tip

Someone stole 56 million liters of water during the last 18 months in Murcia. It’s just the tip of the iceberg

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A pendulum and a couple of wooden sticks are the only tools that dowsers need to, supposedlydetect the magnetic flows of water currents to find underground water. Actually, a dowser is not much use, but it is the name with which SEPRONA baptized a surveillance cycle to catch the water thieves. One of the last cases It is that of the 50 million liters looted by two businessmen in a period of 18 months. But it is neither an isolated case nor something that shows signs of stopping. Louvres. One of the latest SEPRONA operations have taken place in Puerto Lumbreras, in the Region of Murcia, where agents have opened proceedings against two businessmen as alleged perpetrators of a crime against natural resources and the environment. It is estimated that they carried out well exploitation activities for decades, but to be specific, in the last 18 months alone, 56 million liters of groundwater were allegedly stolen. Those investigated used a clandestine well without a volumetric meter that was hidden in one of the companies and was not water that they used to irrigate their own crops (something that is usually common in this type of activity), but to sell. Pirate hydrological. They were capable of extracting more than 100,000 liters a day, which they sold and distributed through their own tanker trucks. Its use? Intensive livestock pig farms. Sale to other companies. Sale to individuals for filling swimming pools. Fine or “operational cost”? SEPRONA began the investigation after a complaint signed by 128 residents of Zarzalico who detected an illegal pipeline of several kilometers built to supply feedlots, and it is estimated that the two businessmen invoiced about 275,000 euros during the 18 months already mentioned. The curious thing about the matter is that, as we say, it has only been investigated for a year and a half, so the figure could be astronomical if the estimate that the activity was carried out for decades is true. Water theft is not something new, far from it, and in fact there are studies which suggest that, for more than a century, it was a practice that occurred in the Spanish southeast. It makes complete sense if we take into account that the area, with Almería or Murcia, being the “orchard of Europe”, is not exactly in which the most rainfall is recordedbut where it is most needed for the cultivation of fruits and vegetables. In fact, this is called “virtual water” that these areas export in tomatoes, lettuce or avocados. This theft of water has been taken as a “survival mechanism”, something necessary to maintain activity during droughts, and there is also studies which point out that the administrative fines received by those who commit the infraction are lower than the economic benefit obtained from the stolen water. Illegal wells in southern Spain in the Andalusia region Devastating. The problem is that the accounts don’t add up where it matters most: in nature. The systematic depletion of aquifers due to illegal well activities has led to the depletion of some of the most important wetlands in our geography. Doñana is the clear examplero, since the national park has been, and is being, drained by hundreds of illegal wells for cultivation. But you don’t have to go far from Puerto Lumbreras to see the effects, and the Mar Menor is another example. Fresh underground water is looted and, sometimes, used to irrigate agricultural fields in which nitrate fertilizers are used that, due to runoff, filter into the soil or end up directly in the sea. This causes the water to have less oxygen than it should, and when it ends up in the lagoon, the fish die from anoxia. Add and continue. Unfortunately, as we say, it is not even a problem new… neither isolated. These last years We have been talking about dozens of people investigated, detained and convicted. The Malaga water company, in fact, has even hired private detectives to monitor employees, suppliers and customers. According to WWFthere are more than 500,000 illegal wells in Spain, the benefits offset the administrative fines and fevers like avocado fever They don’t help at all. Images | Greenpeace, Niriho khoka In Xataka | Andalusia has become a hostile land for the avocado. So an unexpected region is taking over: Galicia

Álvaro Moreno and his Catholic clothing brand is just the tip of the iceberg: the fever for "chic christianity"

