The gentle, serene surface of the East Rosebud Creek disguises an overwhelming force. I witnessed this awesome power firsthand as I spent my summer in the Beartooth Mountains of Montana. My stay started with a storm that gave me a new respect for rain....

Many people bore easily when another begins to describe the events of their dream, and many have been the subject of boredom themselves, desperately attempting to convey the powerful emotions of a recent dream to a friend who is just not interested. As...

The skies and the earth wouldn't have met if it weren't for the rain. Rain is undoubtedly an accomplice in all forms of feelings.  After the first showers, that lingering fragrance, petrichor, oh! That sweet smell. Rain is often associated with gloomy...

Comic book movies are incredibly confusing, but incredibly impactful. It would be completely understandable if one were to question my credibility in filling in this blank. I have multiple friends who worship the massive universe that is comic book...

Stories let us become immersed in realities outside our own, from our ancestors telling tales of their hunt around a fire to the vast collection of media at our fingertips today. After a long day, it’s time to escape into another world. What medium...

So there I was, a freshman in college. If there was anything else I wanted more it was to find something to fill my time. I had already had a few extracurriculars before in high school that I had taken with casual interest, but never before had I actually...

It’s a rainy dreary day and you have nowhere to be, so you pull out your favorite novel and begin to read. What many might not know is that, through the action of reading a fiction novel, you are learning how to empathize with others.  Americans...

Occasionally, Alaskans require intervention from nature to remind them where they live. My family lives very close to a bog, which is a wetland habitat of northern climates, similar to a swamp in the south. Around this bog, my father, who is a bird-watcher...

There are copious ways the world could end, most of them with humans at fault. However, our vast and uncaring solar system could also bring about mass extinction on earth. Countless asteroids like the one that killed the dinosaurs speed through the void,...

Editor’s note: Joey Trella, opinion editor and NIU student-athlete, was not a part of writing this editorial.  It’s been 50 years since Title IX was enacted, and we’ve seen women athletes dominate in their sports and demonstrate that they’re...

It’s no secret that the majority of people enjoy indulging in a chocolate chip cookie, but not me. I would rather have no cookie than a chocolate chip.  My favorite cookie is oatmeal raisin. If I had the option between all the different kinds of...

Generally, I like to have a plan when going out with friends, but sometimes a random, spontaneous idea turns into a great night. On a brisk evening in late March, one of the boys proposed that we go explore the swamp near our neighborhood. As high...