world

The most powerful console in the world is not from Sony or Microsoft. It is from Nvidia, and costs $ 20 a month

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The cloud game was the future. But it seems that The future resists arrivingbecause the gamers continue to prefer to go to their consoles and their pcs. And yet GeForce Nowthat has just reinforced the big. For all. To start, the guts. The GeForce Now infrastructure has been reinforced, and now the servers in charge of distributing all these games may Take advantage of the powerful RTX 5080 graphics that will undoubtedly help the fluidity of the experience be as perfect as possible. The goal has always been the same: that you do not notice that you are playing in the cloud. That hardware will of course help you get it. The update occurs two years after the last great improvement of that infrastructure, which then It was filled with the predecessors of those graphicsRTX 4080. Best experience. This hardware improvement will also allow you to enjoy streaming games to resolutions that reach 5K at 120 fps, or at 1080p at 360 fps. Users of Steam Deck Oled They can enjoy cloud game at 90 Hz (before was only 60 Hz). There is A new mode called Cinematic Quality Streaming that according to NVIDIA improves the quality of colors and graphics in general, in addition to supporting the distribution of games to 100 Mbps, when before the maximum was 75 Mbps. More data per second, better graphic quality and fluidity. Or what is the same: best experience. Steam to power. Another of the great novelties is the arrival of the option “Install -to-Play”, which actually returns an old characteristic: to be able to install games without waiting for Nvidia to “homologue” as compatible on its platform. That means we can install old games from our library and then enjoy them in the cloud, but also games that are part of the catalog of Steam Cloud Play. Many more games. According to one of the NVIDIA managers, that will suddenly allow the Geforce Now catalog will be reinforced with “2,352 games” present in Steam. This option also facilitates that future games and demos are included in the Cloud Gaming platform in Nvidia in a simple way: it will suffice that its developers activate that option by distributing them in Steam. But. There is a small disadvantage in this option, it is in the fact that the Install-To-Play games cannot be instantly executed as it happens with the “approved” games. We will have to download them and install them every time we want to enjoy them, unless we pay Nvidia a subscription to enjoy storage in the cloud for those games: three dollars per month for 200 GB, five dollars a month for 500 GB or eight dollars per month for 1 TB. Strategic alliances. To that catalog are added new alliances that further reinforce the options of the platform. Now GeForce Now can “merge” with Discord, and gamers can try new games for free directly from discord serverswithout the need to log in to GeForce Now. Epic Games is part of this agreement, and the result is striking: a user can start playing Fortnite from Discord in just a few seconds and without installing anything. At the moment the service has just taken its first steps, but Nvidia expects more and more studies to offer that possibility for players to have another alternative, especially if they are discord users. Pay $ 20 a month for renting a PC? The truth is that all these developments make Nvidia’s GeForce Now service, but once again what we “rent” is not the ability to play video games, but “a cloud pc” to enjoy them. The service does not include the games, which we will have to buy separately if we had not bought them. It is an important difference with respect to analternatives such as Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, that “video game” that does include by default a large catalog of hundreds of titles. A small cost analysis. The cost of owned by a console compared to the use of a service such as GeForce Now allows you to get an idea of whether or not to compensate for an option like this. Consoles like Xbox Series x wave PS5 They are around 600 euros, while their basic online subscription services (Xbox Game Pass Core / PS Plus) are priced at 80 euros per year. Meanwhile, Geforce Now has a fixed cost of 22 euros per month. If we take a five -year period without taking into account the cost of acquiring the games, the cost of those five years would be the following: Consoles: 1,000 euros (approximately) GeForce Now: 1,320 euros Two philosophies and both are good. But of course, we are facing two very different proposals: the consoles offer a consistent and predictable experience, but always dependent on playing where the console is. With Geforce Now we can enjoy an high -end PC experience in all types of devices – our TV, an old PC, a Steam Deck – although we depend on some external factors such as connectivity. Even so, the recurring cost is higher after that period, but as “virtual console”, its validity is clear. Here it should be remembered that GeForce Now It has striking rivals In this segment (Gamepass, Luna), which further enriches the panorama for users. The options are good. In Xataka | That makes more hot than in hell is not something you can control. The temperature of your pc while you play, yes

The largest steel producers in the world, exposed in this graphic that shows two totally different leagues

