Welcome freshmen! And coming homesickness One of the great passages of life: the moment when you're dropped off to be on your own in a dorm full of present strangers.August 25, 2014
50 years before Ferguson, a summer of riots racked the US Fifty years ago this summer -- a half-century before the protests in Ferguson, Mo. -- riots broke out in seven cities in New York, New Jersey, Illinois and Pennsylvania, sparked by confrontations between black residents and their predominantly white police forces.August 24, 2014
Coffee shop works on honor system in North Dakota It has become the hub of Central Avenue. In addition to regular gatherings, the shop hosts concerts, independent film screenings and club meetings. Next year a wedding is planned.August 24, 2014
Veteran space shuttle astronaut Steven Nagel dies at 67 Astronaut Steven Nagel, who flew on four space shuttle missions in the 1980s and 90s, including two as mission commander, has died after a long battle with cancer, NASA confirms.August 23, 2014
National Zoo celebrating panda's first birthday In the past year Bao Bao has grown from a wriggling pink newborn a little bigger than a stick of butter to a 44-pound black-and-white bundle whose favorite activity is sleeping in a tree.August 23, 2014
Polar bear twins to leave Toledo for Minnesota Cubs are moved to mimic polar bear behavior in the wild. They're mostly solitary creatures, and if left together too long, polar bear mothers and their offspring could mate.August 23, 2014
3-car crash in cone zone near Willmar Spokesperson Judy Jacobs said no one was injured -- the flagger was able to jump out of the way before the cars crashed.August 22, 2014
The ice bucket challenge and other good causes: Do stars really help? It's been the social media hit of the summer -- some of the world's biggest celebrities dousing themselves with buckets of ice water to raise money for ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig's Disease.August 21, 2014
Coffee flop: Elephants make the priciest beans Black Ivory Coffee is made by passing coffee beans through the not insubstantial stomachs of elephants and then picking the beans out of, well, yeah, that.August 21, 2014
SeaWorld won't appeal orca trainers' ban The legal battle has lasted for years, beginning with the death of trainer Dawn Brancheau by an orca named Tilikum in 2010.August 21, 2014
Once living in storage locker, Minneapolis woman finds a home Minne' Fire completed college with a degree in early childhood development, and she came to Minnesota nearly 30 years ago to teach. Since then, she has survived cancer and several failed marriages with alcoholic or physically abusive husbands. She's had five children.August 19, 2014
Longtime 'SNL' announcer Pardo dies at 96 While he did a variety of jobs throughout his career, perhaps the one that got Don Pardo the most attention was making the SNL cast introductions at the beginning of the show which came right after the opening skit.August 19, 2014
At life's last threshold, choir brings comfort The Threshold Choir brings music to those on the threshold of life -- people who are dying. The first group started about a decade and a half ago. Now there are choirs in 120 cities, and even a few countries.August 18, 2014