Ideas - The Boston Globe

A blood-oxygen detector without racial bias

Pulse oximeters can be thrown off by dark skin, which may have had deadly consequences in the pandemic. Engineers think they have a solution.

IDEAS | STEPHEN KINZER

Yes, there is such a thing as a formerly developed country

In Argentina, a demagogue won the presidency by promising to restore past glory. Instead, he destroyed institutions, corrupted the Supreme Court, and left the country deeply polarized. Sound familiar?

IDEAS | SCOTT KIRSNER

Boston has the Freedom Trail. How about an Innovation Trail?

The city has been a hub of discovery and scientific breakthroughs for four centuries. A walking tour seeks to tell that story.

With the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade, the cellphone location data collected and retained by tech companies like Google could be used by law enforcement officials looking to crack down on those seeking abortions.

IDEAS | CATESBY HOLMES AND EMILY DREYFUSS

Delete your period app. Get a burner phone. How your digital data can be used against you in a post-Roe world.

Here’s what you need to know about your data trail now that the Supreme Court has taken away the right to an abortion.

IDEAS | DAVID SCHARFENBERG

Boston was once a wildly ambitious city. It’s time to go big again.

Soaring housing costs, a broken T, and other existential problems require sweeping fixes that meet the moment.

Explore visionary plans for housing, education, climate, and transit →Bold visions from urban planners, policy experts, and readers →

Fourth of July fireworks over the Charles River and Esplanade.

IDEAS | REGINA HANSEN

Our primal, universal urge to light up the night sky

As fireworks thrill this Independence Day weekend, a reminder of the many other cultures that also celebrate with light and fire.

Women rested after abortions at the Women's Medical Services clinic in Philadelphia, May 17, 1973.

IDEAS | David S. Cohen, Greer Donley, and Rachel Rebouché

It’s time to put abortion clinics on federal land

Doing so would be a bold move fraught with potential legal challenges. It may also be the best shot we have to help pregnant women and girls who need to terminate pregnancies.

may i have a word?

May I have a word: Streaming-era infidelity
When one half of a couple doesn’t wait to watch the next episode — or the ones after that.

May I have a word: When a word just looks wrong

May I have a word: What to call the familiar strangers in your midst?

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Editing the Constitution

The Constitution is undergoing massive changes in the Supreme Court. It’s time to put the founding document in the hands of the people.

The Future of Work

The past year has shattered expectations of what workdays look like. Parenting while Zooming. An uncrowded T. Wary interactions with customers. In this special issue of Ideas, we explore which of these changes will stick — and how they’ll affect the quality of our lives.

The Future of Food

What we eat, where it comes from, and how we get it are being reimagined like never before. In this special issue, we celebrate the role of food in our communities and explore how it can be tastier, more accessible, and healthier for us and the planet.

Massachusetts Works

In this special section, we’re turning the typical model of journalism on its head — instead of focusing on what’s broken, we’re taking a look at what Massachusetts gets right. But it’s not all perfect: We also examine areas where Massachusetts can improve.

Conversations with the experts writing thought provoking Globe Opinion op-eds and Ideas features.

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