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On our way to decarbonization, Steel is a problem. For each ton we produce, They emit two of co₂ to the atmosphere, but although We are studying alternatives further sustainableremains indispensable in a world where there are countries wrapped in a Loca Carrera for Megaconstructions. Someone must produce all that steel we need, and as is the case with the Aluminum industrythat of steel has an indisputable own name: China. And it is something that can be seen perfectly in this graph elaborated by Visual Capitalist: The Chinese monster. The data comes from the World Steel Association and reflect an overwhelming reality. If the world produced about 1,884.6 million tons of steel in 2024, more than half were the work of China. The rest of the countries are very, far away and, removing India with the giant Tata Steel Group that benefited from an increase in infrastructure investment in recent months, the rest of the producers are quite aligned. That China leads this sector is not a coincidence. After the Foundation of the Popular Republic in 1949, the State considered that the production of steel was something crucial For industrialization. Domestic demand is gigantic due to the boom of both manufacturing and infrastructure and construction in general and,, although they exportown consumption is very important. USA wants to recover land. That domain is a problem for the rest of the countries. That China produces more steel than the rest of the world together makes us depend on its product (as with the solar panels wave Rare Earth Production). The United States, another historical steel producer, does not want to lose so much land and in recent months it has started movements to recover control of its industry. Us Steel is one of the historic steel producers who was about to be bought by the Japanese giant Nippon Steel. Joe Biden, in one of the last movements of his mandate, decided to block the purchase claiming national security motifs. This decision sent a message, but also fed ghosts from the pasttensing relationships with Japan. Europe out of the photo. In Europe, the bastion of steel is Germany. Its production is among the highest in the world, but we will have to see for how long. As we read in The New York Times, the Airías have experienced a fall of 11.6% during the first half of 2025. In addition, despite the high technology of factories such as Tata Steel in the Netherlands, environmental regulations, the Chinese dumping and tariff hostility are pushing Europe to a situation in which he paints less and less in the photo of the steel worldwide. HE esteem that Spain produced 11.9 million tons in 2024, assuming a 3.7% increase compared to the yearterior, but although some countries have experienced a Alcista trend in its production, demand remains high, the need to reduce emissions and imports from the EU – especially asian steel – increases pressure on internal production. Without limit. And it’s a problem. Now, another interesting element of all this is that, although there is a steel hunger, the main producers produce … too much. According to the OECD, the excess world capacity will reach the 721 million tons in 2027. China herself is Taking measures to stop the blind expansion of your industry. For example, a production control, asking companies to only produce under a firm order or suspend the expansion of steel production capacity, decision made in August last year. They are measures to limit overcapacity and that Your industry does not die of success Due to the low price that steel could reach worldwide, but although it seems a very local measure, taking into account its enormous production, any movement in this sense is something that has an impact on the rest of the world. In Xataka | Before the lack of steel, the ships of World War II began to be built with an unusual material: concrete

The controversial supereyate with which Zuckerberg has turned the world into his playground

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The 40 crisis is not a myth. Some studies point out that It is the most unhappy age rangeand each one takes it in their own way. The millionaires They also suffer that crisis, but in their own way: Mark Zuckerberg bought A 300 million dollars. And each one with his money does what he wants, but the problem is that he has been circling for nine months, burning two million Diesel litersand just arrived at the famous shipyard in France. And they are raining criticism, of course. Launchpad. A really bought a luxury yacht: He bought two. One is less important, since it is “support” for the principal, baptized as launchpad. It is a yacht of 119 meters in length, more than a football field, by 17 meters wide. It has four engines that grant a speed of 44 km/hy, autonomy is more than 3,000 nautical miles (equivalent to about 5,550 kilometers). It has 13 cabins, capacity for 49 crew people with own cabins and comforts such as a game room, infinite pool, gym, spa and helipad. The maintenance cost is about 30 million dollars annually and, for energy and air conditioning, it uses Solar panels. Echo Friendly Enemy. When Zuckerberg bought the yacht, he did it with the intention of giving him life, of course. These last nine months, ha navigated By Tahiti, Norway, Mallorca, Greece and Malta. In total, about 20,000 kilometers in which it has consumed about two million liters of diesel (it is said soon). In this period, esteem which has issued more than 5,300 tons of CO₂ to the atmosphere. For simplifying: se Calculate That, in an hour at cruise speed, the launchpad produces both CO₂ and if we toured 160,000 kilometers in a standard car. In an hour, it emits around 40 tons of co₂, equivalent to the emissions of 630 cars in the same period of time. Incidents. Of course, this does not go unnoticed by environmentalists, since Zuckerberg’s whim adds to others habitual trips of celebrities and millionaires in private vehicles that emit large amounts of carbon dioxide in a context in which many countries have embarked on a decarbonization process. In fact, it is common in millionaires: boast ecological awareness when their actions tell another story. But criticisms of ‘zuck’ not only come from the greenest, but also for certain acts such as Turn off the AIS transponders When I sailed near Mallorca to avoid being detected (and have more privacy), being a practice that infringes both international and Spanish maritime regulations. And controversies go further. In Norway, he wanted to do heliequí (climbing the top of a mountain by helicopter and descending skiing), but as by environmental measures strict permits are needed and a whim is not a reason for weight, Zuckerberg found an ingenious solution: He would not need permits if the helicopter landed directly on his yacht, without touching ground, while he descended skiing. The ciotat. This has fueled the criticism They point to one disconnection Between the Pro -Meta Meta discourse and the personal practices of its headquarters. Now, we must not forget that the own Goal is building some of the larger data centers on the planetsomething that is not precisely aligned with the decarbonization objectives. As much as it is, and how we read in Jeux Videonow the ostentatious yacht It has arrived to the French shipyard of the Ciotat, on the Costa Azul. It is a shipyard that is no stranger to the luxurious ships of the billionaires, since the great fortunes go to him for his exclusive and discreet service. The KoruJeff Bezos’s yacht has also gone through the Ciotat. The contradiction. Far from being in an anecdote, the arrival of the Launchpad has revived the debate on the impact and privileges of billionaires in the Public, economic and environmental spaceespecially in a European context in which these actions are seen as a growing symbol of the inequality and privileges of a minority. From the ciotat, of course, it has always been defended That this activity maintaining luxury yachts generates direct and indirect jobs. We will see if that is enough to sustain that culture of privilege in full climate challenge and inequality. Images | Euthman, Superyatch Times, JD Safe In Xataka | Jeff Bezos’ new superyate will navigate

