Carlos Llovera

Aspirando un país que mejore cada día.

[Víctor Amaya @victoramaya]

No pago X, así que voy con un hilo y no un post largo sobre primer humo blanco del diálogo:
-Esta vez «el chavismo tiene talante de apertura», a juicio de personas enteradas de la mesa. Pero en la oposición no los ven como reformadores sino como capaces de adaptarse...

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

2800 USD mini EV from China.

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

In the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, the real grass is moved underground when the stadium hosts concerts and events.

This allows the field to stay healthy while the space transforms for huge crowds.

[Medya Muhtarı 🇹🇷 @medyamuhtari]

Bu kusursuz bir sanat değilse nedir?

Detaylar inanılmaz..

[Jaynit @jaynitx]

Jordan Peterson on why writing is the most powerful skill you can learn:

1. writing and thinking are the same thing. there is no difference between them. when you learn to write clearly you are not learning to express thoughts you already have. you are learning to have the thoughts in the first place.

2. universities never tell students why they are writing. the answer they get is you need the grade. the real answer is you need to learn to think. because thinking is what makes you act effectively in the world and win the battles you choose to fight.

3. if you can think, speak, and write you are absolutely dangerous. people give you money. they give you opportunities. you have influence. peterson says nothing can get in your way. that is what you are at university for.

4. the most articulate person in the room always wins the argument. peterson has watched staggeringly successful people his whole life. the common thread: you do not want to argue with them. not because they are aggressive. because their points are organized and yours probably aren't.

5. someone who cannot write has done almost everything wrong before they start. wrong words, wrong sentences, wrong paragraph order, wrong structure, wrong conclusion. peterson says marking a bad essay is agony because the answer to what did i do wrong is essentially everything.

[Wonder of Science @wonderofscience]

This caterpillar found in Ecuador mimics the appearance of a feather to avoid detection by predators.

📽: Andreas Kay

[Science girl @sciencegirl]

Scientists at Texas A&M University have developed an experimental nasal treatment that may help reverse some effects of brain aging, according to a recent animal study.

Researchers found that just two doses of the therapy improved memory, reduced chronic inflammation in the brain, and restored important cellular energy functions in older brains. While the treatment has not yet been tested in humans, the results have attracted attention because the effects appeared quickly and lasted for an extended period.

Aging brains are known to develop ongoing low-grade inflammation, often referred to as “neuroinflammation” or “inflammaging.” Over time, this process can affect memory, learning, concentration, and the brain’s ability to repair itself. It is also associated with conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

The treatment uses tiny naturally produced particles called extracellular vesicles (EVs), which cells use to communicate with one another. Scientists filled these vesicles with microRNAs, small molecules that help control gene activity and delivered them through a nasal spray designed to bypass the blood-brain barrier and reach the brain more directly.

The researchers reported that the therapy reduced inflammatory immune activity while also improving mitochondrial function. Mitochondria are responsible for producing the energy cells need to operate efficiently, and their decline is closely linked to aging and neurodegenerative disease.

In the study, treated brains performed better in memory and recognition tests than untreated groups. Researchers believe the therapy may help activate some of the brain’s natural repair mechanisms, although further studies especially in humans, are still needed.

This landmark study was published in the Journal of Extracellular Vesicles and funded by the National Institute on Aging.

[BBC News Mundo @bbcmundo]

Qué es la Tarea de selección de Wason, uno de los problemas de lógica más investigados y desconcertantes de la historia https://t.co/4j2lFIRQjB

[Science girl @sciencegirl]

Moth from the genus Phalera

It looks like a fragment of twig complete with chipped bark and even the layering of wood tissue at the “cut” ends

perfectly resembling a broken piece of wood to avoid predation.

📹Bart Coppens/ coppensb

[Science girl @sciencegirl]

When it gets hot, snails start climbing upward to escape the scorching ground. Once they find a safe, comfortable spot, they enter a state called aestivation, a wonderful word that describes their summer survival strategy.

It’s similar to hibernation, but instead of enduring winter cold, they’re protecting themselves from intense summer heat and dryness.

