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The resistance of Spain against the overwhelming influx of tourists

alexdriado 2024. 07. 22. 8:39

If you manage to secure a spot under the sun in Majorca this summer, you will be able to witness two powerful forces in action.

The ancient waves of the Balearic Sea, as old as time itself, meticulously wash away the carefully built sandcastles of the day.

The next one, a contemporary trend, is the overwhelming wave of tourism that is on the verge of engulfing everything in its way.

Not a single spot of sand is left unoccupied on the beach. Discovering a spot to park is as rare as finding a treasure.

If you abandon your lounge chair for an extended period, your belongings are promptly removed to accommodate the eager line of potential intruders.

The island is alive with signs of a thriving economy, especially evident in the constant chirping of contactless payment devices in the bustling hotels, eateries, and bars.

A symphony of trade driven by an unprecedented influx of tourists.

However, if we are talking about a story where immense riches rain down on a financially astute Spanish neighborhood, Sonia Ruiz has definitely not received a single drop of it.

Encounter the 31-year-old mother of one in a park located a short distance from the coastline in the capital city of Palma.

Luca, her four-year-old son, navigates the different playground slides effortlessly, showing no signs of worry.

Sonia is facing a great challenge. The landlord has requested their departure, and she claims that locating a new residence is an insurmountable task.

"Each day I search, and each day the rent climbs higher," she laments.

I go as far as stopping passersby on the street to inquire if they possess any items, as the day draws near when I must vacate the apartment. I fear the thought of my son and I ending up without a roof over our heads, as we have nothing at all.

Sonia and her partner are no longer together, but they find themselves in a situation where they must coexist under the same roof due to financial constraints. Even though their combined monthly income is 2,400 euros, they are unable to cover the rent separately.

"Multiple months' worth of deposits are requested from you." There are even those who have expressed to me their lack of desire for children or pets. And there are countless individuals searching.

This weekend, Sonia, along with numerous residents of Majorca, is taking a stand against the increase in tourism that is being held responsible for the decline in the quality of life for the local community.

According to activists, the soaring prices of housing are fueled by a significant amount of properties being purchased by foreigners, or at least leased to them for extended periods during the summer.

"Maintaining this type of model is simply unfeasible," expressed Pere Joan Femenia, a 25-year-old, as he stood outside the cathedral in Palma, the capital of Majorca.

He belongs to a group known as "Menys Turisme, Més Vida", which translates to "Reduced Tourism, Enhanced Living".

According to him, an extraordinary amount of tourists are not only causing locals to be unable to afford housing, but they are also depleting public areas, services, and natural resources.

Five years ago, Pere embarked on his journey as an activist within Greta Thunberg's environmental movement. However, his attention has now turned towards the economic challenges faced by his island community.

The shift in businesses from selling conventional goods to multinational corporations offering ice cream is causing us to lose our unique identity. He expresses the importance of safeguarding our cultural heritage.

Pere gestures towards the harbor, located far away from the lines of merchants and bustling crowds that occupy the plaza, mentioning that certain cruises unload up to 12,000 tourists daily on the island.

According to him, the belief that Majorca depends on constantly growing tourism to thrive is a misconception. In fact, numerous residents are getting ready to depart permanently as they are no longer able to afford living on the island.

Pere defends that implementing restrictions on incoming flights and docking cruises will promptly alleviate the strain on the island.

This requirement will be included in the catchy phrases and flags waved through the streets of Palma during the demonstration this weekend.

According to the Spanish National Institute of Statistics, the Balearic Islands received a total of 14.4 million foreign visitors last year, with Majorca being the most popular, followed by Menorca and then Ibiza.

According to the institute, there was a 9.1% rise in the amount of foreign tourists visiting the archipelago in comparison to 2022, with their expenses increasing by an even greater margin of 16.4%.

Activists argue that considering Spanish tourists as well, the Balearic Islands could welcome a total of 20 million visitors this year.

As the popular destinations in Spain have evolved over the years, the discussion about whether the numerous tourists bring more challenges than advantages has grown more heated.

