gigastacey
@gigastacey.bsky.social
Recovering tech journalist and IoT expert who now works on cybersecurity, IoT, and right to repair for Consumer Reports.
Today on Volts: public EV charging isn't as fraught an experience as it was just a few years ago, but it's still not great. A new company - a collab among 8 major automakers - seeks to change that, with reliable, fast chargers accompanied by amenities. I talk with the CEO.
Can public EV chargers be as reliable as gas stations?
A conversation with Seth Cutler of IONNA.
volts.wtf
EV charging for long trips is predatory and frustrating. There should be a pre-disclosed fee based on kilowatt hours. Tap to pay. There should be no need for an app, subscriptions, or weird fees. And we need laws so companies can charge per kWh without becoming providers if that's the issue.
for a junk drawer to legally qualify as a real junk drawer, what is the ONE absolute mandatory item it must include? Two or more types of tape. One should be painters or masking tape.
Cyd Harrell@cydharrell.bsky.social · last wk.for a junk drawer to legally qualify as a real junk drawer, what is the ONE absolute mandatory item it must include? some kind of thermometer - oven, candy, baby, doesn't matter - but a thermometer
I have not been a fan of Uber, especially after its hardcore tactics to sway elections, but I did use it in a pinch. After reading how they are defending themselves against sexual assault allegations, I will never use it again. And I encourage everyone to delete Uber. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/04/b...
Uber’s Strategy for Fighting Sexual Assault Suits: ‘What Were You Wearing?’
The ride-hailing giant promised to handle legal claims “in a way that is best for the survivor.” Its lawyers are pursuing a far more aggressive strategy.
nytimes.com
Hello my Seattle-area friends! I will be at City Hall for a rally in favor of Seattle's plan to ban surveillance pricing in grocery stores if anyone wants to sign up and/or come by. The rally is Friday at 8:45 at the lobby in City Hall. action.consumerreports.org/20260807rsvp...
Support a Seattle Surveillance Pricing Ban!
action.consumerreports.org
Y'all! Weber is cutting the software tether associated with my beloved June oven on Sept. 22. After this point the oven will no longer have a backend server connection, so I will lose app functionality and will no longer get updates to the cooking programs. But Weber is handling this well.
I unlocked a new level on my dog! I hope she likes it as much as we do.
I cross-referenced my database of candidates against credible voter fraud cases. GOP politicians are implicated at 50x–38,000x the general public's rate. Yet even if every American voted with the integrity of a GOP candidate, it still wouldn't come close to justifying making voting one iota harder.
Given the lack of details provided by Taylor Farms thus far, Consumer Reports' food safety experts are advising folks in the 27 states implicated by the recall to discard ALL iceberg lettuce until we know more about where the parasite-linked products ended up www.consumerreports.org/health/food-...
“women in social science have long practiced and promoted principles now hailed as innovative, although their contributions are often left out of mainstream narratives”
Nate Breznau@breznaunate.bsky.social · 4w ago@maddipow.bsky.social this is fantastic work for the #openscience community helping bring important parts of its history(ies) to light journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
I knew they were misogynistic a-holes, but I had no idea of their actual crimes. The New Yorker article opened my eyes. It was also something that I wish I could unlearn. I know men like that are terrible, I didn't want to be hyper focused on how terrible. It was great journalism.
Professa Murray@kalimurray.bsky.social · 4w agoThe fact that VP JD Vance and Richard Grenell went to Romania—on behalf of the Trump Administration— to advocate for Andrew and Tristan Tate, who by all accounts, were rapists running a coercive sex ring, then permitted them to come to Florida, should be a crazy, crazy scandal.
Useful and also enraging thread about how Taylor Farms is doing the bare minimum on its lettuce recall. Being cagey about your parasite-infected lettuce should have consequences.
paris martineau@paris.nyc · 4w agoNew: Late last night, Taylor Farms quietly posted an official recall notice We now know that the parasite-linked iceberg lettuce was shipped to Walmart & food distributors in 27 (!) states It was for some reason still being sent out up until Thursday July 16 www.consumerreports.org/health/food-...