Welcome to the first world humanoid robots games

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Few things like more in summer than to give me a good sports bent with the Olympic Games, but this year It will not be. Well, unless we forget Simone Biles or Faith Kipyegon in favor of other less human names such as Robotics Lumos, which has just taken the silver medal in the group dance category in The first World Humanoid Robots Games which is currently being held in Beijing. If in recent months we had already witnessed The Humanoid Robot Soccer World Cup and A KickBoxing Tournament Also in China, this weekend More than 500 robots will compete in various disciplinessome as classic as athletics or martial arts, and others more innovative and different as medication classification and cleaning. The starting gun was yesterday at 8pm at the National speed skating oval (built for 2022) and as expected from such an event, There was a ceremony at the height where some humanoid robots performed Chinese traditional opera, among other performances. Of classic sports to hotels: the “Olympic” disciplines of the Games As of August 15 and until August 17, these pioneer World Robots Games will take place that, despite having a short duration, have a tight schedule: There will be 487 competitions where 280 teams from 16 countries will face whose robots will be beaten for gold, such as summarize BBC. Among the participating states, China is not missing, but neither others such as the United States, Germany and Japan. As The event organizers explainthe reason for being of this event is Test and perfect the abilities of robotics With something as natural for humanity as sport. Thus, they claim that sport is a way to evaluate the decision making of a robot, its motor skills and its control systems. That a robot achieves gold implies high expectations of adaptation to a real environment such as factories or homes. At the moment, Vinicius and Yamal can breathe calm. World Humanoid Robot Games via ithome “I think that in 10 years or less robots will be at the same level as humans“, has declared a spectator to the French news agency. At the moment human athletes can be calm. In fact, in one of the first competitions that took place this Friday morning, the Five Football match against five, a dozen robots the size of a seven -year -old boy moved quite awkwardly through the field, staying stuck in groups or even turning. Touch to go to publication Another story has been the 1,500 meter race, where the humanoids of the Chinese company Unitree (One of the heavyweights both in the sector and in this competition) has been done with gold moving along the track with remarkable agility and surpassing his rivals quite easily, as can be seen in the video. The fastest robot has finished the race with a time of 6: 29.37, still far from the 3: 26.00 of the Male World record. In another athletics test, a robot has collided with a human operator knocking him down without further mishaps than the fall. Touch to go to publication The competition calendar leaves 16 events that include 400 meters track and field, soccer, martial arts, management of industrial materials, tomorrow there will be 23 events throughout the day with disciplines such as height, wrestling, unpacking and packaging of pharmaceutical products and classification of mixed materials in warehouses, stand-up dance or hotels cleaning services. And the 17 will be the closure, again alternating classic sports such as 100 meters fences with the final of the hotel welcome reception service. China is the host of this original event and also the country of reference in the sector, as long as its government has struggled strongly to lead it. In fact, according to the International Robotics Federation a few days ago, Beijing has placed humanoids “In the center of its national strategy“, as The RFI echoes French Also, last March China announced the creation of a fund of a billion yuan (about 128,000 million euros) to support emerging technological companies, which includes AI and Robotics startups. In Xataka | China has an ambitious plan to overcome the West in Technology. And he has already chosen his 18 companies to get it In Xataka | China has gathered more than 150 humanoid robots in Shanghai. Your message is clear: this is no longer about ideas, it goes from industry Cover | Robotics Lumos via X