This year, it seems like there has been a shift in the air. The rage bubbling up among numerous residents has escalated to a fresh peak, as vividly illustrated in a recent incident in Barcelona where tourists were soaked with water guns.

Protests have also taken place in other parts of the country, such as Malaga on the mainland and in the Canary Islands. The popular tourist destinations in Spain are now seeking ways to deter a seemingly unstoppable flood.

In the summer of 2024, certain British newspapers put together compilations of "unwelcoming vacation destinations" that should be steered clear of.

In the bustling shores of Magaluf, a popular spot for countless British vacationers, the Green family from Rotherham is joyfully wading in the water.

Dad Adam is embarking on his inaugural journey overseas, although labeling it a "vacation" might be a bit of a stretch since he and his wife are closely monitoring their seven children.

"It's a whirlwind, but we're making progress." "It's fantastic, except for the scorching heat," he comments.

I inquire if they are aware of the different demonstrations happening and if this has given them pause when considering visiting Majorca.

Charlotte mentioned that she caught a glimpse of the news, but she made a conscious effort to avoid watching it in order to prevent feeling overwhelmed and ruining her excitement for the trip that was already planned and paid for.

What do you think about the main point of view of the protesters in the area, who argue that the growing tourism is causing a significant adverse effect?

"Could it be that tourists are the ones who enhance this place and generate income?" inquired Adam.

Individuals journey across the globe, and that's the extent of it. If tourists were not present, there would be no employment opportunities, no salaries, nothing at all. Do they not depend on it?

Tovább

Pubs seek £48m Europa 2024 ultimate beer boom share

alexdriado 2024. 07. 15. 10:33

Pubs all throughout Greater Manchester are hoping that England's qualification for the Euro 2024 final will provide them with the much-needed boost they require.

When Gareth Southgate's team plays Spain in Berlin on Sunday, industry experts anticipate that over 10 million additional pints would be sold across the United Kingdom. This would result in an additional £48 million in sales.

There are 5,247 pubs in the North West region, and according to estimates provided by the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA), more than 1.1 million additional drinks are likely to be served in these establishments.

"The other piece of good news for pubs in the North West is that the vast majority of them are licenced to stay open until one in the morning on Sunday night," Andy Tighe, who works for the British Beer and Pub Association, said.

Fans will have even more time to show their support for their public house.

Taking advantage of the excitement around Euro 20204 has already resulted in an increase in business for a few of the pubs in the area.

A landlady named Steph Savage told BBC Radio Manchester that the Church Inn, which is located in Swinton, has experienced record-breaking revenue throughout the tournament.

For England's semi-final loss to the Netherlands by a score of 2-1, the bar was filled with more than two hundred people, both inside and outside.

The turnout for a midweek kick-off was something that Ms. Savage expressed as being surprising to her.

It was a Wednesday, and the game started at eight o'clock. I anticipated that it would be bustling, but it was not a crowded place.

"Wow, I was completely wrong since I believe that Swinton was present in the pub in its entirety.

"From 5pm onwards we were packed, we reached capacity at 6pm, and then I didn't know what to do with people coming in."

Ms. Savage continued by saying that she was making an effort to avoid thinking about the cleanup job, but she also stated that "if it means we win, [people] can throw all of their pints everywhere."

The BBPA reported that approximately 500 pubs in the United Kingdom closed its doors in the year 2023.

Its spokesperson, Mr. Tighe, stated that "some of the challenges that have been present over the past few years have begun to fade."

There has been a reduction in the sky-high prices of energy, inflation is showing signs of improvement, and we can only hope that the demand placed on people's wallets will begin to lessen for a short period of time.

One thing that the Euros have shown us is that large events tend to attract a greater number of people.

"Clearly, the pub owners in Swinton have gone to massive efforts to do just that during the Euros and really make a point of going the extra mile to bring people in and create that real sense of community, togetherness and a real atmosphere that people want to come to."

Tovább

The technology that can perform practically any task on the screen

alexdriado 2024. 07. 08. 11:37

At first view, it appears to be a historical artifact from the 1980s. The computer screen was quite small, and the writing that was moving across it was of low resolution and flickered. That being said, this might be the future.