To do this, they seal the opening of their shell with a membrane of mucus known as an epiphragm. In certain species, such as the Roman snail (Helix pomatia), this barrier is reinforced with calcium for added strength. The seal contains a tiny hole that allows oxygen to pass through while preventing precious moisture from escaping.

The length of aestivation depends heavily on temperature, humidity, and rainfall. In hot, dry conditions, some snails may remain dormant for weeks or even several months until moisture returns. In Mediterranean and warmer climates, this can commonly last through much of the summer.

📷George Konstantinou

[Divinely Designed @DivinelyDesined]

Scientists mapped a piece of brain the size of half a grain of rice.

One-millionth the size of the human brain.

It took them a year and over 1.4 million gigabytes to scan it.

They found over 57,000 cells, 150 million synapses, and even some new structures they didn't know existed.

Mapping the entire human brain in this level of detail would require all the data storage generated on Earth in a year + a 140-acre data center.

But the human brain itself can hold up to ~2.5 million gigabytes of information - enough for ~3 million hours of HD video or 342 years of continuous viewing.

It can process roughly 10 quadrillion calculations per second - enough processing power to run over 4,000 high-end gaming PCs all operating at peak ability.

And it only runs on the amount of power needed for a single dim light bulb.

No technology even comes close to doing what the brain can do.

The more we learn about biology, the more complex it becomes.

This is God's Glory on display.

[Dustin @r0ck3t23]

Elon Musk just measured your existence by how many times your atoms have been inside a dying star.

Musk: “How many times have your atoms been at the center of a star? I think it’s like on average three or four times.”

Every atom in your body has already survived the core of a star.

Multiple times.

Crushed under pressures that would flatten planets.

Superheated to millions of degrees.

Blown apart in explosions so violent they forged new elements.

Then gravity pulled those scattered pieces back together.

New stars formed.

And the cycle repeated.

For 13.8 billion years, your atoms have been fuel for the most violent process in the universe.

And they are not done.

Musk: “In terms of existence as measured by the number of times your atoms will be at the center of a star, we seem to be roughly halfway.”

Halfway.

Your atoms have been through the furnace three or four times.

They will go through three or four more.

But right now, in this impossibly thin sliver between cycles, those atoms are doing something they have never done before.

They are conscious.

For billions of years before you, they burned through stellar cores with no awareness.

No memory.

No sense of what they were or where they had been.

After you, they will return to that state.

Unconscious matter drifting through space until the next star claims them.

This is the only moment in their entire journey where they can look back at the stars that made them and understand.

Musk: “If you want to look at the big picture… that’s the really big picture.”

The big picture is not that we are small.

Everyone already knows that.

The big picture is that we are temporary witnesses to a process that does not need witnesses.

Stars do not need observers to burn.

Atoms do not need anyone to understand where they have been.

The universe ran for billions of years with no one in it.

It will run for billions more after the last conscious thing disappears.

But right now, matter is examining itself.

That has never happened before in 13.8 billion years.

You are not a person who happens to contain ancient atoms.

You are ancient atoms that briefly figured out how to think.

The universe did not design consciousness.

It designed stars.

Consciousness was the accident.

And the accident is half over.

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

Scientists have developed VIZZ, a new prescription eye drop that can temporarily restore clear near vision, offering an alternative to reading glasses for many people.

VIZZ is designed specifically for presbyopia, the common age-related condition that makes it difficult to focus on nearby objects (such as phones, books, or menus). The once-daily drops work by gently constricting the pupil, which enhances depth of focus and improves near vision.

The U.S. FDA approved VIZZ in August 2025. Its effects typically last up to 10 hours, making it a convenient option for daily use. This breakthrough could benefit more than 120 million Americans with presbyopia, along with millions more worldwide.

While VIZZ is not a permanent cure, it represents a significant advancement in non-invasive vision correction. Users can read, use their phones, or work on computers more comfortably without constantly reaching for glasses.

As with any medication, it should be used under the guidance of an eye care professional to ensure safety and best results.

