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Exactly 100 years ago we began to understand how the world works. Quantum physics has radically changed our lives

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Well, not exactly 100 years ago. 100 years ago and one day. On July 9, 1925, German physicist Werner Heisenberg sent a letter to his friend Wolfgang Pauli, who at that time was already a very renowned theoretical physicist of Austrian origin. Heisenberg had been engaged for several months in the development of an idea that was permanently breaking with The classical conception of the atom as a tiny planetary system in which electrons orbit around a nucleus constituted by protons and neutrons. That letter contained several reflections that Pauli knew how to appreciate. In fact, shortly after receiving it Max Born, Pascual Jordan and Wolfgang Pauli himself took the work of Werner Heisenberg as a starting point to prepare for the first time in history a mature formulation of Quantum theory. The content of that letter supports nothing more and nothing less the most ambitious and precise framework in the history of science: Standard model of particle physics. Without him many of the technologies we enjoy today would not be possible. Quantum mechanics is very present in our day to day “Dear Pauli, if he believes that I read his letter laughing mockingly, he is deeply mistaken. Actually, the opposite happens; from Helgoland (it is a small German island located in the North Sea) my views on the mechanics have become more radical every day that passes, and I am firmly convinced that Bohr’s theory of the hydrogen atom in its current form Zeeman “. The article ‘Umdeutung’ (‘Reinterpretation’) of Heisenberg is considered the birth certificate of modern quantum theory The first lines of Heisenberg’s letter They clearly reflect the trust and respect he professed towards Pauli. And also how much the revolutionary ideas I had in mind were disturbed. In fact, a few lines later confess to having many doubts about the way he could carry out The rigorous formulation of those thoughts: “As for my own opinion about this scribble, with which I am not at all satisfied: I am firmly convinced of the value of the negative and critical part, but I consider that the positive part is rather poor. Even so, perhaps those most capable that I can get something sensible to it.” The scribble that Heisenberg speaks was actually the draft of his famous article ‘Umdeutung’ (‘Reinterpretation’), which shortly after was published. Many physicists consider that text the birth certificate of Modern Quantum Theory. Neither more nor less. Anyway, there is no doubt: during the next 100 years Heisenberg’s ideas and other physicists who also made decisive contributions to quantum theory, such as Wolfgang Pauli, Erwin Schrödinger, Max Born, Paul Am Douc, Niels Bohr or Albert Einstein, triggered the birth of many of the technologies we currently use. Integrated circuits containing all our electronic devices, Solar panelsmagnetic resonance machines, The lasers or the atomic watches that allow the human being to measure time with an unprecedented precision would not be possible without the knowledge that modern quantum theory has given us. And, of course, without this model we would not have Quantum computers. Objectively, and it is not at all an exaggeration, Quantum physics is present in much of modern technology. And all probability will continue to be in many of the innovations that will arrive in the future. That is not the slightest doubt. After all, it is the best tool we have to understand how the world works. Image | Generated by Xataka with Gemini More information | Cern In Xataka | The authentic alchemy is being made by the CERN: it has detected the transformation of lead into gold

China has been launching the same message to the world about Taiwan. The date was 2027 … until the US bombarded Iran

