wanted

The 1,548 hp of the Xiaomi Su7 Ultra are so wild that the brand wanted to send you to a circuit to examine you. That or takes away 600 hp

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A rival for Porsche and for the Tesla Model S with 1,548 hp of power but much cheaper than them. That was what Xiaomi sold us during the presentation of the Xiaomi Su7 Ultrathe most powerful and crazy version of its first electric car. During their long placed, from Xiaomi they did not stop repeating each and every sections in which the Chinese brand surpassed US and German rivals. Among the Figures More prominent, those of Lei Jun presumed to beat the Porsche Taycan GT Turbo, the most powerful version of the German electric. Specifically, they spoke in the following terms: Benefits Xiaomi Su7 Ultra (Nürburgring Package) Porsche Taycan GT Turbo Power 1,548 hp 1.34 hp Motor torque 1,770 nm 1,240 nm 0-100 km/h 1.98 seconds 2.0 seconds 0-200 km/h 5.86 seconds 6.4 seconds Point speed 350 km/h 305 km/h Price (in China) 107,285.66 euros 259,000 euros The dementeial power figures and their good circuit benefits, highlighting their record achieved in nürburgring nordschleifethey managed to put the “Everything Sold” poster with the most radical version of this Chinese car in record time. In the first ten minutes after opening the reservations, 7,000 orders were recorded. The company hoped to put 10,000 units on the market throughout the year but the reception has overflowed all kinds of forecasts to the point that in the second -hand market its price has shot. What did not know who bought the car is that they could not enjoy 1,548 hp. At least if they did not pass a series of tests. The brand has had to go back. I take 600 hp They explain in Car News China that the surprise has reached users when the company activated the 1.70 update of its electric car. Overnight, who had agreed to pay the more than 70,000 euros that the starting car costs to disappear more than 600 hp. The Xiaomi Su7 Ultra has arrived in two versions. Both have the celebrities 1,548 hp But the Nürburgring version is the one that is configured as a two -seater because inside there are antivuelco bars that improve the rigidity and another series of specific components for circuit. Hence the price increase. In this latest version, special attention was given to sell it as the specific circuit after Several clients had problems With less radical versions. After exhausting their brakes, more than one knew what happened if you were stopped at very high speeds. Xiaomi’s solution was to lift a firewall. With the aforementioned update, the car went on “only” 900 hp of power. And, in addition, it activated a 60 -second wait since the output system was activated from standing (to check its acceleration in 0 to 100 km/h) with the aim that customers did not activate it at traffic lights. In both cases, the company alleged security reasons. Who wanted to unlock these functions had to Demonstrate in circuit They were prepared for it. The company disabled these restrictions if the driver exceeded a return to a circuit below a specific time. This is what Xiaomi called “classification mode”, according to Carscoop. However, they explained in Car News China that the company has had to reverse the criticisms of the drivers and has returned the 648 hp of power that it had capped by software. “We appreciate the passionate comments of our community and we will guarantee better transparency in the future,” they have assured from the company in words collected by the medium. According to Car News ChinaXiaomi understood that those 1,548 hp should only be available in circuit, with the right tires and in the right hands. However, the great attraction when selling the car has been, from the beginning, that magical thousand and a half cv of power CV. Although Xiaomi has been the last company to carry out a Downgrade In the power of your electric car, it is not the last. Mercedes has played with the idea of ​​subscribing to enjoy all the power of its electric cars. The German company proposed a payment of $ 100 per month to enjoy an improvement in the delivery of the motor torque of its most radical versions between 20 and 24%. And Mercedes is not the first to do something similar. Bugatti for years that forces to introduce a second key to unlock the entire potential of his Bugatti Veyron and Chiron. A more elegant and exclusive formula than the one applied by Xiaomi and Mercedes but that, in the background, hides the same as the two previous cases: a car that has been capable of all the power. Photo | In Xataka | I have climbed to the Xiaomi Su7 Ultra. It is the definitive proof that China already plays in another league

The Mercedes Class wanted to overcome the discomforts of the electric car. It is incompatible with a multitude of loaders

