Published January 28, 2011

Good morning! Sick of the white sludge yet? Well, it’s going to (literally) stick around… forever. Expect another inch of it Saturday and a big storm next week. Temps won’t rise above 30 for the foreseeable future.

WBUR’s David Boeri reports on the woes of winter-weary Somervillians. “The snowbanks run five- to six-feet high of dung-colored snow and ice, discarded Christmas trees and trash barrels lapped by lakes of brine and slush salty enough to pickle herring.” It’s a must-listen story.

Encouraging new numbers on the economy today. The economy grew briskly in the 2010 fourth quarter, an annual rate of 3.2 percent, the Commerce Department reported. Here in Boston, the world’s top economists are gathering at MIT. WBUR’s Curt Nickisch was in the room.

Some rare good news about Boston’s homeless population: It’s down. That’s the finding of the annual homeless census, which WBUR’s Benjamin Swasey participated in last December.

As I mentioned in yesterday’s state budget roundup, Gov. Deval Patrick proposes to close two prisons. The Globe reports details of that plan are vague, but as WBUR’s Fred Thys reports, Patrick is already getting praise.

Finally, the New York Times reports on the progress (or lack thereof) of ROTC returning to college campuses, now that the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy is repealed. Harvard President Drew Faust has said the group would be allowed back on campus after a longtime ban. A law professor and military observer told the Times: “I would be the most surprised person in the world if the military came back to Harvard or Yale.”