Pirates have turned the Red Sea into hell for ships around the world. With an exception: the Chinese

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The Red Sea right now is the main commercial route around the world and millions European industries depend on it to be able to receive products from the Asian continent. But in recent months, it has become one of the most dangerous seas on the planet, taking months blocked by the attack of pirates. With an exception. Chinese ships can go through these waters and nothing happens to them. They are even protected. The Red Sea as a forbidden area. Since the Hutí Militia de Yemen, with the support of Iran, will start an assault campaign at the end of 2023 In retaliation for the situation in Gaza, this area has become a dangerous area. Sunk charges, attacked crews and a climate of total insecurity that forced giants such as Master or Hapag-Lloyd to deviate through the horn of Africa. Something that implies Add to the navigation plan between 14 and 18 days. Something that also represents a higher cost. China’s ships have ‘white letter’. Something that has been observed since April, and that has reported the maritime intelligence firm Lloyd’s List Intelligence, is that Nothing happens to Chinese ships. In this way, they have seen how fourte The insurmountable rorowhich sailed from China and crossed the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Red Sea for Europe, did not have to give a detour. The most interesting thing is the content they had inside: Chinese brands electric vehicles such as Byd or Mg. This is a pattern that clearly shows that there is an agreement behind. A tactical pact that is worth gold. Neither Beijing, nor Tehran, nor the hutis leaders have issued an official statement, but the evidence and geopolitical context draw a mutual interest agreement. The hutis, which They declare to attack ships with Israeli linksAmericans or British, seem to have received a clear instruction: ships that come from China have the free passage. The key to this immunity lies in China’s powerful influence on Iranthe main economic and military support of the hutis. China is the biggest Iranian oil buyer, a commercial relationship that is a lifeguard for the Persian economy. In exchange for this support, Beijing exercises a ability to persuasion in the region that no other power can match. Analysts like Daniel Nash, from the consultant Veson Nautical, Point out that “China has found a way of dealing with the huti rebels backed by Iran, and they have been told that their ships will not be attacked.” This “salvoconduct” not only applies to Chinese flag ships, but also to those of other nationalities chartered by Chinese manufacturers to transport their vehicles. Meanwhile, other Chinese ships that do not wear cars continue to opt for the African route to avoid risks. The secret weapon against European tariffs. For Chinese manufacturers, this shortcut is much more than simple logistics savings; It is a strategic weapon to be able to conquer the European market. Right now, the European Union, in an attempt to protect its own industry, has imposed tariffs of up to 35% To Chinese electric vehicles, claiming that they benefit from unfair state subsidies. Although now They study withdraw them. However, the savings of the Red Sea route helps to compensate for the impact of tariffs, causing the final price to consumers to remain very attractive. The competitors have felt the consequences. Brands like Tesla, Volvo, Suzuki or even suppliers like Michelin They have suffered strikes in their European factories As a result of deliveries in deliveries because ships have to give a greater rodeo. In this way, brands settled in Europe have to pay consequences, while China can overcome them without problems. Floating cities for the conquest of Europe. Far from being a temporary solution, China is betting strongly on this route. Chinese shipyards work in full performance To deliver to Byd and SAIC new ships to wear their vehicles. And it is that these ships such as the “Byd Explorer No.1” or the “Anji Ansheng” of Saic are authentic floating cities with capacity for more than 7,000 vehicles, designed to optimize mass transport through sea. Chinese cars begin to be an important alternative. In the case of Spain, Sales of Chinese electric cars They don’t stop growing with the Saic group at the head and next to Grupo Chery with their Omoda and Byd, which has also opted for hybrid cars. This way, China is flooding European with its cars as It is being seen in enrollments. And partly it is for this type of strategies. In Xataka | There are those who believe that being rich is a sufficient requirement to have a Ferrari. The most important thing is something else: Ferrari fell well

Kodak revolutionized the world of photography. His last message sounds more like farewell than reinvention