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A car with a brutal autonomy, designed for the client to forget the endemic evil of the electric car: look for a charger and wait for the necessary time to continue the march. A car designed by and to travel and to which, now, a problem as simple as it has been discovered: it does not charge most of the chargers. This is happening with the Mercedes Cla. The Mercedes Cla. A brutal autonomy. That was, without a doubt, the head that left us the presentation of the Mercedes Cla and that we lead to the first line of our article in Xataka. The Mercedes Berlina came to conquer the skeptics of the electric car promising up to 792 kilometers of approved WLTP autonomy. With its 85 kWh battery and a homologated WLTP consumption absolutely ridiculous of 12.2 to 12.5 kWh, autonomy varies between 792 kilometers of version 272 hp and 771 kilometers of the 354 hp version. With exquisite aerodynamics and a very low front surface, it aspires to large autonomies. The 800 volts. The German Berlina also had a powerful appeal. It is your first car with 800 volt structure. This tension allows you to load very high powers. With the appropriate charger (and now we will see the importance of adequate) can reach 320 kW of power. Thus, it goes from 10 to 80% autonomy in 22 minutes. That is, according to the estimated figures, more than 600 kilometers. The industry has long since It goes to 800 volt platforms. He Porsche Taycan and the Audi E-Tron GT They already presented them years ago but more and more companies get into the car because it allows very fast loads. Hyundai, Kia, Stellantis or Renault are betting on them because it will allow them to mount less large (and faces) batteries but, at the same time, generate very little discomfort In the client. What is expected in a premium brand like Mercedes is exactly what it offers (or should offer) the Mercedes Cla: large battery and express recharges. Who pays the money of a Premium car aspires to the best of the electric without the discomforts of the electric and the autonomy and load power of the Mercedes Claedes came to propose that (almost) we forgot the plugs. An unexpected setback. For the client, of course. The first tests have been enough Del Mercedes Clade to find an unexpected setback: the car cannot load in the stations with 400 volt plugs. How many are those? We do not know, beyond that there are many. There is no official count of them. And, until now, the charger is 800 volts or 400 volts had been indifferent to the user. In fact, the client cannot know it easily. What about cars that load at 800 volts? So far nothing. That is, if the car uses such a platform and the loader is 400 volts, he manages to load the car. If the car uses a 400 volt platform and the loader is 800 volts, it is the charger that does the best not to damage the battery. The Mercedes Claedes, however, does nothing. Simply, do not load. How do cars work? Cars with 800 volt platforms promise very high loads, above 200 kW. Right now, that loading power is almost exceptional and just a handful of loaders take advantage of powers greater than 200 kW or even 300 kW. However, it is estimated that with 800 volts 400 kW of power can be reached in the recharge with the appropriate plug. If the car uses this platform but the loader is 400 volts, there are two possibilities. The first is that the battery divides, something like simulating that has two 400 volt packages. When the charger reaches the 800 volts unifies them. Another less efficient option is to put a DC-DC converter that adapts the voltage but the load power will be limited to that of the DC-DC converter. Mercedes’s response. In Xataka We have contacted the company who have confirmed that, indeed, their cars can only take advantage of 800 volt chargers. Loaders that, as we say, there is no way of knowing for sure what are with a first search in the usual applications, such as electromaps. From the company it is ensured that “the proportion of speed charging stations of 800 V constantly increases. With the new Mercedes-Benz (MB.OS) operating system and navigation with Electric Intelligence, it is guaranteed that the driver is always aimed at a compatible loading station. The update of available and compatible load stations works practically in real time.” Despite this, they have not answered our question of whether Mercedes knows how many fast charging stations at 800 volts are available in Europe. So? Then it only remains to trust the company’s browser. That or Always search for more than 200 kW load stations since it is the maximum loading power that can be offered to 400 volts. If the offered power is superior, it will use the 800 volts and the Mercedes Class can load. Of course, these stations with such high powers are the most expensive when recharging. And along the way we leave most of the Tesla load points (the company is already installing with 800 volt structures) and a good part of the electricity in our country. Photo | Mercedes In Xataka | 400 kilometers loads in five minutes of ByD are as impressive as it is not very useful. At least they think of Mercedes

First the AI ​​wanted us to pay for its quality. Now we want us to pay for the right to use it without limits