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During the inauguration of one of its stores in Zaragoza, the Álvaro Moreno brand repeated his usual ritual: A priest toured the facilities blessing the premises and the employees, while the motto “May it be for the glory of God” was read on a large screen. The gesture summarizes the philosophy of the Sevillian businessman who has made his Catholic faith part of his business model. Showing faith. “When I open a store I say let it be for the glory of God, because if it is not for his glory, why are we here?” he said in an interview with El Español. He was 21 years old when he opened his first store in Osuna; Today, his brand employs 700 people and has an annual profit of almost 11 million. In the midst of the pandemic, after attending mass one morning, he says he found something more than comfort: a new way of understanding the company. Your company seeks to integrate “social and solidarity projects” through initiatives such as Tiendas con Alma, which collaborates with NGOs such as Down España, ELA Andalucía, Tu Casa Azul or the Daughters of Charity of Pumarejo. “Doing a company with soul” is not marketing, he insists. But the truth is that his way of mixing religion and business fits perfectly with a broader cultural trend: the return of Catholicism as an aesthetic, story and, in some cases, as a brand strategy. In Xataka Rosalía has entered her Catholic phase: she is only the latest in a long list of Spanish artists and filmmakers A new spiritual language? Álvaro Moreno’s public devotion does not come from nowhere. It is part of a broader movement, where religion once again appears among pop songs, fashion shows or company slogans. Catholicism, previously relegated to silence or modesty, now becomes a visible sign, even a form of style. The singer Rosalía has been the most visible face of that trend. Their new album, Lux, is crossed by religious symbols and songs. On the cover she appears dressed in a white habit and in the presentation video you can hear Gregorian choirs and verses about God in fourteen languages. This gesture is located within a broader artistic movementwhere religiosity is no longer taboo for the new generations. Spirituality has become, in other words, a new cultural language. From Rosalía’s habit to Catholic festivals like Hakuna, which brought together 85,000 young people At a massive concert in April, faith is leaving the sacristies and entering the timelines. From TikTok to the pulpit. The phenomenon is not limited to Spain. In the United States, a report from the Wall Street Journal describes how Christian music contemporary “is on fire again for God. Artists like Forrest Frank, former member of the pop duo Surfaces, have brought their faith to TikTok with songs like God’s Got My Back, accumulating more than 15 million streams on Spotify and millions of views on social networks. According to the same medium, Christian artists accumulated more than 1.2 billion views in the US this year. And not just artists: even convents have learned to move in the digital age. Nuns like Sister Marta, Sister Verónica or the Argentine Josefina Cattaneo They accumulate hundreds of thousands of followers showing their daily life in the convents: from how a habit is prepared to how a birthday is celebrated in community. The formula works because it humanizes the religious vocation and makes it accessible to young people who perhaps would never approach a church. What was previously communicated from the pulpit is now shared from the algorithm. From modesty to believing pride. In Spain, the data confirm a generational change. According to the CIS36.4% of young people between 18 and 24 years old declare themselves Catholic, compared to 28% in 2021. 10.5% are practicing. It is the only age group in which religiosity grows. “There is a rise in identity-based Catholicism and a visibility of religious identity among part of the youth,” explains anthropologist Mónica Cornejo in El Correo. “They wear crosses and claim their faith without shame. They say: ‘I’m a Christian, so what?’” For Cornejo, it is a Catholicism that is “more cultural, less dogmatic. They are not as interested in read religion as in lived religion.” In a country where religion seemed a thing of the past, faith is once again a flag—aesthetic, emotional or political. And he does it, curiously, from Instagram, from the reels or from a walkway. {“videoId”:”x8ldfb3″,”autoplay”:false,”title”:”HOW ELON MUSK MAKES MONEY if MANY of his companies ARE NOT PROFITABLE”, “tag”:”Webedia-prod”, “duration”:”797″} Towards chic Catholicism. But there is a question underlying all of this: is it devotion, strategy or both? As Noemí López Trujillo warns in Newtralthe religious aesthetic that Rosalía has embraced “does not seem to renounce or contradict itself, but rather deliberately embrace the idea that what is conservative is subversive.” In the case of Álvaro Moreno, the phrase “Let it be for the glory of God” resonates with authenticity, yes, but also with a precision of branding: store, ritual, history of improvement, visible values. And in a market where consumers seek purpose as much as they seek product, that narrative works. The question is whether something essential is not diluted along the way. Deep spirituality becomes consumer aesthetics, and faith—like almost everything—into a market value. Because believing in something offers comfort; But commodifying belief offers a story that sells. And at that border—between conviction and strategy—we may have to look beyond the blessed display cases. Image | TikTok Xataka |Shein has opened its first store in Europe in Paris. Paris has reacted as always: staging a revolt (function() { window._JS_MODULES = window._JS_MODULES || {}; var headElement = document.getElementsByTagName(‘head’)(0); if (_JS_MODULES.instagram) { var instagramScript = document.createElement(‘script’); instagramScript.src=”https://platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js”; instagramScript.async = true; instagramScript.defer = true; headElement.appendChild(instagramScript); – The news Álvaro Moreno and his Catholic clothing brand is just the tip of the iceberg: the fever for “chic Christianity” was originally published in Xataka by Alba Otero .

