time

The daily menu has been in an existential crisis for some time. Now Mercadona threatens to take it ahead

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“This is more practical and faster. You eat for 6 euros and I don’t spend 45 minutes. I haven’t eaten off the menu since summer.” The phrase It is from David, 35 years old, technical director of a gym in Madrid. The World He interviewed him recently while having lunch at a Mercadona in the capital. His comment may seem like a simple anecdote, but it summarizes a phenomenon that in the coming years threatens to transform the healthcare sector. retailhospitality and even our eating habits: the struggle between the ‘menus of the day’ of bars and supermarket dishes. For now the figures are clear. Why are you going to the supermarket? A few years ago (not that many) that question would sound like a truism. You go to the supermarket to buy fruit, meat, preserves, milk… whatever you need to fill the pantry. At most you leave there with toiletries or perhaps home decorations, if we’re talking about stores. hypermarket type. However, more and more people go to the supermarket with another purpose: to eat. Literally. Go to a Mercadona, Carrefour or Alcampo (to name just three chains with a presence in Spain) and buy ready-to-eat dishes. Some stores even offer tables, chairs and microwaves. “Merchants” they call them. If you look splendid you can even buy a cup of freshly ground coffee. And do they work? Yes. A few days ago a reporter from The World visited a Mercadona in the center of Madrid, and found that, in addition to people shopping, there was a dining room full of customers eating dishes prepared in the supermarket itself. Three caregivers were having lunch together. At another table a woman was eating a hamburger while looking at her cell phone. Tables. Unknown. Dishes. Exactly the same as in a bar. And it is not something that happens only in Madrid. Not even in Mercadona. In another neighborhood, a retiree waits in line at a Carrefour to buy a rice and hake salad in green sauce. It is the menu of the day from the store, although his idea is actually to take it home. What does the data say? That the above are more than simple scenes of customs. It is proof that something is changing in the sector. retaila change that connects with our eating habits and threatens to hit traditional hospitality completely. According to data from the consulting firm Circana, the distribution sector already accounts for almost the fourth part (23%) of spending on food outside the home. And it is not the only indicator that points in that direction. Another recent NIQ report estimates that the prepared food sector in supermarkets, a broad category that includes everything from refrigerated dishes to other ready-to-eat dishes, recorded year-on-year growth in 2025. 11%well above the 5.8% at which the food distribution as a whole grows. In net terms, this translates into a turnover of billions of euros. In general, Asefapre, the association of manufacturers of prepared dishes, estimates that in 2025 per capita consumption amounted to 18 kg per person, 5% more than in 2024. Its most popular products are refrigerated pizzas, frozen potatoes and pasta-based dishes, so it does not exactly coincide with the foods offered in sections such as ‘Ready to eat’ from Mercadona, but it still gives a valuable clue about consumer trends in Spain. Which chains stand out? In Spain, brands with higher weight In distribution by value quota they are Mercadona, Carrefour and Lidl. The ‘photo’ is not very different when we talk about spending on food. At least that is what the data from Worldpanel by Numerator (Kantar) suggests, which recently disclosed a report which shows that the Valencian chain accounts for a value share in food and beverage consumption of 19.7%. Carrefour reaches 6% and Lidl 5.1%. The study leaves another interesting reading: with its share of almost 20%, Mercadona far exceeds the sum of bars, cafes and terraces (with a 11.2% share of total value) and independent restaurants, which remain at 8.6%. That Roig’s chain occupies such a prominent place is no coincidence. Beyond the gap that has been made in the sector retail thanks to the white labelthe group has been betting on its line for years ‘Ready to eat’in which it offers already cooked dishes that can often be enjoyed without having to leave the store. Today the section is implemented in 1,469 stores distributed throughout Spain and Portugal. Only throughout 2025 did the model expand to 210 new premises. What about the menu of the day? As Víctor, the young man from Madrid with whom we started this report, implies, this new offer of ready-to-eat dishes (many of them based on “traditional recipes”) represents direct competition for bars that offer daily menus. That’s interesting in itself. However, there is another reason why it is worth paying attention to this struggle between ‘merchants’ and bars: catch the traditional hospitality ‘menu’ in the middle of the crisis. Its format is largely based on affordability, but the escalation of costs in recent years (and which may yet be yet to come) makes it turn out every time more difficult keep them at attractive prices. At least if hoteliers want to maintain their margins. Have daily menus become more expensive? Yes. The data from the employers’ association show that every day in Spain they continue to serve millions of menusbut that does not mean that they are getting rid of price escalation. Between 2016 and 2024 They became more expensive on average by 19.5% (they went from 11.7 to 14 euros), but even with that increase the increase accumulated by the general CPI is not equal. A quick Google search arrives to find recent news that warns that in the last decade this increase in prices it’s already over 21%complicating the possibility of finding menus by less than 15 euros. What does that mean? That things get complicated for hoteliers, forced to maintain a profitability margin that guarantees their businesses and compete … Read more