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Everything is invented, they say. The Freemium model It is a good proof of this: it is common for a long time that we can play video games or use free software applications. But of course, they are not the complete versions, but basic and capadas editions. So you can keep taking advantage of them if you don’t need anymore, but the opposite The problem beginsbecause it has to go through the box. That is just what we are living With the world of AI. Almost all models allowed us to use them for free. It was what happened with Chatgpt, Gemini, Copilot or Claude. Over time the companies responsible for developing these models were launching more powerful and higher quality versions, but if you wanted to use them, I had to pay. Chatgpt plus, Claude Pro either COPILOT PRO They marked the guideline with subscriptions of $ 20 per month that gave access to more intensive uses and also to those most advanced models and characteristics. But that was not enough, and Openai announced the Chatgpt Pro launch In December 2024. It was an even more advanced and perfect alternative for intensive users, but its price also raised an important barrier, because not everyone is willing to pay $ a month for using AI models. That plan may seem expensive if you do not take advantage of it, but what happens if you take out all the juice? It may then become an aid that allows you to do more in less time, and if so, those 200 dollars may seem to a bargain: it depends on each situation, and OpenAi knows it. So much so that he states that in the future there will be hyperspecialized chatbots that 20,000 euros will cost per month. It looks like an absurd figure, but what if you use them generate 40,000, 50,000 or 100,000 euros per month? There is the key: if you take advantage of those models intensively and if they really compensate. And that’s where companies have realized that they can charge Not only for quality, but for the quantity. This is what Anthropic also proposes, which these days announced his new Claude Max plans with two variants. The first, 90 euros per month, which allows limits of use five times higher than those of Claude Pro (the anthropic chatgpt plus, which costs 15 euros month). The second, 180 euros per month, which goes further and allows you to use this chatbot with more broad limits. What does that mean? Basically, even being an intensive user it will be very difficult for the feared message to appear “you have exhausted the request of requests, wait a few hours to use it again.” It is not that the model is better or faster – at least, for now. You can simply use it much more. And if you want more, nothing happens: there is the API Anthropic’s strategy, such as Openai before, is logical and reasonable: if you want to “abuse” the advantages of AI and make intensive use of its capacity, you will have to pay an extra. There is one more alternative in these areas, and that is that of Pay for the use of the API: Here we can consume as much as we want, and the payment for use is measured at cost per million input or output tokens. If the model is more modern and capable, you pay more. If it is older and modest, less. In Anthropic, for example, Claude 3.7 Sonnet (its best model currently) costs three dollars per million entry tokens and $ 15 per million output tokens. The previous version, Claude 3.5 Haiku, costs $ 0.8 per million input tokens and $ 4 per million departure tokens. With the payment model for use raised by the APIs, very directed to developers and companies – and especially useful for programmers – there are also great differences between some suppliers and others. The O1-PRO model of Chatgpt Pro is for example 140 times more expensive at its cost of API that the O3-mini that is available in Chatgpt. What is clear is that companies have already profiled how we are going to pay to use artificial intelligence. We will not only pay for the one that is more advanced; If we want to use it a lot, it will touch more. Here there is a danger that companies play with those limits and “Redoublacionen”but we will cross that bridge when we get to it. At the moment one thing is clear: using the AI ​​can leave for free, but if you want to use it a lot and well, go preparing the wallet. Image | Solen Feyissa In Xataka | The Ghibli paradox: the most viral success of AI is at the same time a symptom of its problems as a daily product

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

Tesla wanted to make Cybertruck a supervent electric car. At the moment it is being a failure