They have created a pixel so small that it fits on the tip of a pin

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We’ve been talking about smart glasses for years, but the big obstacle has always been the same: the screen is still too big to go unnoticed. At the University of Würzburg, a group of physicists assures having manufactured the “smallest light-emitting pixel in the world”, a light point that measures about 300 by 300 nanometers and that, even with that size, reaches, according to the team, the brightness of a conventional 5 by 5 micrometer OLED pixel. If the technology can scale, a complete microdisplay could be practically integrated into the frame of glasses, invisible to the naked eye. The advance comes from Germany, where a team led by physicists Bert Hecht and Jens Pflaum has managed to reduce OLED technology to a scale never before achieved. Your work was published on October 22, 2025 in Science Advances and describes a method for fabricating ultra-compact light-emitting pixels using optical antennas. The goal is not just to demonstrate that they work, but to lay the foundation for a new generation of projection modules for smart glasses and other wearable devices. A tiny pixel, big brightness. More than a question of size, the discovery lies in the luminous intensity that they have managed to maintain by miniaturizing the structure. The result points to very high resolutions in practically imperceptible spaces. In a device of this type, the panel is not seen from the front: it acts as a light source that projects the image onto the lens, which allows the projection system to be integrated into areas as discreet as the frame of glasses. Scheme of the nanopixel developed in Würzburg High resolution in no space. Reducing a light source to nanometric dimensions without losing power is not only a question of miniaturization, but of materials engineering. The team has shown that it is possible to guide the current and optimize the emission in a structure where space barely allows room for error. With this control, OLED technology enters a new phase, in which pixels cease to be discrete elements and become optical components with antenna behavior. To achieve this, the researchers had to completely redesign the way current flows within the pixel. In previous attempts, the electricity was concentrated at the edges and ended up damaging the material, like lightning that always seeks the shortest path. Their solution was to add a thin insulating layer that blocks these leaks and leaves a tiny central opening through which the current passes in a controlled manner. This way they achieved a stable emission without the pixel being destroyed over time. Efficiency and color. Although the prototype demonstrates solid operating density and stability, its external quantum efficiency is as low as 1%. The researchers hope to improve that figure by optimizing organic materials and antenna architecture, and plan to expand the emission spectrum to all three primary colors. Only then could this technology be considered ready for the next generation of portable microdisplays. Images | Xataka with Gemini 2.5 | Isis France In Xataka | Xiaomi AI Glasses are much more than Ray-Ban Meta because they are not just a product. They are a platform

The North Koreans are hungry, so they have started hunting tigers. It’s just the tip of the iceberg

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North Korea It is a unique country. so unique as airtight and, therefore, fascinating. Know What is an ordinary day in Pyongyang like?the capital, is tremendously complicated. On the one hand, we have the official speech of prosperity and normality. On the other hand, the stories from people who have been within its borders. But sometimes there are accidents and information is leaked, such as the systematic hunting of any animal that weighs more than 500 grams in order to survive another day. And the problem is so brutal that there are already those who point to a strong risk of “defaunation” of North Korea. In short. Joshua Elves-Powell is a researcher who, a few weeks ago, presented a study which analyzed North Korea’s wildlife trade. Obviously, obtaining first-hand information in the country seemed complicated, but Powell had an ace up his sleeve: the testimonies of 42 North Korean defectors. During 2021 and 2022, participants spoke in both South Korea and the United Kingdom and their testimony was devastating: North Korea has been hunting animals for decades to trade with them… and to eat them. In a serious study, these sources should have a first and last name, but due to the unique conditions of this studyit must be noted that the research was reviewed by the UCL Research Ethics Committee. The sample was large: all were over 18 years old and had left the country between 1950 and 2020. black market. Some context. In the 1990s, North Korea’s economy collapsed. In a period of famine, people do whatever it takes to survive, and the humanitarian crisis transformed the country’s relationship with its wildlife. According to testimonies, professional hunters, but also soldiers, black market regulars and wildlife consumers, set out to hunt animals like tigers and other species. The objective was not only to eat them (that too), but to sell them. One of the participants commented that he had been involved in the illegal trade of tiger bones from the Pyongyang Zoo in 2020 and had been able to obtain bones from professional hunters between 2014 and 2020. The hunted is not only sold on the local black market, but also in countries such as Chona or Russia. This clearly violates international conservation obligations and is supported by the seizure of products from time to time, such as the shipment of more than 100 bottles of tiger bone wine at the border between the two countries. Goals. What do they hunt? The research shows that virtually all native mammals weighing more than 500 grams are a viable target. Apart from Siberian tigers (of which part of their hunting is mentioned for food) and Amur leopards (food too), found in a tremendously sensitive moment Due to their scarcity, the prey are the following: Deer: for their meat and pieces such as antlers. Wild boars: for their meat. Asian black bears: get meat, bile, paws and skin. Asian badgers: to create medicinal oil. Porcupines: for their quills. Otters: for fur and trade. Red fox: skin. Gray wolf: fur. Raccoon: for its meat and for trafficking. Defaunation. This hunting is not usually done with firearms, but with an extensive network of traps that add a problem to the list: being an indiscriminate capture, non-target species fall, such as the Bengal cat (Prionailurus bengalensis). This massive hunt is causing what they have qualified as a “defaunation” process that implies that a scenario is occurring in North Korean forests in which there is no longer any fauna. It is something that affects both North Korea and the neighboring areas of China, Russia and South Korea. The Amur Lepartum And the State? in the garlicaccording to these informants. The problem is that we are talking about a market to, above all, create products focused on traditional medicine. For example, deer antlers are the essential ingredient for producing ointments with healing properties and Asian badger oil is used to treat skin conditions. In fact, there are hunters authorized by the State who must present pieces as a tribute and it is ensured that the country itself raises certain animals (such as bears for their bile) to obtain resources that are export to neighboring markets. They do so in facilities that operate under a façade of legality, but supposedly feeding the black market. Someone do something. Powell’s study presented the information and those defectors allowed us to know that side of North Korea. But of course, doing something is complex. Animal organizations consider that the country is a “black hole” for the recovery of fauna because there are no efforts to protect biodiversity. They denounce that it is a market that violates efforts to recover endangered species and, in addition, is a risk to public health. They call for international pressure, using these refugee testimonies as evidence, and specifically allude to China, asking to tighten monitoring of illegal imports. Finally, there is a call for North Korea to join the CITESthe treaty that regulates international trade in endangered species. And this, unfortunately, sounds quite complicated. Images | Uwe Brodrecht, Ltshears In Xataka | This rocket-shaped skyscraper is the “worst building in the world.” And it’s in North Korea, obviously.

