purchase would be made through an agreement approved by shareholders at a meeting, without the need for a traditional public purchase offer process. Macquarie already owns 18.4% of the company, so the operation would ensure control of the rest of the shareholders. His first operation in Australia. This is the first investment that Pontegadea makes outside Europe or USAand is committed to addressing it by diversifying its logistics business. As is customary every time Pontegadea faces a new challenge, it does so from a conservative profile staying in the backgroundletting its partners take the initiative in direct management. On this occasion, the operation is led by the consortium formed by Macquarie, which includes other investment funds such as UniSuper, Brighter Super and Mercer. The intention with this purchase is to take advantage of Qube’s position in the Australian and New Zealand supply chain to expand into Asia, where trade is growing. Qube Business. Sydney-based Qube is the largest import and export logistics operator in Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia. It is responsible for storing goods, managing ports, distributing containers by road and manufacturing transport equipment, in addition to providing services to sectors such as mining, energy and construction. The purchase of this company coincides with Pontegadea’s recent investments in the port operatorsand logistics warehouses, but it opens a new investment door, bringing the company closer to the import and export business with Asia. Previous investments in logistics. Although this is its first foray into Australia, Pontegadea has already invested significantly in logistics assets in Europe, the United Kingdom and the United States. In October 2025 bought a logistics center of 80,000 square meters in the vicinity of Liverpool, leasing to Amazon, for 81 million euros. In addition, Pontegadea acquired a portfolio of warehouses and logistics platforms in Europe and the United States for more than 900 million dollars, and entered the British port business with the purchase of 49% of PD Ports. These operations show a clear commitment to diversifying Pontegadea’s portfolio towards logistics infrastructures in different countries, and not focusing only on real estate investments. In Xataka | Amancio Ortega has been donating millions of euros to Spanish hospitals for years. The question is if there is something more fundamental Image | GTRES, Unsplash (Nathan Cima)

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