March has arrived and with that, so has the most exciting month of sports.

March Madness is set to start in the next week with the NCAA Men’s basketball conference tournaments starting up, which will be a precursor to the popular NCAA Tournament that encompasses the following three weekends and culminate on Monday, April 5, with the National Championship game.

The year has seen many surprises, including the Syracuse Orange, who started out the season ranked 25 in the ESPN/ USA Today poll and not even ranked in the AP poll.  However, the team, led by Junior Forward Wesley Johnson, is now ranked number 1 in both polls.  The team is the only two-loss team in the country with their only blemishes coming from Big East conference rivals 18^th-ranked Pittsburgh and Louisville.

Another surprise was the weakness of the ACC.  Traditionally a powerhouse, the conference only had two teams ranked in the top 25 (Maryland 23^rd and Duke 4^th) as of Monday.  North Carolina has been a large disappointment this season after being ranked 4^th in both preseason polls, and now nowhere to be found around the rankings.  However they still have a shot at making the tournament if they can get a season closing win at Duke on Saturday.

Two teams that have remained top notch all year, and are favorites to win the NCAA Tournament, are Kentucky and Kansas.  They started out the season ranked 5^th and 1^st respectively.  Currently Kentucky is 3^rd and Kansas is 2^nd and have lived up to almost every expectation that was placed on them at the beginning of the season.

One team that has been flirting with the Top 25 rankings is University of Northern Iowa.  The Panthers have had a solid four-loss season in the Missouri Valley Conference, and rose as high as 18^th, three weeks ago in the ESPN/USA Today poll.  They have clinched the regular season conference title, and are the favorites to win their conference tournament.  The team is all but locked to make the NCAA Tournament.

It is no secret that the Quad City area is not particularly an exciting one, and it isn’t exactly a mecca for entertainment, either.  History Channel’s new series “American Pickers,” however, may change that.

The show (which is based in Le Claire) follows two “pickers,” Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz. Mike and Frank travel around the back roads of the rural Midwest scrounging through piles of forgotten junk in hopes of finding something of value to restore and resell for a profit.

I started watching the series when it first premiered in January after hearing that it was based so close to home, but continue to watch for its high entertainment value. Wolfe and Fritz lead the cameras to unbelievable properties with unforgettable owners, including but not limited to: an elderly couple from Ohio with an old White Castle restaurant in their front yard, a woman who has filled an entire factory with antiques, and a man who dug a vast network of tunnels under his rural property in order to allow more space to fit his collected items.

The show is not only unique and fun to watch, but it is educational, offering viewers tons of interesting facts about the history of the objects they collect (where, when, how they were manufactured, etc.).

History Channel made a great choice in airing “American Pickers,” not only due to the show’s sky-high ratings and critically acclaimed reviews, but also for drawing positive attention to the great things about the Midwest. The program will undoubtedly be a great thing for the Quad City area.

Last year’s “DJ Hero” release introduced a new Hero musical game and a new instrument peripheral with the DJ turntable, but is it just a cheap way to explore a new musical genre?

DJ Hero is different from other musical games because gameplay utilizes two songs at once.  In addition, players use the turntable to play samples, scratch, and crossfade the music.  While all these elements could easily make gameplay a nightmare, in Activision’s skilled hands, the experience is fluid.   There is a degree of difficulty in DJ Hero, and there is a steep learning curve, meaning it requires a few tries to get the hang of the game.

One of DJ Hero’s strong points is that it really makes the player feel as if they are controlling the music. By letting them choose the character, costume, headphones, deck, venue, and even the samples they can play during the song, players are given ample opportunity to add their own individuality to each song.  The game also has a plethora of unlockables, tons of songs (with even more on the way via downloadable content), and a planned sequel.

I give this game a 5/5 for good presentation, great style and an awesome soundtrack.

Writer and director James Cameron sweeps us off our feet once again in this dramatic inter-galactic thriller starring breakout actor Sam Worthington (Terminator Salvation) as Jake Sully, a paraplegic ex-army vet. Cameron takes the audience on a ride of adventure uncovering the lives of the primitive species, the Na’vi, who live light years away from our planet. Receiving Best Director and Best Picture, Cameron shows a world not far beyond the realm of possibility.