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Tesla needs to get stock from. It is something that seems to be screaming at the four winds with the last offers he is doing in the United States. Perhaps because they cannot squeeze more with prices, the company has launched a series of incentives to encourage the demand for its electric cars. Beyond specific discounts to eliminate the latest units of Tesla Model and before its Complete renewal (something common among manufacturers), the company is operating with 0% financing For buyers of Tesla Model 3, they point out from Bloomberg. But discounts are not here and are focusing on another vehicle that, because of their concept, should not have any problem to be sold. It is the Tesla Cybertruck to whose Tesla buyers is offering free recharges in its life supercores if they opt for its Foundation version. It is the best example of how the model is clicking. Too expensive and difficult to sell The offer we are talking about It can be found on the sales channel of Tesla in the United States for its vehicles in stock. Cars already manufactured with immediate delivery and that in some cases have been used as exposure cars or have a few thousand kilometers already tours. But what is most attracted is that with the purchase of this package Foundation Life recharges are obtained in their supercargators. An augation to get rid of the most expensive units of Tesla Cybertruck. In fact, None of them drop for $ 90,000 And in the case of Cyberbeast Foundation, the most powerful model with three electric motors, no unit is above $ 110,000. It is not the first time that Tesla has trouble carrying out the production of its version Foundation. At the end of the year We knew that Elon Musk’s were reconvirting some units of this version to sell it at a much lower price. The change was as simple as eliminating some badges from the vehicle and, using software to save the Full Self Driving (FSD)the company’s most advanced driving aid system. The package Foundation series It was selling to 20,000 euros and made clear the huge extra cost over the original version. Actually, it meant additional 12,000 euros for a few minor aesthetic details compared to those who chose the base model with the FSD package of driving aid. Judging by the inventory, everything indicates that the company overestimated the demand of the car and, specifically, of this version. The problem is in the approach that the company has given to the vehicle. He had everything to become a flag model of the company, make him an aspiring product that demonstrated what they were able to do. And instead, they opted for the worst of strategies. A model that was not destined to be a supervent Tesla Cybertruck was the tenth best -selling electric car in the United States, according to figures estimated by Car and Driver In 2024. The figure refers to the first full year in which the Tesla electric pick-up has been sold, estimating its sales in just under 25,000 units. Keep in mind that the company It does not reflect the figures of vehicles sold Model A Model. Of course, the company has wanted to make the model a supervent in the United States. His approach since it was announced has been that. In fact, the company said the model would be sold for $ 40,000, What could not complyannouncing a 60,000 version for later. Right now, The cheapest model that can be purchased implies a Disbursement of $ 72,490. Until the day of the presentation, the figures on vehicle reserves were growing, increasing expectations until they affirm that There were 1.9 million vehicle reserves. Months after launching we are seeing how Tesla has trouble placing part of its production. And it has it because the approach is totally contrary to what the car should have been. The Tesla Cybertruck should have been an aspirational model, a car that is built as a brand image, of which few units are sold at a very expensive price but attract looks and potential buyers. It is a basic marketing play which is being applied all life in the car market. When a company participates in a competition, it does it because it obtains a revenue in knowledge but also builds brand image. It is no accident that Renault changed the name of Your Formula 1 to Alpine team. Nor do BMW have a BMW XM either IX They barely sell. Or that Ford has separated its commercial offer between very clear lines: a passionate, face and that is willing to bring drops to Europe (like the Ford Bronco) and Another for all types of cheaper and accessible audiences. Companies that want to put in the street this type of vehicles aspire to create a story, position a model at the top of their range. The challenge is greater for young companies but even Xiaomi He has made efforts to build a story around his electric and that is why he has not hesitated to beat a record in various circuits, including some as iconic as the Green hell. The negative face is that the results accounts do not reflect in the short term the benefits of this strategy. Investments for these cars show their results at years. And force to have a lot of care in the production of the car. Tesla Cybertruck’s demand seemed uncontrolled before going out so the company had two roads. One was obvious: try to satisfy her. The second was to generate a certain shortage and sell the car in its top range versions, controlling the production and creating that unique vehicle aura. Instead, the company chose to make fast … and bad. Because Tesla’s electric pick-up that should be its technological flag has been called to review almost a dozen times For failures that suggest to what extent the company wanted to reduce production. That pieces are released in progress … Read more

Some scientists wanted to count each and every one of the trees in China. Surprisingly, they have achieved it

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China is an immense country, the fourth country with greater extension in the world after Russia, Canada and the United States. The country has a wide variety of ecosystems, some of which house a countless amount of trees. Or almost countless. 142.6 million trees. A new study has estimated the total number of trees in China. The result of the count is 142.6 billion. This implies that the Asian giant has about 100 trees per inhabitant. More than a count. The study not only offers a mere count of the number of trees but also offers us valuable information about its location, density and characteristics of the different types of ecosystems that can be found in China. For example, the team found that the coniferous forests of the temperate areas were the densest in the country, reaching some 720 trees per hectare. The 87.9 billion trees that can be found in this type of environments represent about 60% of the country’s total. A country of contrasts. The forested areas of China are especially concentrated in the south and northeast of the country. The study also analyzed the tree density of the different Chinese hydrographic basins, as well as the different administrative divisions of the Asian country. In view of drone. For the study, the team He turned to Lidar technologyan analogue of the radar that replaces radio waves with light waves. These sensors were mounted in drones to cover 1,400 square kilometers of wooded territory. The result: 400TB of processed data. The methodology used is not exempt from limitations. In dense forest areas, the tree canopy, the upper part of these trees, can overshadow the lidar view, causing smaller trees to be hidden from counting. That is why those responsible for the study believe that this is a conservative estimate of the number of trees in the country’s forests. The details of the study were published In an article In the magazine Science Bulletin. Protection plans The project will serve to evaluate Chinese environmental conservation plans. Something easy taking into account the magnitude of plans such as “Great green wall” wave “Billion Tree campaign” In Xataka | Leonardo Da Vinci established “The Tree rule” 500 years ago. Now we have discovered that he was wrong Image | Tom Fisk