The technology known as perovskite light emitting diode (PeLED) was utilized in the production of the screen. It is a significant departure from the LED technology that is now utilized in the display of your smartphone, and it has the potential to result in devices that are more compact, less expensive, and have a longer battery life.

Additionally, PeLEDs are particularly uncommon in that they can absorb light in addition to emitting it. This means that it is possible to utilize the same material to incorporate touch, fingerprint, and ambient light-sensing capabilities, according to Feng Gao, who is a professor at Linkoping University in Sweden.

Although this is challenging, we believe that it is not impossible.

In today's smartphones, these operations are carried out by electrical components that are independent from the screen itself of the phone.

Professor Gao and his colleagues displayed their prototype, which already exhibited touch and ambient light sensitivity, in a paper that was published in the month of April.

"This is a very impressive demonstration...” In Switzerland, Fluxim is a technology research company, and Daniele Braga, who is the head of sales and marketing for the company, claims that it is extremely young. On the other hand, he points out that the optimization of all the various functionalities that are promised here might make it impossible to commercialize this form of display in a timely manner.

Professor Gao demonstrates the most recent iteration of the technology through the use of a video call. This time around, the pixels per inch (ppi), which is a measurement of the sharpness of the display, has been virtually doubled, coming in at 90 ppi. This happens to be another panel that is on the smaller side.

On the screen, a straightforward animation is playing, which depicts two stick figures engaging in combat. Not too long ago, a publication that contains additional information regarding this prototype was published.

Perovskite is a mineral that has a crystal structure that contains calcium, titanium, and oxygen in a specific arrangement. The discovery of this material occurred in the 1800s; however, it was not until much later that people realized that it was possible to create various types of perovskites that had the same structure but had different elements or molecules as its constituents.

It is possible for perovskites to be exceptionally effective at a variety of tasks, like as conducting electricity or generating light, depending on the materials that are used.

As Dr. Braga explains, the production of perovskites is a reasonably straightforward and inexpensive procedure. "By slightly tuning the chemical composition, you can cover the full visible spectrum," he says. When mass production is taken into consideration, this is a tremendous amount.

However, there are a few issues to consider.

It is well known that PeLEDs are notoriously unstable; for example, they will fail if they are exposed to oxygen or moisture. The development of new types of PeLEDs is now being worked on by Loreta Muscarella at the university of VU Amsterdam.

According to her, if you leave a PeLED lying around for a few hours or days, the color of light that it emits will progressively deteriorate or shift to a less pure version of, for example, green than the green that you want it to emit.

In addition, this calls into question the very purpose of perovskites. They may be set to emit a very particular and highly pure version of red, green, or blue, which are the key hues required for full-color digital displays. This is one of the reasons why they are desirable.

According to Professor Gao, PeLEDs can be enclosed in glue or resin in order to maintain their stability. However, researchers are carrying on with their efforts to guarantee that the technology will not fail over an extended period of time.

According to Dr. Muscarella, the lifespans of regular LEDs are at least 50,000 hours, while the lifespans of PeLEDs are still in the range of hundreds to thousands of hours.

She goes on to say that it might be years before you are able to purchase a commercial product that has a PeLED.

On the other hand, there is a different kind of light-emitting perovskite that you might see more readily available on the market.

The use of photoluminescence is essential. This is not an LED in the traditional sense; rather, it is a filter or a substance that resembles a film that absorbs light of a specific color and then re-emits it in that color.

The essential red, green, and blue colors that are used in each pixel on the screen are supplied by a colored filter in some of the televisions that are currently available on the market.

When you combine those colors at varying intensities, you are able to achieve the range of tones that is necessary to effectively present a complete picture.

In order to illuminate the red, green, and blue filters, an LED backlight is utilized. However, the filters that are available today really block a significant amount of that light.

Instead, photoluminescent perovskites allow almost all of the light to pass through, which would result in a significant increase in both the brightness and the efficiency of the device.

The British business Helio is currently working on this project. One of the videos that can be found on their website demonstrates how a perovskite film that is either red or green in color can almost precisely re-emit blue light as either red or green.