The good news is that the Ebro reservoirs are at a historic 85% water level. The bad thing is that we are going to spend it in a short time.

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There are 6,640 hm3 of water in the Ebro basin. The reservoirs are at 85.1% of its total capacity at what is its highest level (for this date) of the decade. And yet, the fact that there is a lot of water is not news. All of Spain is the same (83.3%). The news is that we are going to spend it. A structural problem called ‘Mediterranean’. Every year, the pressure of the Mediterranean summer and the irrigation campaign empty the reservoirs very quickly. AND, as history has shown usthere is never too much water: “each dry period has served to implement emergency measures for agriculture that were not eliminated when the rains returned, they were used to expand irrigation, aggravating the problem in the following drought”, said Ana Tudela and Antonio Delgado. And that, precisely that, is what we are about to see. The complete image. Seeing the figures for the reservoirs can lead us to forget that, just three years ago, 85% of the basin’s surface was in “prolonged drought“and 45% of them declared themselves in shortage emergency. Mequinenza, the largest swamp, reached historic lows. It was a catastrophe not only in water terms, but also in energy terms. Now, however, all that is in the past. And Say’s Law lurks in the dark. What the old French economist Jean-Baptiste Say argued at the end of the 19th century is that “every supply creates its own demand“and, translated into this situation, this means that the fact that there is more water generates all the incentives in the world for there to be more irrigation. As soon as we do it, this becomes clear. After all, not all of the basin’s storage capacity is enough for a full year of agricultural demand. Without the annual rainfall and the melting of snow, we could already consider all its reserves exhausted. March is the key month. The irrigation campaign runs from April to September and that means that March is the key month for planning the year. It is true that the thaw has not yet begun (which this year is going to be very intense), but it helps us estimate what quantities of water are really available. All irrigated agriculture in the valley depends on the water we are able to store during the spring. The question from now on becomes: how do we conserve as much water as possible before we once again enter a situation of risk? And the problem is that we don’t have answers. Especially in a regulatory context in which are not foreseen widespread restrictions on irrigation. Economic, social and institutional incentives tell us that we are not yet prepared, as a country, to address the really important question: we do not have a water problem, we have a consumption problem. There is still room for improvement in management, yes. But that won’t solve the problem: it only postpones it. And that 85% of reservoir water has given us unbeatable weather, we just have to hope that we can take advantage of it. Image | Manuel Torres Garcia In Xataka | The great battle of the Ebro is not between Murcia and Aragón, it is between the headwaters of the rivers, the large cities and the delta