The government wanted to promote the electric car after the Dana with 10,000 euros of help. Everything indicates that he has not delivered any

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On October 29, 2024, tragedy began. Various autonomous communities of eastern Spain but, above all, the Valencian Community saw how strong rains and the posterior floods left 225 dead in their path and three missing people that have not yet been found. Although the Term Dana refers to an “isolated depression in high levels” (the famous cold drop), in memory it has remained as Dana de Valencia What lived on the border between October and November 2024. Some floods that also left the material damage that affected 360,000 people. Months later we have known that he points to 141,000 cars affected by the floods. Most of them insurmountable although we have had images that leave us some optimism, saving vehicles with half a century behind them. Trying to recover normality, populations faced the challenge of What to do with the greatest scratch in history of Spain and how to recover from the consequences. Among those measures to replenish all those vehicles, At the end of November 2024 the government announced that launched the Plan Reinicia Auto+. With him he wanted to give financial aid to those who had lost his car with the floods, delivering an economic amount for the purchase of a new vehicle. The program contemplated the delivery of aid both for the purchase of new and second -hand vehicles but rewarded those who jump to zero emissions. Specifically, the Aid They are distributed as follows: New vehicles with zero label: 10,000 euros. New vehicles with ECO label or C: 5,000 euros. Second -hand vehicles with zero label: 4,000 euros. Second -hand vehicles with ECO label or C: 2,000 euros. Vehicles for people with reduced mobility will have extra help of 1,000 euros more and 500 euros on three -wheeled motorcycles. Motorcycle aid vary between 2,000 euros and 500 euros depending on whether they are new or second -hand and its ecological rating. The problem is that the Ministry of Industry and Tourism has already submitted the accrediting document with the relationship of the beneficiaries of these aid. But, there is no help to a car of zero emissions. What happens? Aid that seem frozen First of all, the first thing to be clear about is how the aids of the Reinicia Auto+Plan are delivered. As explained in the Article 9 of Royal Decree-Law 8/2024 in which urgent measures are collected to help those affected by the DANA, the procedure is the following: If the client had already bought the car before the aid was opened (they did it on December 18), the dealers had to make an entry to the beneficiaries once the aid was approved with the corresponding file. If the client had not yet bought the car, the concessionaire processed the aid and it was discounted from the final price of the car once all taxes were applied. In The automotive tribune They explain that the first aid began to surrender last February. By then, more than 10,000 subsidies to purchase had been requested and as the delay in the deliveries of the aid was affecting customers, in some cases the vehicles began to be delivered before receiving the money with the concessionaire’s commitment to return that money afterwards. But these grants have only been arriving in vehicles with a C and echo label of the DGT, according to Digital economythat raise the number of aid to More than 25,000 files For this type of vehicles. These aid are reflected in the accrediting document of the beneficiaries of the same. Indeed, as can be seen in this document, there is no approved help to cars with zero DGT emissions label. That is, no plug or electric hybrid (both new and second -hand) has received confirmation of such aid for purchase. In the middle they ensure that sources from the Ministry of Industry confirm that “the aid of 10,000 euros are on zero label. Electric cars are paid with European funds, and its processing is being carried out.” From Xataka We have put ourselves in contact With the Ministry of Industry to confirm if this situation is true and where the funds of these aid come from, as well as the procedure that is carried out to deliver them, trying to understand why any car with zero emissions stickers of the DGT has received the approval still for the delivery of said aid. Similarly, we have contacted Faconauto, the largest representative of the Spanish dealers to know if it is true that the aids related to electric cars are frozen or have not received any approval. When we write this article, we have not obtained an answer from the Ministry of Industry and Tourism or Faconauto Photo | Manuel Pérez García and Estefania Monerri Mínguez and Pool Moncloa/César P. Sendra In Xataka | Razed by the Dana but without compensation: in which assumptions we can claim the insurance money for our car

We carry from the Pleistocene domesticating the avocado. It took 8,000 years to adopt the way we wanted