There is a significant difference between the technology that Professor Gao and his colleagues are developing. LEDs, which are themselves manufactured with perovskites, are being used in the experimentation that is being done with screens that provide light emission.

Electroluminescent perovskites are the name given to these materials. As was noted earlier, they are not very stable, and working with them might be challenging due to the fact that they are sensitive to electrical fields. On the other hand, in the long run, they might become even more effective choices for lighting up the red, green, and blue pixels on a smartphone, tablet, or television screen without the need for any color filters at all.

It is possible that the most significant benefits of adopting this technology would be a reduction in the cost of these gadgets as well as a decrease in the amount of energy that they consume.

A future PeLED display may spend substantially less energy than, for example, an OLED screen; nevertheless, laboratory investigations indicate that PeLEDs are now competitive with OLEDs and may one day significantly surpass them in terms of efficiency, according to Dr. Muscarella. No one is entirely sure how much less energy a PeLED display would consume in the future.

Together with Professor Henry Snaith of the University of Oxford, Professor Sir Richard Friend of the University of Cambridge is one of the individuals who were instrumental in the establishment of Helio. He mentions that one of the difficulties associated with PeLEDs is the difficulty of directing the light that they generate in the appropriate direction. This is the most important aspect of displays.

He goes on to explain that in order to avoid being trapped going in the opposite direction, it is necessary to emit light in the forward direction.

In order to find a solution to this issue, researchers are experimenting with a wide variety of various approaches. For instance, Dr. Muscarella and his colleagues have attempted to increase light emission by imprinting a rough nanoscale pattern on the surface of PeLEDs. This appears to be effective.

Professor Gao, on the other hand, who has collaborated with Professor Sir Friend on publications and who obtained his doctoral degree from the University of Cambridge in 2011, is eagerly anticipating the arrival of PeLED panels that are capable of performing a great deal more than simply emitting light.

A single slab of layered materials, with the all-important light-absorbing perovskite in the middle, could one day be used to perform a variety of tasks, including fingerprint authentication, heart-rate sensing, and light detection.

"It's really very unique," he exclaims, expressing his enthusiasm. The use of other LED technologies does not allow for this to be accomplished.

Tovább

Tesla comes as a surprise by selling more cars than expected

alexdriado 2024. 07. 03. 5:37

There is a possibility that Tesla sales, which had a large decline earlier this year, are beginning to show signs of resurrection.

The electric car manufacturer owned by Elon Musk delivered approximately 444,000 vehicles for the three months that concluded on June 30. This is an increase of more than 14% compared to the previous quarter.

Despite the fact that it was still over 5% lower than the same period in 2023, this was significantly higher than the majority of analysts had anticipated.

Due to the high cost of borrowing money and the increased level of competition, Tesla has been experiencing a slowdown in demand.

In addition to establishing low-cost financing arrangements, it has constantly reduced costs in an effort to win back customers.

On the other hand, its success in this endeavor has been limited.

The company has experienced a decline in revenues during the first half of the year, despite the fact that it declared in April that it intended to lay off more than ten percent of its workers.

Tesla attributed its poor performance at the beginning of the year, in part, to supply bottlenecks that were caused by shipping disruptions in the Red Sea and an alleged arson attempt at its manufacturing in Germany by a third party.

However, analysts believe that Tesla needs to update its lineup in order to prevent competitors from making headway in the market with their products.

Despite the fact that the company began selling its cyber-truck a year ago, this segment of the company's business continues to be very minor. The launch of the company's mainstream Model 3 car occurred in the year 2017.

A bright future for the company, supported by self-driving technology and automation, has been sketched by Mr. Musk, who recently secured shareholder support for a record-breaking compensation package worth approximately $50 billion.

In addition, the sector is still expanding on a global scale, despite the fact that the demand for electric vehicles in the United States has been subpar in recent months, contrary to what was predicted.

According to a recent forecast from the International Energy Agency (IEA), it is anticipated that more than one in five automobiles that will be sold this year around the world will be electric. This includes nearly half of autos sold in China and approximately one quarter of automobiles sold in Europe.

Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, stated that he believed the worst was behind Tesla. He also mentioned that there were signs of progress in China, where the government recently announced that it will offer money to those who trade in older cars as part of a bigger campaign to encourage the industry.

"While its been a difficult period for Tesla and the company has been through some significant cost reductions (roughly 10%-15%) to preserve its bottom line/profitability, it appears better days are now ahead," he stated in a letter sent to investors on Tuesday.

He stated that he anticipated that the company's future presentation on robotaxis, which is scheduled to take place in August, will spur a new wave of growth.

As a result of the news, more than six percent of the company's shares increased during the morning trading session on Tuesday.

Tovább

Taxi driver in the UK receiving salary from Nigerian government

alexdriado 2024. 07. 01. 11:58

When you quit your job, you should no longer get paid, right? Well, for some former Nigerian government servants, they still do.

They have found work elsewhere, sometimes in a different country, but they are still getting paid by the company that fired them.

This got to the top, and last week President Bola Tinubu ordered an attack.

That person said, "The criminals must be made to return the money they stole."

We changed Sabitu Adams' name to protect his privacy. He has not quit his job as a junior official at a government office and is still getting paid every month, even though he left Nigeria two years ago.

He now works as a cab driver in the UK, but he told the BBC that he wasn't worried about losing his job because he doesn't think Mr. Tinubu's threats are real.

It wouldn't be too hard for Mr. Adams to live without his monthly Nigerian pay of 150,000 naira ($100; £80), because he makes a lot more money driving a taxi.

The 36-year-old said, "When I heard about the president's order, I smiled because I know I'm doing better here and getting less stressed."

But why didn't he let the government know that he was leaving?

"I didn't really quit because I wanted to leave the door open in case I wanted to go back to work after a few years."

According to government data, more than 3.6 million Nigerians have moved to other countries in the last two years, just like Mr. Adams.

A lot of young Nigerians don't think they can make a good living in the country. This feeling has been made worse by the fact that the value of the naira has dropped dramatically in the past year because of Mr. Tinubu's changes as president.

Young people going to other countries to find work has become so common that a word called "japa" was made up to describe it.

It comes from the Yoruba language and means to run away or escape.

Tinubu said he's "struck by the revelations the head of the civil service shared regarding employees who had relocated abroad while drawing salaries without formally resigning" .

The president said that the money should be returned and that those who helped make this happen should also be looked into.

"Their bosses and department heads should also be punished for letting the fraud happen while they were in charge," he said.

This could have been true for Mr. Adams as well.

The UK taxi driver said, "I had a good understanding with my boss, and he just let me leave." He continued to be paid because of people in his area.

The pay is usually split between the person being paid and the boss who stays quiet, maybe with the help of an HR representative.

It was even easier for Mr. Adams. "In my case it wasn’t like that as my boss was a relative."

There is a lot of "ghost-working" going on in Nigeria. It is thought that thousands of people who don't exist are still getting paid, even though there have been several crackdowns. It looks like there aren't many checks and balances in place.

One thing that has never been said before is that it is possible for people who have moved abroad to still get paid on a big scale.

In 2021, Auwal Yakasai left as the director in charge of finances at the information ministry of Kano state. He said he had heard of cases like this.

“To be honest, I have never caught anyone in the act,” Mr. Yakasai told the BBC. He had worked for the government for 32 years.

"However, I've heard many stories of people who made deals like that and were still getting paid after moving or changing jobs."

Mr. Tinubu has promised to cut down on waste and the cost of running the government since he took office in May of last year.

In January, he told all of his and other government officials' official groups going to state and foreign events to be cut by 60%.

Still, some people have pointed out that Mr. Tinubu's government talks a lot but doesn't do much.

To show this, they use plans to buy new planes worth millions of dollars for Mr. Tinubu and his assistant, Kashim Shettima.

One was when Mr. Tinubu opened a new government home for Vice-President Shettima earlier this month in Abuja, the capital. The house cost $13.6m (£11m).

Even though the president talked about the foreign ghost workers, he didn't say exactly what he was doing to stop them and punish those who were guilty.

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