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Now that there is a certain tense calm in the Middle East, there are many analysts who have turned the magnopolitical framework. In June we already commented that, in a turn of the most perverse events, the United States attack Iran intended to contain a nuclear proliferation could be the catalyst of another even more dangerous: North Korea. There was a second stage to draw: that of China and Taiwan. Start over. The analysts told of the New York Times That the American attack against Iranian nuclear facilities has added a new layer of complexity to the already tense geopolitical equation between the United States, China and Taiwan. What began as a diplomatic strategy became a sudden offensive that now serves as Element of study For Chinese leaders, who seek to anticipate how Trump would respond to an eventual crisis in the Taiwan Strait. His Erratic behavior And his willingness to resort to the use of force, even having previously rejected it, generate confusion in Beijing. China, they agree, observe this turn as a sign that Trump, far from representing a predictable position, could apply a logic of force equally in Asia if it perceives that their interests are at stake. Iran’s mirror. In the same way What North Koreahe Attack on Iran has been able to force Chinese strategists to Check your models of contingency with respect to Taiwan. Despite the obvious differences between the two scenarios, the essential lesson It is shared: Trump is willing to unleash military operations if he considers it appropriate, even against adversaries with limited response capacity such as Iran. Beijing, on the other hand, has a considerably superior military power and is known closer to the theater of operations than any American force. Even so, the possibility of a sudden escalation forces the Chinese to prepare For a Scenario fanfrom a diplomatic crisis to a direct confrontation that escapes their hands. Uncertainty about Trump’s red line is precisely what worries them. Taiwan and ambiguity. A constant in American politics towards Taiwan has been the calculated ambiguity: dissuad China from that invasion that sounds by 2027 (coinciding with The EPL centenary), without explicitly guaranteeing a military intervention. Trump has brought that ambiguity to an extreme level. At times ha praised Xi Jinping And he has given relaxes of distensionwhile in others he has hardened his rhetoric and has intensified The supply of weapons to Taipéi. For Beijing, this duality is disconcerting but also dangerous, because it cannot be certain to its behavior. In this context, Chinese analysts They have intensified His scrutiny, maintaining discrete meetings with American interlocutors in search of clues about the true limits of the former president. The impression they transmit is of nervous caution: they fear that the Trump’s unpredictability can trigger an unwanted crisis. Cross pressures. The tension not only emanates from Beijing. Remembered in another report the Time Magazine that within the United States and Taiwan there is fear that Trump himself, in his eagerness, ends giving something to China In a future summit with XI, perhaps in the form of an ambiguous statement or a significant omission about the defense of the island. Washington, as we said, maintains armament supply (And more) and exhortes Taipéi to increase his military spending, but it is the president who finally decides. That centralization of power and its erratic character They worry both in the Pentagon and in the Taiwanese presidential palace. We have Cash: The recent ones Chinese maneuversincluding deployment of aircraft carriers Beyond the first island chain, they are seen as stress tests: Silent drills to measure the allied reaction capacity and the degree of real commitment of Washington. Taiwan between lines and symbols. While Beijin accuses President Taiwanesa Lai Ching-Te de Separatismo, the island administration insists that it is the maneuvers and Chinese threats that They tension the rope. In turn, within Taiwan, there are those who interpret Trump’s attack to Iran as An indirect warning To the great powers, a coded message towards Moscow and Beijing: if a line is crossed, the answer could be immediate. But the comparison between Iran and China is dangerous. He Missile Arsenal from Beijing (which includes about 3,500 missiles Conventional, nuclear ballistic submarines and a rapid assembly) would make a lightning offensive like the one launched in the Middle East. China knows it, and that is why Multiply your deploymentsair incursions and Naval exercisesconsolidating a constant pressure on the island, designed to wear it psychologically and strategically. China between two fronts. Plus: while facing these uncertainties in the east, Beijing must deal with a growing perception of threat in the West. The Recent statements From the secretary general of NATO, Mark Rutte, alerting about Chinese military expansion and his possible coordination with Russia in case of crisis in Taiwan, reinforce the western narrative of China As a systemic challenge. Beijing, meanwhile, denounces that NATO seeks to justify its expansion to Asia using China As a pretext. A theater of shadows. In summary, Trump has shown that he can change course Without prior noticeand that feature, far from reassuring, introduces a dangerous volatility element. Meanwhile, China explores if you can find a loop to weaken American support to Taipéi, even Without resorting to force. And in parallel, the military apparatus of the United States and its allies fears that any calculation error, any word out of place at a summit, can trigger a chain reaction. The military action In Iran it is not just a specific act: it is a declaration of ambiguous intentions, one that has put all the actors of the Indo-Pacific board alert. Image | Chairman, Garystock In Xataka | That China performs 3,000 military air maneuvers over a year is not striking. To do it about Taiwan, yes In Xataka | It is the third time in a few months that China presents itself against Taiwan with an army. The island has decided to move on to attack

In the twentieth century the pipelines were the key to the world. In the 21st century are the electrical networks and a country is winning them: China

