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July 28, 2025

Arsenalisation de l’espace : quelles armes, quelles menaces, quel droit ?

Source: The Conversation – in French – By Katia Coutant, Chercheuse associée à la chaire Espace de l’ENS-PSL, Université Paris Nanterre – Université Paris Lumières

L’humanité a longtemps connu deux terrains de conflictualité : la terre et la mer. L’air est venu s’y ajouter au début du XX^e siècle ; cent ans plus tard est venu le temps du cyber… mais quid de l’espace ? Si les affrontements armés entre vaisseaux spatiaux relèvent encore de la science-fiction, l’arsenalisation de l’espace est déjà en cours. Mais de quoi parle-t-on exactement quand on emploie cette expression de plus en plus en vogue ?

À première vue, on pourrait définir l’arsenalisation de l’espace comme l’ensemble des technologies, des activités et des capacités qui visent à permettre le combat et les actions offensives dans l’espace extra-atmosphérique, par exemple à travers le placement d’armes en orbite.

Pourtant, le terme et son champ exact restent sujets à débat, et l’expression de « course à l’armement dans l’espace » pourrait lui être préférée.

« Arsenalisation » ou « militarisation » ?

L’usage croissant de l’expression « arsenalisation » reflète la conception grandissante de l’espace extra-atmosphérique comme étant un terrain de conflictualité. La définition même de l’arsenalisation est débattue, et soulève l’enjeu de la distinction entre l’arsenalisation et la militarisation de l’espace.

La militarisation couvrirait l’utilisation des moyens spatiaux en soutien à des opérations militaires et aurait ainsi un objet différent de l’arsenalisation. Prenons des exemples : un satellite d’observation utilisé pour surveiller des mouvements de troupes au sol relève a minima de la militarisation. Un dispositif en orbite capable de détruire un satellite adverse, au moyen d’un laser ou d’un missile, relève à coup sûr de l’arsenalisation.

Le groupe d’experts gouvernementaux chargé d’étudier de nouvelles mesures concrètes de prévention d’une course aux armements dans l’espace, rattaché à l’Organisation des Nations unies (ONU), prend en compte toutes les menaces liées aux infrastructures spatiales, y compris les vecteurs « Terre-espace, espace-Terre, espace-espace, et Terre-Terre ». Cette conception large permet de mieux identifier les risques liés à la prolifération d’armes en lien avec le secteur spatial, sans se limiter au piège de la cible géographique parfois associé à l’arsenalisation.

Quelles sont les menaces existantes ?

Il existe différents types de systèmes ou armes ciblant les infrastructures spatiales. Les tests antisatellitaires à ascension directe, dont la légalité est questionnée à l’ONU actuellement, consistent en la capacité pour un État de tirer sur ses propres satellites depuis la Terre.

Si, jusqu’ici, les tirs réalisés par les États ont consisté en des tests sur leurs propres satellites, ces tirs soulèvent toutefois le problème de la création de débris et des risques de collision de ceux-ci avec des satellites, et prouvent que ces États sont capables de viser (et d’atteindre) un satellite ennemi.

La question « Existe-t-il des armes positionnées dans l’espace qui pourraient viser la Terre ? » est souvent posée. Bien que ce soit en théorie envisageable, en pratique, les États n’ont pas recours à ce type de projets.

Les coûts de développement et de maintenance ainsi qu’une efficacité questionnable expliquent la préférence pour les techniques terrestres.

Surtout, de nombreuses technologies duales – c’est-à-dire d’utilisation civile et militaire – existent. Un satellite d’observation peut aussi bien servir à surveiller la déforestation qu’à repérer des infrastructures militaires. Ce flou complique considérablement la mise en place de règles claires.

Si l’on se limite aux technologies visant des cibles dans l’espace depuis l’espace, quelques exemples d’armes existent.

Déjà, en 1962, les États-Unis ont mené un essai d’explosion nucléaire dans l’espace, appelé Starfish Prime. Il a rendu inopérables de nombreux satellites, et les États ont par la suite décidé d’interdire les essais d’armes nucléaires dans l’espace. À ce jour, il n’y a donc pas d’armes nucléaires dans l’espace.

Au-delà des armes nucléaires, différentes technologies ont été essayées. Du côté soviétique, dès les années 1970, la station Almaz avait expérimenté l’installation d’un canon en orbite sur un satellite. Puis, en 2018, un satellite russe a été repéré très près d’un satellite franco-italien. Cette technologie, dite satellite « butineur », peut interférer avec le fonctionnement de la cible.

En réponse à cette situation, la France développe le système Laser Toutatis qui vise à équiper des satellites de défense d’un laser capable de neutraliser tout objet suspect qui s’en approcherait.

Guerre et paix dans l’espace

Cette présence d’armes confirme que l’espace est un lieu de conflictualité. Pourtant, dès 1967, grâce au Traité de l’espace, le principe de l’utilisation pacifique de l’espace a été acté.

Cette expression ne signifie pas que les armes sont illégales dans l’espace : leur présence n’est pas interdite tant qu’elles ne sont pas utilisées. Une nuance : en vertu de ce traité, si l’espace extra-atmosphérique peut accueillir certaines armes, les corps célestes, eux, demeurent entièrement exempts de toute arme, quelle qu’en soit la nature.

Ainsi, si l’on se limite à l’orbite autour de la Terre, l’arsenalisation est (pour l’instant) permise sauf pour les armes nucléaires et de destruction massive. Cela ne veut pas pour autant dire que le recours à la force armée est autorisé dans l’espace.

La Charte des Nations unies, également applicable dans l’espace, interdit le recours à la force ; en revanche est permise la légitime défense. C’est la raison pour laquelle les acteurs présentent leurs nouvelles technologies sous le nom de « technologie de défense active ».

Des initiatives visant à encadrer davantage ces pratiques existent, et des négociations sont en cours dans le cadre de la Conférence du désarmement à Genève.

La série « L’envers des mots » est réalisée avec le soutien de la Délégation générale à la langue française et aux langues de France du ministère de la culture.

Katia Coutant a reçu des financements du ministère de l’enseignement supérieur et de la recherche.

– ref. Arsenalisation de l’espace : quelles armes, quelles menaces, quel droit ? – https://theconversation.com/arsenalisation-de-lespace-quelles-armes-quelles-menaces-quel-droit-260465

July 28, 2025

Yazidi genocide victims offered glimmer of hope for justice – but challenges remain

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Busra Nisa Sarac, Senior Lecturer in International Security and Gender Studies, University of Portsmouth

A French national called Sonia Mejri will stand trial for her alleged involvement in crimes committed against the Yazidi community, a Paris court ruled in early July. Mejri is accused of having joined the Islamic State (IS) group’s so-called caliphate in Iraq and Syria, and participating in its genocidal campaign against the Yazidi religious minority group 11 years ago.

At that time, IS overran the Sinjar region of northern Iraq and carried out atrocities against the civilian population. The Yazidi people were subjected to murder, rape, enslavement and forced conversion to Islam. Approximately 12,000 Yazidis were killed or abducted by IS, and around 250,000 fled to Mount Sinjar where they faced near starvation.

The Paris court’s ruling follows the prosecution of several other people across Europe in recent years for their role in enslaving Yazidis. These developments have offered the Yazidi community a glimmer of hope for justice.

In 2021, for example, a former member of IS called Taha al-Jumailly was convicted of genocide and crimes against humanity. A court in Frankfurt, Germany, ruled that he intended to eliminate the Yazidis by purchasing two women and enslaving them. This was the world’s first trial concerning the Yazidi genocide.

More recently, in 2024, a Dutch woman known as Hasna Aarab stood trial in The Hague, Netherlands, for charges also related to the enslavement of Yazidi women. She was sentenced to ten years in prison. Then, in February 2025, a Swedish woman called Lina Ishaq was convicted of committing genocide, crimes against humanity and gross war crimes against Yazidis in Syria.

