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2+ hour, 37+ min ago (624+ words) While the City of Boston has pushed for an increase in electric-assist bicycles, citing sustainability and accessibility benefits, some residents and advocates are voicing safety concerns." Following the introduction of e-bikes to the Bluebikes system in 2023 and the launch of a City-led incentive program aimed at reducing the cost of e-bikes last year, more Boston residents are relying on e-bikes for transportation than ever before." There were more than 4.7 million total Bluebikes trips reported in 2024, a 1 million rise from the previous year, according to a 2025 study by A Better City. The study found 1.2 million of last year's trips were made on e-bikes." Bluebikes' introduction of 750 new e-bikes throughout 2023 and 2024 played a major role in increasing the number of monthly trips in recent years, according to the study." "The technology advances have allowed it to become more affordable and more accessible…...

2+ hour, 40+ min ago (696+ words) The infiltration of AI in Boston's recruitment industry has sparked debate surrounding the risks of streamlined application processes and dwindling human involvement." Luca Piekarski, a junior at Boston University and chief operating officer of Ascendia, a startup utilizing AI to help people find internships and jobs, said "pretty much everyone" he knows is using AI in some form to apply for positions. Piekarski said Ascendia helps people make the most of AI when creating job application materials. "We're trying to go beyond just the current precedent of automating the [application process]," he said. "We're really trying to make a tool that allows you to create a better resume, learn the actual best path forward to get a job you actually want, not just help you spam job applications." Bullhorn is a Boston-headquartered company that provides AI-driven software to over 10,000 staffing…...

3+ hour, 15+ min ago (1267+ words) The Trump administration appointed two temporary judges with minimal to no experience in immigration law to the overburdened Chelmsford court in October. The appointments follow the removal and departure of multiple experienced judges, a move lawyers suggest was politically motivated." The federal government gutted immigration courts nationwide after firing hundreds of judges in a matter of months despite a backlog of millions of pending cases. In the Chelmsford Immigration Court, which opened in 2024 to alleviate a backlog of over 100,000 cases in the Boston court, more than half of its judges were fired or resigned. Many of those judges had years of experience in immigration law." Todd Pomerleau, an immigration and criminal defense lawyer in Boston, said the mass departure of judges brought the court to a "standstill" amid federal deportation efforts. "It really conflicts with the narrative about trying to…...

3+ hour, 21+ min ago (696+ words) The infiltration of AI in Boston's recruitment industry has sparked debate surrounding the risks of streamlined application processes and dwindling human involvement." Luca Piekarski, a junior at Boston University and chief operating officer of Ascendia, a startup utilizing AI to help people find internships and jobs, said "pretty much everyone" he knows is using AI in some form to apply for positions. Piekarski said Ascendia helps people make the most of AI when creating job application materials. "We're trying to go beyond just the current precedent of automating the [application process]," he said. "We're really trying to make a tool that allows you to create a better resume, learn the actual best path forward to get a job you actually want, not just help you spam job applications." Bullhorn is a Boston-headquartered company that provides AI-driven software to over 10,000 staffing…...

3+ hour, 24+ min ago (624+ words) While the City of Boston has pushed for an increase in electric-assist bicycles, citing sustainability and accessibility benefits, some residents and advocates are voicing safety concerns." Following the introduction of e-bikes to the Bluebikes system in 2023 and the launch of a City-led incentive program aimed at reducing the cost of e-bikes last year, more Boston residents are relying on e-bikes for transportation than ever before." There were more than 4.7 million total Bluebikes trips reported in 2024, a 1 million rise from the previous year, according to a 2025 study by A Better City. The study found 1.2 million of last year's trips were made on e-bikes." Bluebikes' introduction of 750 new e-bikes throughout 2023 and 2024 played a major role in increasing the number of monthly trips in recent years, according to the study." "The technology advances have allowed it to become more affordable and more accessible…...

3+ hour, 34+ min ago (1096+ words) Just weeks before the start of her senior year, Mary Haddad was suspended from Boston University for one year for her involvement in a BU Students for Justice in Palestine rally and sit-in. Haddad, who was suspended in August for allegedly assaulting a BU Police Department officer at a sit-in at BU administrative offices in March, said she found the news shocking." "I hate not being prepared for things. I really hate it," she said. "Having no idea what the next year was going to look like " was very nerve wracking." Haddad was an active and vocal member of SJP, the group which has since disaffiliated and renamed itself the Quinobequin Student Front For Palestine. Before her suspension, Haddad said she helped the group organize and was responsible for political education." SJP held an "emergency rally" March 5, which Haddad attended,…...

3+ hour, 38+ min ago (629+ words) A group of Boston University professors rallied in front of the 1 Silber Way entrance Thursday to protest the University administration's request for a faculty member to remove a pride flag from their office window along with its budget management." Battenfield said she viewed the administration's directive to remove the flag as an attempt to silence speech supporting LGBTQ+." Faculty and staff reported requests from the administration to remove public-facing pride flags as part of the school's signage policy in September. The policy, which was updated last fall, states that unattended placards, banners or other signs are not permitted unless their location has been previously approved." Battenfeld said BU administration's request for the flag's removal prior to the Board of Trustees arriving on campus is "clearly a targeted illegal application of the flag policy." "[The policy] has already been problematic back…...

3+ hour, 38+ min ago (631+ words) For decades, scientists have assumed no matter how strong or dense any plastic is, gas molecules will eventually slip through. A new "molecularly impermeable" plastic invented by a team of researchers, including several from Boston University, has broken that assumption. In a recent study published Nov. 12, researchers from BU, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Texas at Austin and the National Institute of Standards and Technology reported synthesizing two-dimensional polyaramids, or 2DPA-1, a new class of plastics with no gaps for molecules to pass through. A 2DPA-1 layer a few nanometers thick, 1,000 times smaller than a human hair, can block gases for over three years without a single leak, making it 10,000 times more effective at blocking gases than any other plastic." Scott Bunch, associate professor in BU's College of Engineering and co-senior author of the study, said plastics are made up of…...

3+ hour, 39+ min ago (780+ words) After the trees shed their leaves and the Charles River turns to ice, Boston opens its gates to a winter wonderland situated in the Seaport District, attracting thousands of visitors each day " the Snowport Holiday Market. The market, which started in 2021, provides a winter home for over 125 vendors from small, local businesses to established chains, offering a variety of goods, including art, jewelry, food and clothing." Though businesses pay thousands to rent a booth at Snowport, with some spending about $27,000, many vendors said their commercial success outweighs this cost, according to Boston.com. Naughty Waffle, which owns four locations across Massachusetts and Rhode Island, sells waffles topped with different spreads, fruits and nuts. It's been a vendor at Snowport since the market first started four years ago. Bora Kara, the business's co-founder and owner, said he learned of Snowport from…...

3+ hour, 40+ min ago (626+ words) Amid recent political controversy, a rise of violent and hateful speech has caused concern and tension among students on campus." Boston University College Republicans" President Zac Segal posted Nov. 7 that he called U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on an Allston Car Wash, which the agency raided Nov. 4. A flurry of insults, reposts and threats towards Segal swiftly followed on social media and around campus, with many students advocating for his expulsion and the disbanding of BUCR." In response, Segal posted an update Wednesday of a picture of himself at the White House." "Quick life update for my fans who printed my face on posters, doxxed me, and sent me those heartfelt death threat messages," Segal wrote in the post." As of Thursday, his post received several comments in support calling him a patriot and some negative comments. None of the post…...