charges every time someone enters a Universal park

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In 1987, while Warner Bros. was trying to sign him to make films for it (something that would not come until the 2001 Amblin co-production ‘AI’), Steven Spielberg signed a deal with Universal that had nothing to do with film. Decades later, that Creative Consultant contract in theme parks brings him more money than any of his films and has gone down in history as one of the most lucrative in the history of entertainment. And the best: it has no expiration date. The origin of the contract. In 1987, Universal Studios didn’t have the money to compete with Warner. What it did have was Sid Sheinberg, the president of MCA, Universal’s parent company, who had been betting for years on a young director whom he had signed when he was barely a teenager and for whom the director had provided hits like ‘Jaws’ or ‘ET the Extraterrestrial’. When Warner launched a financial offensive to snatch up Spielberg, Sheinberg improvised a cashless solution: making his star director a creative consultant for the theme parks Universal planned to build, with a share of the gross receipts. Forever. ELON MUSK VS JEFF BEZOS: STAR WARS How was it known? For two decades, the terms of the agreement were known only to a small circle of lawyers, but came to light thanks to a footnote in the financial documents that Universal presented in 2009, in the midst of the economic crisis. It was then known that Spielberg perceived 5.25% of all gross revenue generated by the two parks built after the signing (Orlando and Japan), an amount valued at up to 70 million dollars annually (approximately 120 dollars per ticket, 2.38 dollars for each ticket sold) and that It later spread to Singapore and Beijing.. Universal Studios Hollywood was excluded because the park already existed before the initial agreement. It doesn’t stop, it doesn’t stop. The key term here is “in perpetuity”: no expiration date. The original text included a clause granting Spielberg 2% of all box office grosses and a portion of concessions, in perpetuity. These are not royalties linked to a specific film or a specific attraction. Spielberg charges for each ticket sold at the parks covered by the agreement, regardless of whether any of his films have a presence there. The financial crisis of the late 2000s put Universal in an uncomfortable position. The agreement included a clause allowing Spielberg to demand a final payment and terminate the contract, which he did. The figure was estimated to be around $200 million. But the studio was building The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and could not afford that payment. Spielberg agreed to postpone it until June 2017 in exchange for an increase in his share from 2% to 5.25% of gross receipts, just as the opening of the Harry Potter zone promised to skyrocket attendance. In 2017 he agreed to continue collecting royalties. Other cases. Spielberg’s deal with Universal has no direct equivalent in the industry. Perhaps George Lucas’ situation with the ‘Star Wars’ franchise, which sold to Disney in 2012 for $4 billionis comparable, but it is still a simple sale of rights. In other words: no matter how much the franchise films make now, Lucas receives nothing. Of course, Spielberg was very smart there: the opening of Epic Universe in Orlando in May 2025 adds a new source of gross revenue to which Spielberg is entitled under his contract. According to the latest estimatesif visitor volume reaches projections from previous expansions, the director’s annual revenue could exceed $100 million over the next few years. What I said: a great business. Image | William Warby

We have been talking about “time immemorial” all our lives as if it were a remote past. Well it’s a specific year