The AVE to Andalusia once again suffers a cable robbery and anticipates another day of chaos and delays. It’s just the tip of the iceberg

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Entering the page where Adif collects information from high speed arrivals and outings serves to immerse yourself in the Infinite yellow of incidents. At the time of writing these lines, almost 11:00 am on Tuesday, September 16, each and every one of the trains with arrival in Madrid today have a possible delay warning. Someone has stolen a cable in the ADIF facilities near Córdoba. It is only the tip of the iceberg of an infrastructure that is suffering numerous delays in recent months. 40 minutes. They are not such, as we have learned in Xataka From the hand of one of its journalists who traveled in one of the birds that Córdoba connected with Madrid. Despite Adif’s notices that were discussed of an expected delay of between 10 and 40 minutes in the Andalusian line to Córdoba, the truth is that in this case it has lasted more than an hour. The reason has been a Cable theft between Córdoba and Guadajoz. The incidence was confirmed at the edge of 8:00 am and three hours later It was supposed to be. The problem is evidently the trains that has caused this breakdown that forces us to delay the usual paths for several hours. The last case. Today, Tuesday, September 16, it is just another case of cable robberies that Adif is suffering in recent months, with special incidence in the Andalusian corridor. Last May More than 16,000 passengers were thrown away for the theft of cable at various points of the line. This time, the bulk of the subtractions took place in the passage of the line through Toledo. Just a few days later, also the same month of Maythe section that connects Palencia with Catabria was also affected by a robbery of cables. Last June, Another robbery also caused delays in Catalonia. On that occasion, as in Madrid last Julythose affected were nearby users. A problem. Already in May, the president of Renfe, Álvaro Fernández de Heredia, left a phrase nothing optimistic in a Interview with Antena 3: “They cannot be monitored 24 hours 15,000 kilometers of network, but more means will have to be put.” Then, in Xataka We already wondered if it was so easy to steal in the train network. In 2015cable theft provided a group of thieves a booty that was valued at more than 800.00 euros. In 2022, another robbery also left some 135,000 euros in the pockets of another group of thieves. But in the case of the theft of Andalusian cable last May, the action was distributed by up to five points. And, despite this, According to the Government Delegationcopper had barely won worth 300 euros. So? Óscar Puente, Minister of Transport, said that robbery as “A serious sabotage act”. A few months later, the idea of ​​sabotage slipped again from the government. This time was the Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero, to which An open microphone “caught” saying that the delays in the bird could be due to these supposed sabotages. On that occasion it coincided with Another of the chaotic days That Renfe and the rest of the operators have lived in the Spanish high -speed lines and, specifically, in La Andaluza. That time, a breakdown on an Ouigo train caused the chain stop of the rest of the trains. One of them, from Renfe, overheated and burned his electrical systems. As a result, More than 200 passengers spent the night Within one of those trains. In the same sense, those who pointed out that they pointed out that The real culprit of his fault was of Adifwhose facilities caused the problem. On the other hand, from the Popular Party they already pointed out months before (coinciding with the theft of May) that the maintenance of the network was inefficient or insufficient, ensuring that they would ask “An audit of the entire network”. The tip of the iceberg. Worst of all, Spain has entered a maelstrom of delays and cancellations in Spanish high speed trains as not remembered. This morning’s cable theft is only the last case of a summer that already closes with other cancellations due to infrastructure problems, trains that crack and Fire affectations that, according to Minister Óscar Puente, could have been avoided. What the summer is demonstrating is that, for some reasons or for others, the ADIF infrastructure needs more investments or is being oversized. The bridge itself indicated a few weeks ago that the volume of trains in recent years He has shot but in ELECONOMIST They also pointed out that the investment has not gone hand in hand with such growth. Photo | Dariusz Sieczkowski and Xataka In Xataka | This megameter that joins Europe with a high -speed train sounds good. The problem is too good to be real

