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Marco Setaccioli challenged Marco Travaglio's calculations on European and Russian military spending, stating that Travaglio had indicated 450 billion euros for Europe and 150 for Russia and had argued that Russia had reason to fear Europe, which had invaded it four times in the last 200 years. According to Setaccioli, in the current year Russia would have spent around 17 trillion rubles on defense, equivalent to 181 billion euros, a figure indicated, according to him, by most analysts. He noted that the nominal comparison did not take purchasing power into account: applying indices developed by specialized research centers, Russian spending would rise to 574 billion international dollars, compared to about 700 billion for the entire EU. He added that the EU would have three and a half times the population of Russia and a GDP nine times greater. Setaccioli argued that the Russian federal budget did not show all military costs. He cited studies by economist Craig Kennedy, according to which part of the spending would be financed through subsidized loans and would thus remain on the banks' balance sheets. He also recalled an investigation by Dozhd', which, according to him, had documented pressures on private companies to hire people before signing contracts with the military and to supplement salaries with corporate funds. He added that at least three militias would be linked to Gazprom, which would cover part of the costs. For these reasons, he dismissed as false the claim that Russia spent less than the EU. Historically, Setaccioli criticized Travaglio's reconstruction, according to which the Napoleonic and Nazi invasions, along with interventions in Crimea and support for the Bolsheviks, would justify Russian fears toward Europe. Setaccioli listed Russian troop interventions in Poland in 1939, Finland in 1939-1940, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Romania in 1940, Bulgaria in 1944, Hungary in 1956, Czechoslovakia in 1968, Moldova in 1992, Georgia in 2008, and Ukraine in 2014 and 2022. He stated that there were no Russian regions occupied by European countries, while eight regions—one in Moldova, two in Georgia, and five in Ukraine—would be under Russian control. Finally, Setaccioli accused Travaglio of presenting a selective and misleading reconstruction to make Russia appear not dangerous, portray Europe as a threat, and argue that rearmament was unnecessary and risky. In his view, that reasoning could legitimize a potential Russian attack on Europe and constituted a form of collaborationism. #Russia #Europa #Difesa (translated)

"We risk our prestige." The second agony of the PP took place in 2023, when Narciso Michavila, a trusted demoscopic expert of the center-right, appealed to "pure mathematics" to assert that Alberto Núñez Feijóo would win forty deputies over the PSOE. #Opinión #PolíticaEspañola #PPVox (translated)

Nil Moretto stated that his father stopped paying R$ 90 billion in court orders in 2021 to hide a deficit, and that the current government had to deal with the debt. He also said that his son promised to save R$ 300 billion without cutting benefits or provoking a recession. Moretto questioned this proposal and stated that only someone unfamiliar with history would believe in it. #Brasil #Economia #Política (translated)

Flavio Garage stated that, in his assessment, it was mathematically impossible to reduce one day of the workweek without decreasing the salary. Although he was in favor of the 5x2 schedule, he said that small businesses would pay less or close their doors. #Trabalho #Economia #Empreendedorismo (translated)

The president's new nomination for prime minister continues to defy parliamentary arithmetic. "The president's new nomination for prime minister continues to defy parliamentary arithmetic. After 4 failed right-wing prime ministers, we see a new appointment that does not take into account the party that won the elections. It is the president's choice. The Social Democratic Party makes its own decisions. That is why tomorrow we will have a meeting of the National Permanent Bureau in which we will analyze this proposal,” Grindeanu said at the time. #PSD #Guvernare #DanielZamfir (translated)

The author stated that Lula had confirmed in the morning, through his advisory team, attendance at the debate, but that the other participant withdrew around 6 PM. According to her, the withdrawal had negative repercussions among his base, and the removal of the Army's channel would have been exploited to gain momentum until Friday at 11:26 PM, when he would return, while the opponent would be less mobilized. She said that he would present the withdrawal as a "strategy" or "trap" to corner the “star” and that Bolsonaro supporters would start calling the opponent a coward and say that he would only participate because the other one had withdrawn. The author also stated that Flavis's presence in Salvador on the 17th had been commented on for a long time and that something would happen. Finally, she said that the “sanhaço” continued to act and that FB had been cornered, with only the next moves left to wait for. #Lula #Debate #Política (translated)

The shock is enormous. Many mathematicians are not celebrating. "The shock is enormous," wrote Hugo Duminil-Copin, a mathematician from the University of Geneva, who won the Fields Medal (the most prestigious award in mathematics) in 2022. #InteligenciaArtificial #Matemáticas #InvestigaciónCientífica (translated)

Scientists express their concern about the recent ability of artificial intelligence to solve complex mathematical problems, warning that this trend could result in solutions that are incomprehensible to humans and dismiss the importance of the research process. #InteligenciaArtificial #Matemáticas #InvestigaciónCientífica (translated)

The Clay Mathematics Institute established a prize of 7 million dollars in 2000 for solving seven mathematical puzzles known as the Millenium Problems, of which only one has been solved so far, but recently attention has been rekindled on them thanks to advances in artificial intelligence systems. #ProblemiDelMillennio #Matematica #IntelligenzaArtificiale (translated)

American computer scientist and mathematician Scott Aaronson from the University of Texas at Austin wrote that his wife, mathematician Dana Moshkovitz, has been working on that problem for practically her entire career. #UmjetnaInteligencija #Matematika #Mathpocalypse (translated)

Artificial intelligence has solved long-standing mathematical problems, causing disbelief among mathematicians and raising concerns about the future of mathematics in the AI era, with some calling it a mathematical apocalypse. #UmjetnaInteligencija #Matematika #Mathpocalypse (translated)

Eurosport IT reported that Bergs' victory over Alcaraz had outlined the first verdicts on the ATP year-end ranking. According to the broadcaster, Jannik Sinner had already lost the chance to finish 2026 as number 1, while the Spaniard's elimination had mathematically secured his second place in the rankings at the end of the season. #Tennis #Sinner #Alcaraz #Zverev #Tennis #Sinner #Alcaraz (translated)

Brian Sales noted that the classification of Pumas was still mathematically possible, although he saw it as unlikely, and stated that the team no longer had any margin for error for the rest of the tournament. He also said that he had the impression that the players supported their coach and criticized the entry of Luciano Herrera. #Pumas #LigaMX #Fútbol (translated)

The author pointed out that Andrea Kimi Antonelli was leading the Drivers' Championship with 340 points, ahead of Russell, with 238; Hamilton, with 229; and Verstappen, with 221. He added that Antonelli could mathematically have a chance to win the title already in the next race. (translated)

Grete Hermann, a prominent German mathematician, made pioneering contributions to computer algebra and challenged the validity of John von Neumann's theorem on quantum mechanics, but her career was cut short by Nazism, leading her to oblivion. #GreteHermann #Matemáticas #HistoriaDeLaCiencia (translated)