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You’ve heard it a thousand times. Someone is talking about a custom, a tradition, a deep-rooted habit and suddenly, to underline that idea, they pompously claim that it dates back to “immemorial times”. You, too, have probably uttered that phrase more than once. What you may not know is that “immemorial times” does not take us back to a very distant and diffuse past of which there is no written record, but to a date very specific and not so remote: the summer of 1189. That is, just under 840 years ago. To understand it you have to travel to medieval England. Of laws and customs. It’s easy to forget when you get a fine, but living in a world regulated by clear laws is a fortune. For example, if you believe that your neighbor has taken something that belongs to you, you know exactly what to do: find a lawyer, go to court and appeal to legislation that applies equally to everyone. In medieval England the thing was more complicated. Justice was dispensed, but in a way that would seem rudimentary to us today. “Until 1275 law in early medieval England was constantly evolving and was based largely on the idea of ​​long usage, custom and royal decrees,” explains Amy Irvine in Histoy Hit. “The legal framework was decentralized, with no unified or systematic legal code for the entire country. Individual regions and communities had their own local courts and were governed by customary laws developed over time. These rules were often unwritten and passed down from generation to generation.” putting order. Over time that framework evolved. An important change came with the ratification of the Magna Carta of 1215, which placed certain restrictions on royal authority. Another (key) was completed in 1275, with the Statute of Westminstera document that codified the laws in force throughout the kingdom. Throughout his 51 chapters The statute addresses issues such as criminal legislation, the rules that regulate commerce or an issue that may seem minor to us today but in its day played a fundamental role: consolidated rights. As Irvine recalls, during the reign of Henry II (1154-1189), as the legal system consolidated, more and more people began to defend their rights, claiming legitimacy over plots or grazing areas. What arguments were they using? The custom. Often those who claimed a right relied on the fact that they had enjoyed it for a long time. The problem was how to prove it. The Statute of Westminster wanted to clarify that point with an ingenious solution, one that played with the idea of ​​’memory’. “Immemorial” times. Basically what the statute of 1275 did was divide history into two large blocks, at least for legal purposes. What divided them? The ‘legal memory’. On the one hand, there was the vast period that came to be considered ‘time immemorial’. On the other hand, the valid ‘memory time’. Today it may sound far-fetched to us, but it made sense in the eyes of medieval Englishmen. At that time one of the arguments usually used in property trials was oral tradition transmitted from one generation to another. That is, someone claimed a piece of land arguing that their father, grandfather, great-grandfather… claimed that they already farmed on that plot of land. The Statute of Westminster wanted to put some order in this mess, establishing a time of ‘legal memory’, a border between an oral company and another regulated in writing. What exactly did he do? “It became the date of legal memory,” explains Russell Sandbergprofessor at Cardiff University, in statements reported by IFL. That is, he established a framework that anyone who wanted to defend that something had happened “since” time immemorial “had to adhere to.” The change also had important advantages for English landowners, who until then had to go back several centuries, until the norman conquest of 1066, to demonstrate the validity of their property titles. One year: 1189. The next question is obvious: What barrier separated ‘immemorial’ time from the time of legal memory? What year made the difference? The answer is 1189, the year of the coronation of King Richard I of England, better known as Richard the Lionheart. Taking into account that the Statute of Westminster dates back to 1275, this means that legal memory was limited to 86 years, a reasonable time to use the testimonies of parents and grandparents. ‘Immemorial time’ thus became limited (at least in the eyes of medieval English law) to any time prior to the summer of 1189. When exactly? It is not easy to define it. There are those who set the exact border July 6 1189, the day of Richard I’s accession to the throne after the death of Henry II. Others delay it until his coronation, September 3 of that same year. Laws… and something more. That 1189 was chosen as the temporal border also has a symbolic reading: by choosing that date, Edward I paid tribute to his predecessors, the monarchs Henry II and Richard I, which in a way also served to reinforce his legitimacy on the throne. The truth is that the formula worked and still today is used frequently the concept of “time immemorial”, although those who use it do not always have Richard I and medieval legislation in mind. For the RAEFor example, “immemorial” is that time “so old that there is no memory of when it began.” Images | Andrik Langfield (Unsplash) and Wikipedia In Xataka | In the Middle Ages it was common to sleep inside wooden closets. The big question is why we stopped doing it.

Is it a good time to buy the Samsung Galaxy S25 or will it drop in price? This is what the data tells us