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While a nation installs almost one hundred solar panels per second, another revitalizes factories to produce gasoline engines. While A build the largest solar plant in the worldthe other promises “Dominant Energy” Based on oil and gas. At first glance, two different strategies seem. Actually, it’s a career. And the prize is not just energy: it is the geopolitical power of the 21st century. Two opposing models. An Ember graph published by Our World in Data He has illustrated The point with amazing clarity. At the beginning of the 2000s you can see China’s gradual rebound. However, the crossing occurs in 2010 where the Asian giant exceeds the 4,000 Teravatios-Hora barrier (TWH), to a vertiginous ascent exceeding 10,000 SWH in 2024. In simple terms, China produces more than double electricity than the United States, which remained in the same line. But the most relevant is not how much it produces, but how it does. Data Source: Ember (2025); Energy Institute – Statistical Review of World Energy (2024) The silent revolution. In just one month, China installed 93 gigawatts of solar capacity, which is equivalent – more or less – one hundred panels every second. To that are added another 26 GW in wind, some 5,300 new turbines underway. According to Lauri Myllyvirta, principal researcher at the Institute of Policy of Asian Society, cited by The Guardian: “Only the facilities of that month would generate as much electricity as whole countries such as Poland, Sweden or the United Arab Emirates.” In total, between January and May 2025, China has added 198 GW of solar capacity and 46 GW of wind, sufficient to match the electricity production of Türkiye or Indonesia. This way, Keep overcoming The more than 1,000 GW, which represents half of the world total. They have known how to get ahead. More and more linked climatic ambitions with the growth of renewable technologies. In a recent speech, cited by The GuardianXi Jinping linked the development of the clean energy sector with China’s economic revitalization: “We have built the world’s largest and most complete energy chain in the world.” The term “new energies” includes renewables, batteries and storage technologies. The Asian giant is currently the largest global supplier of clean technologies: the market of solar panels, wind turbines, batteries, electric vehicles and nuclear reactors under construction dominates. In addition, it has almost 700,000 patents in clean energy, more than half of the world total, According to The New York Times. The other face. For a good part of the twentieth century, the United States was the reference in energy innovation: from the first commercial solar cells until The first wind farms. However, since Trump’s arrival, the focus It has been placed again strongly towards fossil fuels. According to The New York TimesWashington has pressed allies such as Japan and South Korea to invest billion dollars in American natural gas infrastructure. At the same time, companies such as General Motors have given clear signs of where the wind blows: the company canceled an electric motion plant near Buffalo (New York) to allocate 888 million dollars To manufacture gasoline V-8 engines. Where asymmetry resides. It is not just two different paths, but in world influence. According to Climate Energy Finance datathe companies of the Asian giant have announced more than 168 billion dollars in foreign investments in clean energy projects: from turbines in Brazil to electric cars in Indonesia, through gigantic solar plants in Saudi Arabia and hydroelectric projects in the Congo. Green energy, for Beijing, is not just a business. It is a soft power tool. A way to gain global land through infrastructure, long -term contracts and own financing. An influence that does not need military bases, but solar panels. In contrast, the United States has cut many of its international energy cooperation programs. Its foreign strategy is more transactional: specific gas, oil or even weapons agreements. But without a structural project that allows you to compete on this new energy board. And this change of roles? Half a century ago, the United States led energy innovation. In 1979, Jimmy Carter He installed solar panels In the White House. Decades later, Barack Obama financed projects like Tesla. But cases Like Solyndra’s failurea solar company that broke after receiving a federal loan, unleashed a conservative narrative against public investment in renewables. China, on the other hand, assumed risks. In the early 2000s, then Prime Minister Wen Jiabao – rare earth geneologist – understood that the country’s economic and geopolitical future went through controlling energy production. Your government invested hundreds of billions of dollars in subsidies, factories, technical training and innovation. Protected his market, automated manufacturing and dominated access to essential raw materials such as lithium, cobalt and silicon as has developed New York Times. The forecasts. The world is moving towards solar and wind energies, so confirms it The International Energy Agency. The energy demand will continue to grow, but its origin will be different. And that will change the global balance, because whoever leads this new energy matrix will also have a geopolitical, commercial and diplomatic advantage. China is prepared to lead that world. The big question is whether the United States – or any other global actor – is willing to compete with the same strategic vision, patience and scale. Because energy not only moves factories or illuminates cities. Today the global board moves. Image | Unspash Xataka | An explosive ramifications have just opened in the world energy industry: the “Peak Oil” of China

Some of the hottest countries are the ones that have the most pleasure for the spicy. It has all the meaning of the world

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The spicy is not considered a taste of use but it is a key element in many gastronomies. You can draw attention to the fact that some of the countries with the greatest love of The spicy are among the warmer countries in the world, something contraintuitive if we attend to the main effect of this seasoning has a lot to do with The heat. There are various types of spicy but we refer to a concrete one, The spicy food scorching containing capsaicin. Capsaicin is a molecule that occurs naturally in some plants of the genre Capsicumthe plants that give us all the variety of peppers, chillies, chiles or ñoras, although these fruits not always contain perceptible concentrations of this compound. It is often considered that plants of this genre synthesize this compound as a defense mechanism to protect their fruits and with them their seeds. However today the human being cultivates different varieties of plants in order to control the Capsaicin concentrations And, with this, control the degree of itching that causes the fruit. Very often this is done in order not to reduce the presence of the molecule but to create even more spicy varieties. Exist Many hypotheses about why the fond of spicy and spices in certain countries closest to the tropics, although there are no scientific arguments that support any specific. For example, the idea that these condiments are used to avoid the proliferation of pathogenic microorganisms is practically discarded. What we do know is that, under certain conditions, the spicy can help us reduce the temperature, by contradictory that seems. Capsaicin works activating nerve receptors in charge of letting us know for the sensation of burned. In other words, this compound deceives us by making us think that we are abrasing ourselves. In that deception is the great utility of spicy foods With high temperatures: the sensation of heat can make us break to sweat when we eat the spicy, which makes it easier for our body to expel part of the heat that is accumulating. Something similar we can experience When we drink a hot drink when the thermometers indicate an increase in temperatures. Of course, there is a “but”. Sweat is mostly water that transports part of our body heat outside our skin. Once there this water evaporates, taking the heat. But not always: in high humidity conditions, sweat takes to evaporate, which implies that the spicy or hot drinks only work when we do not exceed certain levels of humidity in the environment. It should also be remembered that sweat makes us lose water, so replenishing it is indispensable. The food, an ally It is not necessary to resort to spicy if what we want is to feed and face the high temperatures. Some meals they can help us reduce heat In our body and, above all, they can help us stay hydrated, something fundamental when heat squeezes. In this sense, fruits can be especially useful. Fruits such as watermelon and melon can give us a significant amount of water when we consume them, but also do vegetables such as tomato, cucumber and lettuce. Hot drinks can help us in some contexts but in general avoiding very hot food can be a good idea, especially if we have to cook at home, since this will imply that we will be generating residual heat in our own home, heat that can take time to fade if we do not ventilate with property. The spicy, hot drinks and fresh fruit can be ways to maintain our thermal comfort in extreme circumstances but a heat wave requires that we take different measures to ensure our physical well -being and thus not take a scare. Avoid high insolation hours or those in which the temperature reaches peaks, looking for the shadow, keeping us hydrated, and Avoid demanding activities On physical level as exercise are also precautions to take on days like those we are living during this heat wave. In Xataka | Popular wisdom is not always right: the great myths of heat that we should avoid in summer Image | Qurratul Ayin Sadia / Alvin