Despite the fact that the international community has been slow in prosecuting members of IS for their roles in the genocide, these cases are a positive development. But it should also be noted that they are the result of years of advocacy and campaigning by Yazidi organisations and activists.

The Free Yezidi Foundation and Nadia’s Initiative are just two examples of organisations that have been fighting for justice and reparation since 2014.

Notwithstanding these developments, and the fact that IS lost control of its territory in Iraq and Syria in 2017, there are still significant challenges facing the Yazidi community. One pressing concern is the whereabouts of the more than 2,000 Yazidis who are still missing.

A few Yazidi women have emerged from different locations in recent years, which has made families hopeful. But the missing elderly women are now presumed dead and many others are believed to have been killed by airstrikes in the international military campaign against IS. These people are thought to be buried in mass graves.

Another concern is linked to the detention camps in northeast Syria, where suspected members of IS are detained indefinitely. A 2024 report by Amnesty International indicated that hundreds of Yazidis are probably being held in the camps.

This can be explained by two factors. First, Yazidi women in these camps may avoid identification due to fears of being separated from their children born in IS slavery. Yazidi leaders have declared that children born to IS members are not welcome and could never be assimilated into Yazidi society.

Second, it’s possible that some Yazidis in the camps no longer know their identity due to prolonged captivity and exposure to radical views from IS members. Both factors may prevent many Yazidis from returning to their communities, compounding the long-term consequences of the genocide.

The Al-Hol detention camp in north-eastern Syria. — The Al-Hol detention camp in north-eastern Syria, where many people with ties to IS are held.
Trent Inness / Shutterstock

Persistent security challenges

The Yazidis also continue to face persistent security challenges, as they lack the necessary infrastructure and support to rebuild their home towns. More than a decade on, 200,000 Yazidis remain displaced, with the majority living in makeshift camps. These camps are mainly located in Duhok, a city in the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

The Kurdistan regional government has been actively working to close down or merge the displacement camps in an attempt to encourage the displaced families to return home. But a lack of infrastructure, including access to water, and limited employment opportunities continue to hinder their return and resettlement.

Iraq’s federal government has said it will give 4 million Iraqi dinars (roughly £2,250) to each Yazidi family that returns home, as well as offering interest-free bank loans. But the compensation scheme has now been paused due to a lack of funds. Even when it was offered, the amount was not enough to help people rebuild their lives in places that are in ruins.

The presence of various armed groups supported by different states in the region also threatens the safety and security of the Yazidis. Sinjar’s rugged terrain and remoteness from political centres has long encouraged groups, including the Kurdish Workers’ Party and Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces, to establish transit routes there to support their allies in Iraq, Syria, Jordan and Turkey.

Sinjar is also a disputed territory, claimed by the federal government in Baghdad and the Kurdish regional government in Erbil. Clashes between local militia groups continue to destabilise Sinjar, leading to the re-displacement of some Yazidis who have only recently returned, while preventing many others from returning even if they wanted to do.

The trials of IS members have given Yazidis some hope for justice. But persistent problems since 2014 have made it hard for them to return to their hometowns, or feel safe if they do so. Until these things are dealt with properly, the same problems will continue in the years to come.

Busra Nisa Sarac does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Yazidi genocide victims offered glimmer of hope for justice – but challenges remain – https://theconversation.com/yazidi-genocide-victims-offered-glimmer-of-hope-for-justice-but-challenges-remain-261612

July 28, 2025

Netflix is now using generative AI – but it risks leaving viewers and creatives behind

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Edward White, PhD Candidate in Psychology, Kingston University

Netflix’s recent use of generative AI to create a building collapse scene in the sci-fi show El Eternauta (The Eternaut) marks more than a technological milestone. It reveals a fundamental psychological tension about what makes entertainment authentic.

The sequence represents the streaming giant’s first official deployment of text-to-video AI in final footage. According to Netflix, it was completed ten times faster than traditional methods would have allowed.

Yet this efficiency gain illuminates a deeper question rooted in human psychology. When viewers discover their entertainment contains AI, does this revelation of algorithmic authorship trigger the same cognitive dissonance we experience when discovering we’ve been seduced by misinformation?

The shift from traditional CGI (computer-generated imagery) to generative AI is the most significant change in visual effects (VFX) since computer graphics displaced physical effects.

Traditional physical VFX requires legions of artists meticulously crafting mesh-based models, spending weeks perfecting each element’s geometry, lighting and animation. Even the use of CGI with green screens demands human artists to construct every digital element from 3D models and programme the simulations. They have to manually key-frame each moment, setting points to show how things move or change.

Netflix’s generative AI approach marks a fundamental shift. Instead of building digital scenes piece by piece, artists simply describe what they want and algorithms generate full sequences instantly. This turns a slow, laborious craft into something more like a creative conversation. But it also raises tough questions. Are we seeing a new stage of technology – or the replacement of human creativity with algorithmic guesswork?

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El Eternauta’s building collapse scene demonstrates this transformation starkly. What would once have demanded months of modelling, rigging and simulation work has been accomplished through text-to-video generation in a fraction of the time.

The economics driving this transformation extend far beyond Netflix’s creative ambitions.

The text-to-video AI market is projected to be worth £1.33 billion by 2029. This reflects an industry looking to cut corners after the streaming budget cuts of 2022. In that year, Netflix’s content spending declined 4.6%, while Disney and other major studios implemented widespread cost-cutting measures.

AI’s cost disruption is bewildering. Traditional VFX sequences can cost thousands per minute. As a result, the average CGI and VFX budget for US films reached US$33.7 million (£25 million) per movie in 2018. Generative AI could lead to cost reductions of 10% across the media industry, and as much as 30% in TV and film. This will enable previously impossible creative visions to be realised by independent filmmakers – but this increased accessibility comes with losses too.

The trailer for El Eternauta.

The OECD reports that 27% of jobs worldwide are at “high risk of automation” due to AI. Meanwhile, surveys by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees have revealed that 70% of VFX workers do unpaid overtime, and only 12% have health insurance. Clearly, the industry is already under pressure.

Power versus precision

While AI grants filmmakers unprecedented access to complex imagery, it simultaneously strips away the granular control that defines directorial vision.

As an experiment, film director Ascanio Malgarini spent a year creating an AI-generated short film called Kraken (2025). He used AI tools like MidJourney, Kling, Runway and Sora, but found that “full control over every detail” was “simply out of the question”.

Malgarini described working more like a documentary editor. He assembled “vast amounts of footage from different sources” rather than directing precise shots.

Kraken, the experimental AI short film by Ascanio Malgarini.

And it’s not just filmmakers who prefer the human touch. In the art world, studies have shown that viewers strongly prefer original artworks to pixel-perfect AI copies. Participants cited sensitivity to the creative process as fundamental to appreciation.

When applied to AI-generated content, this bias creates fascinating contradictions. Recent research in Frontiers in Psychology found that when participants didn’t know the origin, they significantly preferred AI-generated artwork to human-made ones. However, once AI authorship was revealed, the same content suffered reduced perceptions of authenticity and creativity.

Hollywood’s AI reckoning

Developments in AI are happening amid a regulatory vacuum. While the US Congress held multiple AI hearings in 2023, no comprehensive federal AI legislation exists to govern Hollywood’s use. The stalled US Generative AI Copyright Disclosure Act leaves creators without legal protections, as companies deploy AI systems trained on potentially copyrighted materials.

The UK faces similar challenges, with the government launching a consultation in December 2024 on copyright and AI reform. This included a proposal for an “opt-out” system, meaning creators could actively prevent their work from being used in AI training.

The 2023 Hollywood strikes crystallised industry fears about AI displacement. Screenwriters secured protections ensuring AI cannot write or rewrite material, while actors negotiated consent requirements for digital replicas. Yet these agreements primarily cover the directors, producers and lead actors who have the most negotiating power, while VFX workers remain vulnerable.

