City Hall kitchen renovation raises questions

Mayor Marty Walsh's administration's newly renovated kitchen at City Hall.

Harrison Hill for The Boston Globe

Mayor Walsh used donated materials from a local developer for the renovation, which one watchdog says is inappropriate.

Massachusetts has the second most liberal legislature in the country, according to recent figures.

Evan Horowitz | Quick Study

How liberal is Massachusetts?

The few Republicans who do hold seats in Mass. actually lean further left than Democrats in Arkansas.

The search for someone to lead the UMass sytem  ? the job that ultimately went to Marty Meehan, then the UMass Lowell chancellor  ? cost $148,000.

Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff/File

Hiring searches for Mass. public colleges prove costly

It has been a banner year for public colleges conducting expensive searches only to end up with a winner who was nearby all along.

Group aims to bolster computer science

An effort by the local technology community to have computer science taught in more public schools is moving forward.

Workers bagged rolls at Quinzani's Bakery on Harrison Avenue in 2003.

Quinzani?s Bakery in the South End to close, sell building

The bakery, which opened in 1919, is the latest industrial site to vacate the rapidly gentrifying neighborhood.

Boston Mayor Marty Walsh spoke at a news conference in Boston after the city was picked by the USOC to bid for the 2024 Games.

Request for text messages on Olympics denied

Mayor Walsh has rejected records requests seeking access to his texts at significant moments in the city?s failed Olympic bid.

A flag was at half staff near the R.I. home of First Sergeant Andrew McKenna, who was killed in Afghanistan.

Green Beret from Rhode Island killed in Afghanistan

First Sergeant P. Andrew McKenna, 35, was on his sixth tour with the Army when he was killed, officials said.

Man shot in Roxbury is ?fighting for his life?

Raul Ortiz, shot in the head outside of his home early Saturday, remained on ventilators and in critical condition.

Hall of Famer Frank Gifford dies at 84

Gifford was a Hall of Fame football player who went on to a successful career as a broadcaster.

AP/Reuters

Big week on tap for NFL and Brady

The NFL and Tom Brady have refused to back down on Deflategate. Now a federal judge will try to bridge the gap.

Cars make their way through Pineville, Ky., on US Route 25E. The opioid problem in southeastern Kentucky is among the worst in the nation.

Ky.?s opioid epidemic has warning, lesson for Mass.

The search for solutions is something the states have in common, as is a mounting death toll from opioid overdoses.

John Steinmetz surveys his property on James Island in Cohasset,  where he and his wife plan to build a house.

Cohasset ?dream home? meets opposition from neighbors

Some are fighting hard to keep the Steinmetzes from building on the property they bought last year for $1.2 million.

RED SOX NOTEBOOK

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/08/09/BostonGlobe.com/Sports/Images/483505858.jpg Red Sox designate pitcher Justin Masterson for assignment

The team still owes Masterson $2.93 million of the $9.5 million, one-year contract he signed in December.

Trooper Daniel Herman (top) stood on Deer Island, where Baby Doe was found. Evidence (above) was sent to Utah for isotope analysis.

Many leads, little progress in mystery of Deer Island girl

Officers have painstakingly pursued information in the case of a young girl who was found dead on Deer Island June 25.

On Sunday, people placed flowers at the site where Vermont social worker Lara Sobel was killed on Friday in Barre, Vt.

Wilson Ring/AP

Slain social worker recalled at vigil in Barre, Vt.

Hundreds on Sunday paid tribute to Lara Sobel, who was shot by a woman police say was upset over losing custody of her child.

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/08/05/BostonGlobe.com/Metro/Images/BGlobe-4.jpg In the depths, the Andrea Doria claimed another

Despite his years of experience, Tom Pritchard went missing last month while exploring the wreckage off the Nantucket coast.

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/08/09/BostonGlobe.com/Metro/Images/anitafromBU-8461[1][1].jpg Bicyclist killed by truck is remembered as skilled surgeon, scientist

Anita Kurmann, 38, was an endocrine surgeon from Switzerland who spent three years as a Beth Israel research fellow.

Trump?s crude gibe fuels calls in GOP for exit, apology

Donald Trump?s remarks about broadcaster Megyn Kelly provoked a backlash in the Republican Party.

Ground Game

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/08/07/BostonGlobe.com/Metro/Images/2015-08-07T012432Z_382773491_TB3EB8703WL47_RTRMADP_3_USA-ELECTION-REPUBLICANS[1]-8417.jpg 7 key moments from the Republican presidential debate

Here are seven critical moments from the most consequential day yet in the 2016 Republican presidential race.

Opinion

farah stockman | Boston after busing

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/08/07/BostonGlobe.com/EditorialOpinion/Images/stockman-1305.jpg Did busing slow Boston?s desegregation?

The violence that erupted forced black families to flee from communities that once embraced them.

The Big Picture

Kimimiasa Mayama/EPA

The Big Picture

70 years after the atomic bombs

The 70th anniversary of the world?s first nuclear attack was marked this week.

BetaBoston

BetaBoston | Innovation Economy

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/08/07/BostonGlobe.com/Business/Images/kirsner-4514.jpg With hiring apps, companies can get employees on demand

The days of the resume and the sweaty sit-down interview may be dwindling.

Crux

JOHN L. ALLEN JR.

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2015/08/09/BostonGlobe.com/Foreign/Images/John_Allen-837.png Divorce reform a muddled task

Pope Francis made a few points on Wednesday that seemed to back divorce reform in the church and others to discourage it.