The tip makes the employee poorer and customers end up paying their salary

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In Spain there are A debate above the table. In the country he had always looked at the “optional tip” of 10% as an exotic custom of the United States, but lately something seems be changing In the hospitality. On the contrary, in the United States someone has opened the melon of one of the great traditions of the sector. And anyone has said it. McDonald’s has put in question The American tips and system. Context. It We count A few weeks ago. In the United States, tips are not mandatory by law, but it is customary, we would almost say that “obligation”, leaving a tip between 15 and 20%. The logic behind the behavior has to do with the fact that the US minimum federal minimum wage for workers with tips is 2.13 dollars per houran amount that has not changed since 1991. Somehow, that very small amount that the waiter receives on duty has turned the “American” tip into a kind of help to the worker who has no other way to increase his income. In practice, more forced than the theory, when eating in the United States in groups of between a minimum of four and six people, most establishments impose a 18% tip (free) without giving option not to pay it. By the way, although the practice is so settled there, it has European origin. It is estimated that in England in the 16th century. McDonald’s opens the melon. And this is where the almighty company appears. The CEO of McDonald’s, Chris Kempczinski, has criticized A television interview The restaurant model that rely on tips to cover the salary of their workers, qualifying it as a system that “transfers the responsibility of payment of the workforce to the client.” According to explainedwhile McDonald’s does not allow tips and directly pays the salaries of its employees, other premises can pay only 2.13 dollars the time under federal law as long as the final income, adding tips, reaches the federal minimum wage of $ 7.25. With the recent approval of “Big Beautiful Bill” promoted by Trump, which exempts tips from taxes, that scheme It reinforces and generates (In Kempczinski’s opinion) a “inequality of conditions” in front of fast food chains that do not benefit from such practices. The background of the phenomenon. The system of “Tipped Wages” It has been extending beyond traditional restoration towards multiple sectors of precarious work and platform economy. They remembered In Insider That appos of apps such as Uber Eats or Dordash depend on tips to complement income, and the pressure on customers has intensified with notifications that suggest that the speed of the service can depend on the initial generosity of the order. Practices like The “Tip Baiting”in which a consumer promises a high tip to encourage rapid delivery and then withdraws, have generated conflicts and distrust. At the same time, recent surveys reveal A growing social fatigue towards the proliferation of tip requests in all types of establishments, which reopens the debate on whether this form of compensation remains sustainable and fair. The giant proposal. Kempczinski, on behalf of the multinational, suggested that the solution passes through force everyone restaurants to pay the same base minimum salary, regardless of the tips received. States such as California, Alaska or Minnesota already demand it, eliminating the figure of the “subminate by tips” and guaranteeing more stable direct salaries. According to the manager, extend this federal model It would reduce poverty and labor rotation without implying loss of jobs, while leveling competition between fast food chains and traditional restaurants. In his vision, the current disparity favors those who rely on a Externalized Compensation System In customers, while companies such as McDonald’s directly assume staff costs. The vision of a “double cheeking.” There is much more, since Kempczinski described The current American situation as a “two -level economy”, marked by the gap between high -income consumers, who continue to spend on premium products and home deliveries, and those of average and low income, which reduce their visits to restaurants, jump meals and choose to cook at home. From the inflationary wave of 2022, the chain has faced an increasing discomfort For the increase in their menus, which led to the combos exceeding ten dollars since whole strips of customers see fast food as an occasional luxury rather than as a daily option. Price readjustment as a strategy. To stop the traffic drop between these segments, McDonald’s He relaunched a package Five dollars and reinforced promotions in their main markets, relying on advertising campaigns focused on value. The strategy aims to maintain the brand as a reference for accessibility in an environment in which the smallest competition lacks the scale to absorb the costs of the reduction. However, franchisees (responsible for most premises in the United States) They show concern For the impact on margins in a context of wages, rentals and upward inputs, although Kempczinski assured that the consensus in favor of these measures was “almost unanimous.” A conflict between models. If you also want, the debate also contains a deep cultural shock: in the United States, tips have historically worked as salary complementbut the rise of digital platforms and inflationary pressure have intensified wear of this model. While the restoration industry defends its flexibility and ability to attract customers with lower apparent prices, critics They point That it is a undercover subsidy form in which consumers, and not employers, finance a good part of wages. The McDonald’s intervention It reflects how great global corporations see in this imbalance not only an ethical and social problem, but also a competitive disadvantage, reviving a debate that touches the essence of US labor policy and its relationship with salary justice. Image | Crusier, Tomwsulcer, Ramon Fvelasquez In Xataka | Spain had always looked at the “optional tip” of 10% as an exotic custom of the US. Until now In Xataka | The Trojan horse that the US “expats” are introducing in Spain: the culture of the … Read more

