Writing by Effy Phillips | Multiple Platforms

Little Shack of Wonders

From the outside, Shanley Pavilion looks like the kind of shed someone would store their lawnmowers in during the winter. … It’s hard to believe that anything exciting has ever happened in such a dark and small place, yet it currently hosts a constant rotation of fine arts performances, from comedy groups to dance troupes to theatrical productions.

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Effy Phillips
On the Journey: Feeding the World

Take a second and think about your local grocery store. Think about the thousands of products and companies offering you food.

Now I want you to ask yourself how many of them care about feeding you real, delicious, better-for-you food. How many of the care about more than profits?

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Effy Phillips
Food Made Simple: The Future of Flavor

Very few things that are grape-flavored taste like grape. And if you’ve ever had a banana-flavored candy, you know that whatever makes it taste that way did not grow on a bush somewhere tropical, but in a lab somewhere else. While artificial flavors may not have negative health effects, they make for lower-quality, less authentic tasting products.

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Effy Phillips
Are you in my "League"?

It can get awkward when you see your TA on Tinder.

Awkwardness aside, sometimes the people you see on these apps just aren’t up to your standards. Maybe they don’t go to a school you like, are only in town for the weekend or their bio just has the classic “420 friendly” and a leaf emoji in it. You might be a little frustrated because it seems like you can’t break into either the dating or the hookup game around here. If you relate to this, there’s a new app out there for you: The League.

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Effy Phillips
Lemonade: not all sour

Anyone looking at or listening to the album Lemonade can tell that it’s full of pain.

Some of this pain on the album, however, is not something everyone can relate to. I alluded to this earlier when I mentioned Mike Brown’s mother; a lot of the pain on this album is a result of what it’s like to be a Black person, not just in America, but in the world as a whole. The climate of the world is shifting. Race is everywhere you look, from the presidential election, to the Black Lives Matter movement, to the NUDivest campaign.

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Effy Phillips
Let's talk about sex, baby

Even if you’re not having sex, you’re probably thinking about it.

Lickerish magazine founder and editor-and-chief, Medill junior Evelyn Wang, recognizes this carnal preoccupation. In the promotional poster for the new magazine, she entices possible contributors and readers by asking, “Love sex? Loathe sex? Can’t get any sex? But obsess over it constantly?”

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Effy Phillips
Travis Scott: In Context

A look at the artist-focused Netflix documentary Look Mom I Can Fly. The documentary focuses on rapper Travis Scott as he works on his most recent album Astroworld, navigates life as a new father, and embarks on a massive tour.

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Effy Phillips