The Scope

Pilot of retrofitted electric street light at 212 Stuart St. in Bay Village.

Boston to switch its 2,800 gas lamps to LEDs

Emily Niedermeyer, Reporter March 24, 2023

Boston’s 2,800 natural gas street lights, which populate the neighborhoods of Beacon Hill, Back Bay and Bay Village, are a historic part of the city. These traditional lights, however, may not stay gas-fueled...

Boston, MA: Feb. 24, 2023 — In February, many of the stalls at the Somerville Winter Farmers Market look like this one: packed with locally-sourced seasonal root vegetables like carrots, parsnip, daikon and radishes. As climate change influences agriculture practices in the area, farmers may see a shift in their harvest and the produce it yields.

Boston-area farmers find solutions for unusually warm winter

Elisabeth Hadjis, Assistant Editor March 21, 2023

On a sunny February weekend in Somerville’s historic Armory building, the Winter Farmers Market is in full swing. Every Saturday from November to April, the community gathers here to stock up on food...

Boston faces a shortage of medical interpreters

Boston faces a shortage of medical interpreters

Wenxuan Fan, Reporter March 17, 2023

  Read this story in Mandarin As immigration to Boston increases, the need for medical interpreters intensifies. "There's a growing need at this time in Boston right now," said Lisa Morris,...

Mural outside Cargill Hall at Northeastern University.

Mental health apps: Are they providing college students with adequate care?

Melissa Rejuan , Reporter March 10, 2023

When Lisbeth Martinez, a second-year student at Northeastern University, struggled to find a therapist in Boston, she turned to mental health apps as an alternative, but found that they didn't do enough...

Earlier this year, the American Academy of Pediatrics released its first new set of guidelines for treating obesity in children in 15 years. Photo licensed under Unsplash.

Physicians and body positivity advocates consider the impacts of new childhood obesity treatment guidelines

Antonia Sousa, Reporter March 8, 2023

New guidance regarding pediatric obesity and its lasting effects on mental and physical health could have an impact on the quality of life of children across the country.  On Jan. 9, the American...

[VIDEO] This nonprofit in Jamaica Plain is pushing to change the healthcare industry through food

Shuang Jing and Elijah Nicholson-Messmer March 2, 2023

Nutrition is important, but could food actually serve as medicine for people with chronic illnesses? Community Servings, a nonprofit organization located in Jamaica Plain, thinks it can.  Community...

What the last 3 years of AAPI hate looked like in Massachusetts

Elijah Nicholson-Messmer and Ziyu Peng February 28, 2023

  "There is an overall general sentiment of fear,” said Quincy City Councilor Nina Liang. “As an AAPI resident here in the city, just in general, there's been a lot of animosity towards the...

An iceberg from the Columbia Glacier in Prince William Sound, Alaska. Melting permafrost is releasing into the atmosphere ancient eukaryotic viruses that have been dormant for 48,500 years. Scientists are debating the potential risk these viruses pose for humans. Photo by Melissa Bradley is licensed on Unsplash.

Scientists grapple with a possible new consequence of climate change: ‘Zombie’ viruses

Rachel Umansky-Castro, Reporter February 24, 2023

Scientists fear too much damage has already been done by the impact of climate change, and there’s no turning back: “zombie” viruses are coming back to life.   The Earth’s climate has...

The free Route 23 bus arrives at Ruggles Station. This is one of the most active lines in the whole system and has been fare-free for almost a year.

Transit activists celebrate anniversary of fare-free buses, call for expansion

Ben Crawley, Reporter February 22, 2023

Boston is almost halfway through a two-year pilot program that made the Route 23 and 29 buses free, and advocates and riders alike have lauded the program. Some are now calling for more lines to become...

Boston, Massachusetts - Jan. 27, 2023: Student artist Sophia Vaz places her newly-made artwork on one of the walls for the Stories that Make Us exhibit, which recently opened at the Teen Gallery of the Institute of Contemporary Art Studio in Seaport. The space was filled with pre-made art plus, as the night evolved, immigrant teenagers of diverse backgrounds worked on small 3x3 mirrors using colorful markers to tell  stories of their new lives in the U.S.

New exhibit at Teen Gallery celebrates the immigrant experience

Desirée Vignola-Hung, Reporter February 20, 2023

Spotlights of pink and white illuminated the walls of the Institute of Contemporary Art, or ICA, Seaport Studio. They shined on the soon-to-be-placed artwork from teens throughout the Greater Boston area....

Coats hanging in Caties Closet  distribution center in Dracut, MA. Photo courtesy of Caties Closet.

Free clothing organizations in Boston work to help children thrive in school

Cassidy McNeeley , Reporter February 16, 2023

When teachers send out student supply lists at the end of each summer, they ask for pencils and paper, but kids need more than just academic supplies to attend school. In locations like Boston, where...

Boston: Jan. 17, 2023 -- Protesters across the street from the East Boston Substation site. Protesters were out daily for a week in January to oppose the construction of the project.

Protests continue as Eversource breaks ground on the Eastie Substation

Elisabeth Hadjis, Assistant Editor February 10, 2023

As Eversource makes progress on the construction of a controversial Eagle Hill substation, tension surrounding the project is growing, and so is police presence. In response, on the morning of Jan. 25,...

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