Tough winter chills home sales

Real estate agent Lara Gordon found this week that just putting up a sign for a Cambridge home on Franklin Street was a challenge.

Lane Turner/Globe Staff

Agents report that the number of properties for sale are down nearly 60 percent in Somerville and Cambridge.

The Massachusetts open records law has been weakened by decisions made by Secretary of State William Galvin, writes Thomas Farragher.

THOMAS FARRAGHER

Records law in tatters

Under Secretary of State Bill Galvin, the wall around the state?s public records has gradually grown higher.

A Boston College graduate alleges that the university rushed to find the student responsible of sexual assault and deprived him of a fair hearing.

BC faces lawsuit over handling of sexual assault case

A lawsuit says Boston College rushed to find the student responsible of sexual assault and deprived him of a fair hearing.

Handout

Group wants Olympic backers to scrap Common plan

The organization that maintains the Boston Common and the Public Garden has a message for Boston 2024: Stay off of our lawns.

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/03/13/BostonGlobe.com/BCOM/Images/2014-12-17T032837Z_631908431_NOCID_RTRMADP_3_OLYMPICS-USOC-PRESS-CONFERENCE.jpg Boston?s Olympic bid still on track, USOC says

Boston 2024 has had a bumpy start, but the US Olympic Committee predicted the public will grow more comfortable with the plans.

Knights of Columbus pull out of St. Patrick?s Day Parade

The Catholic fraternal organization said that the event had ?become politicized and divisive.?

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/03/13/BostonGlobe.com/Metro/Images/prison.jpg Criminals give tips on how to prevent housebreaks

In a video from the Barnstable County Sheriff?s Office, prison inmates give advice on keeping thieves out of your home.

Winchester High student allegedly compiled ?hit list?

The student, who was not identified, made a list of classmates that he said he wished to harm, police said.

Steward?s operating losses doubled in 2013

The for-profit hospital chain more than doubled its operating losses to $55 million in 2013, documents show.

Mix of snow and rain to hit Mass. this weekend

The storm will be followed by unseasonably cold temperatures next week.

An inbound Framingham/Worcester line train was jammed on Friday, a common condition across the system.
Jonathan Medeiros, usually a commuter rail cheerleader, is going to try driving next month.

Kayana Szymczak for the Boston Globe

Keolis statistics don?t tell the whole commuting story

Keolis is not lying. But it is being selective about which statistics it publicizes as it recovers from recent snowstorms.

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/03/14/BostonGlobe.com/National/Images/bush150-1201.jpg Rusty but resolute, Bush back on the trail in N.H.

Jeb Bush?s first visit was an important early test in his quest to become his family?s third member to occupy the Oval Office.

Finding escape from daily grind in meditation

Today mindfulness techniques help patients cope with cancer, high blood pressure, or just the everyday strains of modern life.

Travel

Book a Boston hotel for the day?no overnight bag needed

It?s a burgeoning category of lodging: Check in at 9 a.m., check out at 5 p.m., and pay as much as 70 percent less than for an overnight stay.

Mike Spillane/Globe Staff

Boston math lovers ready for rare Pi Day

The date, 3/14/15, matches up with the first five numbers that represent the ratio of a circle?s circumference to its diameter.

Cyclone Pam roiled waves and scattered debris along the coast in the Vanuatu capital of Port Vila.

Cyclone Pam leaves trail of destruction in Pacific?s Vanuatu

Winds were beginning to subside Saturday, revealing widespread destruction and reports of dozens of deaths.

credit Wesley Bedrosian love spray2

health

Can a hormonal nasal spray help with weight loss?

It turns out that taking a sniff of a nasal spray containing the ?love? hormone oxytocin could be an effective appetite suppressant.

Buffalo Bills tight end Scott Chandler (84) catches a pass between New England Patriots outside linebacker Jamie Collins (91) and defensive end Rob Ninkovich (50) in the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

PATRIOTS NOTEBOOK

Patriots sign former Bills tight end Scott Chandler

Chandler, 29, had 182 receptions in his four-plus years with the Bills and will add depth at the position in New England.

Brazilian model Gisele Bundchen wears a creation from the Colcci Winter collection during the Sao Paulo Fashion Week in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)

names

Gisele Bundchen abandoning the runway?

The supermodel is telling people that her stroll down the runway at next month?s São Paulo Fashion Week will be her last.

A bride in India tested her groom on his math skills; when he answered wrong, she walked out.

Bride in India walks out of wedding after groom fails math test

The bride tested the groom on his math skills, asking: How much is 15 plus six? His reply: 17.

Marathon trial podcast

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/02/28/BostonGlobe.com/Special/Advance/Images/podcast.jpg Days 5 & 6: The fourth murder and a carjacking victim?s harrowing account

This interactive timeline highlights trial coverage and a podcast featuring Globe columnist Kevin Cullen and WBUR reporter David Boeri.

Opinion

David D?Alessandro

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/03/13/BostonGlobe.com/EditorialOpinion/Images/c470a845b42b4bfda551508ad9ebc4a4-c470a845b42b4bfda551508ad9ebc4a4-0.jpg Fixing the MBTA falls on Beacon Hill?s ?Big Three?

Governor Baker, House Speaker DeLeo, and Senate President Rosenberg are the ones who will need to come up with the plan to fix the T.

The Big Picture

Abd Doumany/AFP/Getty Images

The big picture

Children of war

Some fear that living amid severe violence will permanently scar the young generation in Syria and Iraq.