10% “optional” tip

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Matías, editor in Xataka, was eating with a friend in an Argentine restaurant in Malaga and asked for the account to pay. Upon receiving the ticket, he observed that he included something that we are not used to in Spain, but that he begins to be seen in the hospitality industry: A suggested tip of 5%. Being optional, they decided not to pay it. The phenomenon. The case that Matías lived in the restaurant ‘The brand‘In Malaga it is not unique. To suggest or recommend tips is something that we can see for a long time in the tickets shared in Google Maps of Restaurants in Madrid as Manero either My seathat upload the bet of the case of Malaga to 10% of the recommended tip, which converts a 197 euros account into one of 217 euros. What began with isolated cases is not so much, especially in Madrid or Barcelona, more Influence of foreign tourists. It is observed more frequently in establishments oriented to foreign tourists with Greater purchasing power and tip cultureand where digital terminals are more established with automatic proposal to leave tip. Less classic tip than before. A couple of years ago, the hospitality employer of Spain He affirmed that from the pandemic We pay less in cashsomething that blocks with the European Central Bank figureswhich encourages that “less and less tips are left,” according to the business organization. Tips to the American. In the United States, tips are not mandatory by law, but it is almost obliged to leave a tip of between 15 and 20%. The logic behind the behavior has to do with the fact that the US minimum federal minimum wage for workers with tips is 2.13 dollars per houran amount that has not changed since 1991. That the sector’s figure is so pyrrhic (compared to our more than 9 euros gross per hour) makes people tip: the worker has no other way to get decent income if not. In practice, more forced than the theory, when eating in the United States in groups of between a minimum of four and six people, most establishments impose a 18% tip (free) without giving option not to pay it. Since the last update of the minimum wage, which has varied a lot is the value of money, with accumulated inflation of 137.19% in 34 years. And just its upward evolution with other factors is what has made the Americans leave less tip in 2024 than in the previous six years. As a curiosity, although the practice is so settled in the United States, it has European origin. It is estimated that in England in the 16th century. Why is it not so popular where he was born. The reason for the practice is not so widespread in Spain and in Europe is related to its nature: here the waiters do not depend on the tip if it were part of the legal salary, but has always been more a prize. And this makes it come to hate our behavioreven when we leave 70 dollars, which we consider here a fortune. The suggestion in the ticket in that case went from $ 130 (20%) to $ 163 (25%). Bad practices. If the tip suggestion with percentage is already shocking for the Spaniards, it is more to see a case in which a tip has tried to camouflage as part of a total payment, broken down confusing to confuse. I told it Toni onsalo in xshowing a ticket with 10% “optional” tip camouflaged before a large total account. There are already waiters who They position themselves against practiceconsidering that it encourages precariousness and low salaries. Another less obvious case Lawtips reviewed itseeing a tickt with suggested tip in large, which can be misleading. From Facua They regretted “The bad arts of entrepreneurs” who try to “project in consumers a responsibility they do not have.” Rubén Sánchez, general secretary of the organization, was clear that with something that “may induce the error, it would be clearly violated Spanish legislation and the company could be denounced.” The future of tips, according to the US. Although in Spain we are still very far, in the United States it is common for years to pay a tablet with a built -in dataphone there is a selected tip figure as a default option. Those figures, which is not unreasonable to see in 30%, They are increasingly high, because they work When generating more income. Reducing the percentage manually or selecting a low option is always a somewhat uncomfortable procedure of the client to whom he has served. Another booming trend in the country: that they ask for workers from establishments that have only printed a ticket and pressed a screen, or removed a bottle of water from a freezer. Image | Christiann Koepke (UNSPLASH) and Klaudia (UNSPLASH) In Xataka | Help the waiter collect the table seems like a kind gesture: psychologists see something much deeper

In Elche a solar macroproject threatens a protected place. It is only the tip of the iceberg of a problem throughout Spain

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Spain advances in its energy transition, but not without conflicts. In Galicia, for example, the expansion of wind farms has generated A growing social rejection for its impact on the landscape. Something similar happens in the teacher, where local communities They denounce the implementation of renewables without planning or consensus. Now, the conflict moves south of the province of Alicante. The voices of the protest. The environmental group friends of the wetlands of southern Alicante (AHSA) has resorted to the authorization of Lucinala, a macroproject of solar energy As detailed in their press release. The authorization was granted by the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, despite the fact that the group presented allegations and a first resource last years, still unanswered. Although the project has been reformulated and its reduced surface, environmentalists continue to see it as a direct threat to the natural and agricultural values ​​of the Galvany Clot environment. Project chronology. Lucinala, a solar plant of more than 62 MW of power and 120 hectares of surface, has already received two administrative authorizations In just 15 months. Despite the unfavorable reports issued by entities such as the City Council of Alicante or the road unit, the central government gave the project to the project in January and April 2024, according to He explained The information. The local medium continues to detail that the promoter has introduced modifications in response to these institutional objections, such as the underground of evacuation lines, the elimination of an intermediate substation or the displacement of the electric layout. These measures allowed the project to raffle the main legal obstacles. However, they have not managed to dissipate the social or ecological opposition to the project. A protected area. In the province of Alicante there are about twenty protected placesnot as many as in other areas of Spain. For this reason, the location of the Lucinala plant is especially sensitive in a critical area from the environmental point of view: The Landscape Basin of Galvany Clot. This wetland, located in the municipality of Elche, has various protection figures, both regional and European. The Ecologists collective In your press release He has denounced that the set of eleven solar plants would occupy more than 190 hectares, a figure that exceeds in 10 hectares the total area of ​​the wetland itself. In addition, they added that 60 hectares of high quality agricultural land, 31 hectares of forest land and 25 hectares of areas with flood risk would be affected. And the ecological connection of the Clot was committed to the Serra of why, to the north, which would fragment key habitats for local fauna. This can bring tail. Beyond the specific case, AHSA, together with more than 150 organizations integrated into the Macrorenovable Platform, They have denouncedA speculative “bubble” driven by European subsidies Next Generation. On the other hand, AHSA has warned that renewable projects in process in Spain are already 144 GW of power, well above the 89 GW planned in The National Energy and Climate National Plan (PNIEC) 2021-2030. Even so, the Latest reports From Red Eléctrica de España (REE) they have indicated that, at the end of 2024, the installed renewable power reached 85.1 GW, very close to the marked objective. Reopening the debate. It is true that from the environmental group they insist that abandoning fossil fuels is urgent, but they warn that a poorly planned transition can reproduce old errors: concentration of energy power, loss of territorial sovereignty and false promises of sustainability. Instead, they bet on a fair transition, decentralized and sensitive to territory. At that crossroads, the question continues in the air: how to move towards clean energy without leaving behind the territory, biodiversity and those who inhabit it. Image | Pxhere and Ferran tab Xataka | Solar panels that clean other solar panels: the photovoltaic industry has entered its self -replicant phase