Copyright litigation is now beginning to dominate the AI landscape – over 30 infringement lawsuits have been filed against AI companies since 2020. Disney and Universal’s landmark June 2025 lawsuit against Midjourney represents the first major studio copyright challenge, alleging the AI firm created a “bottomless pit of plagiarism” by training on copyrighted characters without permission.

Meanwhile, federal courts in the US have delivered mixed rulings. A Delaware judge found against AI company Ross Intelligence for training on copyrighted legal content, while others have partially sided with fair use defences.

The industry faces an acceleration problem – AI advancement outpaces contract negotiations and psychological adaptation. AI is reshaping industry demands, yet 96% of VFX artists report receiving no AI training, with 31% citing this as a barrier to incorporating AI in their work.

Netflix’s AI integration shows that Hollywood is grappling with fundamental questions about creativity, authenticity and human value in entertainment. Without comprehensive AI regulation and retraining programs, the industry risks a future where technological capability advances faster than legal frameworks, worker adaptation and public acceptance can accommodate.

As audiences begin recognising AI’s invisible hand in their entertainment, the industry must navigate not just economic disruption, but the cognitive biases that shape how we perceive and value creative work.

Edward White is affiliated with Kingston University.

– ref. Netflix is now using generative AI – but it risks leaving viewers and creatives behind – https://theconversation.com/netflix-is-now-using-generative-ai-but-it-risks-leaving-viewers-and-creatives-behind-261699

July 28, 2025

‘Fibremaxxing’ is trending – here’s why that could be a problem

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Lewis Mattin, Senior Lecturer, Life Sciences, University of Westminster

Soluble fibre. Towfiqu ahamed barbhuiya/Shutterstock.com

You need fibre. That much is true. But in the world of online health trends, what started out as sound dietary advice has spiralled into “fibremaxxing” – a push to consume eye-watering amounts in the name of wellness.

In the UK, NHS guidelines suggest that an adult should consume at least 30g of fibre a day. Children and teens typically need much less.

Yet despite clear guidelines, most Britons fall short of their daily fibre target. One major culprit? The rise of ultra-processed foods, or UPFs. UK adults now get over 54% of their daily calories from ultra-processed foods. For teenagers, it’s nearer 66%.

This matters because UPFs are typically low in fibre and micronutrients, while being high in sugar, salt and unhealthy fats. When these foods dominate our plate, naturally fibre-rich whole foods get pushed out.

Studies show that as ultra-processed food intake increases, fibre consumption decreases, along with other essential nutrients. The result is a population falling well short of its daily fibre target.

Dietary fibre is essential for good health as part of a balanced diet. And it is best found in natural plant-based foods.

Adding high fibre foods to your meals and snacks throughout a typical day, such as switching to wholegrain bread for breakfast, keeping the skin on fruits like an apple, adding lentils and onions to a chilli evening meal and eating a handful of pumpkin seeds or Brazil nuts between meals, would help an average person hit their 30g-a-day dietary requirements.

Displacement

With fibremaxxing, what might make this trend somewhat dangerous is the removal of other food groups such as proteins, carbohydrates and fats and replacing them with fibre-dense foods, supplements or powder. This is where the potential risk could mitigate the benefits of increasing fibre, as no robust studies in humans – as far as I’m aware – have been conducted on long-term fibre intakes over 40g a day. (Some advocates of fibremaxxing suggest consuming between 50 and 100g a day.)

Eating too much fibre too quickly – especially without enough water – can lead to bloating, cramping and constipation. It can also cause a buildup of gas that can escape at the most inconvenient moments, like during a daily commute.

Commuters looking suspiciously at someone off-camera. — Someone’s been fibremaxxing.
William Perugini/Shutterstock.com

Rapidly increasing fibre intake or consuming too much can interfere with the absorption of essential micronutrients like iron, which supports normal body function, as well as macronutrients, which provide the energy needed for movement, repair and adaptation.

However, it’s important to remember that increasing fibre in your diet offers a wide range of health benefits. It supports a healthy digestive system by promoting regular bowel movements and reducing the occurrence of inflammatory bowel disease.

Soluble fibre helps to regulate blood sugar levels by slowing the absorption of glucose, making it especially helpful for people at risk of type 2 diabetes. It also lowers LDL (bad) cholesterol, reducing the risk of heart disease. Fibre keeps you feeling full for longer, which supports healthy weight management and appetite regulation. These findings are all well documented.

Additionally, a high-fibre diet has been linked to a lower risk of certain cancers, particularly colon cancer, by helping to remove toxins efficiently from the body. Gradually increasing fibre intake to recommended levels – through a balanced, varied diet – can offer real health benefits.

Given the evidence, it’s clear that many of us could benefit from eating more fibre – but within reason.

Until we know more, it’s safest to stick to fibre intake within current guidelines, and get it from natural sources rather than powders or supplements. Fibre is vital, but more isn’t always better. Skip the social media fads and aim for balance: whole grains, veg, nuts and seeds. Your gut – and your fellow commuters – will thank you.

Lewis Mattin is affiliated with The Physiological Society, The Society for Endocrinology, In2Science & UKRI funded Ageing and Nutrient Sensing Network.

– ref. ‘Fibremaxxing’ is trending – here’s why that could be a problem – https://theconversation.com/fibremaxxing-is-trending-heres-why-that-could-be-a-problem-261280

July 28, 2025

Madagascar : le marché de compensation carbone en pleine émergence

Source: The Conversation – in French – By Quentin Grislain, Chercheur en géographie politique, Cirad

Plantation d’acacia sur une parcelle de colline d’un membre du projet TERAKA. Quentin Grislain / Cirad, , Fourni par l’auteur

Depuis la fin des années 2000, les projets de compensation carbone se sont multipliés à Madagascar. Ces projets renvoient à des initiatives diverses, allant de programmes de reforestation et de boisement à la restauration des zones humides et à la prévention de la déforestation. Ils sont présentés par leurs promoteurs comme des solutions « gagnant-gagnant », offrant à la fois des avantages en termes d’atténuation du changement climatique et de développement socio-économique local.

Mais au-delà du discours et des promesses, de quoi parle-t-on lorsqu’on évoque les projets de compensation carbone à Madagascar ? Quels sont les contours de ces projets en termes d’échelle d’intervention, d’acteurs impliqués et de promesses d’engagement envers les communautés locales ?

Mes recherches portent sur l’analyse des interactions entre agriculture familiale et dynamiques territoriales au prisme des questions foncières. J’ai récemment mené une étude exploratoire entre les mois de janvier et juin 2025, avec l’appui d’une équipe d’étudiants de l’Ecole supérieure des sciences agronomiques de l’université d’Antananarivo. Elle apporte un éclairage sur l’ampleur et la diversité des projets de compensation carbone à Madagascar.

Une réglementation en évolution

À Madagascar, le décret 2021-1113 relatif à la régulation de l’accès au marché du carbone forestier avait introduit des dispositions attribuant à l’État la propriété de tous les crédits carbone générés dans le pays. Cela avait eu pour effet de limiter l’accès au marché du carbone pour les organisations non gouvernementales (ONG) et les acteurs du secteur privé.

Face à ce constat, le gouvernement malgache a initié, fin 2024, un processus de révision de ce décret. Ce processus a abouti le 6 juin 2025 à l’adoption du décret 2025-626 élargissant les droits d’accès au marché du carbone forestier. Il ouvre également des opportunités à d’autres types d’acteurs pour bénéficier des revenus issus de la vente de crédits carbone.

Désormais, toute personne physique ou morale, publique ou privée, nationale ou étrangère, peut, sous certaines conditions, générer des réductions d’émissions, en revendiquer la propriété et les commercialiser.

Néanmoins, à ce stade, les effets de ce nouveau cadre réglementaire sur le marché du carbone à Madagascar restent incertains.