“In five years we will be one of the three main manufacturers in the world, I am convinced”

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Turn the bus and face a huge industrial -looking door. Two inputs controlled by a garita under a gray structure topped in its upper area with three letters and their explanation with Hanzis (The Chinese characters that give it name). The bus takes various streets, turns left and right. Finally, take a last turn and leave us under a roofed space. To our left, a huge staircase guarded by two gigantic lions guarded by an immense and lonely esplanade. In the background five buildings are drawn that with its height, of no less than 30 floors, break with the plain of the square. To our right, the entrance door to an immense hall after the demonstrations of some of the more dotteras technologies of the Chinese car market. Yes, that one He is arriving in Europe and who aspires to become a reference. Will make it clear to us Stella Li, BYD Vice President. We ask what the company expects in the next five years, what will be after five years. Look with the decision he faces any as he asks to be done: “We will be one of the three main manufacturers in the world. I am convinced.” A meteoric career The image that projects the headquarters of Byd in Shenzhen (China) is the same as the one that gives off a good part of the city. The immensity of the plazas of Soviet reminiscences are mixed with gigantic skyscrapers of somewhat decadent appearance in their wrapping but that, without a doubt, welcome inside the gears that move the latest technology of the country. The gears are human that live in these buildings. More than 17 million people that push to make Shenzhen a megaciudad that drinks from a clearly communist appearance past and now lives from wild capitalism that permeates all corners. It is the city of shopping centers full of ultra -realistic falsification stores but also that of skyscrapers who play with breaking your neck, immense headquarters of Chinese banks, and dozens of skyscrapers that are thrown into an orgy of lights, colors and music three times a day to demonstrate the world that they have enough strength to wear their LED panel buildings and put them to dance to the rhythm they want to dance. The rhythm of the gears that hide under these last glazed moles are clear: money and technology. Crossing the huge glazed doors of the Byd headquarters already gives us an idea of ​​what we are going to find inside. Next to the marble and columns that never seem Byd manufactures in vertical integration, Much of its success. And it is that of the batteries that began to manufacture in 1994, the year in which the company was founded, it has passed to a giant that has already manufactured more than 10 million vehicles, which exceeded four million cars produced in just one year in 2024 and that is much more than that. It is a company that also manufactures luxury vehicles, subway cars, buses and an enormous amalgam of components for them, from the batteries to the semiconductors or heat pumps. “Our integral approach to production and batteries give us a unique competitive advantage. We hope to have a solid presence on all continents, with Europe as one of our priority markets”, Stella Li emphasizes us who knows where we want to go with that question where they will be in the next five years. That vertical integration is all that they want to teach us in our visit to the central headquarters. Start with a factory miniturization. The classic miniature trains game is made up of the rails through which vehicles that move the doors and other parts of the chassis move. We will see it with our own eyes the next day but we will get an idea of ​​how chassis and mechanical set marry to give way to the end of the line to a little Yangwang U8 in miniature, the huge SUV of more than five meters that is able to float on water. Later, at the end of the visit itself, we will have the opportunity to get on one and check The maximum luxury that proposes byd. Vehicles as excessive as well finished, topped with materials that fit the precision of the best models in the market. And with the eccentricities of the Chinese market claims, such as the drones parking that carries one of the vehicles parked at the entrance. We have entered for your past, we will go out for your future. Among others, the load of 1 MW for electric cars, a technology that Byd already has available in two carsbut that, Stella Li recognizes us, is thought above all for trucks and car fleets. Live, the system overwhelms, connecting to the same car two hoses that provide 500 kW each. The great advantage, in addition, is that if the car does not admit this type of load, the supplier can nurture two cars to a maximum of 500 kW, powers with which we do not dream in Spain for the moment. At the moment, they will put just over 4,000 points on the street. All byd patents We were notified The strategy is based on pillars of all kinds: a huge variety of products that seem to be cannibalized, its own technology sustained by an almost inconceivable variety of patents and a groundbreaking attitude towards the designs of the market in which enormous equipment and low prices are combined. That patent reaíla is proud throughout a wall that could well measure 20 meters. From top to bottom, talked with the certificates of each of them. They are, of course, those that allowed Byd to create LFP batteries that, they show us proud, They can be crossed by a nail and Do not burn in the process. The NCM facing the same test on your right does not run the same fate. A flash shakes the room and the heat of … Read more