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According to the price that the Samsung Galaxy S25 since it was launched and seeing how its predecessor (the Galaxy S24) performed in the market, this is how we value, at the moment, the purchase of the S25 in its 256 GB versionwhich is the one we have analyzed. 🔴 alert (don’t even think about it) Samsung Galaxy S25 Verdict At this moment it is almost at its launch price official RRP 869 euros (Samsung store) Target price “on the street” Don’t pay more than 729 euros (Powerplanet) Next release You can now buy the Samsung Galaxy S26 at the official price of 999 euros in the Samsung store. Our recommendation Don’t buy it. After having reached its historical minimum, now this Samsung mobile is practically at its launch price, being a moment in which you will pay 200 euros more than two months ago for a terminal that is already more than a year old. Regret cost High. The mobile phone has been on the market for more than a year and has a successor. Buying it now would be throwing away your money, as it is expected to drop back to the lowest price it reached a few months ago. In fact, it is already starting to decline in some stores, but not at a considerable rate. Samsung – Samsung Galaxy S25 12GB + 256 GB free mobile. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Why is the traffic light red? The price of the Samsung Galaxy S25, in March 2026, has reached a critical rebound situation after more than a year on the market. That is, the price went down after its release, but now it has started to rise suddenly until almost reaching its initial selling price. Therefore, we find ourselves in this situation: Uncertainty after the launch of the new Galaxy S26: After reaching its maximum price peak again, we now have to wait for the Samsung Galaxy S25 to drop again after the recent launch of the S26 (something that already happened to the S24). Everything indicates that in a few months the Galaxy S25 will drop and its price will stabilize. Future purchase: This means that, at the moment, the purchase of the S25 is more on impulse, since there are really no good offers for this model. The ideal is to wait a few months in case you want to get the previous generation of Samsung’s flagship. Expert Buyer Tip: The Samsung Galaxy S25 has suffered a “bullwhip effect” in recent months and its price has skyrocketed. With the launch of the new Galaxy S26, the price curve will surely end up going down. So if you can wait, the price of Samsung’s previous flagship will eventually drop until it stabilizes. Price history and change prediction The graph above compares the prices that the Samsung Galaxy S25 has had compared to its predecessor (the Galaxy S24) over the course of a year. This is what we observe: This is how Samsung makes money: the secret is in the IPHONE Unusual instability: The S25 market is being totally unstable. While in months nine and ten it reached its historical minimum price (being the best purchase option). After this, it has experienced a rebound that places it almost at the launch price. It is more expensive than its predecessor: Right now, the S25 is 21% more expensive than the Galaxy S24 at the same point in the cycle. The recommendation, therefore, is none other than to wait. Drop expected: It has already been shown that the S25 can drop considerably, so buying it at the prices it is at now, at this point in the life cycle, is paying an unjustified premium for a model that already even has a new replacement (the Galaxy S26) on sale. The best Samsung Galaxy S25 deals now: Keep in mind that many of the offers we find are no longer available once we publish the item, either because they end or because stock runs out, so make sure before buying. Right now, we have not found very good offers for the Samsung Galaxy S25 (except in a few stores). Samsung – Samsung Galaxy S25 12GB + 256 GB free mobile. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links The successor to the Galaxy S25 As we have already indicated, the new successor to the Galaxy S25 is now on sale. Specifically, the Samsung Galaxy S26 It was launched at the end of February at the price of 999 euros for the base 256 GB model. So, as you can see, for what the previous model costs right now, the current one is a good purchase option. Samsung Galaxy S26, 256GB The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Is the Samsung Galaxy S25 for you now? If you are not sure whether or not you should buy the Samsung Galaxy S25, this is what I would take into account: ✅ BUY IT TODAY IF: You need to change your phone, you want one from Samsung and you like the previous model more than the new Galaxy S26. ⛔ I DO NOT RECOMMEND IT IF: Can pay a little more for the new one Samsung Galaxy S26 to enjoy some of its new features. 💡 Good alternatives to the Samsung Galaxy S25 that I would buy If you still have doubts about purchasing this Samsung mobile, these are some of the alternatives that I would take into account: Xiaomi 15: by 665 eurosthis Xiaomi mobile stands out for a major battery than that of the Galaxy S25 and charges at 90 W. Its photographic system is signed by Leica and offers more natural image processing. Xiaomi 15 5g 6.36″ 512 GB The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Google Pixel 10: If you prioritize the photo and the pure Android experience, this is a good model and even more so at the price it has now (588 … Read more

Doomsday’ are released at the same time and Hollywood already wants to sell us a new Barbenheimer. But it’s not the same