État des lieux des projets de compensation carbone

Malgré cette incertitude, Madagascar a connu de nombreuses initiatives visant à établir un modèle commercial pour la conservation et la restauration des forêts. Cependant, seul un nombre limité de projets a dépassé la phase initiale de démarrage et a finalement été enregistré sur le marché volontaire du carbone.

Dix projets de carbone terrestre sont actuellement répertoriés à Madagascar dans les registres de compensation carbone. Au total, six projets ont progressé avec succès vers un statut d’enregistrement, tandis que quatre restent en cours de développement ou de validation. Parmi les projets enregistrés, quatre sont également confrontés à des retards de vérification.

La superficie totale des terres répertoriées pour l’ensemble de ces projets de compensation carbone s’élève à 894 026 hectares. Ces projets sont initiés par une diversité d’acteurs (État, ONG de conservation, entreprise étrangère, etc.) au nom de la lutte contre les crises du climat et de la biodiversité. Toutefois, ils peuvent engendrer une concurrence accrue pour les terres et constituer ainsi une menace supplémentaire pour l’agriculture familiale malgache.

Principaux types de projets de compensation carbone

Les données du registre de compensation carbone montrent que les projets sont très divers. Ils peuvent être regroupés en trois types : les projets de conservation à grande échelle, les projets communautaires et les investissements du secteur privé.

Depuis le début des années 2000, la finance carbone est reconnue comme un outil potentiel pour financer durablement la gestion des aires de conservation.

À Madagascar, le secteur de la compensation carbone comprend un petit nombre de projets à grande échelle menés par des ONG internationales telles que Conservation International et Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), qui visent à générer des fonds supplémentaires pour les efforts de conservation grâce à la vente de crédits carbone.

Ces initiatives sont généralement mises en œuvre sur des terres appartenant à l’État. Elles sont gérées dans le cadre d’accords à long terme avec des ONG internationales – comme par exemple le projet d’aire protégée de la forêt de Makira, qui représente à lui seul plus de 350 000 hectares dans le registre Verified Carbon Standard de Verra, mis en œuvre par WCS.

Un autre type de projet vise à diversifier les revenus des agriculteurs locaux et à promouvoir le développement rural dans le cadre de projets de moindre envergure, dont la superficie est généralement inférieure à 10 000 hectares.

Par exemple, le projet Tahiry Honko, mis en œuvre par l’ONG britannique Blue Ventures dans l’aire marine protégée de Velondriake, au sud-ouest de Madagascar, se concentre sur le reboisement et la conservation de plus de 1 200 hectares de mangroves. Il vise également le développement de moyens de subsistance alternatifs pour les communautés locales.

Bien que les terres de mangroves appartiennent à l’État, l’association Velondriake cherche à obtenir des droits légaux pour gérer la forêt de mangroves. Cependant, l’interdiction nationale de l’exploitation des mangroves et les questions foncières non résolues restent des défis à relever, en particulier pour les ventes de crédits carbone.

Par ailleurs, quelques projets sont également menés par des acteurs du secteur privé tel que le projet Fagnako financé par Canopy Energy, une société française basée à Paris. Le projet intervient dans l’est de Madagascar. Il vise à réhabiliter des terres dégradées en plantant 3 millions d’arbres Pongamia, des espèces fourragères et des arbres fruitiers.

Pour ce faire, en décembre 2023, le projet a signé un bail emphytéotique de 35 ans avec la commune de Vohitranivona sur 10 500 ha.

Notre étude met en évidence que la taille des projets varie considérablement selon la nature des acteurs impliqués et leurs stratégies. Elle va de petites initiatives communautaires de moins de 2 000 hectares à des efforts REDD+ (Réduction des émissions dues à la déforestation et à la dégradation des forêts) à grande échelle couvrant plus de 300 000 hectares. Cela souligne les ambitions très diverses au sein du secteur des compensations carbone à Madagascar.

Formation de petits groupes de paysans à la mise en œuvre de pépinière artisanale dans la commune de Mahazoarivo dans le cadre du projet TERAKA.
Quentin Grislain / Cirad,, Fourni par l’auteur

Des promesses d’engagement variables

Les engagements d’investissement en faveur des communautés locales et du développement territorial varient considérablement d’un projet à l’autre. Ils vont de simples initiatives de formation et de sensibilisation des communautés locales à la création de centaines d’emplois et à la réhabilitation d’infrastructures communautaires.

Le projet de reforestation communautaire TERAKA, par exemple, adopte une approche centrée sur la diffusion des connaissances et le renforcement des capacités des ménages ruraux au travers de formations diverses (plantation d’arbres, fourneaux améliorés, etc.).

En outre, le projet met l’accent sur le partage des bénéfices de la vente des crédits carbone. En revanche, il ne vise pas à créer des emplois directs ou à fournir des appuis à des services plus larges.

À l’inverse, le projet Fagnako vise à créer des opportunités d’emploi, avec un résultat attendu de 300 emplois permanents et de 3 000 emplois saisonniers, ainsi qu’à réhabiliter les infrastructures municipales. Cependant, le document de projet ne mentionne aucun mécanisme de partage des revenus visant à fournir aux communautés locales une part directe des revenus générés par les ventes de crédits carbone.

Par ailleurs, des écarts peuvent exister entre les annonces des promoteurs de projets et les concrétisations sur le terrain.

La réalisation des promesses d’engagement dépend d’une combinaison de facteurs. Le volontarisme des porteurs de projets joue un rôle central, notamment en matière d’inclusion des exploitants familiaux et de reconnaissance des droits fonciers locaux. Elle repose aussi sur des engagements contraignants visant à renforcer la transparence tout au long du cycle de vie des projets.

Enfin, les moyens financiers devraient être alignés avec les objectifs annoncés par les promoteurs de projets en termes de retombées socio-économiques pour les populations locales. En effet, de manière générale, il y a une sous-estimation des ressources nécessaires aux activités de développement local dans ces projets.

Suivre l’évolution des marchés de compensation carbone

Finalement, cette étude exploratoire montre que le marché du carbone à Madagascar reste un secteur émergent. Il est caractérisé par un ensemble diversifié d’acteurs aux objectifs variés, de nombreux projets encore en phase de démarrage et un cadre réglementaire national sur le carbone nouvellement révisé. Cette situation nécessite une attention particulière de la part des décideurs politiques, des chercheurs et des organisations de la société civile.

Dans ce contexte d’incertitude, la nécessité de poursuivre des recherches de terrain approfondies s’impose. Cette nécessité apparaît d’autant plus saillante dans le contexte actuel, marqué par l’adoption du décret 2025-626, qui élargit les droits d’accès au marché du carbone forestier. Cette nouvelle réglementation laisse entrevoir une multiplication des projets de compensation carbone dans le pays au cours des prochaines années.

Elle pourrait, en l’absence d’initiatives de régulation en matière de transparence et de redevabilité des porteurs de projets, alimenter une vague d’« accaparements verts » au nom de la biodiversité et de la protection de la nature et ainsi menacer les moyens de subsistance de millions d’exploitants familiaux.

Quentin Grislain est accueilli au FOFIFA (Centre national de la recherche appliquée au développement rural) à Madagascar. Il a, via le CIRAD, reçu des financements du Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. Il a également bénéficié de l’appui du GIGA (German Institute of Global and Area Studies) et de l’initiative Land Matrix.

– ref. Madagascar : le marché de compensation carbone en pleine émergence – https://theconversation.com/madagascar-le-marche-de-compensation-carbone-en-pleine-emergence-261480

July 28, 2025

AI agents are here. Here’s what to know about what they can do – and how they can go wrong

Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Daswin de Silva, Professor of AI and Analytics, Director of AI Strategy, La Trobe University

We are entering the third phase of generative AI. First came the chatbots, followed by the assistants. Now we are beginning to see agents: systems that aspire to greater autonomy and can work in “teams” or use tools to accomplish complex tasks.

The latest hot product is OpenAI’s ChatGPT agent. This combines two pre-existing products (Operator and Deep Research) into a single more powerful system which, according to the developer, “thinks and acts”.

