Lifestyle stories from The Boston Globe
Reflection for the day ™
"I’ve always been most taken with art and literature that gives a vigorous shake to my sense of what’s real and important." -- Brian Greene
New England sending a crowd to climate talks
Last spring, when many people were still only dimly aware of the world climate summit planned for Copenhagen, Josh Minney, a Northeastern University senior, stayed up much of the night writing a paper justifying why he should be allowed to go. He spent months after that trying to raise money and plotting details of a trip he felt could be ...
Wendy Cadge discusses religion in the halls of medicine
Wendy Cadge is fascinated by the intersection of religion and medicine. The 33-year-old Brandeis University sociologist has spent years walking the halls of hospitals, interviewing physicians, nurses, and chaplains, and analyzing the offerings, often written on scraps of paper, that people tuck into hospital prayer books - she calls them snippets of the intimate conversations people have with God. Cadge’s ...
Climate talks progress, but hurdles remain
By offering concrete emission targets, China and the United States have resuscitated global climate talks that were headed toward an impasse. But the details that have yet to be resolved suggest that a political deal remains a heavy lift for the 192 countries set to convene in Copenhagen in little more than a week.
Brace yourself, Boston
Sea level rise from climate change could jeopardize assets worth $463 billion in Boston.
Remodeled Star Market well-stocked with innovative green technologies
Cash registers, exit signs, even the soda machines - they all glow at the renovated Star Market in Chestnut Hill, but without using a lot of energy.
Room and coed board
With crunch time approaching for millions of students to complete college applications, there is a relatively new wild card issue for families to consider when it comes to campus lifestyle. In the space of a few years, three dozen major schools have adopted dormitory policies allowing roommates to be of the opposite sex.
What is it that makes a person interesting?
SEATTLE - We had just explored the Olympic Sculpture Park at the edge of Puget Sound, with works by Alexander Calder, Claes Oldenburg, Richard Serra, and Louise Nevelson, including an amazing giant cedar log inside a climate-controlled greenhouse, covered with plants and mosses to reproduce the process of forest decay, in which the viewers are said to be part of ...
Bedwetting issue solved, but with side effects
Q. I am a 16-year-old girl who still wets the bed. I have tried everything from wearing an alarm to taking medication.
Many older youths bypass city’s facilities for allure of streets
The music couldn’t start fast enough for the giddy 8-year-olds in leotards and ponytails as they took their places and waited before a wall of mirrors.
Families of twins and triplets flock to holiday party in Brockton
Anna, Alicenne, and Emily Gay - all 2 1/2 - plunked down by a banquet table next to their mother and more than 400 other twins, triplets, siblings, and parents at the holiday party.
Is there a delicate way of saying, ‘Get home to bed!’
Dr. Lauren Smith calls it the “Scarlet F.’’ F as in flu. And as this season of swine flu trudges forward - with run-of-the-mill influenza hot on its heels - employers and workers alike are navigating the treacherous terrain of how you encourage hacking, sniffling, wheezing colleagues to retreat to their homes and stay there until they’re better.
Is the birth control pill safe?
Q. I’ve heard about lawsuits concerning certain birth control pills. How do I know if the pill I’m taking is safe?
Dieting and quitting smoking
Smokers who know they should quit for their health often balk because they don’t want to gain weight - and a new health problem - once cigarettes’ appetite-suppressing nicotine leaves their bodies. Quitting smoking while starting a weight-control program may seem like a recipe for failure, and guidelines for doctors discourage embarking on both simultaneously. But a new analysis suggests ...
Quincy moving on master plan to polish Faxon Park
The Quincy City Council has adopted a master plan designed to turn neglected Faxon Park into an urban treasure.
State wrapping up long-range plan to manage Beaver Brook Reservation
The state is wrapping up plans for managing the recently expanded Beaver Brook Reservation, 360 acres in Belmont, Lexington, and Waltham that officials say constitute the largest protected state park inside Route 128.
Festival of Trees raises funds for hospice
More than 20 years ago, Marion Wilson-Gruzalski endured heartbreak few can imagine with the death of three children, two from lung disease and one in a gas explosion. With each death, Wilson-Gruzalski, then of Pembroke, said she found no support for herself or her family.
What you see of your town is a snapshot
I grew up in Randolph when it was a cow town, when there were dirt roads and empty lots and woods that stretched for miles.
Excuses from door maker are bunch of rot
Q. We have spent the last three years renovating a 1903 Arts and Crafts home. Several doors and many exterior wooden round columns had to be replaced. All items were prepped per manufacturer’s directions, including tarring the interior and cut edges of the columns, then primed and painted. The columns were painted tan; the doors and bases Essex Green, a ...
Sunday’s Child is David, 12
Hi! My name is David, and I love to snowboard and swim. David is 12, and a boy to whom curiosity comes naturally. At home in the outdoors, he loves to kayak, swim, camp, garden, and build. He likes to catch birds and and butterflies and research their natural histories, then let them go. He loves animals and can be ...