This city of China is the world epicenter of rare earths. The problem is that nobody thought of its inhabitants

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To get an idea to what extent It has control Of those precious minerals that form the set of rare earths, the greatest enemy that China has is not outside its borders. It is such a monopolization in the sector that the danger has in “house” through of the smugglers. And of all enclaves, one stands out greatly as an epicenter of the entire heart. His name is Baotou, and everything that shines for the surrounding inhabitants is not gold. A normal city in appearance. Baotouan industrial core of 2.7 million inhabitants on the border with the Gobi desert, seems to the naked eye a second category Chinese city like so many others: shopping centers with western chains, local restaurants overflowing and children playing late. However, a short journey to the outskirts is enough to discover His true nature: A landscape dominated by factories, smoking chimneys and an environmental legacy forged by one of the most strategic and persecuted sectors of the planet. The heart of rare earths. Yes, the enclave houses More than 80% of the Rare reserves of China. Since in the 30s they were discovered in the nearby Mining District of Bayan Obo elements such as Cerio, Lantano or Samario, its exploitation has turned the city on a chain axis on global supply on industries such as electronics, automotive and defense. We have counted before: During the 90s, China increased its production by 450%, while other countries, such as the United States, They closed their mines. This concentration made Beijin the almost exclusive supplier of these critical metals, and today, in the midst of the commercial war with Washington, its control has been transformed In diplomatic weapon. Economy vs Human Cost. The problem? The Guardian told that mineral wealth has favored the economic development of Baotou, whose GDP per capita It widely exceeds the national average. However, prosperity has Your reverse: Processing plants generate toxic (often radioactive) waste that are discharged into huge artificial rafts. The most infamous, the Weikuang dam, for years was the largest landfill of rare earth waste on the planet, without adequate coating and directly close to the Yellow River. In fact, official reports have confirmed that these activities caused a 87% decrease of ammoniacal nitrogen in a tributary between 2020 and 2024, although accumulated ravages remain visible. Yin mountains on the outskirts Cancer and poison. For example, numerous studies They have documented devastating consequences in the health of nearby communities: from bone malformations to a “Epidemic” of cancer. Exposure to these elements, capable of crossing the blood brain barrier, has been associated with motor and sensory disabilities, as well as alterations in fetal neurological development. Not just that. 2020 investigations revealed that the dust of the streets contains concentrations so high that the children of Baotou and surroundings are exposed to dangerous levels Just to breathe. Daily particle ingestion rates in mining areas far exceed the limits considered safe. A washing … halfway. Given the growing international criticism, China has tried to clean its image. In 2022, state media announced that Weikuang’s dam had been transformed into an urban wetland, now supposed paradise of migratory birds. The reality? Explained the medium British that when arriving at the place, what one is located is a concrete wall that hides a dry and desolate lodazal. Behind, ruins of ancient “villages of cancer” and oxidized industrial structures extend. New homes built for displaced are practically empty, and foreign journalists are It usually blocks actively to prevent them from talking to residents. Rural sacrifice. So things, Baotou exemplifies an uncomfortable truth: the China domain In the rare earth market it has been possible not only for its geological reserves, but for a political decision where rural communities have been allowed to support Toxic costs of a globalized economic boom. It is not an exempt problem from China, of course, the same thing happens in other sectors such as AI and its data centers (we recently counted it with the Elon Musk Supercomputer). Be that as it may, and although there are less polluting technologies to process these metals, they are rarely used: its implementation would make the low costs that have cemented the Chinese position. If you want, in a context of growing international pressure and commercial sanctions, the extractive model It reveals both the fragility of environmental balance and the rawness of contemporary geostrategic priorities. Image | 柏尔莫华, 天王星 In Xataka | The key to China’s success with rare earths are not the rare earths: it is the magnet In Xataka | China’s domain of rare earths has nothing to do with geography: it is born from 39 university programs

China wanted to be the queen of high -speed trains. So he built all the longest bridges in the world