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Your first camera may be a Small yellow or black box, plastic, with a metallic click and a reel that you carried to reveal to discover photos of bright colors. Before there were mobile phones and Instagram filters, Kodak was the entrance door to photography for millions of people. Yesterday, that same company warned in its quarterly report (Form 10-Q that presents before the SEC) that its continuity is in doubt. The market responded to the announcement with a fall close to 26% of the shares in the subsequent moments. According to the aforementioned document, Kodak closed the last quarter with a net loss of 26 million dollars, compared to 25 million benefit a year earlier, and 155 million box to June 30. The problem is that in less than a year obligations over around 500 million and today it has no compromised financing to cover them, which activated the notice of ‘Going concerns‘. To gain margin, the company has launched extraordinary measures, but has indicated that “these conditions raise serious doubts about the company’s ability to continue operating.” To invent the easy photo to existential doubt Far from their domain days in cameras and reels, Kodak operates today in commercial printing, chemicals and advanced materials, and film for cinema. Its brand is licensed for consumer products, while reinforcing businesses where it retains industrial technology and capillarity. Besides, It already has a regulated installation in Rochesterregistered by the FDA, which will start with PHOSPHATE BUFFERED SALINE (A buffered saline solution with phosphates that is usually used in laboratories and biomedical processes) and aspires to produce intravenous sera later. His footprint in consumer photography is, today, more symbolic than real. As we mentioned above, the pressure of that short-term debt is combined with loose income and limited liquidity, according to 10-Q and the results note. To win oxygen, Kodak has decided to close his Company Pension Plan in the United Statesa corporate system that guarantees retirement payments to former employees. The company plans to clarify on August 15 how it will serve all participants and complete reversal in December 2025, with the idea of amortizing part of the term loan and renegotiating or refinancing the rest. Kodak camera In 1975, Steven SassonKodak engineer, presented a digital camera prototype who captured images with a CCD sensor and kept them on tape. It was rudimentary, but marked the beginning of a technological revolution that would end up imposing. The company decided not to market it then for fear of cannibalizing the road business and for the immaturity of the product. This caution delayed its entry into the digital market, allowed rivals to consolidate positions and weakened the model that had made it unbeatable for decades. In 2020, Kodak tried to reconvert the pharmaceutical ingredients with a letter of interest from the United States Development Bank for a loan of 765 million dollars. The stock market reaction was glowing, but the process was paralyzed between research and criticismand the loan was not formalized. That ambition survives today on a smaller scale: Rochester’s CGMP installation, already registered by the FDA, will begin with PBS as the first product and will serve as a basis for exploring materials of greater regulatory value. What happens in the coming months will be decisive for Kodak. The company argues that it may pay a significant part of the loan and expand or refinance the rest, while executing the closure of the pension plan and Light your new pharmaceutical line. The market, for now, observes skepticism. For a brand that defined photography for more than a century, the challenge is no longer to innovate, but simply survive. Images | KODAK | Bady Abbas In Xataka | The agreement with the US seemed to pave the way to Nvidia in China. Now is the Asian giant who begins to close the door

The new largest plane in the world will be a beast to revolutionize wind. The big question is whether it will fly