Other cast members include cinema stars Sigourney Weaver (featured in films such as Ghostbusters and Aliens) who plays head research scientist Dr. Grace Augustine. Augustine is only looking for one thing: a way into the hearts of the strange alien creatures. Her team has found a way to give her workers an in, per se, with the Na’vi. Through genetic engineering her scientists can create a Na’vi body using human DNA, yielding an Avatar. The Avatar bodies look just like the Na’vi and the people who inhabit them undergo special training to speak like the indigenous people. These Avatars have one stipulation: only a person with the same DNA can use them.

So when Jake Sully’s twin brother can no longer use his Avatar, Jake finds himself agreeing to more than he bargained for. Living like a Na’vi starts to feel like home to him as he rides a Dire Horse and captures his Banshee, a dragon-like creature, which is the right of all Na’vi. Originally excited by the idea of being able to walk again, Jake is thrown into an internal struggle that lasts the whole movie. Experiencing the best of the Na’vi world, Jake has no idea how much of himself he surrenders every time he uses his Avatar.

Adding to the plot is the tough Colonel Miles Quaritch, played by Stephen Lang, who is willing to do anything to follow the orders given to him. In midst of the world’s current energy crisis, the only hope humans have for survival is the retrieval of a new kind of energy source Unobtanium. The only way to harvest the rich Unobtanium that lies underneath the tribes land is to find a way to remove the Na’vi from their homes.

The Na’vi themselves are a peaceful people. They are not “savages” as the Colonel would say. Pandora, the planet on which they reside, is everything that Earth would be without pollution and industrialization. The Na’vi respect the land more than anything and believe that everything connects back to the same source Eywa, or mother. Neytiri, played by actress Zoe Saldana, first discovers Jake and then is stuck to teach him the ways of her people. She shows him much of the wildlife and as he undergoes the processes of becoming a Na’vi man, Neytiri starts to respect Jake. Eventually the two teach each other a lot about life, and discover a lot about themselves along the way.

The fight that Jake finds in himself is one that captivates the audience throughout the whole movie. While the show time is lengthy, running approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes, the plot will never bore. The scene progression flows artfully well, never giving away more than it should.

For anyone intending to see it, you can be sure you will learn about the Na’vi life as well. Pandora is a beautiful planet, one that Earth could be if it was taken care of better. I would highly recommend getting yourself a seat at the next showing. Soon enough, you might be like Jake Sully and find everything mixed around like “out there is the true world, and in here is the dream.

By Aaron Viner

    On Saturday, February 20, three groups from performed at the IHSSA All-State Festival.  Acting team Stacy Phipps and Nate Curlott became state champions with their performance of “The Rabbit Hole.” 

    To be chosen to perform in this festival is an honor in itself, let alone having three groups selected.  The entire Speech team has been working exceptionally hard since December to make it to this goal, including coming in during days off, even over Winter Break.  (Yes, speeEch has three e’s, but that’s how all members of the team are trained to spell speeech, if you want the story, ask the nearest member.)

    However, this would not have been possible were it not for their fantastic coach, Ms. Kintigh.  She has put in days of work for all of the performing groups and I’m sure the entire North Scott SpeeEch Team gives her a huge “Thank You.”

    To get to this festival, the groups first had to compete in a District competition on January 23 and receive a I rating from a judge to move on to the State competition on February 6.  At the State competition they competed in front of three judges who critiqued their performance, and after all the participating schools were completed, picked an All-State Performer out of each room which was announced the next Tuesday, February 9, through the IHSSA website.   

    The students who participated in the All-State Festival were Nate Curlott, Stacy Phipps, Anthony Curlott, Olivia Hawley, Ryan Welzenbach, Aaron Viner, Cierra Klatt, Hope Wilson, and Shane Rumpza, in a One Act Play, entitled “All My Sons,” by Arthur Miller.   Emily Kolwey, Alex Kolwey, Aaron Viner, Amanda Ploof, Branden Randleman, Emma Wall, Dexter Golinghorst, Jessica Day, Kelsey Kaasa, and Austin Stone, are in a Choral Reading titled, “Double Trouble in Walla Walla,” and last, but not least, an acting duet by Stacy Phipps and Nate Curlott called “The Rabbit Hole.”

s French program is still up in the air, students can make a difference by talking to the school board, principal, and counselors. If you care about the French program, you will speak up and get your voice heard!