In 1963 we discovered a pre -Columbian city hidden in the jungle of Peru. It turns out that we only knew the tip of the iceberg

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Between the VII and XVI centuries the northeastern Andes of what is today Peru saw a rich civilization that planted the Incas: The Chachapoyasthe “cloud forest people.” There, between 2,000 and 3,000 meters above sea level, its people raised funeral and ceremonial constructions that over the centuries ended up devoured by weeds. One of his greatest legacies is Great Pajaténin the San Martín region. Archaeologists have known him for decades, but when studying it with new techniques, such as Lidar scanthey have been surprised. They knew only a small part of the complex. What they have found is so interesting that the World Monuments Fund (WMF) He already speaks of the greatest archaeological milestone in the region since the 80s. What happened? That Peru has just given a pleasant surprise to historians. Especially those dedicated to the study of pre -Hispanic civilizations. A few days ago the WMF) revealed that a group of researchers have identified and documented more than a hundred archaeological structures in the Great Pajaténone of the most important archaeological deposits of ABISEO RIVER NATIONAL PARKin the Peruvian Amazon. In fact It is also known as “the lost city of the Chachapoya” or “El Dorado del Antisuyo”. Why is it important? For several reasons. The study not only provides information that helps understand the settlement. It also helps us to know better the civilization to which it represents: The Chachapoya (“People of the cloud forest”), a pre -Columbian culture that flourished between The VII and XVI centuries and shone among other issues for its constructions, such as the impressive Kuelap fortressa citadel located at 3,000 meters above sea level in what is now the Luya province; or the Great Pajaténwith its circular stone buildings, decorated terraces, winding paths and platforms. And who were the Chachapoya? An outstanding part of the history of ancient Peru. As Remember the WMFthe civilization flourished between the VII and XVI in the northeastern Andes of what is now Peru, organizing around regional manors. Despite the steep terrain they managed to adapt and demonstrate their ability as architects: they built settlements with characteristic circular, friez and mausoleum constructions. Not just that. They also managed to resist the thrust of the Inca, although they ended up subjected in the fifteenth century. What have they discovered exactly? The Great Pajatén is known For decadesis in an environment cataloged by UNESCO And archaeologists had already been in charge of examining it before. In fact, in the 60s they documented 18 structures and time later, in the 80s, they expanded the list to the 26 elements. Now the experts They have discovered that was just the tip of the iceberg. With the help of new techniques and resources, the expedition led by the WMF has identified more than 100 archaeological structures that give a new dimension to the settlement. So relevant is the finding that the organism speaks of the “first important discovery in the region since the 1980s.” “More than duplicate the number of known archaeological structures”, celebrate. What tells us all about the great Pajatén? A lot. The site It was discovered In 1963 And since then archaeologists consider it “one of the most notable Chachapoya sites that are preserved”, with ceremonial buildings decorated with friezes and stone mosaics that represent human figures. The problem is that experts failed to make an overall image of the Chachapoya complex or its reach. The reason? Much of its architecture was still hidden, covered by the lush vegetation of the Peruvian high jungle. That handicap and the lack of perspective had so far conditioned the image that experts had of the deposit. “Its scale, function and chronology were subject to continuous speculation”, They point out from WMFwhich recalls the “unique and highly fragile ecosystem” that surrounds the settlement, in the Abyseo River Park. To shield it the authorities even restrict tourists’ access. And what conclusions have they taken? At the entrance, researchers have confirmed that the Chachapoya presence in large pajatén can be traced to the fourteenth century. And that at least. There are certain clues that suggest “a significantly earlier occupation.” During their expedition they also detected a nearby network of pre -Hispanic paths that connect the whole with the beach, papayas or slopes, which For the WMF It supports “a broader interpretation of the complex as part of a hierarchical and interconnected territory.” “The team documented an architectural set composed of multiple interconnected sectors. This allows us to understand the great Pajatén in its true magnitude, not as an isolated set, but as part of an articulated network of pre -Hispanic settlements of different periods,” Comment Juan Pablo de la Puente, WMF manager. “This finding radically changes the dimension of the site and raises new questions about the role of Pajatén in the Chachapoya world.” How have you discovered it? If great Pajatén has been known for more than half a century and until now the dense vegetation had prevented archaeologists from deepening their study, the following question is obvious: what has changed? Why have you discovered new constructions now? The answer is simple: experts have resorted to new tools that have allowed them to see through that green mantle without altering the environment or damaging structures. The key is in the Lidar scan aerial and manual, photogrammetry, topographic record and technomorphological analysis. Thanks to them, experts have been able to get up The dense mantle of vegetation to take a look at what is underneath, map everything, study the architectural techniques used in the settlement and how it adapts to its surroundings. “Everything without damaging the delicate landscape or its architectural vestiges”, insist From the International Federation. Have you done anything else? “Thanks to the use of advanced technology, our team was able to collect extraordinary visual and scientific documentation that gives life to the great Pajatén, preserving its delicate environment,” celebrateBénédicte de Montlaur, WMF president. “Although the site remains inaccessible to most people, these tools will allow us to share their meaning.” The … Read more