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In the Albores of the Ukraine WarRussia took control of the airport space of Hostomel. It was where two aviation monsters, Antonov-124 and Antonov-225They were trapped. The result of the attacks? Serious damage to one of the merchandise transport aircraft more used in Europe and Destruction of Antonov-225the largest plane in the world and pride of Ukrainian aviation. His loss has left a void that a startup wants to take advantage of with the Windrunner, the world’s new biggest plane Focused on the transport of wind turbines. The problem is that there are serious doubts that one day he undertakes the flight, but there is already an interested party that has nothing to do with him renewable energy sector: The Pentagon. Drive wind. The company after this ambitious project is Radiaa startup that considers that, in a Decarbonization scenario and with one artificial intelligence so voracious In energy terms, it is necessary to boost the installation of wind turbines throughout the world. The problem is that, to accelerate that installation, the cadence of Warmers installation And the transport of its elements, such as blades, is a problem. The towers can be set up by pieces, but the blades are another song. Radia considers that none of the load aircraft They have the ability to transport large blades, and there their plan with the Windrunner and a winery that will allow three 80 -meter blades, two of 95 meters or just just or barely one 105 meters long. And it will do it directly on an improvised landing floor at the construction of the wind farm. Comparisons are hateful. To put in context what type of plane we are talking about, if the Antonov-225 was a monsterthis Windrunner would be unqualifiable: Winrunner Antonov AN-225 Total length 108 meters 84 meters Wingspan 80 meters 88.4 meters Height 24 meters 18.1 meters Winery length 105 meters 43.3 meters Bodega volume 8,200 m³ 1,300 m³ Comes with a price. The problem is that putting such a plane in the air has a problem: fuel. For the 250 tons that the Antonov-225 could load, the Windrunner will stay in more modest 72.5 tons. Enough for its main mission of transporting shovels that in its largest lengths are around 60 tons. But autonomy can also be the big problem of that plan that allows winding throughout the world. Driven by four engines that will work with Sustainable Aviation Fuel, or SAFits autonomy will be up to 2,000. It will be its great limitation, since it will relegate it to an almost local use in Europe, America or Asia, with continuous reposses or with the need for shovels to be manufactured to those 2,000 kilometers of its destination. Windrunner on the left, Antonov An-124 in the center, Boeing 747-400 to the right Serious doubts. It is evident that the Windrunner is promising, but experts from the aerospace industry are not so clear that Radia can materialize their vision. The argument that analysts and experts of the aviation industry use is that Radia is a startup that will need a lot of money and have seen projects with better commercial arguments and lower technological risks. Also, and how we read in BBCRadia goes against everything that is usually done in this industry and, after testing a scale model in the wind tunnel, wants to speed up times and reduce costs passing from that model to scale to real -size test aircraft. As? Instead of building traditional prototypeslooking for digital design tools. And this is not like building a car on your own: once built, an overwhelming aircraft certification process begins. Virtually the interior of the Windrunner is a winery. Trust. In the same BBC article, Mark Lundstrom, founder of Radia, confessed that, although there are numerous challenges, the fundamental principles of the development of the Windrunner go through “not doing anything new and developing the minimally viable aircraft for aviation”. That makes them discarded alternatives such as the airships, which should go through new regulations and supply chains, and also that they have opted for a more traditional supply chain. For example, hiring experienced suppliers Like the Italian Leonardo for the fuselage, the American Afore to review the security or The Spanish Aernnova For wings and pylons of engines. It is not yet known who will provide the engines, but from Radia they commented to BBC that they have “selected an existing certified engine and are working to define the integration strategy in the fuselage.” That is, Radia is using already tested technologies and components, which will allow them to “the unit cost is proportional to the weight and size of the aircraft and, therefore, comparable to that of other civil aircraft of wide fuselage,” according to Radia’s spokesman. And it is expected that the 70% of suppliers of Radia are European. The Pentagon has taken his eye. Of course, Radia is not the first visionary Aerospace Company, but if you do not set the objective of building the Windrunner for its main objective of filling the aircraft planet, whoever has recently called at their door I have something interesting to offer. In May of this year, the United States Department of Defense signed an agreement with Radia To analyze if the Windrunner could transport military load. Although the weight it can carry is much lower than that of the missing Antonov-225, its winery is huge and is something that has captured the attention of the Pentagon. From Radia they maintain that its objective remains to serve the wind energy market, but recognize that the unique capabilities of its plane make it interesting for additional applications. Boeing heats engines. Radia aims to have several real -size test units to make a first test flight at the end of this decade. Again, an excessive ambition if we take into account that planes such as the aforementioned AN-225 barely made a few flights a year … and there was only one. And we will see how the pressure of … Read more

During World War II, Australia sent an ornitorrinco to Churchill. Died on the trip and 82 years later we know why

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In 1943, a camouflaged ship departed from Australia to England with an ultrasecreta load to the peculiar: An ornithorrinco called Winston, a diplomatic gift for British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The creature died during the trip and for 82 years a German submarine was blamed. Some researchers They have discovered What really happened. Winston was not loaded by the Germans. Australian students They have resolved the enigma After examining the archives of the naturalist David Fleay, who captured the animal. The boat’s temperature records reveal that Winston died due to thermal stress by crossing Ecuador, not because of enemy attacks. Temperatures exceeded 27 degrees Celsius for a week, well above the survival limit of the species. Why Australia gave an ornitorrinco. In the middle of World War II, Australia felt abandoned by Great Britain while Japan approached the Pacific. Australian Foreign Minister Herbert Evatt knew that Churchill collected exotic animals and thought that an ornitorrinco, a creature that many considered at the time a taxdermic hoax, could tip the balance in favor of Canberra military support requests. The trip that should never have done. Winston was captured near Melbourne and embarked on a specially designed container, with burrows lined with hay, Australian stream water and 50,000 worms for the 45 -day path. David Fleay, the naturalist in charge, opposed from the beginning: no ornitorrinco had ever survived such a long trip and exports of the species were prohibited. The cause of “official” death. When Winston appeared dead in his tank, Churchill wrote to the Australian prime minister expressing his “pain” for loss. To avoid a diplomatic incident, death was hidden for years. When it finally came to light, the version that the Ornitorrinco had died from the stress of the attacks of the German submarines, a story that Fleay himself supported publicly. The clues of the logbook. Harrison Croft, a doctoral student at Monash University, agreed to files in Canberra and London that included interviews with the caretaker of the Ornitorrinco. “They made a kind of autopsy and he was very concrete: there was no explosion, everything was calm on board,” Croft explains. In parallel, an Australian museum team Digitized the collection Fleay staff, where they found the daily temperature record that revealed the real cause of death. Ship’s logbook. Image: Australia Museum Ornitorrincos Based Diplomacy. Australia tried again in 1947, sending three ornithorrincos to the New York Bronx Zoo. Betty died soon after arriving, but Penelope and Cecil managed to arrive healthy and saved to the country, even becoming authentic celebrities and a hook for the press at that time. The media expected them to be reproduced, but after a four -day “romance”, the thing did not go as expected. Image: Australia Museum The way to reproduce from an ornitorrinco is fascinating, since they are monoturem mammals, which means that, despite being mammals, they put eggs. In fact, they are one of the only five species of mammals that do this (the other four belong to species of Equidas). So when they saw that Penelope did not end up reproducing, it became a fun scandal at the time. In 1957 he disappeared mysteriously and Cecil died the next day of “broken heart”, according to the press. Since then, Australia strictly prohibited the export of ornitorrincos. Only two have left the country In 70 years, both to the San Diego Zoo in 2019. Cover image | Yousuf Karsh and Michael Jerrard In Xataka | If Spain believes that velutinas are a problem is because it does not know what the US has found: radioactive wasps

