Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
MikeDunnAuthor@kolektiva.social wrote:
Boosted by slightlyoff@toot.cafe ("Alex Russell"):
remixtures@tldr.nettime.org ("Miguel Afonso Caetano") wrote:
"On a Thursday in early September, more than 40 strangers logged in to Instacart, the grocery-shopping app, to buy eggs and test a hypothesis.
Connected by videoconference, they simultaneously selected the same store — a Safeway in Washington, D.C. — and the same brand of eggs. They all chose pickup rather than delivery.
The only difference was the price they were offered: $3.99 for a couple of lucky shoppers. $4.59 or $4.69 for others. And a few saw a price of $4.79 — 20 percent more than some others, for the exact same product.
The shoppers were volunteers, participating in a study published on Tuesday and organized by the Groundwork Collaborative, a progressive policy group, and Consumer Reports, a nonprofit consumer publication. In tests in four cities across the country, nearly 200 volunteers checked prices on 20 grocery items on Instacart.
On item after item, they found significant differences. In a Target in North Canton, Ohio, some shoppers were charged $3.59 for a jar of Skippy peanut butter that others could get for $2.99. At a Safeway in Seattle, some people paid $3.99 for a box of Wheat Thins while others paid $4.89. And at a Target in St. Paul, Minn., some people were charged $4.59 for a box of Cheerios that others could get for $3.99.
“Two shoppers who are buying the exact same item from the exact same store at the exact same time are getting different prices,” said Lindsay Owens, executive director of the Groundwork Collaborative. “The data really backs up how extraordinarily pervasive this is.”
(...)
Groundwork’s findings are the latest example of how the notion of a single price, offered to all customers for a predictable period, is breaking down in the digital age. Companies are using sophisticated algorithms to adjust prices quickly in response to competitors’ offers and consumer behavior."https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/09/business/instacart-algorithmic-pricing.html
#USA #AlgorithmicPricing #DynamicPricing #Insatacart #Inflation #Algorithms
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
dogzilla@masto.deluma.biz wrote:
Paramount X/Twitter Account Hacked to Read 'Proud Arm of the Fascist Regime' https://variety.com/2025/film/news/paramount-x-account-hacked-proud-arm-of-the-fascist-regime-1236604676/
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
Smalljones@triangletoot.party ("Smalljones aka Paul Jones") wrote:
Now hear this, Robert Zimmerman
Though I don't suppose we'll meet
Ask your good friend Dylan
If he'd gaze a while down the old street
Tell him we've lost his poems
So we're writing on the walls
Give us back our unity
Give us back our family
You're every nation's refugee
Don't leave us with their sanity
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
w3cdevs@w3c.social ("W3C Developers") wrote:
RE: https://w3c.social/@w3cdevs/115578897978811221
📢 Help shape the future of Web architecture! @w3c is seeking input from the wider community for appointing two (2) individuals to the @tag.
▶️ Nominate yourself and/or others by January 5, 2026 at nomination@w3.org!
The TAG needs a well-balanced mix of skills. It currently lacks expertise in #CSS/UX/GPU/#media, needs of users in less-wealthy regions (such as South America, Africa, and non-CJK Asia), and non-male perspectives.
Read more: https://www.w3.org/blog/2025/w3c-seeking-community-input-for-tag-appointments/
Please share!
pzmyers@freethought.online ("pzmyers 🕷") wrote:
The supply line was temporarily broken, but breakfast is served once again.
https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2025/12/11/famine-fears-allayed/
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
wdlindsy@toad.social ("William Lindsey :toad:") wrote:
"Donald Trump launched a new program that will allow wealthy foreign individuals to buy a US 'golden visa' for $1m, and trailed a 'platinum' version for $5m.
'A direct path to Citizenship for all qualified and vetted people. SO EXCITING! Our Great American Companies can finally keep their invaluable Talent,' Trump wrote on Wednesday on social media."
~ Marina Dunbar
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/dec/10/trump-us-gold-card-visa-launch
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
CNN@flipboard.com wrote:
WA Mayor says biggest obstacle to storm response is ‘getting accurate, timely information’
https://www.cnn.com/us/video/wa-mayor-says-biggest-obstacle-to-storm-response-is-getting-accurate-timely-information?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypubPosted into US News @us-news-CNN
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
sundogplanets ("Prof. Sam Lawler") wrote:
One of the scariest parts of this project was learning more about Starlink's orbital operations. I had always assumed they had some kind of clever configuration of the satellites in the orbital shell that minimized conjunctions, and we would see the number of conjunctions grow over time in our simulations. But no! It's just random! There's no magic here, it's just avoiding collisions by moving a Starlink satellite every 2 minutes. This is bad.
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
propublicaguild@union.place ("ProPublica Guild") wrote:
Hello Fedi 👋 We are the workers at America's biggest investigative newsroom. We've been bargaining for our first contract for the past two years. Follow us for updates on our campaign to improve our workplace!
https://www.propublicaguild.org
jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:
oops
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
wdlindsy@toad.social ("William Lindsey :toad:") wrote:
"Ultimately, Donald Trump’s effort to solve his political problem is doomed to fail because he’s Donald Trump. To solve the problem of high prices, Trump has to acknowledge it. And to acknowledge the problem of high prices would be to admit a measure of failure.
In his eight decades on this planet, there is no evidence that Trump has the capacity to admit fault."
#Trump #economy #affordability #inflation #groceries #prices
/2
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
MaryAustinBooks@mstdn.social ("Scary Austin VOTED 4 HARRIS!") wrote:
I'm starting to think the far right can't govern.