These new systems represent a step up from earlier AI tools. Knowing how they work and what they can do – as well as their drawbacks and risks – is rapidly becoming essential.

From chatbots to agents

ChatGPT launched the chatbot era in November 2022, but despite its huge popularity the conversational interface limited what could be done with the technology.

Enter the AI assistant, or copilot. These are systems built on top of the same large language models that power generative AI chatbots, only now designed to carry out tasks with human instruction and supervision.

Agents are another step up. They are intended to pursue goals (rather than just complete tasks) with varying degrees of autonomy, supported by more advanced capabilities such as reasoning and memory.

Multiple AI agent systems may be able to work together, communicating with each other to plan, schedule, decide and coordinate to solve complex problems.

Agents are also “tool users” as they can also call on software tools for specialised tasks – things such as web browsers, spreadsheets, payment systems and more.

A year of rapid development

Agentic AI has felt imminent since late last year. A big moment came last October, when Anthropic gave its Claude chatbot the ability to interact with a computer in much the same way a human does. This system could search multiple data sources, find relevant information and submit online forms.

Other AI developers were quick to follow. OpenAI released a web browsing agent named Operator, Microsoft announced Copilot agents, and we saw the launch of Google’s Vertex AI and Meta’s Llama agents.

Earlier this year, the Chinese startup Monica demonstrated its Manus AI agent buying real estate and converting lecture recordings into summary notes. Another Chinese startup, Genspark, released a search engine agent that returns a single-page overview (similar to what Google does now) with embedded links to online tasks such as finding the best shopping deals. Another startup, Cluely, offers a somewhat unhinged “cheat at anything” agent that has gained attention but is yet to deliver meaningful results.

Not all agents are made for general-purpose activity. Some are specialised for particular areas.

Coding and software engineering are at the vanguard here, with Microsoft’s Copilot coding agent and OpenAI’s Codex among the frontrunners. These agents can independently write, evaluate and commit code, while also assessing human-written code for errors and performance lags.

Search, summarisation and more

One core strength of generative AI models is search and summarisation. Agents can use this to carry out research tasks that might take a human expert days to complete.

OpenAI’s Deep Research tackles complex tasks using multi-step online research. Google’s AI “co-scientist” is a more sophisticated multi-agent system that aims to help scientists generate new ideas and research proposals.

Agents can do more – and get more wrong

Despite the hype, AI agents come loaded with caveats. Both Anthropic and OpenAI, for example, prescribe active human supervision to minimise errors and risks.

OpenAI also says its ChatGPT agent is “high risk” due to potential for assisting in the creation of biological and chemical weapons. However, the company has not published the data behind this claim so it is difficult to judge.

But the kind of risks agents may pose in real-world situations are shown by Anthropic’s Project Vend. Vend assigned an AI agent to run a staff vending machine as a small business – and the project disintegrated into hilarious yet shocking hallucinations and a fridge full of tungsten cubes instead of food.

In another cautionary tale, a coding agent deleted a developer’s entire database, later saying it had “panicked”.

Agents in the office

Nevertheless, agents are already finding practical applications.

In 2024, Telstra heavily deployed Microsoft copilot subscriptions. The company says AI-generated meeting summaries and content drafts save staff an average of 1–2 hours per week.

Many large enterprises are pursuing similar strategies. Smaller companies too are experimenting with agents, such as Canberra-based construction firm Geocon’s use of an interactive AI agent to manage defects in its apartment developments.

Human and other costs

At present, the main risk from agents is technological displacement. As agents improve, they may replace human workers across many sectors and types of work. At the same time, agent use may also accelerate the decline of entry-level white-collar jobs.

People who use AI agents are also at risk. They may rely too much on the AI, offloading important cognitive tasks. And without proper supervision and guardrails, hallucinations, cyberattacks and compounding errors can very quickly derail an agent from its task and goals into causing harm, loss and injury.

The true costs are also unclear. All generative AI systems use a lot of energy, which will in turn affect the price of using agents – especially for more complex tasks.

Learn about agents – and build your own

Despite these ongoing concerns, we can expect AI agents will become more capable and more present in our workplaces and daily lives. It’s not a bad idea to start using (and perhaps building) agents yourself, and understanding their strengths, risks and limitations.

For the average user, agents are most accessible through Microsoft copilot studio. This comes with inbuilt safeguards, governance and an agent store for common tasks.

For the more ambitious, you can build your own AI agent with just five lines of code using the Langchain framework.

Daswin de Silva does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. AI agents are here. Here’s what to know about what they can do – and how they can go wrong – https://theconversation.com/ai-agents-are-here-heres-what-to-know-about-what-they-can-do-and-how-they-can-go-wrong-261579

July 28, 2025

The celebrity halo effect: why abuse allegations against powerful men like Brad Pitt are so easily forgotten

Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Jamilla Rosdahl, Senior Lecturer, Australian College of Applied Psychology

Last month, actor Brad Pitt stepped onto the Formula One circuit as the leading man of the high-octane film F1, backed by Apple Studios, Jerry Bruckheimer Films and Pitt’s own Plan B Entertainment.

During the publicity campaign, cameras followed Pitt at every twist and turn, beaming his heartthrob persona to audiences. The coverage was gushing, with few mentions of the 2016 allegations of physical and emotional abuse made by Angelina Jolie, the award-winning actor and Pitt’s former partner.

Pitt was never charged over these allegations, but he was under considerable public scrutiny when they first came to light.

The tone has since shifted. Now, many media outlets are focused on Pitt’s clothing, describing him as looking “effortlessly iconic” and someone who is “just trying to have fun with his style” – a seemingly polished return to the limelight.

Pitt is far from an exception. He is part of a well-established pattern of powerful men in Hollywood who rebound from scandal quickly, and with seemingly little repercussion.

Pitt’s career trajectory, bolstered by critical acclaim and PR campaigns, reveals how easily the public memory can be rewritten.

How the media protects accused men

One 2019 study that looked at coverage of rape allegations against Portuguese footballer Cristiano Ronaldo highlighted how the media helps construct narratives that favour the accused. The allegations came from American woman Kathryn Mayorga, who accused Ronaldo of raping her in 2009.

The study found Portuguese media and political leaders largely defended Ronaldo, hailing him as a “national hero”. They focused on his career and presumption of innocence, while minimising and discrediting Mayorga’s account.

When Mayorga reopened the case in 2018, alleging coercion into an earlier settlement, the coverage stereotyped her as a “gold digger”, diverting attention away from the issue of sexual violence. Reports also emphasised “collateral damages”, such as Ronaldo’s club avoiding matches in the United States.

These findings underscore how the “celebrity halo” can compromise serious coverage of allegations.

According to Karen Boyle, gender studies professor and author of the 2018 book #MeToo, Weinstein and Feminism, mainstream media and celebrity culture systemically protect powerful men accused of violence against women.

Celebrity culture is fundamentally patriarchal, Boyle argues, and will centre men even when they’re found to be perpetrators. She writes:

Even when these men fall, they fall spectacularly, with all eyes on them […] Their stories dominate.

Instead of drawing attention to female survivors, media narratives orbit around the accused celebrity – including their downfall, legacy and potential redemption.

The machinery of ‘redemption’

The post-#MeToo era promised a reckoning. Survivors were to be heard, and powerful men held accountable. Yet the cultural reset hasn’t been what many supporters of the movement hoped for.

Boyle argues we must understand #MeToo in relation to an ongoing history of popular misogyny which normalises men’s abuse of women.

The #MeToo movement has faced mounting backlash since it went viral in 2017. Articles in Vox and Dame Magazine highlight how public sympathy is increasingly shifting towards accused men, recasting them as victims of “cancel culture” while sidelining survivors.

Online platforms such as Instagram, Reddit and Youtbe have also created space for public commentators to blame victim-survivors and make excuses for famous male perpetrators.