Italy is going to build the suspension bridge with the largest opening in the world. And they will load it to NATO’s budgets

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The megaconstructions are the order of the day. We find each other Colossal projectssome that They make us crack an eyebrow thinking If necessary. However, few can boast of being the culmination of a work of centuries, or even millennia. Italy is close to getting it when approved A huge bridge that connect the continent with Sicily: the Messina bridge. The turn is that they have described it as something key to the NATO. So that? So that the bridge budget is included in the percentage of military spending that Italy must contribute. Historical dream. Sicily is a complicated territory. Isolated from the continent, it remains Italy and, although they have a very strong identity feelingthat isolation has led to some problems and difficulties throughout history. In it Roman empire I know proposed Unite the territory through the Strait of Messina with a peculiar plan: connect Calabria and Sicily using barges and barrels. It was ruled out for obvious reasons such as intense maritime traffic or its technical unfeasibility. In the Middle Ages, Charlemagne too study take actions to unite the territory and, in 1866, firmer plans were drawn to build a viaduct, but they were also discarded when considering that A tunnel would be more suitable. In whatever, it also ended in nothing and, during the following decades, the project of the bridge in the Strait was changing hands without success, maintaining the connection with the peninsula by ferry. Colossal. Throughout. Everything changed in 2023, when the new Giorgia Meloni government resurrected the plan. Contemplating an investment of more than 13,000 million euros, the bridge would mark a turning point in Italian, European and world architecture, depending on who we ask. The length will be about 3.7 kilometers with twin towers of 399 meters on both banks, a height of 72 meters above sea level so that large boats and capacity can pass and capacity to move A large number of vehicles. The three lanes in the direction offer a capacity for 6,000 vehicles per hour, and their two railways would allow a cadence of 200 trains per day. It is a transport barbarity to connect Sicily, but the only thing about this bridge will be the central opening: 3,300 meters that would set a new world record for a suspended vain. Necessary. The start of the works is scheduled for this same 2025 and its estimated completion by 2032. As we say, after many comings and goings, the project is already officially underwayas the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure of Italy, Matteo Salvini, advertisement Last Wednesday. Finally, the cost will be 13,500 million euros and, as we read in New York TimesItalian minister and vice president, he is “absolutely proud of work.” Stating that “it will be an unprecedented public works in the world.” The justification of the bridge, as we read in Financial Timescomes from the side of the revitalization of Sicily. With this volume moved from the continent, the economy of one of the poorest regions of Italy can be promoted, where unemployment practically double The national rate: 13% compared to 6.5% of the rest of the country. But … necessary? The question is why, if a bridge between both territories was so important, something had been done. And, above all, why firm projects such as 2011 threw himself by land, arguing concerns about his price, about 5,000 million euros at that time and, in addition, about his real need. And it wasn’t the first time: Silvio Berlusconi He already proposed This project in 2005 for about 3.9 billion euros. Criticism. Many. There are few detractors of the bridge. This “unprecedented work in the world” faces opposition, environmentalists and even nature itself. The opposition, as New York Times states, considers that it is “an economic and social catastrophe” by diverting funds from other projects more necessary to build “a cathedral in the desert.” The animalists lo consider A disaster for local flora and fauna, as well as for a bird’s migration route. And when we say he has against nature, it is because those critics too comment that the area is prone to earthquakes that could make the bridge collapse. Even the ‘thing nostra’, the Sicilian mafia, said Be against the bridge in 2023. It has a trick. If you have so much against, if it is not clear that you will revitalize Sicily after a mastodontic investment, why do you go ahead with the project? During the NATO summit in June, Meloni declared that, due to the convulsive moment that is lived in several parts of the world, “there are many threats and hostile actors operating on the southern flank of the Atlantic Alliance.” In addition, he commented that “Russia projects more and more His presence in the Mediterranean” And this bridge would be a key piece, according to the Italian government, “in the context of NATO defense and security, facilitating the movement of the Italian and international armed forces in a context in which the Mediterranean is a geopolitically sensitive area.” And the trick? Well, like other NATO allies, Italy has beenOppromeded to increase its annual expenditure in defense Up to 5% of its GDP during the next decade, including 1.5% for strategic infrastructure. If the bridge is 13,500 million euros and include it in their proposals for “strategic infrastructure”, they would already be hitting a good bite to that 5% They must invest. Instead of armament or other elements, in a new bridge. Germany goes behind. “The Mestina Strait Bridge constitutes a fundamental infrastructure in relation to military mobility, taking into account the presence of important NATO bases in southern Italy,” they said in a report prepared last April, but Italy seems to be the only ones that will try to ‘put’ a renewal of infrastructure in that 5% of NATO. Germany, in a recent reporthas included in these defense budgets other 1 billion euros for the maintenance of ‘autobahn’, Your highway system. Forcing the machine. Returning to the Italian Bridge, and … Read more

