Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, August 30, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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ephemeral
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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The PredicateThe predicate is, essentially, everything in the sentences that follows the subject. It is made up of at least one finite verb. What is a compound predicate? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 No Man's LandNo man's land is territory whose ownership is unclear or under dispute and is often unoccupied. The term—then spelled "nonesmanneslond"—was likely first used in medieval Europe to describe a contested territory or refuse dumping ground between fiefdoms. During WWI, it was used to refer to the land between enemy trenches too dangerous to occupy, and during the Cold War, it became associated with territories near the Iron Curtain. What stretch of no man's land is known as the "Cactus Curtain"? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Fort Mims Massacre (1813)At the start of the Creek Civil War, settlers north of Mobile, Alabama, sought refuge at Fort Mims. Approximately 550 settlers, including 175 armed militiamen, were at the fort when it was attacked by a force of Creek Indians belonging to the Red Sticks faction under the command of Peter McQueen and William Weatherford, known as Red Eagle. The massacre marked the transition from civil war among the Creeks to war between Americans and Red Stick warriors. How many settlers were killed or captured? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1797)In 1816, 18-year-old Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin and her soon-to-be husband, poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, traveled to Geneva to spend the summer with poet Lord Byron. Forced indoors by unpleasant weather, the friends amused themselves by sitting around a fire and reading ghost stories. Byron suggested they each write their own supernatural tale, and the story that Mary wrote became the basis for her novel, Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus. What real-life events may have inspired her? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 A man said to the universe: "Sir, I exist!" "However," replied the universe, "That fact has not created in me a sense of obligation."Stephen Crane (1871-1900) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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have enough on (one's) plate— To be sufficiently busy or preoccupied with work, problems, or difficulties as to be unable or unwilling to cope with anything more. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Turkey Victory Day (2023)Turkey Victory Day honors the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, and the military victory over the Greeks in 1922. It is celebrated throughout Turkey and on the island of Cyprus. The primary celebration is held at Atatürk's Mausoleum in the city of Ankara. Leading military officials visit the tomb to lay a ceremonial wreath; wreaths are also placed on various statues of Atatürk found throughout the city. A ceremony including military and governmental officials is then held at the Atatürk Culture Center, and marches are held in major cities across the country. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: pigmentspastel - First pertained to pigment or paste and evolved to mean light or pale colors. More... excipient - An inactive substance that serves as the vehicle or medium for a drug; it is also the material or surface that receives the pigments in painting. More... primary colors, secondary colors - In dyes, pigments, and paints, the primary colors are red, yellow, and blue—which mix to make the secondary colors: orange, green, and purple. More... raw sienna, burnt sienna - Raw sienna is a brownish-yellow earth color obtained from a natural clay containing iron and manganese; burnt sienna is reddish-brown. More... | |