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

CHCI, (Methylene Chloride) + CH60 (Acetone) = powerful paint remover

[Elon Musk @elonmusk]

True

[Nicmer Evans @NicmerEvans]

¿Delcy la traidora? La realpolitik del sacrificio: El concepto de traición: Entre la semántica y el pragmatismo del poder | ¡El madurismo ha muerto!

El poder, cuando se ve acorralado, no tiene amigos; tiene intereses. En la política venezolana, históricamente marcada por lealtades de micrófono y traiciones de pasillo, los acontecimientos que hemos presenciado nos obligan a despojar la mirada de apasionamientos éticos para entender la fría y descarnada lógica de la supervivencia. Asistimos a un escenario donde la línea entre la preservación de un proyecto y la entrega de su líder se ha vuelto peligrosamente delgada.

1. El concepto de traición: Entre la semántica y el pragmatismo del poder

Para entender el juego que hoy se ejecuta en Miraflores, es obligatorio diseccionar qué significa realmente traicionar.

Desde el punto de vista semántico

Si acudimos a la raíz, la palabra traición viene del latín traditio, que originalmente no era más que la "entrega" o "transmisión" de algo, mutando con el tiempo hacia el acto de entregar algo al enemigo. Lingüísticamente, este fenómeno requiere de tres condiciones quirúrgicas:

Un vínculo preexistente: Una alianza o un pacto de lealtad (en este caso, el juramento de fidelidad absoluta al "legado").

Una acción asimétrica y oculta: Un movimiento que beneficia a una de las partes ejecutado en la penumbra, a espaldas del aliado y a expensas de su desprotección.

La quiebra de la expectativa: La frustración absoluta del compromiso de protección recíproca.

Desde el punto de vista político

Sin embargo, quienes hemos dedicado la vida a la ciencia política y al análisis del comportamiento de las élites sabemos que, desde Maquiavelo hasta nuestros días, la traición rara vez se mide con la vara de la moral, no importa que sea incorrecto, que lo es. En el laboratorio del poder, la traición es simplemente una estrategia de supervivencia, preservación o mutación.

El realismo político nos enseña que las alianzas no son de piedra; dependen de la correlación de fuerzas. Cuando un líder se transforma en un costo excesivo, en un pasivo financiero o en una amenaza inminente para la supervivencia de toda la estructura, la "traición" deja de ser un pecado y pasa a operar como un frío mecanismo de ajuste sistémico, pero sigue siendo "traición".

En los regímenes autoritarios o corporativos, la lealtad es condicional. Si el entorno huele un peligro existencial, el incentivo para cooperar con el adversario exterior se dispara. No es un asunto de maldad; es el crudo pragmatismo de salvar el pellejo, el dinero y el poder colectivo o individual.

2. ¿Traicionó Delcy Rodríguez a Nicolás Maduro?

A la luz de este terremoto político —detonado tras la captura y extracción de Nicolás Maduro por fuerzas estadounidenses en enero de este año— y ante el goteo incesante de filtraciones sobre los pactos en Doha y Washington, la pregunta quema. ¿Estamos ante una alta traición o ante una jugada maestra de control de daños?

La respuesta es que sí hay una traición, pero el matiz depende de la narrativa con la que se intente justificar el destino de la actual presidenta encargada.

La tesis de la traición pragmática: Conspiración en la sombra

Quienes sostienen que la entrega de Maduro fue planificada desde sus propias filas no hablan desde la especulación, sino desde la secuencia de hechos revelados por la prensa internacional (The Guardian, ABC, Reuters).

Primero, la existencia de negociaciones paralelas. Está documentado que tanto Delcy como Jorge Rodríguez mantuvieron canales discretos con la administración de Donald Trump desde el otoño previo a la captura, mientras en las pantallas de televisión mostraban un frente de lealtad inquebrantable. Segundo, la infame reunión en Doha: estos encuentros clave con la CIA sugieren que el entorno íntimo de Maduro no solo sabía que Washington venía por él, sino que optaron por negociar las condiciones de la transición pos-Maduro en lugar de activar los anillos de resistencia radical.