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Although Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia are immersed in a war for have the highest skyscrapers in the worldwhen we talk about megaconstructions, there is no one to have China. It doesn’t matter if we talk about tunnels, Dams, roads and even half -skyscraper. And, when we talk about bridges, there yes There is no rival. From time to time They complete a new pharaonic bridgebut if there is something that shows China’s muscle about it, they are the bridges of the Beijing-Shanghái line. Because it is in it where the three longest bridges are located in the world. Massive and … boring? He Great Danyang-Kunshan bridge It is the longest bridge in the world. It measures just over 164 kilometers and can also be the most boring bridge in the world. The reason is that it is a bridge in which functionality prevailed. It is part of the high -speed network that joins Beijing and Shanghai and in its construction, 10,000 workers used 450,000 tons of steel and 2.3 million m3 of concrete to give life to a structure that had to endure possible ships of ships and the impact of earthquakes. It has 2,000 pillars, 22 tunnels, it has an average altitude of just over 30 meters and trains circulate at a speed of more than 320 km/h. Declaration of intentions. The most striking thing is that it only took four years to complete the work. It is an achievement if we consider that other bridges, such as the Constitution of Cádizthey took more than seven years for about three kilometers. They began in 2006 and the works were completed in 2010, inaugurating both the bridge and the line in 2011. The investment? 8,500 million dollars, and although in later bridges we have seen an aesthetic intention by the engineers, that of Danyang-Kunshan was a declaration of intentions. It became a global reference in rail engineering, but above all in a sample of the Technological advance of the country when undertaking the Infrastructure construction large scale in record time. It is something that has also attracted attention to subsequent works, the speed at which things do, especially, in many occasions of works of great complexity. In dark red, the bridge. In clear red, part of the full line Beijing-Shanghai, a monster. Because although this bridge Have the Guiness record in length and it was an important technical advance, the most imposing thing is that it is only a piece of the puzzle that supposes the high -speed line Between Beijing and Shanghai. It is a connection with a length of 1,318 kilometers and, apart from that of Danyang-Kunshan, there are three other bridges that are on the list of the 10 longest in the world. He Great Bridge of Cangde measures 115.9 kilometers and the Great Tianjin Bridge It “stays” at 113.7 kilometers. The three are the longest in the world, and in the seventh place on the list is the Great Bridge of Beijingwith 48.2 kilometers. The four were completed for the inauguration of the line in 2011, assuming a pharaonic work and, in total, representing a third of the total line length. The artificial island of the Hong-Kong-Zhuhai-Macao bridge, which is a bridge over the water until it becomes a submarine “bridge” It is called obsession. Because, if we look at the list of the longest trains in the world, China is a constant, monopolizing with eight structures the top ten positions. Not only are they very long bridges to house train lines (the Weinan Weije It has 102.7 kilometers, but it is not from the Beijing-Shanghai line), also for roads. The fifth longest bridge in the world is Hong-Kong-Zhuhai-Macaohe longest maritime bridge With 55 kilometers (and, this yes, quite attractive), the eighth of the list is the Quingdao Haiwanwith another 44.5 kilometers of road and the tenth is the bridge of line 1 of the Wuhan Metro with 37.7 kilometers. Within those positions of honor, we only find a 54 -kilometer Thai bridge, the Band Na Expresswayand the Lake Pontchartrain Road in the United States with 38.4 kilometers. Images | Mnxanl(2) Pechristener, Highestbridges In Xataka | Three highways, 20 access ramps: China has the most diabolical exchanger in the world in Huangjuewan

The countries with the most immigrant population in the world, exposed on this map

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The number of migrants has not stopped growing in the last 50 years. Since many countries They opened their doors to immigrationinternational migratory flow has not stopped intensifying. In fact, some of those countries, such as the United States, They could not explain without immigrationbut in recent years, economic, labor, war and even climatic issues have caused the number of migrants to exploit. And it is something that is perfectly reflected in the following maps. Immigration map in 2025. On the upper map, prepared by Visual Capitalist With the last data United Nations Migration Reportwe can see the 20 countries with a greater proportion of international migrants until 2024. A migrant is defined as someone who lives in a country other than his birth for at least 12 months, regardless of reason. And what we can see is that Qatar, United Arab Emirates or Monaco are countries in which more than 70% of its population are international migrants. Around 50%, we have both European countries (Liechtenstein, Andorra or Luxembourg) and the Middle East (Kuwait, Baréin or Jordan) and Singapore. Trend. Beyond this map, there are other resources to understand the Magnitude of these migratory movements In recent years. One of them is provided by the United Nations report itself, a graph in which we can see the evolution of the number of migrants in the last 25 years. Of the 150 million of 1990, where there was already an upward trend, we went to 304 million in 2024. Distribution. The region that hosted the most migrants during the past year was Oceania, with 21.5%, followed by North America with 15.9%, Europe with 12.6%, North Africa and the Middle East with 9.3%, Latin America with 2.6%, sub -Saharan Africa with 2%, this of Asia with 1%and south of Asia with just 0.9%. It is very clear what are the regions that welcome those migrants. And another interesting resource to see those migratory movements in the last 25 years is this interactive map in which we can see the total number of immigrants from 1990 to 2024. International runners. Putting the cursor over Mexico, we observed 4.49 million people who migrated in 1990, less than half of the more than 11 million people who left the country last year looking for something better. And, of course, these people go somewhere, there are favorite destinations for cultural reasons, of language or, simply, close. These movements are summarized in the ‘runners’, and the Next graphic It allows us to take an eye on those favorite international corridors. An example, the clearest, is that of Mexico and its almost 11 million inhabitants going to the United States. Others are 3.5 million Indians going to the United Arab Emirates, another 2.8 million traveling to the United States and another 2.5 million moving to Saudi Arabia. Chance. Immigration is an opportunity for those people looking for something better, but also for the countries themselves. For example, thanks to this immigration there are countries that seek to improve their demographic situation. The case of Europe is clear, with countries that They do not approach the replacement rate and others that, thanks to immigrants, The pension system is strengthened. And then there is Japan. It is no longer that they look for that Demographic salvationbut They need labor. They do not find it in the country due, among other things, population agingand that’s why they trust and give You help whoever wants to start a new life In the country. And need. And, obviously, that immigration is the exit for situations that, unfortunately, are becoming more frequent worldwide. From the beginning of the Russian invasion, eight million Ukrainians moved internally due to the crisis, but others six million They became refugees. In Palestine, se esteem that almost six million people are refugees. In total, according to estimatesin 2024 there were more than 123 million people displaced by force around the world. Of these, 42 million were refugees and another 73 million moved internally. In Xataka | Thousands of Americans want to flee from the country because of the political climate. And they have a preferential destination: Spain