Stop scrolling and post two characters who bring you happiness.
Liz Sepper@lsepper.bsky.social · 4w agoStop scrolling and post two characters who bring you happiness.
I accidentally taught my dog that the touch command means she finds my open palm and licks it instead of booping it with her nose. I now need to teach a new "boop"command because licking is not optimal.
If you'd like some escapist reading this week, I enjoyed Fonda Lee's Last Contract of Isako about a menopausal samurai /corporate baddie solving a mystery on a corporate-controlled ice planet. The corporate dystopia did not offer an escape nor did her accurate complaints about achy knees.
I was interviewed about a broken Logitech mouse and had the chance to explain how we are losing the ability to own our products on a recent episode of @hyperfixedpod.bsky.social It's a great example of how connectivity sneaks into everything. www.hyperfixedpod.com/listen/hyper...
Hyperfixed | A Story About a Mouse That’s Actually About Everything
hyperfixedpod.com
Cool project to open up Whoop trackers for local use. hackaday.com/2026/07/15/m...
By 2029, even if I never raise another dime, we’ll have awarded $500,000 in scholarships to formerly incarcerated women and daughters of incarcerated parents. My daddy would be so proud of me. All we’ve done in his name. Incredible. ThurmanPerryFoundation.org
Physical discs come with more ownership rights than their digital equivalent— and that needs to change. www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...
Sony Nerfs Videogame Ownership
Playstation’s decision to kill physical game discs is the latest attack on our diminishing rights to access and engage with culture digitally. Rent-seeking corporations and negligent lawmakers share
eff.org
Derek Mobley applied for more than 100 jobs. Every one rejected him. Samonne Montgomery uses the resulting lawsuit against Workday to ask the question courts are now forcing: who owns an automated hiring decision?
Assigning Responsibility When AI Discriminates Against Job Applicants
As AI systems become more ubiquitous in hiring, courts are beginning to answer the question that policy keeps postponing: who owns an automated decision?
buff.ly
a lot of individual opposition so far to the SEC proposal that would permit companies traded on US markets to report financial results two times each year instead of four, although some companies, like ExxonMobil, clearly support it www.sec.gov/rules-regula...
SEC.gov | Comments on Proposed Rule on Semiannual Reporting
sec.gov
I've spent about 5 hours trying to close a Twilio account that I thought I closed back in 2020. It suddenly started charging me again (I cannot figure out what for since I don't use any Twilio services and haven't for 6 years). I have to pay to get a real person to help. This should be illegal.
The U.S. and a bunch of partners are reiterating warnings to critical infrastructure organizations about Russian government hackers exploiting vulnerabilities in edge devices like routers: media.defense.gov/2026/Jul/09/...
Good morning Puget Sound. Love starting the morning with a 🚢 ride.
A man with NO criminal history was shot and killed by ICE. As far as I'm concerned, Trump's DHS Secretary should get hauled in front of Congress to answer for every shooting. We need a Congressional majority that will push for real answers and accountability. This cannot stand.
Son says he identified his father by his cries after fatal Houston ICE shooting
After hearing his father's cries for help in a Facebook video, a Houston man learned that Lorenzo Salgado Araujo had been killed during an ICE operation.
houstonchronicle.com
"…as of July 2025, the CDC made tracking cyclospora optional, as part of scaling back its Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network. At the time, food safety experts worried that it could make it harder to identify and respond to outbreaks."
Bruno J. Navarro@brunojnavarro.bsky.social · last mo.The demand for tests for cyclosporiasis, a pathogen often caused by contaminated fresh produce, is so intense, with so many patients seeking help for diarrhea and crippling abdominal cramps, that many labs can’t keep up.
Doing a vibe check and making sure everything is ready for the USA vs Belgium match at Seattle Stadium. Vibes are immaculate and everything is ready to rock! Check out all the action on pnsn.org here: buff.ly/BEJqFSa #SportsSeismology #WorldCup2026
