By Tracy Jan

Harvard, MIT, and a coalition of other research institutions fended off a bid from the Obama administration to cut the amount each school receives for overhead costs.

2 Steubenville, Ohio H.S. football players convicted of rape

By Richard A. Oppel Jr.

The town’s obsession over its football team, many said, had shielded other teens who did little or nothing to protect the girl.

The nation’s 11 million illegal immigrants would wait a full decade for a green card but could earn citizenship just three years after that, under a proposed measure.

New leaders in China speak of reform, end to corruption

By Andrew Jacobs

Premier Li Keqiang vowed to curb the intrusive bureaucracy and safeguard the environment in the face of rampant growth.

The bombs, separated by about 15 minutes, also wounded 24, a rare attack in the Shi’ite-dominated south of the country.

After suffering disappointments during the first Obama administration, Palestinians see little reason for optimism in his new term.

NICHOLAS BURNS

Syria is melting away

By Nicholas Burns

President Obama is surely right not to put American troops on the ground in yet another Middle East quagmire. But doing nothing can’t be the answer, either.

JOHN E. SUNUNU

Obamacare’s tricky state ‘partnerships’

By John E. Sununu

The partnership between the elephant and dung beetle is far from majestic. And in any partnership between states and the federal government, we know who plays the elephant.

JULIETTE KAYYEM

A war’s misleading anniversary

By Juliette Kayyem

The narrative of the Iraq war has a prologue and an epilogue whose lessons are as valuable to the United States as those derived from what came in between.

Children’s access to mental care in Mass. is growing

By Patricia Wen

An increasing number of pediatric practices are sharing space with mental health professionals, a move aimed at improving access.

Entrepreneurs tap rich-flowing maple syrup in Vt.

By Colin Nickerson

Across the northland, the maple syrup industry is booming as never before, thanks to increased demand and technological improvements.

Democrats celebrate St. Patrick as they ever have

By Michael Levenson

At the annual St. Patrick’s Day Breakfast in South Boston, the upcoming Senate race provided some of the easiest fodder for politicians.

By Michael B. Farrell

The Canadian government has launched a business program in Cambridge to help its start-up firms learn from the innovation sector there.

Police clicking into crimes using new software

By Aaron Lester

A new software tool created by Harvard students gathers all intelligence and background information about a suspect onto a single platform.

By Todd Wallack

Attorneys general from more than a dozen states, including Massachusetts, are pushing Congress to restrict federal funding to for-profit colleges.

Dan Scharfman, 55; went extra mile for family, friends

By Bryan Marquard

Mr. Scharfman offered affection to family, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and clients, bringing a playful puppy nature to every encounter.

Mariam Farhat, at 64; Palestinian ‘mother of martyrs’

By Ibrahim Barzak

The Palestinian lawmaker and mother of 10 said she wished she had 100 sons to die while attacking Israelis.

Ruth Ann Steinhagen, 83, inspiration for obsessive fan in ‘The Natural’

By Don Babwin

A woman who inspired a novel and a movie did something else just as surprising: She disappeared into obscurity until news broke she had died three months earlier.

Christopher L. Gasper

By Christopher L. Gasper

If the tournament is anything like the college basketball season that preceded it, then it’s going to be an unpredictable and thoroughly enjoyable ride.

Harvard draws No. 14 seed in the West

By Michael Vega

The Crimson were given a second-round matchup in the NCAA Tournament against third-seeded New Mexico Thursday night.

Penguins 2, Bruins 1

Bruins come up short against Penguins

By Kevin Paul Dupont

Staked to a pair of first-period goals, the Penguins ripped off their ninth straight win, edging the Bruins, 2-1.

Health

Helping the mentally ill quit smoking

By Chelsea Conaboy

Those with mental illness tend to smoke more, and have a harder time quitting. But new efforts are underway to help them stop.

Q & A

Highlighting cancer divide between rich, poor nations

By Karen Weintraub

Harvard health economist Felicia Knaul says cancer made her an advocate for increased access to care.

Daily Dose

Ovarian cancer patients getting substandard care?

By Deborah Kotz

A new study found that most ovarian cancer patients are getting substandard care — and it could be subtracting a year or more from their lives.