Daily Content Archive
(as of Saturday, January 2, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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PhrasesGrammatical phrases are groups of two or more words that work together to perform a single grammatical function in a sentence. What is an appositive phrase? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Laura Maria Caterina BassiThe first woman to teach at a university in Europe, Bassi was born into a wealthy Italian family in 1711 and was privately educated for seven years. Her scientific work was encouraged by Cardinal Prospero Lambertini, who would later become pope. She attained a position at the University of Bologna at the age of 21 and was thereafter instrumental in introducing Isaac Newton's work to Italy. After she joined the Institute of Sciences at the age of 65, who served as her teaching assistant? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Discovery of the Planet Vulcan Is Announced (1860)To account for inconsistencies between Mercury's predicted and observed orbital path, French astronomer Urbain Jean Joseph Leverrier postulated that a tiny, hypothetical planet, which he named Vulcan, was present within Mercury's orbit. Sightings of Vulcan were reported until 1878, and Leverrier died believing he had discovered another planet. Eventually, however, the orbital anomalies were explained by Einstein's general theory of relativity. After what was the hypothetical planet named? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Mehmed IV (1642)After the deposition and murder of his father, Sultan Ibrahim, 7-year-old Mehmed IV ascended the throne of the Ottoman Empire. Chaos and corruption followed, and though grand vizier Mehmed Köprülü managed to restore order, the empire suffered severe setbacks. In 1683, the Turks besieged Vienna but were repulsed by King John III of Poland, and a Holy League was formed to carry the war into Ottoman territory. Mehmed was deposed after a Turkish defeat by Charles V of Lorraine. Who succeeded him? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Alliance, n.: In international politics, the union of two thieves who have their hands so deeply inserted into each others' pockets that they cannot separately plunder a third.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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honey-mouthed— Smooth, soothing, and sweet in voice, especially in a persuasive or seductive manner or intent. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Haiti Ancestors' Day (2024)In Haiti, the Independence Day festivities that occur on the first day of the year continue into the second with Jour des Aieux (Ancestors' Day), an occasion for remembering the founders of Haiti and those who sacrificed their lives during the revolution of the early 19th century. A large meal often accompanies the day's festivities, and military processions may also take place on Ancestors' Day. In years past, particularly during the reign of President François Duvalier (1971–1986), the executive leader used this day to broadcast speeches to the nation. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: yesterdayhestern, hesternal - Hestern or hesternal means "pertaining to yesterday." More... nudiustertian - Pertaining to the day before yesterday. More... pridian - "Of or relating to a previous day or yesterday; former." More... yesterday - The yester of yesterday and yesteryear was a word on its own, meaning "yesterday," but by Old English it had become a collocation with "day." More... | |