CITY  |  Ethanol, which is fuel distilled from grain, is an alternative energy source for consumers looking to battle high gas prices.

CAMPUS  |  Some students choose to sell their old textbooks online at Web sites like Amazon.com and Half.com.

CITY  |  No injuries were reported at the incident which was caused by insulation igniting from a soldering tool.

AP Photo/Scott Sady

An Amazon.com employee pulls a pallet of empty boxes past the book storage area at their Fernley, Nev., warehouse on Monday. Retailers who saw Thanksgiving holiday sales drop off as the weekend progressed stepped up online promotions on the day known as "Cyber Monday" to try to get consumers tired of the crowds at stores to keep shopping.

CAMPUS  |  Whether the economy will have an actual effect on how much money NIU students spend on the holidays this year, it’s having a psychological effect on at least one student and her inner circle.

Weather links:

• NIU weather
• Cooperative weather station
• Severe weather & university closure procedures

Toll free weather status hotline:

• Local residents: dial 752-OPEN (752-6736)
• Long distance callers: dial 1-888-4NIU-OPEN (1-888-464-8673)
• Local TDD callers: dial 753-9703
• Long distance TDD callers: dial 1-888-NIU-WTHR (1-888-648-9847)

Road condition information:

• Call IDOT for road condition information on Illinois interstates (not tollways) at 800-452-4368
• Call the Illinois Tollway for road condition information on Illinois tollways at 800-TOLL-FYI

Television and radio stations:

• Television and radio stations that broadcast weather-related class cancellations at NIU

Webcams:

• MLK Commons
• West campus weather cam