Northeastern, one of the best schools in the country for experiential learning, is also well-known for its wide variety of clubs. From intramural sports to the Cheese Club, there are many student organizations encompassing a wide variety of niche interests. However, what about one where students can talk about fossils and prehistoric life … as well as older men?
Welcome to the Prehistoric Life club –- colloquially known as the Dang, I Love Fossils (DILF) club.
While it may seem odd, the DILF club actually strives to make education its mission. Coupled with raunchy humor, this new club has been a great way for students to learn both about rare creatures and the Earth’s timeline and evolution. According to club founder Matthew Murphy, the goal of the club is to “lure people in with ‘dilfs’ and reignite the passion they have with prehistoric life.” When asked what inspired him to start it all, he recalled how he always loved dinosaurs, from playing with dozens of toys to watching various movies – “I never grew out of it. Many DILF club members never did.” With a regular turnout of 25 DILF lovers, along with newer members joining throughout the year, it is not surprising that Murphy and his team are so passionate about this club.
“Coupled with raunchy humor, this new club has been a great way for students to learn both about rare creatures and the Earth’s timeline and evolution.”
This passion can be seen through the level of detail in the presentations each meeting. The general blueprint for each presentation consists of three older male celebrities and three fossils per meeting, alternating and always following a theme. These themes can range from monarchies to media. In fact, one of the most recent meetings followed the theme of video games, with a discussion on how dinosaurs are negatively depicted, as designers often show these creatures as enemies meant to eat or attack the protagonist. The meeting concurrently also described a few famous older male celebrities in video games, such as Joel from The Last of Us played by the Emmy-winning Pedro Pascal. At the end of the day, Murphy and the team’s goal is to ensure that people leave with newfound knowledge regarding obscure creatures and famous male celebrities. “If you leave knowing one more thing about a fossil and a ‘DILF,’ I feel like I’ve succeeded,” Murphy proudly said when asked about his mission for the club. Murphy also went on to talk about how one of his favorite parts of the club is the people who show up with a genuine interest in either celebrities, prehistoric creatures, or both! “It’s my favorite and weirdest part,” Murphy explained. “People also have heated disputes about many topics, so we have foam swords, take a timer out, and duel.” Painless and fun, the team’s motto is to not just learn but also have fun doing so.
“There is no doubt that this niche group will soon become a student organization of enormous proportions, one “dilf” and dinosaur at a time.”
As niche as the club is, that is not to say Murphy and his team face challenges. According to him, some of the club’s biggest hurdles are coming up with interesting and creative themes to keep engagement and enjoyment at a high. With each meeting being between 45 minutes to 1 hour long, it is vital for Murphy and his team to spend it well. Murphy ended his interview with “People could be doing anything else, but I want to make sure they are having a good, fun time.”
DILF club might be new and only tentatively recognized by Northeastern, but its growing popularity due to its strong social media presence and vibrantly unique flyers all around campus have piqued the interest of many students, from a range of majors including communications to chemical engineering. There is no doubt that this niche group will soon become a student organization of enormous proportions, one “DILF” and dinosaur at a time.