Madrid wanted to make Bernabéu a new concerts. Aitana has given the tip to her plans

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Aitana announces that abandons its long caregified purpose of acting in the Santiago Bernabeu. His two performances, with tickets exhausted in just 72 hours, were scheduled on June 27 and 28 of this year, and carried delay since the initial December 28 and 29. In the end, the artist has decided to take her show to the Atlético de Madrid stadium, the Wanda Metropolitano. It is not the first, and it is the temporary lock and without a clear solution of solution for its purpose of becoming a concert center on European scale. Aitana says enough. Aitana’s concerts will end up being held, but on July 30 and 31 and at Wanda Metropolitano. He was the only artist who was left out of Santiago Bernabeu’s programming: before her, others such as Lola Indigo, Dellafuente or the veiled 5 of Ibai have relocated (in the case of the latter, for example, well far from Madrid: in the Cartuja of Seville). The reason has not become official, but with total security it is the same problem that forced to delay the dates of December: the lack of compliance with the enclosure with the municipal regulations on noise. An announced debacle. Aitana’s announcement coincides with the date on which, in theory, problems with sound were going to be solved: March this year. However, experts already anticipated that the purpose was complicated: Francesc Daumal I Domènech, acoustics expert Consulted by eldiario.eshe affirmed that “in six months the problem will not have been stopped, in fact it is most likely that they will continue to think how to solve it.” In the chiringuito, Josep Pedrerol ventured what would cost such a reform: Between 20 and 25 million euros. Expenses and more expenses. The pharaonic Real Madrid project has meant reforms by value of 1.1 billion eurosafter chaining up to three loans. But the promises of turning the stadium into a nerve center for concerts throughout Europe did not satisfy the neighbors, the first to They caught attention of media and Internet users on the noise in the area. And not only that: a thousand neighbors grouped under the Association of affected by the Bernabeu They are concerned about the agglomerations that the concerts generate, the dirt and the volume of noise in the streets that are out of the stadium control. Another tourism. That is, characteristics easily associated with the transformation of cities into immense Attractive parks for tourists. Santiago Bernabeu reforms have gone from being a Megalómano project of the football club to a point of interest for the City Council, which has facilitated the works of works for parking attached to the field, with Very advantageous concessions for the club. José Luis Almeida, mayor of the capital, is very interested in the works reaching good, especially considering The figures. Thanks to the stadium, which in 2024 He received artists like Taylor Swiftthe music industry billed 185 million euros in the city, compared to 94 raised in 2023. Taylor Peta. Taylor Swift, according to APM figures, added 126,393 spectators in two days, which undoubtedly affects the City Council very positively. The Consistory itself figure at 79 million euros the amount of money that moved this event, if we have prices of tickets, hotels, travel and hospitality. Bernabeu also has an advantage with respect to others: he does not need neither good time nor, thanks to his retractable grass, wait at the end of the football season. You can program, unlike the Olimpic Stadi or the Metropolitan Wanda, concerts all year. The largest enclosure in Spain. The Santiago Bernabeu plans to become the largest enclosure in Spain, which exceeds the Olimpic Stadi of Barcelona, ​​where 57,500 spectators fit. This is followed closely by the Wanda Metropolitano de Madrid (57,300) and the Cartuja of Seville (42,800). From there the figures already fall to, for example, the Miguel Ríos de Rivas Auditorium, with 29,700 of Acti. Currently, artists of great international presence sometimes jump the capital to go to Barcelona, ​​where they find more capacity with the Estadi Olimpic, as has happened with Lady Gaga, Billie Eilish or Guns N ‘Roses. An indefinite problem. However, it does not seem that at the moment the problem will be solved. In Europe there are still enclosures where European artists stop, such as the Défense Arena in Paris (40,000 spectators) or the London O2 (20,000) between the cutlery, and Croke Park in Dublin and the Stadio San Siro in Milan, both with more than 80,000 people of capacity, among those discovered. It is clear that Madrid would not be bad for an enclosure with the spectacular characteristics of the Bernabeu (extraordinary and covered capacity), but everything indicates that, with the sounding problems, it will take it even to arrive. Header | Netflix In Xataka | Music is lived differently, and why science has it

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