More cocaine is being manufactured and selling than ever around the world. The UN has a clear guilty: Colombia

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If we go outside and take one hundred adults, it is likely that six have consumed some drugs recently. This reflects The last report The UN about narcotics, which slides an even more interesting idea: although cocaine is not the most popular narcotic or consumed its global market is beating records and its production has grown almost 34% in just one year. It is an alarming fact and focuses the focus In a specific country: Colombia. A fact: 316 million. United Nations wanted to celebrate International Day for the Fight against Drugs (June 26) with A report that updates consumption data. And they are not exactly good. According to the figures that the agency manages, in 2023 about 316 million people were drugged. It is bad fact for its enormous volume, but also because of the trend it reflects. That figure represents 6% of the adult world population, between 15 and 65 years. Only a decade ago that same percentage was barely exceeded 5%. A business in record figures. UN data also help to understand what people are “places”. The most appealed drug is cannabis, with 244 million of users, followed by opioids (61 million), amphetamines (30.7) and already cocaine in fourth place, which in 2023 consumed 25 million people. Although it is not the majority or the most widespread, the report pays special attention to this last narcotic for how its market evolves. “Production, seizures and consumption reached new maximums in 2023, becoming the greatest market growth with the highest market growth,” They warn from the United Nations Office against drugs and crime (UNODC) before moving on to the figures: in 2023 his illegal production shot at 3,708 tonsalmost 34% more than the previous year. That trend is a reflection of demand. If in 2013 they consumed 17 million people, in 2023 they were already 25. To hunt new markets. The UNODC Slide Another key idea. It is not just that illegal production has fired more than 30% in one year or consumption grows 47% throughout the last decade. To these handicaps it is added that drug traffickers are looking for new markets in which to grow. “They are finding new markets in Asia and Africa. Violence and competition that characterize the illegal scope of cocaine, previously confined to Latin America, is expanding to Western Europe as organized crime groups of Western Balkans increase their influence on the market,” insists. That trend has come accompanied by more seizures. In just a five years (2019-2023) they have shot 68% to mark a record of 2,275. Colombia, in the focus. How does that increase in cocaine in circulation explain? Where is it being cultivated and why? One of the keys is given by UNODC in Another report Published last October and focuses on a very specific production focus: Colombia. The reason? Their data shows that in 2023 the cultivation of the coca bush increased there by 10%, to around 253,000 ha with a potential cocaine production of 2,664 metric tons. A problem that grows … and expands. “This represents a potential increase of 53% in the production of cocaine compared to 2022 and marks the tenth consecutive year, since 2013, in which estimates of potential cocaine production have increased in the country,” Point out The international organization, which warns of another interesting phenomenon: coca grows … and expands. Unlike what happened during the 2021 and 2022, when the increase in production was concentrated in Putomayo, in 2023 the crops were strengthened in the vast majority (16 of a total of 19) of the Coca producing departments. Moreover, only Cauca and Nariño brought together about half of the new surface with plantations if we compare them with those of 2022. With that backdrop, Precise Infobaethe nation concentrates 67% of the crop of coca leaf. “Production increased”. The UN connectsBoth phenomena, the greatest global production and that more surface to the crop is allocated in Colombia, and launches a notice to navigators: “updated data on performance (…) gave rise to a production estimate for the country approximately 50% higher than the previous year. It also increased the concentration of coca leaf production and the manufacture of cocaine in high -performance areas.” The data of the UNODC collected by The country They find in any case that Colombia is not the only nation where coca leaf is cultivated. Not even the only one in which these plantations have gained weight. Although in Colombia they grew 9% between 2022 and 2023, until they reached 253,000 ha, in Peru they also increased slightly to touch the 93,800. In Bolivia they remain at 31,000. More cocaines, more raids. To understand the global panorama of cocaine, specifically in Colombia, it is necessary to handle some extra data. Although the cultivated area grows by police ‘courses to drug trafficking. The Colombian newspaper Time remember that in 2024 the national authorities seized 883 tons and that so far this year there are already 403. The fight against drug trafficking has also become A fundamental issue in it political debate of the country, with different positions. Price earrings. The Coca market has also experienced another phenomenon that can be seen in the streets of Spain: a deep price fluctuation. Some sources They point That in a matter of a few years the kilo has gone from costing more than 30,000 euros to get off the 15,000, a puncture that coincides with several factors, such as Colombia Stop eradicating crops sprinkling them with glyphosate, which would have influenced production. The herbicide was abandoned in 2015 for its harmful effects, but the authorities They already propose to resume it. Images | US Department of Defense Current Photos (Flickr) and UNODC 1 and 2 In Xataka | The consumption of amphetamines in Spain is concentrated in an autonomous community. And we know it with a “single” trick

