International
A Colombian woman researches the benefits of being bilingual
Vanessa Diaz is a Colombian woman who migrated to Miami when she was 12 years old. She is now a psychologist, with a PhD in Developmental Psychology, and who works at Virginia Tech. Vanessa studies and researches language development. And she focuses on bilingual children in the United States.
Diaz spent her childhood in Miami and was surrounded by the Latino community. So her transition was more smooth. However, she underwent a radical change when she moved to Gainesville to pursue her doctorate in child psychology and neuroscience at Virginia Tech. “This was the first time I experienced discrimination. Many people criticized my accent and thought I had not lived in the United States,” she said.
This experience prompted Vanessa to pursue a research on children and how being bilingual affects them. To her surprise, she discovered that there is actually a negative stereotype about children who speak two languages.
“Many people assume that bilingual children are speech delayed, when they really need particular support. In language development, children have limited capacity. At one and a half years of age, they can speak 50 words. If you give this child an English language test, he will only know 25 words because he knows the other 25 words in Spanish. Then, someone will immediately say that he or she has a delay. But they don’t. And that shows that there is no understanding of what bilingualism is, and it has become a pathological condition,” she said.
There are cognitive benefits to being bilingual. It makes it much easier for a person to learn other languages. And it also makes you more open-minded. “The second language is the most difficult. Then learning another one becomes quite easy,” the scientist explained.
She has also studied the concept of the mind and how bilingual children and adults develop it in a more advanced way compared to someone who speaks only one language. People who speak different languages have different cultures and depending on the culture, there is a different way of thinking. Therefore, they are more receptive to knowledge and learning.
Sources: Planet Boston Latino Daily and Connections.
International
Report: Vatican mediation included russian asylum offer ahead of Maduro’s capture
The Vatican reportedly attempted to negotiate an offer of asylum in Russia for Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro before his capture by U.S. forces last Saturday, according to The Washington Post.
The U.S. newspaper reported that Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin spoke with U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See Brian Burch about a supposed Russian proposal to grant Maduro asylum. A source familiar with the offer said that what was proposed “was that he would leave and be able to enjoy his money,” and that part of the plan involved Russian President Vladimir Putin guaranteeing Maduro’s security.
Despite these diplomatic efforts, the United States carried out a military operation that resulted in Maduro’s capture and detention, along with his wife Cilia Flores, who are now being held in New York on narcoterrorism charges.
The Washington Post also noted that U.S. President Donald Trump may have invited Maduro to Washington for in-person discussions about safe conduct, an offer that Maduro reportedly declined.
International
Pope Leo XIV warns of rising “war enthusiasm” in global politics
“War is becoming fashionable again, and war enthusiasm is spreading.” Pope Leo XIV delivered a somber assessment of international politics on Friday, sharply criticizing the growing reliance on force by nations at a time when his country of birth is increasing military displays.
While offering New Year’s greetings to the diplomatic corps, the U.S.-born pope — who also holds Peruvian nationality — delivered one of his strongest speeches to date, denouncing the “worrying weakening of multilateralism” and the emergence of what he described as “war enthusiasm.”
From the outset of his address to ambassadors accredited to the Holy See, delivered in English, the pontiff lamented the rise of a “diplomacy of force, by individuals or groups of allied states,” at the expense of dialogue, warning that such trends threaten the global order established after World War II.
“Peace is no longer sought as a gift or as a good desirable in itself, or as the pursuit of ‘the establishment of an order willed by God, one that entails greater justice among human beings.’ Instead, it is pursued through weapons as a condition for asserting one’s own dominance,” the head of the Catholic Church said, without directly naming any country.
His remarks come amid ongoing conflicts between Ukraine and Russia and in the Gaza Strip, and against a broader international backdrop marked by European concerns over a potential U.S. takeover of Greenland, the autonomous Danish territory, a scenario that could threaten the cohesion of NATO.
International
One Dead and Nine Injured After Explosion in Southwest Madrid
The incident occurred at around 4:10 p.m. local time in the Carabanchel neighborhood, in the southwest of the Spanish capital, according to a spokesperson for emergency services.
One person, whose identity was not disclosed, was killed, and nine others sustained minor injuries, the spokesperson said.
When asked about the possible cause of the explosion, emergency services did not provide any details.
Images shared by authorities on their official X account show a partial collapse of the building’s façade.
In October 2025, the collapse of a building under renovation in central Madrid left four people dead.
Report: Vatican mediation included russian asylum offer ahead of Maduro’s capture
Pope Leo XIV warns of rising “war enthusiasm” in global politics
One Dead and Nine Injured After Explosion in Southwest Madrid
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