feed solar and wind energy the darkest and colder place in the world

by

In a place where the nights last six months, wind gusts can reach 300 km/hy them the temperatures collapse below the −40 ° C, the idea of using solar and wind energy sounds like a joke. For a few months, however, China is feeding its Antarctica base with renewable energy. How the hell have they done it? Short. Five years ago, electrical engineer Sun Hongbin, today president of the Technological University of Taiyuan, received what seemed an impossible mission: to build a renewable energy system capable of supporting the most extreme conditions of the earth. As he has told Scientific AmericanThe objective was to align the new Qinling Antarctic Station with the green commitments of the Chinese government. The result cost 14 million dollars, was officially inaugurated in early 2025 and is a technological feat that now other countries with Antarctica bases want to imitate. Diesel logistics nightmare. Antarctica stations work almost exclusively with diesel generators, but this dependency has a very high cost. Not only because diesel is expensive, but because transporting it is a logistics nightmare that requires mobilizing breakwinds and military personnel for each replenishment trip, which is usually annual. In addition, environmental risk is huge. The spills are frequent and, in such a fragile ecosystem, where the low temperatures slow down the decomposition, any discharge is a catastrophe. Not to mention the emissions of the combustion itself. The renewables did not endure. The problem of conventional renewable systems is that they do not work in Antarctica. The extreme cold causes the blades of the wind turbines to become brittle, the performance of the solar panels plummeted and the lithium batteries stop working. And that without counting the polar night: six months without seeing the sunlight. Provided to overcome these obstacles, Sun Hongbin did not walk with little ones. His team raised A 2,000 square meters laboratory At the Technological University of Taiyuan that, basically, it was a piece of Antarctica in China. To put to the limit each component, they simulated freezing temperatures, winds of more than 200 km/hyams artificial. How the hell did it. After four years of tests, the team found a robust system that combines wind energy, solar energy, batteries and, the key of everything, hydrogen. The wind turbines have a vertical design reminiscent of an egg blender, which reduces the structural tension and lowers the center of gravity so that the wind does not take them. The solar panels are mounted on a special frame made of reinforced plastic with carbon fiber. This material has a lower thermal conductivity than aluminum, so it does not deform so easily with sudden temperature changes. As for the batteries, instead of the typical lithium ions, they used lithium-ditana. Its internal chemistry facilitates the movement of ions at temperatures below zero. In addition, they put them in a thermal housing that takes advantage of their own residual heat to stay at an optimal temperature. The cake widge. During the polar summer, when there is a sun and spare wind, energy is used to feed an electrolyzer that separates water into oxygen and hydrogen. Hydrogen is stored in high pressure tanks. When winter arrives and the other sources falter, hydrogen is recombine with oxygen in a fuel pile to generate electricity. The only residue? Water and heat, which are recycled to heat the system itself. According to those responsible for the project, the base can work for about 48 hours only with the energy stored in the form of hydrogen. The way to follow. The integrated wind, sun, hydrogen and batteries system has a total capacity of about 230 kW, which It is 60% of the capacity Total Qinling generation. The remaining 40% continues to depend on diesel as support, but the savings is gigantic, so it has received praise from the international scientific community. This is the “first large -scale clean energy system in the world capable of working all year in a polar environment.” And there are already other countries investigating how to adopt it while China maintains its goal of reaching 100% renewable energy. Image | CCTV

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