And it’s not just about attraction-leniency theory, wherein physically attractive people are judged more favourably. It’s also about race.

One 2015 study found media coverage of intimate partner violence by celebrity men was more likely to be portrayed as “criminal” when the man was black.

“Reports are more likely to include excuses for men’s violence against women when the coverage is of a white celebrity than when the celebrity is black,” said the author Joanna Pepin.

White men in Hollywood accumulate prestige, status and connections that operate like currency, buffering them from consequences that would derail the careers of others.

Ideology, power and coercive control

As a scholar who has been analysing coercive control for more than ten years, I argue power operates not just through institutions, but through discourse: through who gets to speak, who is believed, what is remembered, and what is erased.

Belief is often unconscious. The public may know violence occurred, but still act as though it didn’t. People choose to forget, to preserve the comforting fiction their favourite heartthrob is a good man.

My research argues coercive control isn’t limited to perpetrators of domestic violence, but is a widespread tactic employed by high-profile men to assert power and dominance.

It operates like a modern panopticon. Powerful men can use gendered power and social status to not only trap and discipline victims within an invisible prison, but can extend this control to entire communities.

Importantly, this control can be subtle. It is often hidden behind performative niceness – hard to see and harder to prosecute.

Shifting the lens

Gender studies scholar Judith Butler argues Trump-era politics have actively distorted public conversations about gender, power and accountability. They explain in one interview:

What we’re seeing with the Trump administration is a normalisation of hatred, of xenophobia, masculinity and misogyny that emboldens far-right groups and legitimises violence against vulnerable populations.

Moving forward, we need to collectively recognise how media narratives can contribute to our collective amnesia of violence against women.

We also need to prioritise teaching younger generations about masculine culture and the dangers of gendered violence. And when survivors speak, the focus shouldn’t be on whether they seem “credible” or “emotional enough”, but on the structures that may embolden the men they are accusing.

Jamilla Rosdahl does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. The celebrity halo effect: why abuse allegations against powerful men like Brad Pitt are so easily forgotten – https://theconversation.com/the-celebrity-halo-effect-why-abuse-allegations-against-powerful-men-like-brad-pitt-are-so-easily-forgotten-261101

July 28, 2025

Donald Trump cannot make the Epstein files go away. Will this be the story that brings him down?

Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Emma Shortis, Adjunct Senior Fellow, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University

Conspiracy theories are funny things.

The most enduring ones usually take hold for two reasons: first, because there’s some grain of truth to them, and second, because they speak to foundational historical divisions.

The theories morph and change, distorting the grain of truth at their centre beyond reality. In the process, they reinforce and deepen existing divisions, encouraging hateful blindness.

US President Donald Trump is perhaps the most successful conspiracy trafficker in modern American history.

Trump built his political career by trading on conspiracy. These have included a combination of racist birther conspiracies about former president Barack Obama, nebulous ideas about the “Deep State” that conspired against the interests of regular Americans, and nods to a more recent online universe centered on QAnon that alleged a Satanist ring of “elite” pedophiles involving Hillary Clinton was trafficking children.

These theories all had their own grain of truth and tapped into deep-seated historical fears. For example, Obama does have Kenyan heritage, and his Blackness threatened many white Americans’ sense of their own power.

Revelations about disgraced financier Jeffery Epstein’s trafficking in children and the way in which that implicated the “elite” of New York seemed to confirm at least parts of the final theory. It tapped into the belief – one that does have some basis in reality – that America’s elite play by rules of their own, above justice and accountability.

In the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election, Trump increasingly engaged with this online universe. He seemed to quietly enjoy suggestions that he might be “Q” – the anonymous leader who, according to the theory, was going to break the paedophile ring wide open in a “day of reckoning”.

Many of Trump’s perennially online supporters based their championing of him around these conspiracy theories. QAnon believers were among those who stormed the Capitol on January 6 2021. A core section of Trump’s base continues to believe his promises that he would at last reveal the truth – about John F. Kennedy’s assassination, the Deep State, and Epstein.

That it has long been public knowledge that Trump and Epstein had a longstanding friendship did not impinge on these beliefs.

Conspiracy theories have swirled around Epstein since at least his first arrest nearly two decades ago, in 2006. After allegations of unlawful sex with a minor, Epstein was charged with soliciting prostitution. This elicited suggestions he was receiving special treatment because of his elite status as a New York financier and philanthropist.

That pattern continued over the next decade as accusations multiplied, culminating in his arrest in 2019 on federal charges of sex trafficking, including to a private island. The allegations touched the global elite, including former president Bill Clinton, the United Kingdom’s Prince Andrew, and Trump. In August 2019, Epstein was found dead in his cell, allegedly by suicide – adding further fuel to the already intense conspiracy fire.

Epstein’s arrest and death occurred during the first Trump administration. Since then, there has been a steady trickle of accusations and revelations that have increased pressure on the administration to declassify and release material relating to the case. Many of Trump’s most loyal supporters, including a set of influential podcasters and influencers, have built their audiences around Epstein and the insistence that the truth be revealed.

Early in the life of the current administration, Attorney-General Pam Bondi – whom Trump is wont to treat as his personal lawyer – said she was reviewing the Epstein “client list”.

In the past few weeks, however, the administration has indicated it will not release the list or other materials relating to the case. At the same time, more information about Trump’s relationship with Epstein has trickled out, including more photos of the two together. It’s hard to deny the sense there is more to come.

Trump’s posting about the issue, despite his apparent wish to divert from it, seems only to compel more interest. Sections of his online conspiracy base, including vocal supporters such as Tucker Carlson, are outraged at what they see as a betrayal. Reports suggest a significant rift developing between Trump and key backer Rupert Murdoch over the issue. Democrats, rightly, sense weakness.

Loyal Republicans seem rattled enough that Speaker of the House Mike Johnson called an early summer recess, sending congresspeople home in an apparent effort to avoid any forced vote on the issue.

The obvious inference – though it is inference only – is that Trump and Republicans are so worried about what is in the Epstein material they would rather cop strong backlash from the base, looking scared and weak, than release the information. If nothing else, that is a guaranteed way to fuel an already raging fire.

Trump’s tanking approval rating and the salience of this issue lead to an obvious question: is this going to be the thing that finally scratches the Teflon president? Will his base turn on him at last?

If history is anything to go by, that seems unlikely. Trump is remarkably resilient, using crises like this to consolidate his power. Trump commands loyalty, and he has it from Bondi, Johnson and others in this weakened and increasingly ideologically driven federal government. And his conspiracy-fuelled base is in so deep that turning on the president now is not just a question of admitting error, but one of core identity.

US mainstream media has long pursued a “gotcha” approach to Trump, driven by a model of journalism that still seeks out smoking guns and dreams of Watergate. Not unlike the conspiracy theories it reports on, this framing hopes for a neat, clear resolution to the story of US politics. But politics doesn’t work like that – especially not for Trump.

From the outside, Trump’s attempts to pivot on the issue and build on his existing conspiracies around Obama and Hillary Clinton might look feeble, but they are tried and true. Trump is now focused on fanning theories around Obama and Clinton, broadening them to include accusations of “treason”. Trump’s Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard went so far as to claim Obama had “manufactured […] a years-long coup against President Trump”. Even reporting on these claims with rightful incredulity adds fuel to the raging fire.

In the personality cult of an authoritarian leader, conspiracy is easily weaponised against enemies, perceived and real. In the febrile environment of US politics, these conspiracy theories tap into and encourage a long vein of white supremacy and racial revanchism that has shaped American politics since even before the nation’s founding.

Trump can morph and change conspiracy theories like no one else, building on fears and deepening existing divisions. He understands the power of pointing to “enemies from within”, and just how well that reinforces the narrative he has already so successfully ingrained in US political culture. We underestimate him, and the power of conspiracy theory, at our peril.

Emma Shortis is Director of International and Security Affairs at The Australia Institute, an independent think tank.