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Warner Bros. and Disney are going to release their two big bets of the year (‘Dune: Part Three’ and ‘Avengers: Doomsday‘) on the same date: December 18, 2026. The industry has not seen something like this for years. In fact, we haven’t seen it since the Barbenheimer phenomenon, and the question is whether its effect at the box office can be repeated… when the two films share exactly the same audience. Dunesday, or whatever you want to call it. The two most powerful Hollywood studios, two of the most popular franchises in recent years, a single date. The industry already has a nickname for the event: “Dunesday“. But the fact that both coincide on that date does not respond to an agreed strategy. ‘Dune: Part Three’ arrived first in the pre-Christmas gap. ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ was initially scheduled for May 2025, but postponements derived from the strikes of actors and scriptwriters pushed it to where it is now, from where it is unlikely to move since on websites, networks and others there is a countdown in motion until the inevitable premiere. The Barbenheimer precedent. Summer 2023 was left for the annals thanks to the coincidence of two very different films, ‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer’, on the same weekend in July. The combined weekend exceeded $300 million in the US alonebecoming the fourth best in historyonly behind the three opening weekends of ‘Avengers: Endgame’, ‘Infinity War’ and ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’. Different audiences, even different motivations for going to the movies, but a curious, almost miraculous real possibility of doing a very rare double program on the same day. Why Dunesday is different. ‘Dune: Part Three’ and ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ don’t work like that. Both target similar viewers: devotees of science fiction and big-budget action, with a predominantly male base (this is important). Significantly or coincidentally, both feature Florence Pugh in their casts, which illustrates the extent to which they are not identical films, but do have their roots in a shared territory of blockbuster Hollywood. The idea of ​​Dunesday, as Variety says, is not to propose two different and complementary plans, but to fill the respectable with a giant dose of similar things. Why don’t they wiggle. That neither film wants to move from that date has a concrete explanation, prior to the invention of Dunesday: there are not many good gaps in that part of the year. Sony releases ‘Jumanji 3’ on December 11, a week early. Further back, the first weekend of December is usually a black hole at the box office (families are shopping, not in theaters), and Thanksgiving is traditionally occupied by Disney’s animated bet, because it is a more family-friendly box office weekend. December 18 is the best date available for two films that need a strong start. What if it works? If the experiment works, the combined box office could be among the best weekends in history. In any case, here we find the usual problem: that July 2023 generated a social phenomenon (costumes, double sessions planned weeks before, debates on networks, friendly rivalry between the actors of the films, who encouraged people to go to both) that was organized outside the industry. “Dunesday” arrives much more in advance and with a slight air of a commercial montage. That’s not going to make the films click, of course, but the truth is that we are dealing with phenomena with nuances that go in opposite directions. In Xataka | The reality of Spanish cinema: ‘Torrente’ has brought more people to theaters this weekend than any film since 2019