El giro posterior habla por sí solo: la rápida desactivación de las misiones históricas, la Ley de Amnistía para la Coexistencia Democrática, la liberación de parte de los presos políticos y la alfombra roja al capital petrolero estadounidense. Para el ala dura del chavismo, esto es el desmontaje programático del "madurismo". Entregar al líder, o dejarlo caer, a cambio de la legitimación institucional de su propio interinato, encaja perfectamente en la definición de traición de manual.

La tesis de la administración de la crisis: Salvar el sistema, sacrificar la pieza

Por otro lado, la narrativa oficial y los defensores de la continuidad del PSUV intentan maquillar la traición bajo el rótulo de la "fuerza mayor".

Argumentan que la captura de Maduro fue un "secuestro" unilateral que cambió las reglas del juego en minutos, obligando a una reacción bajo amenaza directa. Desde esta perspectiva, la asunción de la vicepresidenta —avalada por el TSJ y la Asamblea Nacional— evitó el colapso total del Estado y un vacío de poder que habría barrido con todo el chavismo. Mantener la retórica de que Maduro sigue siendo el "presidente constitucional" en el papel, mientras se ejerce el mando de facto, no es más que un intento de salvar las formas y sostener una lealtad simbólica.

Aquí radica la paradoja del poder: negociar con Washington y flexibilizar el modelo económico y político no sería, bajo esta lógica, una traición al proyecto, sino la única vía realista para garantizar la supervivencia del chavismo ante la asfixia total.

El fin del "madurismo" y la mutación del poder

Si evaluamos el escenario bajo los cánones clásicos de la lealtad personal y doctrinaria, no hay que tener miedo a llamarlo por su nombre: la cooperación previa y el viraje político subsiguiente configuran una traición política de manual. La élite sacrificó al líder para salvar el sistema... y sus propias cabezas.

Sin embargo, en la fría dimensión del pragmatismo puro, Delcy Rodríguez operó como una actriz racional. Entendió que la lealtad a un individuo ya no garantizaba la supervivencia del grupo, transformando una caída que era inevitable en una costosísima pero efectiva transacción de poder. El madurismo ha muerto, devorado por su propia necesidad de sobrevivir.

Nicmer Evans | ¿Delcy la traidora? El concepto de traición: Entre la semántica y el pragmatismo del poder ¡El madurismo ha muerto!
Para más detalles dale clic ⬇️
https://t.co/aJZJF1penM

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

A small robot automates construction layout by printing floor plans directly onto the ground at the building site.

[Wonder of Science @wonderofscience]

Mesmerizing "infinite" art by Jesse Martin.

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

HiP-CT is a new technique that can hierarchically image whole human organs, beginning with the resolution of a human hair (25μm/voxel) down to a resolution where we can see single cells (1.5μm/voxel)

[📹 Paul Tafforeau]

[Ward Reflections @WardReflections]

This is genuinely exciting imaging technology and the implications for medicine are significant

HiP-CT, Hierarchical Phase-Contrast Tomography, uses synchrotron X-rays at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in France. The beam intensity is powerful enough to resolve structures that conventional CT cannot get anywhere near.

what makes it different is not just resolution but the ability to move between scales within the same organ. You can look at the whole lung, then zoom into a single alveolus, then further into individual cells, all from the same scan without destroying the tissue. Traditional imaging forces a trade-off between field of view and resolution. HiP-CT removes that trade-off.

The COVID-19 application was where it first got significant attention. Researchers used it to map vascular damage in lungs from COVID patients at a level of detail never previously possible in intact human organs, revealing clotting patterns and structural changes that explained clinical findings doctors had observed but could not fully account for.

The potential applications extend far beyond that. Tumour architecture, vascular disease, neurological tissue mapping, organ development.

The limitation for now is access. Synchrotron facilities are rare and scan time is expensive. This is research infrastructure, not a clinical tool yet.

But what it is showing us about human anatomy is already changing what we thought we knew.