– ref. Donald Trump cannot make the Epstein files go away. Will this be the story that brings him down? – https://theconversation.com/donald-trump-cannot-make-the-epstein-files-go-away-will-this-be-the-story-that-brings-him-down-261843

July 28, 2025

Los ZAZ, la parodia absurda que redefinió la comedia moderna

Source: The Conversation – (in Spanish) – By Matías López Iglesias, Profesor titular del departamento de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad Europea Miguel de Cervantes

Escena de ‘Airplane!’, con Leslie Nielsen en el centro. FilmAffinity

Este verano marca el regreso de una de las sagas más emblemáticas de la comedia cinematográfica con el estreno del remake de The Naked Gun.

Liam Neeson toma así el relevo de Leslie Nielsen, protagonista de la película cuasi homónima original The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!, creada por el influyente trío ZAZ: David Zucker, Jim Abrahams y Jerry Zucker.

Esta nueva entrega ofrece una oportunidad para reflexionar sobre por qué, más de cuatro décadas después, su estilo sigue siendo objeto de culto, referencia académica y modelo de innovación humorística.

¿Quiénes eran los ZAZ?

David y Jerry Zucker crecieron junto a Jim Abrahams en Shorewood, Wisconsin. En 1971, cuando estudiaban en la Universidad de Wisconsin–Madison, crearon el grupo teatral Kentucky Fried Theater, donde hacían sketches cómicos y parodias en vivo.

Cartel de la película Kentucky Fried Movie. — FilmAffinity

De esa experiencia nació su primera película, The Kentucky Fried Movie, que reunía escenas absurdas y divertidas en un estilo único y muy reconocible gracias a su curiosa forma de trabajar, en la que siempre compartían todo –el guión, la dirección y la producción–, algo poco común en Hollywood.

Dicha fórmula, coral y colaborativa, recuerda a la forma de trabajo desarrollada por los surrealistas en los albores del siglo XX. Así, usando la técnica del cadáver exquisito, generaban un dibujo, frase o incluso relato basado en una sucesión de fragmentos individuales mínimamente comunicados, hasta producir una obra absurda, irracional pero consistente. En aquel caso, era una forma de trabajo muchas veces conseguida bajo el efecto de las drogas para alejarse de prejuicios y lograr aceptar la propuesta del otro sin demasiadas críticas.

Del slapstick al ingenio visual

Las películas dirigidas por Jim Abrahams y los hermanos Zucker se distinguen precisamente por su surrealismo y su humor absurdo. En sus relatos no hay una separación clara entre lo cómico y lo cotidiano; lo ridículo y lo torpe se convierten en parte del día a día. El espectador comprende que lo que se muestra no representa la realidad, sino una versión exagerada de ella.

Esto es evidente, por ejemplo, en Airplane!, donde hacen una adaptación casi directa de la película Zero Hour!, tras identificar que el guión original parecía ser una parodia implícita. El filme se convirtió en un fenómeno: con un presupuesto de 3,5 millones de dólares, recaudó más de 83 millones. Su éxito renovó el cine spoof, en el que el humor desafiaba la seriedad de los géneros.

Tráiler de Airplane!, que en España se tituló ¡Aterriza como puedas! y en Hispanoamérica ¿Y dónde está el piloto?.

En Airplane! los personajes pasan de una situación absurda a otra sin pausa. La estructura narrativa se apoya en recursos cómicos como el slapstick –un tipo de comedia que se centra en la exageración de la violencia física–. Pero, lejos de los elegantes efectos creados por Charles Chaplin o Buster Keaton, en este caso se lleva al extremo.

Esta narrativa no solo interviene en lo visual; los espacios y los tiempos se entremezclan, lo que potencia aún más el tono absurdo del filme, generando un contexto completamente incoherente con respecto a lo conocido. Un ejemplo claro es la filmación de una escena de despedida de una pareja como si estuvieran en una estación de tren, siguiendo las convenciones clásicas de este tipo de momentos, justo antes de que despegue un avión.

Tácticas humorísticas recurrentes

Jim Abrahams y los hermanos Zucker emplean el humor absurdo como recurso para mostrar a sus personajes desde una perspectiva moralmente ingenua o ridícula. Estos nunca reaccionan de forma apropiada ante los acontecimientos, lo que provoca una comicidad que desafía los límites de la racionalidad y, en cierta manera, provoca admiración hacia el personaje, que se mantiene resiliente frente a cualquier situación sobrevenida.

Los gags en las películas de los hermanos Zucker no están necesariamente ligados a la progresión de la trama. Funcionan de manera independiente y pueden comprenderse incluso fuera del contexto de la película, ya que no requieren una conexión directa con la narrativa principal para hacer reír.

Escena inicial de la versión original de The Naked Gun.

A comienzos de los 80, depuraron este estilo con la serie para televisión Police Squad!, en la que se ve una evolución de la comedia visual. Los ríos de humor y descontrol audiovisual a base de gags simultáneos en cámara exigían una atención activa del espectador.

Esto se complementaba con la voluntad de alejarse de la comedia a la hora de interpretar diálogos absurdos. Así, actores dramáticos como Leslie Nielsen o Peter Graves recitaban frases ridículas como si formasen parte de dramas serios, lo que intensificaba el efecto cómico.

Además, los ZAZ frecuentaban rápidos guiños a cámara, traspasando la cuarta pared e invitando al espectador a empatizar con los protagonistas y seguirles el juego, aceptando su complicidad dentro de un universo caótico.

En el tráiler de Top Secret!, otra de las películas de los ZAZ, se ve una escena en la que los protagonistas miran a cámara después de que ella diga ‘Parece el guion de una mala película’.

Esa consecución de miradas en combinación con el humor visual, verbal y la subversión de las convenciones creaba un tipo de parodia que, incluso siendo absurda, mostraba una cuidada precisión en su construcción narrativa.

Legado académico y cultural

Los ZAZ dejaron una poderosa influencia en comedias posteriores y marcaron el surgimiento de una comedia de culto ligada al absurdo, que sirvió de antecedente a estilos como el de Ben Stiller.

Su enfoque influyó en series animadas como Family Guy o Rick y Morty, que juegan con lo paródico, la ruptura de formato y el humor referencial. Introdujeron estrategias disruptivas de guión y acumulación absurda de tramas, adelantando un enfoque visual más activo y menos dependiente de la risa enlatada.

Tras los ZAZ, surgieron imitadores como Seltzer y Friedberg –directores de Date Movie, Epic Movie o Casi 300– que saturaron el género con parodias de escasa calidad, lo cual deterioró la percepción pública de esas comedias.

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El desafío del remake de The Naked Gun –cuya versión original fue escrita por los tres pero dirigida solo por David Zucker– no es solo recrear un estilo, sino demostrar que la inteligencia cómica puede sobrevivir en una era dominada por lo inmediato. La precisión humorística de ZAZ es hoy difícil de replicar. Requiere conocimiento del género parodiado, actores capacitados y guiones elaborados pero libres. El ritmo digital acelerado, los formatos breves y la cultura de lo inmediato complican ese tipo de parodia. Por ejemplo, la sucesión de gags es un recurso que actualmente no llama tanto la atención al ser muy habitual este tipo de agrupación de contenidos en los vídeos de las redes sociales.

No obstante, la expectativa es que este nuevo filme recupere la tradición. Si lo logra, honrará una fórmula que cambió los parámetros de la comedia cinematográfica y televisiva

Los ZAZ no inventaron la comedia, pero redefinieron sus formas con audacia, precisión y una visión estética libre, creando un legado que aún hoy resuena en formatos modernos. Este nuevo estreno es una buena excusa para volver a valorar su genialidad creativa y su influencia duradera. Redescubrir su obra hoy no solo es un ejercicio de memoria cinéfila, sino también una manera de cuestionar aquello que nos hace reír y por qué.