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When we talk about domestication, we automatically think about that of the animals around us. The dogthe cat –Something more complicated– Or the farm animals and work. But humanity carries thousands of years domesticating fruits and vegetables. An example is that of avocado, a fruit that has become Obsession for half the world and that it would not exist if we had not saved it 7,500 years ago. And the avocado then has little to do with the one now. Megafauna. The avocado appeared about 400,000 years ago in what we now know as Mexico. Like many other fruits and vegetables, It was very different As we know it today. The avocado was more rounded, with fine skin and a seed smaller than the current one. It was like a small apple and dispersed throughout the territory thanks to the megafauna of the Pleistocene. These animals devoured the complete fruit and chew the seed. Thanks to their feces, the seed were spreading and giving rise to at least three different species of avocado: the Mexican, the Guatemalan and the Antillean. However, the Great extinction of Pleistocene that ended that megafauna. The Avocado Meteorite. As we read in The New York Timeswithout animals large enough to reach the fruit, eat it whole and spread its seeds, the prehistoric avocado distribution area was greatly reduced. It is something that happened about 13,000 years ago, but fortunately humans intervened. In a study About avocado domestication published By researchers from the University of California, they detail that this avocado domestication arose due to the need. “Without megafauna, humans needed new food sources. They began to cultivate the fruit, saving avocados,” says Doug Kennet, one of the authors of the study. Excavations in ‘El Gigante’ ‘The giant’. That is, the fruit, which was practically on the verge of extinction, was recovered by necessity by humans. In the investigation, the authors focused on a place to the west of Honduras called ‘El Gigante’. It is a high cave that was inhabited 11,000 years ago and where lots of pumpkin seeds, corn grains, agave leaves and other plant waste that have been studied in these last 20 years have been found. Among those seeds, there were avocado remains. Playing with genetics. As if they were Mendel with the peas, the settlers began to keep seeds and plant their own trees. Harvest after harvesting, the branches were rotting to foster the growth of trees, but also selecting the largest and fleshy avocados. Thus, 7,500 years ago, humans had already made the seeds larger and the most resistant shells. Some 3,000 years later, the seeds reached the size of an apricot and the peel became even thicker, which suggests an intentional manipulation of the fruit. “It is an indicator that people began to save seeds to plant their own trees,” says Amber Vanderwarker, another of the authors. “I think people, probably, have been eating Guacamole for 10,000 years” – Amber Vanderwarker. Seed size change is considerable Transport. It may be that the weight of the seeds and the size of the fruit was what led to that way of ‘pear’, but beyond speculation, from the study they point out that humans favored thick pests for a mere practical issue: the thicker, more resistant and, therefore, the easier to transport the fruit from one side to another without danger for the indoor plating. The dispersion of it, in fact, is amazing, with evidence that thousands of years ago was consumed in Peru, Mexico, Colombia and Panama. In addition, they point to another possible reason why they favored that thick and resistant shell that does not differ much from how we consume avocado today. Vanderwarker points out that a possible reason to grow fruits with a thick shell is the facilitation of meat extraction with a spoon. In addition, molecular research suggests that the complete change to obtain a fruit similar to the current one was not so much: about 2,200 years ago. Essential. In the end, it would be given by what was given, the avocado was vital for Mesoamerican civilizations. Maya and Aztecs made it a star food, developing some of the avocado varieties to adapt them to the height and climate conditions of different areas, such as lowlands and highlands. In addition, they contributed to the expansion of avocado thanks to their cultural influence and commercial lines. World fever and wars. Currently, we live an authentic avocado fever. It has become a fashion fruit thanks to its nutritional properties, but also its importance in dishes such as the guacamole that the United States consumes big, especially during the American football super bowl. Such is the importance of fruit that is a thrown weapon between Mexico and the United States. But well, researchers at the University of California say that, although discoveries on avocado are interesting, as research progresses, more evidence on them will be discovered, but also more types of food plants manipulated by humans. Images | Thomas Harper and Ken Hirth (University of California Santa Barbara), EDURAFI2, Hariadhi In Xataka | There are billions of people worried about climate change, but there is a little group that is not: English wine growers

In the 60s Spain wanted to experiment with gamma radiation. The result was an “atomic forest” in Alcalá