has confirmed that this war is going to haunt us for a long time

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Every day they circulate around the planet more than 100 million of barrels of oil and enormous volumes of gas that depend on a few strategic points to reach their destination. It only takes one of those nodes to fail for the markets to react in chain in a matter of hours and the impact is noticeable from large industries to the final price of energy in homes. The red line that no longer exists. Because he latest attack on Iran He has not been just another member of the war: he has crossed a border that until now everyone avoided, that of directly striking energy productionnot just its transportation or its peripheral facilities. The sequence is clear and extremely dangerous, because first the gas fields are attacked, then immediate retaliation comes. against equivalent infrastructures in neighboring countries, and in a matter of hours the conflict can enter a logic of “eye for an eye” that has no turning back. In fact, what for years was the worst possible scenario for analysts and strategists (an open war against the energy heart of the Gulf) is no longer a hypothesis for become realityand that changes the very nature of the conflict. War against the system, not against objectives. attack the South Pars gas field It’s not just hitting one more facility, it’s hitting a central piece of the global energy system and Iran’s own internal workings, and the Iranian response. on Ras Laffan confirms that the message has been understood throughout the region. It is no longer about destroying military capabilities or putting political pressure, but rather directly damage the pillars that support states: we are talking about income, social stability and supply capacity. When a facility that concentrates near a fifth of natural gas liquefied planet can be engulfed in flames, the war stops being regional and becomes become systemicbecause its effects spread far beyond the battlefield. A war with the face of Iraq. Plus: the dynamic that has been activated is dangerously reminiscent of the gulf war 1991, when burning oil fields became a symbol of total war against energy infrastructure. If the current escalation continues, it is not difficult to imagine the next step: refineries, petrochemical plants and entire fields become priority targets, with prolonged fires and damage that can take years to repair. The difference is that now global interdependence is much olderwhich amplifies the impact and can turn each attack into a direct hit to the global economy. In other words, the war is no longer fought only with missiles and drones, but with the destruction of the capacity to produce and sustain the energy that moves the planet. An expanding goal board. The Iranian response It also hints at a deeper strategic change: one where, if its energy base is hit, any equivalent infrastructure in the region becomes legitimate objectiveincluding facilities in Saudi Arabia, the Emirates or Qatar itself in the equation. If you like, beyond the energy, the implicit message is even more disturbing: if this taboo is broken, other, perhaps more dangerous ones can also be broken. Because Iran still has the capacity to climb in other directionsfrom attacks on political and symbolic centers to more direct blows against power structures. In other words, if they touch the economic heart, they can begin to point to the political heart, and that opens up a range of scenarios that are much more difficult to contain. The war after the combat. From that perspective, the real problem is not only what is happening now, but what this implies for medium and long term. Destroying energy infrastructure is not something that can be repaired in weeks, and each impact can leave scars that most likely they will last for yearsaltering trade flows, regional relations and power balances. Therefore, possibly this moment be so decisive in the war conflict: because it confirms that we have entered in a phase of the same whose consequences will persist long after the bombings stop. It’s not just another war in the Middle East, it never really has been, but now it’s the beginning of a dynamic that can redefine how conflicts are fought in a region where, from now on, the limits are no longer clear. And that is what makes it more dangerous than any other. Image | nara In Xataka | If the question is where Russia is in the Iran war, satellite images leave no doubt: helping to bring down the US In Xataka | A trick is unblocking the passage of ships in Hormuz without the need for drones or escorts, and the US is not going to be amused

Psychology says that the best time of year to set resolutions is not January 1: it is now in spring

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It is a classic among many people: reach January 1 and resolve to go to the gym, eat better, learn a language or quit smoking. But in many cases by mid-February this purpose has already been abandoned and waiting for a new year to start the cycle again. We usually blame our lack of willpowerbut science has a much more compassionate and practical explanation, since, according to experts, winter it’s not the best time to change life. The real mental and biological “reset” happens now, in spring. It has a name. The basis of this phenomenon is known in psychology as the “fresh start effect.” Here our mind does not perceive time as an uninterrupted continuum, but as a book divided into several chapters, so the change of season, birthdays or the beginning of the month act as temporal milestones in which we seek to make this change in a lifestyleFor example. Because? Having a temporal milestone for the brain has an interpretation, and that is that it creates a psychological barrier that allows us to disconnect of our “imperfect self” from the past who, for example, smokes or doesn’t go to the gym. This is something that was demonstrated in 2014 in an investigation where it became clear that these symbolic dates such as birthdays restructure our temporal perception. Precisely in one of their experiments they compared how participants reacted to the same date presented in two different ways. The results. Based on this study, they compared two different dates: The first day of spring, since we are facing a temporary milestone and specifically 25.6% of respondents chose to set reminders to start new goals right here. In comparison, a normal day of any day was used, such as Thursday, where only 7.2% of participants showed motivation to make a habit change. That is why, comparing this data, it was seen that such a simple change of perspective can quadruple the intention to pursue healthy goals, causally validating that emphasizing a milestone as a “new beginning” triggers our motivation. The spring. Here the question we can ask ourselves is if the new year is also a temporal milestone because we begin a new year… Why is spring superior? The answer lies in biology and the environment. And while in January we are coldshort days and the dreaded economic downturn, in spring we have a progressive increase in sunlight. An environmental factor that joins a series of physiological advantages. When we talk about spring ‘altering blood’, we are not telling lies because it has been seen that sunlight raises serotonin and dopamine levels, drastically improving mood, increasing energy and a willingness to make changes. Furthermore, the end of winter eliminates physical and psychological barriers such as external cold and frees energy to begin investing it in creating habits. Motivation is not enough. Logically, we talk about factors that help, and seasonal change gives a boost to people. Psychologists here explain that the new seasons offer us the ideal mental framework to “evaluate” and plan fresh strategies without the weight of guilt from previous failures. However, there is a warning backed by scientific consensus: although symbolic dates are excellent psychological catalysts for starting a habit, the initial motivation always wanes. That is why, for the habit to last beyond the spring fever, it is strictly necessary to accompany this “rush” of energy with a solid structure, realistic routines and repetition systems. Images | Mink Mingle In Xataka | Three morning habits that will help you be happier and more productive at work, according to science