Las personas firmantes no son asalariadas, ni consultoras, ni poseen acciones, ni reciben financiación de ninguna compañía u organización que pueda obtener beneficio de este artículo, y han declarado carecer de vínculos relevantes más allá del cargo académico citado anteriormente.

– ref. Los ZAZ, la parodia absurda que redefinió la comedia moderna – https://theconversation.com/los-zaz-la-parodia-absurda-que-redefinio-la-comedia-moderna-260731

July 28, 2025

Más allá de borrar las arrugas: las múltiples aplicaciones terapéuticas del bótox

Source: The Conversation – (in Spanish) – By Miguel Ángel Huerta Martínez, Investigador Predoctoral en Neurofarmacología del Dolor., Universidad de Granada

El bótox se usa para aliviar los dolores de la migraña. dimid_86/Shutterstock

Quien más quien menos sabe qué es el bótox, nombre comercial de la toxina botulínica tipo A, una neurotoxina producida por la bacteria Clostridium botulinum. En el siglo XIX, el médico alemán Justinus Kerner describió por primera vez sus efectos, y a mediados del siglo XX llegaron los primeros usos terapéuticos del compuesto aislado como relajante muscular y tratamiento del estrabismo.

Pero no fue hasta los años 90 cuando se observó que al emplearse para tratar espasmos faciales las arrugas también se suavizaban. Así nació la aplicación cosmética y estética del bótox, aprobado en 2002 por la Administración de Alimentos y Medicamentos estadounidense (FDA) para corregir arrugas en el entrecejo. A partir de ese momento, su uso se popularizó enormemente.

Como curiosidad, el tratamiento facial con bótox también puede afectar a la expresión de emociones.

Leer más:
¿Qué es el botox y cuánto puedo ponerme?

¿Cómo funciona?

La toxina botulínica actúa como un “interruptor” que desconecta temporalmente la comunicación entre las neuronas motoras y los músculos esqueléticos, es decir, aquellos que se contraen de forma voluntaria.

Su mecanismo de acción consiste en destruir unas proteínas clave llamadas SNARE, esenciales para que las neuronas colinérgicas, que utilizan acetilcolina como neurotransmisor, puedan liberar esta sustancia. Al impedir la liberación de acetilcolina, se bloquea la señal que normalmente provocaría la contracción del músculo. Como resultado, es imposible realizar dicha contracción, por mucho que lo intentemos.

Una de las ventajas farmacológicas de ese efecto es que no es permanente: con el tiempo, las neuronas logran regenerar la maquinaria necesaria para liberar neurotransmisores. La función muscular suele recuperarse entre los tres y seis meses posteriores a la administración.

Pero además de su acción sobre la musculatura voluntaria, la toxina botulínica también afecta al sistema nervioso autónomo o visceral, encargado de regular funciones involuntarias como la actividad de la musculatura lisa y la acción secretora de las glándulas. En este sistema también existen neuronas colinérgicas, por lo que ciertos movimientos involuntarios o respuestas exageradas pueden ser controlados mediante la toxina. De ahí su utilidad en el tratamiento de trastornos como la sudoración excesiva, las migrañas o ciertas formas de hiperactividad muscular.

Primeras aplicaciones terapéuticas

De hecho, como apuntábamos al principio del artículo, las primeras aplicaciones aprobadas de la toxina botulínica fueron médicas y no estéticas. En 1989, la FDA autorizó por primera vez la toxina botulínica tipo A (con el nombre comercial de Oculinum) para tratar el estrabismo. Desarrollado por el estrabólogo estadounidense Alan Scott, permite corregir el problema sin cirugía, relajando selectivamente los músculos oculares afectados.

Seguidamente, se aprobó su uso para el blefaroespasmo, trastorno caracterizado por espasmos involuntarios de los párpados que pueden interferir con la visión. Poco después, su uso médico se extendió al tratamiento del espasmo hemifacial, donde un lado de la cara sufre contracciones repetidas e incontrolables.

Estas aplicaciones demostraron que una potente neurotoxina podía utilizarse con eficacia y seguridad. Fue entonces cuando la empresa Allergan adquirió los derechos del producto, lo renombró como Botox y comenzó a investigar otras indicaciones terapéuticas.

Del control de glándulas al alivio del dolor

Pocos años después la toxina botulínica demostró tener un potencial terapéutico mucho más amplio. Se descubrió que no solo permite relajar músculos que se contraen de forma involuntaria, sino que también puede bloquear otras funciones del sistema nervioso, como la transmisión del dolor o el control de ciertas glándulas.

Gracias a estas propiedades, se empezó a utilizar en el tratamiento de la hiperhidrosis (sudoración excesiva), inhibiendo temporalmente las señales nerviosas que estimulan las glándulas sudoríparas. También se autorizó para tratar la vejiga hiperactiva (urgencia constante de orinar), ya que la toxina relaja el músculo de la vejiga y reduce esos episodios.

Otro de los grandes avances fue su aprobación para la migraña crónica. Se aplica en varios puntos de la cabeza y el cuello, lo que reduce tanto la frecuencia como la intensidad de las crisis. Además, se ha convertido en una herramienta muy útil en la rehabilitación neurológica, especialmente para personas con espasticidad muscular causada por afecciones como la parálisis cerebral, el ictus o la esclerosis múltiple, reduciendo la rigidez y mejorando el movimiento.

Recientemente, se ha empezado a utilizar para tratar otros problemas como la sialorrea (salivación excesiva), el bruxismo (rechinar de dientes involuntario) y ciertos trastornos del movimiento como el temblor esencial o algunos tics motores del síndrome de Tourette. Estas cualidades han hecho que la toxina botulínica se consolide como herramienta médica, con aplicaciones en especialidades tan diversas como la neurología, la urología, la rehabilitación o la dermatología.

Riesgos de una toxina mortal

En cualquier caso, los múltiples beneficios de la toxina botulínica no nos deben hacer olvidar que se trata de la toxina biológica más potente que se conoce: unos pocos nanogramos (estamos hablando de cantidades minúsculas) son letales. Pero como dijo el médico y alquimista suizo Paracelso, el veneno está en la dosis, y esta sustancia en dosis bajas es muy útil.

No obstante, su uso indebido puede provocar efectos adversos graves, como parálisis muscular, dificultad para tragar o respirar, visión borrosa e incluso la muerte en casos extremos. Aunque en contextos médicos regulados es muy segura, los riesgos aumentan cuando se aplica en clínicas no autorizadas, por personal sin formación sanitaria o con productos de origen dudoso.

Así, se han documentado casos de intoxicación por toxina botulínica debido a la administración de dosis incorrectas, materiales falsificados o contaminación del producto. Estas prácticas clandestinas han derivado en hospitalizaciones y, aunque raramente, también en fallecimientos. Por ello, es fundamental que cualquier tratamiento se realice en centros acreditados, con profesionales cualificados y con productos aprobados por las autoridades sanitarias.

En conclusión, la toxina botulínica ha recorrido un camino sorprendente: de ser una de las sustancias más tóxicas a convertirse en una herramienta terapéutica y estética de enorme valor. Su capacidad para bloquear de forma temporal la comunicación entre los nervios y los músculos y glándulas permite tratar eficazmente una amplia variedad de enfermedades, desde trastornos neuromusculares hasta afecciones como la migraña crónica, la sudoración excesiva o la vejiga hiperactiva.

Leer más:
De letal a vital: venenos animales en la vanguardia biomédica

Además, sus usos estéticos han revolucionado la forma en que abordamos el envejecimiento facial, ofreciendo resultados visibles sin necesidad de cirugía. Es un gran ejemplo de cómo la humanidad ha conseguido transformar sustancias tóxicas en valiosos recursos medicinales.

– ref. Más allá de borrar las arrugas: las múltiples aplicaciones terapéuticas del bótox – https://theconversation.com/mas-alla-de-borrar-las-arrugas-las-multiples-aplicaciones-terapeuticas-del-botox-261186