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
evan@cosocial.ca ("Evan Prodromou") wrote:
When did you last read a book about history?
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
tacocrepe@mastodon.gamedev.place ("tacocrepe🍀") wrote:
Calling all office nerds 😎 the Office Mimics are now available (for free) in my Kofi! These are a set of .ico files to customize your folder/program icons with!
https://www.ko-fi.com/s/3683ca94cb
These were super fun to make, hope you have fun customizing your desktop using these!
Attachments:
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
Ulfh3dnar wrote:
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte:
"Russia has brought war back to Europe, and we must be prepared for the scale of war our grandparents and great-grandparents endured."
Attachments:
- video: 681e79868821b01a.mp4
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
faraiwe@mstdn.social ("Faraiwe") wrote:
The United States now has militarized zones within CONUS, nilly willy, on the regular (...), as if we were some shithole third world country in the throes of a civil war.
ICE/CBP is a fully fledged INVASION PARAMILITARY FORCE, stomping on the Constitution and every civil right ever warranted by the rule of Law in the US.
#TurdReich #CBP #ICE #nazi #gestapo #tRump #GOP #MAGAts #USPol
jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:
in just a year 👍
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
EuromaidanPress ("Euromaidan Press") wrote:
From 2025, every Finnish conscript will be trained to fly drones, drop bombs, and intercept enemy UAVs.
“We’re acting in time,” says Army Chief Välimäki. No drone corps — these skills are going into all units.
https://euromaidanpress.com/2025/12/11/finland-makes-drone-training-compulsory-for-all-new-soldiers/
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
artelse ("Arthur Elsenaar") wrote:
Having invested in some really good pliers for electronic work, I was shocked the tip snapped off while cutting the leg of a defect triac. I sent an email to the Lindström company and got a free replacement for the 8145 model. They also asked for the return of the broken one for quality inspection. Great #customer #service #warranty!
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
kristiedegaris@mastodon.scot ("Kristie") wrote:
A GENTLE PSA
Getting sick doesn’t do what you might think it does.
Viruses can only create new variants when they spread. More infections = more replication = more mutations = more chances for a fitter, more evasive strain to appear.
Very few viruses give lifelong immunity. Most immunity to viruses fades, and with high levels of transmission, new variants appear often. That’s why we keep getting sick.
Getting sick doesn’t fix the problem. It drives it.
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
gutenberg_org ("Project Gutenberg") wrote:
In Praise of E. H. Shepard’s Illustrations
What makes Pooh Pooh? The answer lies not only in author A.A. Milne’s prose, but also in the quiet genius of E. H. Shepard’s original illustrations. With Shepard’s work now in the public domain, it’s the perfect opportunity to revisit how these deceptively simple drawings became cultural touchstones.
by Sterling Dudley
https://blog.archive.org/2025/12/10/e-h-shepards-illustrations/
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
moira@mastodon.murkworks.net ("Solarbird :flag_cascadia:") wrote:
Y'know, if you haven't read this fascist United States National Security Strategy that the Trump/Vance MAGA state department put out, you really should. It's short, as such things go.
I mean, they're literally and in words not just reviving but extending the Monroe Doctrine to commercial activities and "control" and/or "ownership of key assets." What's happening in Venezuela is absolutely an extension of Section II, subsection 2, paragraph 2, bullet point 1.
This document is an imperialist nightmare.
It's also chock-full of culture war shit. But naturally, the Project 2025 crowd would consider "traditional families" to be a _matter of national security_.
db@social.lol ("David Bushell ☕") wrote:
"Welcome to the world of React Forever" https://johan.hal.se/wrote/2025/12/11/retrofuture/
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
metacurity@infosec.exchange ("Metacurity") wrote:
SentinelLabs' Dakota Cary linked Yu Yang and Qiu Daibing, two alleged members of the Chinese state hacking group, to participants of the 2012 Cisco Networking Academy Cup.
https://www.theregister.com/2025/12/11/salt%5Ftyphoon%5Fcisco%5Ftraining/
Boosted by fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻"):
malicethegray@cyberpunk.lol wrote:
you got this part right tho
The kind of thing you're talking about requires significant build up politically
so let's start building it up
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
thejapantimes ("The Japan Times") wrote:
U.S. President Donald Trump is targeting nonwhite immigrants to America in renewed xenophobic rants using a phrase that had sparked an outcry during his first term. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/12/11/world/politics/trump-immigrant-countries-rant/?utm%5Fmedium=Social&utm%5Fsource=mastodon #worldnews #politics #donaldtrump #immigration #unitedstates
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
stux@mstdn.social ("stux⚡") wrote:
:nkoWave: Hello and a good meowing everyone! :blobcatsnuggle: :blobcathearts: Have a most wonderful day and stay safe! 😸♥️
Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
w7voa@journa.host ("Steve Herman") wrote:
Burna junta aircraft dropped two 500-pound bombs on Mrauk-U General Hospital, resulting in dozens of casualties. https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/hospital-massacre-in-mrauk-u-junta-airstrike-kills-33-injures-76.html
Boosted by ChrisWere@toot.wales ("Chris Were ⁂🐧🌱☕"):
Jes@labyrinth.zone ("Jes - Hedgehog Edition ") wrote:
tbh people shit on devices that take AA or AAA batteries but I think they're wrong. use rechargeables, you get both replaceable batteries and rechargeable ones. if the battery life sucks then Phillips has lithium rechargeable.