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Before rowing us and getting into work I propose a game. One fast, simple and above all curious. Open Google Maps, activates the satellite vision (with that of the street the effect will not be the same), write “Alcalá Atomic Garden” And then let the web transfer you to a point located near Meco and the Northeast HighwayA-2. There, Google’s red claw. Approximate. What do you see? Exact. A Huge circumference green Symmetric. Perfect As if they had drawn it with an XXL size compass. If you dedicate a couple of seconds you will appreciate that it is formed by concentric circles, a succession Tree rings Almost and leafy enough to stand out in bird view and that someone planted in their day around a clear center. It is not a mistake. It is history. More specifically the footprint of “El Encín Gamma Radiation Field”an installation that in its day, back in the last decades of Franco, stood out on the country’s scientific map. His chronicle is fascinating. Almost as much as the large 15 -hectare wooded square left in Alcalá and that, In words From the anthropologist Ambrosio Sánchez de Ribera, it is “a singularity” at European level. New times, new science The 50s and 60s were times of change. For the world, which gradually entered into The cold war. And of course for Spain, where Franco seemed to enter a new phase marked by developmentalism and a certain cracking of its international isolation, with milestones such as The signing of the concordat with the Holy See In 1953, the Pacts of Madrid or the entrance to the UN, In 1955. The 50 were also time for something else: nuclear energy. With still the recent memory of Hiroshima and Nagasaki And in full arms race with Moscow, the US wanted international opinion not to focus only on the threat of atomic war and also value its civil and scientific uses. Probably the best proof of that effort is speech “Peace atoms”pronounced in 1953 by Eisenhower before the UN. “Instead of focusing exclusively on the dangers of atomic war, Eisenhower praised the Civil nuclear applications In agriculture, medicine and energy generation. He proposed to create an ‘international atomic energy organism’ that promoted the peaceful use of nuclear energy ‘for the benefit of humanity’ “, Remember Elisabeth Röhrlichhistorian of the University of Vienna. The result soon materialized: just Four years laterIn 1957, the International Atomic Energy Agency (OIEA) was created. Spain, who had started his own (and shy) history with nuclear energy to late 40did not remain impermeable to those changes. In the 50 Patria Press (Node included) already talked about the US plants either United Kingdom and experiments with radioactive sources applied to medicine and agriculture. In 57 Madrid even hosted a European FAO summit on the subject. Thus, with that backdrop, around 1959, Spain decided to take another step and, with the key mediation of César Gómez Campoan engineer with experience in the USA, planned to create his own “Gamma Radiation Field”a focused specifically designed to perform “crop and seed irradiation experiments”. The chosen place: El Encín, a plot away from Alcalá where Gómez Campo himself had been conducting studies for Agronomic Research Institute. The project advanced relatively fast, as Ambrosio Sánchez de Ribera recalls in a broad (and very complete) essay About the Encín published in 2018 in Complutenses Annals. In 1961, what time was lifted would be an active scientific installation whose footprint still shows today from Google bird: a field of study of 440 square meters of diameter, an area of ​​15 hectares and 18,000 trees, although in 2018 there were only 5,000 left. A huge outdoor laboratory The Encín was a huge outdoor laboratory. One with a design as peculiar as its purpose. The field was circular and was formed by a series of concentric rings arranged around an axis. In the center there was a circle of 25 m radius with a removable hexagonal greenhouse. Inside it contained a lead sarcophagus that housed the source of radiation with which scientists operated, Cesio137 from used bars of American nuclear reactors. Around that central almond of 50 m in diameter, protected with a concrete wall and a stepped soil slope of several meters high to avoid the radiation output, the nearly 18,000 trees that completed the circumference of 15 hectares were distributed. Its purpose was to serve as extra screen against radiation. By way of auction, the center had a garden of large trees and several constructions where the staff had its offices and laboratories. Clarified what the Encín was the other great question: What did they do in it in the 60s? Basically experiment with radiation to find mutations that in last terms allow to achieve varieties of interesting vegetables, fruits or seeds for their characteristics. What is called induced mutagenesis. Gómez Campo himself explained In 1964, which centers such as El Encín were dedicated: “Essentially it consists of a gamma ray emitting source that is installed in an open field, so that the irradiation of growth or relatively bulky animals is possible.” Certain hours a day and for several months a year, at the Alcalá base the technicians opened the lead sarcophagus so that the gamma ray emitting source could act in the center of the field, the 50 m area of ​​diameter protected with a wall and slope in which plants, seeds, insects or some animals were exposed. “The dose received depended on the distance from Cesio137”, Sánchez de Ribera clarifies. When the years of irradiation ended the lead sarcophagus fell again, the caesium was locked and the researchers could access to work. The El Encín field worked 12 years, Between 1961 and 1973when his activity was complicated by the construction of a cement factory in the surroundings. The dust hindered research, so that in 73 it was decided to remove the radioactive source and transfer it to the Polytechnic University of Madrid. There he was only three years before embarking on … Read more

The US is about to get all the minerals he wanted from Ukraine. The problem is that half control them