In World War II, the British were looking for an antibunker bomb. So they copied a Disney idea

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The morning of last Sunday, June 22, The United States deployed its B-2 With a mission: launch, for the first time, its new MOP pumps on Iranian bases. These mass bombs have a single function: eX PLACE IN Underground Bases And, despite being avant -garde armamentits technology began to be tested decades ago, in the Second World War. It was the British who developed a bomb capable of bursting a bunker, and their inspiration came from the most unexpected place. A Disney movie. Need. It is in the war when the brightest minds of each country gather to invent new ways of killing. Even if they don’t know what the consequences of their creations will be. The World War I It was a period of Technological Revolutionthe second more of the same and In the Cold War The Explosion of nuclear bombs (and almost that of chickens). In short: each country in conflict wants have the “fattest” bomb. In the mid -2GM, the British sought a powerful bomb, but with a more concrete objective than that of causing all possible damage: they wanted something capable of advising a blow to the bunkers heart and Nazi submarine factories. Thus, they developed the Tallboy and the Grand Slampumps of five and ten tons respectively designed to hit near the target, penetrate the earth, exploit and cause damage to the shock waves transmitted through the ground. The idea was good, but they still needed something more concrete than those “earthquake” bombs. And then, someone saw this propaganda movie of Disney: Drawing pump. Leaving aside that you could keep your mouth open because … yes, that Disney produced ithe who saw the short was Edward Terrellof the Royal Reserve of Naval Volunteers. It is said that, after watching the film, Terrell and other officers, they would ask if it would be possible to design a bomb that directly crossed the concrete and destroy objectives such as the Nazi submarinesas seen in one of the frames, instead of waiting for the expansive wave of an earthquake to damage the underground base. In September 1943, engineers got to work while the viability of the pump was discussed. There were those who opposed, but Churchill was approved and, there, the development began. Edward Terrell and two other RAF officers with a Disney bomb Promising. The Disney pump, baptized Officially as “4,500 pump assisted by rocket to drill concrete” (‘Disney bomb’ has much more stuck, where we are going to stop) it was massive not so much because of the dimensions, but because of the weight and its explosive capacity. With just over five meters long and 43 centimeters in diameter, it had a weight of 2,000 kilos. As his name indicated, he was driven by RP-3 rockets And as an explosive it was loaded with 230 kilos of ‘Shellite‘, a mixture designed during World War I. Thrown from Boeing B-17 or B-29 aircraft, its operation was simple: to boost with the rockets to reach a speed of more than 1,500 km/h, penetrate everything possible due to accumulated kinetic energy and detonate late within the installation. In addition, its maximum penetration was about 5 meters of reinforced concrete, enough to cause great damage to enemy structures. Afternoon, too late. The bomb was promising, but it took too long. They began to develop late (when they had the idea, go) and that caused that it was not ready until almost the end of the conflict. In January 1945 they carried out some tests and, although the bomb was British, it was the United States Air Force that had of it. Between February and April 1945 they launched a total of 158 Disney bombs against bunkers and submarine factories in Germany. A clear objective was Valentin, a U-Bats factory That it was about to be completed, something that the allies could not allow and managed to cause damage to the target with armor 4.5 meters thick, but had a trick: it had already been previously damaged by the Grand Slam bombs of the British. A fair shotgun. The Disney bomb was a disaster for two reasons. The first and most obvious is that it came very late and attacks on underwater bases did not mean a real difference in the outcome of the conflict in the European territory. But, in addition, they failed. During the Valentin bunker attack More than 60 pumps were launched, but only one directly impacted and, as we say, the damages caused were preceded by the explosions of the British bombs thrown days before. For more inri, in evidence during the years after World War II with controlled releases in the Helgoland Islandof 76 bombs released, it was discovered that the lighting of the rockets failed in 37% of the cases, very limiting the penetrating power of the projectile. In addition, some bombs exploited prematurely and would not serve to achieve the objectives. Yes one thing was discovered: the maximum penetration of 5.08 meters in concrete. The MOP, Disney’s legacy. In the end, between technical, tactical and temporary problems, the efficacy of the Disney pump was extremely limited, but it is clear that it represented an important technological advance in the Antibunker war. So much that he laid the foundations for future penetration weapons. And of those rains, these sludge, as they say. The GBU-57A/B. launched by the US against Iran is the latest technology of the MOP bombs, or ‘Massive Ordnance Penetrator’. The big difference with the Disney pump is that this huge 6.25 meters long projectile and the FRIOLERA OF 13,600 KILOS (2,400 of them are explosives) Yes it works, also penetrating up to 60 meters of concrete. And another difference is that it is launched from such high (12 kilometers from a B-2) that does not need engine, since it is gaining speed as it falls, being very precise thanks to its laser guidance. In short, technology that is not so much of science fiction and that shows that we are great … Read more

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