How can you know at what time the 2026 solar eclipse can be seen in each neighborhood or city?

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Let’s tell you at what time will your neighborhood or city go dark due to solar eclipse of 2026. We know that this event will take place on August 12, and that it will begin to be seen in Spain at 7:30 p.m. in A Coruña, which is when the sky will begin to darken. However, since the earth is not flat, it will not be seen equally everywhere, and the route that total darkness will take will be at different times depending on where you live. What we are going to tell you is how to know how much can be seen in your city and the exact hours. All the eclipse data in your neighborhood or city To obtain this data, we are going to use an official website of the National Geographic Institute created for this eclipse. You have to enter visualizers.ign.es/eclipses/2026and at the top write your zip code or location name in the box that appears. You can also search for the site by putting a pin on the map. When you do, you will go to a page where On the left you have an informative column. In it you will be told things such as whether the total eclipse is going to arrive or it will only be partial, as well as the start times of the partial eclipse and the total or annular eclipse wherever you have chosen. On this website, what you have to do is move the temporary bar that appears belowwhere it says Evolution of the eclipse. So, when the sky is going to be completely covered the map will turn blackand you will be able to see from the beginning of the total eclipse to how long it will last. This tool can be very useful, because it will allow you to organize yourself to see the eclipse correctly. If you are going to travel somewhere or if it will be in your city, you will be able to know the exact times, as well as the differences between where you are and nearby areas. In Xataka Basics | Solar eclipses visible in Spain: these are the three astronomical events of 2026, 2027 and 2028

date, time and where you can see it on your mobile or television if you are in Spain

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Let’s tell you how you can watch the 2026 Oscars galaso you know the options available in case you want to see it. This is the 98th film awards ceremony, which will take place again at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles. We are going to start this article by telling you the exact date on which the gala begins, with the day and time it is in the Spanish time zone. And then, we will tell you the methods you have to be able to see it live if you want. When are the Oscars 2026 The 2026 Oscars gala will take place Sunday March 15. It is in the United States, and the start time will be 4:00 p.m. Pacific time and 7:00 p.m. Eastern time, and it will last approximately three and a half hours. But in Spain, the start time will be from 01:00 from Sunday to Monday00:00 hours in the Canary Islands. It will end around 04:30 or 05:00 in Spanish time. Regarding the schedules of the rest of the American countriesin Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico or Nicaragua will begin at 5 p.m. In Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Panama or Peru it will be at 6 p.m., in Bolivia, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic at 7 p.m., and in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay from 8 p.m. The red carpet It will start a couple of hours earlier. This means that starting at 11pm or midnight on Sunday you will be able to start watching all the Hollywood celebrities parade as they arrive at the gala. How to watch the Oscars in Spain In Spain, the Oscar ceremony will once again be broadcast exclusively by Movistar, specifically in Movistar Plus+ and his channel dedicated to the Oscars on dial 15. His special Oscar night It will begin at 10:30 p.m., and an hour later they will begin broadcasting the red carpet, and then move on to the live signal of the gala. Like every year, you will have all the information in in Espinof and Sensacineour half-brothers dedicated to cinema where you will have the information minute by minute. Also, on Monday morning you will have the summary with the winners in Xataka. In Xataka Basics | The 14 best services and apps to follow and control the series and movies you watch and have all their information

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