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In the terms in which it seems that the United States wants to end the war, Ukraine does not seem to have much to win in A peace agreement with Russia. Except if he brought out his rare earth reserves, those minerals that presume that he counts in large quantity. So much so, that, in 24 hours it is expected that Ukraine firm an agreement of cooperation with the Trump administration with minerals as protagonists. There is more than one problem. The agreement. The president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, will meet this Friday with his American counterpart, Donald Trump, in Washington to sign an agreement that gives the United States access to mineral resources Strategic Ukraine. Although Zelensky hopes that this pact will serve as a basis for future negotiations, he has recognized that does not include security guarantees concrete by the United States despite the fact that kyiv had insisted on this point during negotiations. Trump, meanwhile, has justified the agreement as a way that US taxpayers recover part of Help funds sent To Ukraine (the Biden administration raised the investment to More than 100,000 million dollars in assistance), arguing that the responsibility of Ukrainian security should fall in Europe. The terms. While the final details are still unknown, the Ukrainian prime minister, Denys Shmyhal, confirmed that both parties have agreed a preliminary version of the pact. According to this, it will be established An investment fund for the reconstruction of Ukraine, which will be jointly managed by kyiv and Washington on equal terms. Ukraine will contribute 50% of future income generated by their state natural resources, including minerals, oil and gas, and these funds will be reinvested in projects within the country. In this regard, a draft Obtained by the New York Times It suggests that the United States will have the greatest amount of participation allowed in the fund according to its legislation, although You will not have absolute control. Previously, Trump had demanded that Ukraine yield resources for Value of 500,000 million dollars As compensation for military and economic assistance received, but this point has been discarded in the final version. There are no guarantees. One of the most controversial aspects of the agreement is the lack of a formal security commitment by the United States. Zelensky insisted on the inclusion of a reference to security guarantees, although the final version only mentions that the United States “Support Ukraine efforts to obtain necessary guarantees for lasting peace.” No doubt, this does not imply a direct military support or specific commitments in case of Russian aggression. What Trump says. The President has declared that the United States will not provide security guarantees “beyond what is necessary” and that the protection of Ukraine It must fall on Europe. However, he pointed out that the presence of US workers in Ukrainian territory would provide “automatic security”, suggesting that investment in natural resources would deter Russia of attacking these strategic sites. He also said that the United States will continue to provide armament and ammunition to Ukraine “until an agreement with Russia is reached.” Why do minerals matter. We have told it before. Ukraine houses approximately 5% of world reserves of critical minerals, including graphite, titanium, lithium and rare earths, essential for the production of batteries, weapons, wind turbines and advanced technology. Thus, the United States, which seeks reduce its dependence on China In key materials for green technology and defense, see in Ukraine a strategic opportunity. According to The Ukraine Geological Service itselfthe country is one of the richest in the world in essential resources for energy transition and military industry. The problem: half are Russian. The main stumbling block that Ukraine has in the negotiation is that, paradoxically, almost half of its mineral reserves They are on land occupied by Russia Since the invasion in 2022, which has complicated access to these resources. We talk about something else 40% of these resources. To get an idea, the Minister of Economy of Ukraine, Yulia Svydenko, said that mineral resources in territories under Russian control They amount to 350,000 million dollars. In addition, the extraction of these minerals faces a greater obstacle: it is estimated that 25% of the Ukrainian territory is contaminated with land minesespecially in the east of the country, which hinders the development of mining projects without an adequate demin strategy. According to the Halo Trust organization, the nation has 150,000 contaminated square kilometers With these explosives. The Russian counteroffet. Not just that. In a twist of events, and knowing the negotiations, Vladimir Putin has declared in A televised interview that Russia is willing to offer to the United States access to your own mineral resourcesincluding, of course, those located in the occupied Ukrainian territories. In fact, he emphasized that Russia has “significantly more resources of this type than Ukraine” and that he is ready to attract foreign partners to exploit them in the so -called “new regions”in reference to the areas of Ukraine attached by Moscow. Moreover, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, fell importance to Zelensky’s visit to Washington and suggested that the final content of the agreement is not yet at all clear. Putin, meanwhile, mentioned the possibility of collaborate with the United States In the production of aluminum in Siberia, which would indicate an attempt of Moscow for interfering with the negotiations between kyiv and Washington and offering a more viable alternative for the United States. The challenge of access to resources. It is the last of the obstacles with respect to minerals. Despite its enormous potential, the exploitation of these resources Face significant difficulties. As we said, the Russian invasion has left Ukraine without access to much of its mineral reserves, particularly in occupied regions such as Donetsk and Zaporiyia. But, in addition, the country’s infrastructure has remained severely damaged After three years of conflict, which complicates the extraction and transport of materials. An uncertain future. Thus, the agreement that will be carried out in 24 hours is full of edges for Ukraine. … Read more

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