Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, October 28, 2019)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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have-not
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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SlashesThe slash ( / )—technically known as a virgule but also called a slant, solidus, or stroke—serves a number of purposes in writing. What are they? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Somersett's CaseThe Abolition Act of 1833 may have abolished slavery in the British Empire, but the first step toward abolition was taken 60 years earlier in 1772, in a famous judgment known as Somersett's Case. In it, the Court of King's Bench held that without a law permitting slavery in England, courts could not uphold a slaveholder's claim to a slave. Although the decision did not state that slavery was illegal, it set a precedent that altered the course of slavery in England and abroad. Who was Somersett? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Siege of La Rochelle Ends (1628)In 1598, French King Henry IV issued the Edict of Nantes to restore internal peace in France, ravaged by the Wars of Religion. The edict gave the French Protestants, or Huguenots, extensive rights and control of certain cities, including La Rochelle, which became a stronghold for them. However, Henry's successor, Louis XIII, and his minister, Cardinal Richelieu, resolved to crush the Huguenots, and La Rochelle fell after a 14-month siege. How did the royal forces block sea access to the city? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Jonas Salk (1914)Salk was an American physician and microbiologist renowned for his work in developing the first vaccine against polio. He began his groundbreaking studies on viruses and immunization with the influenza virus. Later, while working with other scientists to classify the poliovirus, he confirmed earlier studies that identified three strains, and he showed that the killed virus of each strain could induce antibody formation without producing disease. Who owned the patent for Salk's vaccine? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Life is a luminous halo, a semi-transparent envelope surrounding us from the beginning of consciousness to the end.Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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a golden hello— A sum of money paid to a new employee as a benefit for being recruited by a company. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Czechoslovak Independence Day (2023)The Republic of Czechoslovakia was founded on October 28, 1918, when the National Committee in Prague proclaimed independence from the Austrian Hapsburg emperors and took over the administration of an independent Czechoslovak state. Independence Day was widely celebrated in Czechoslovakia until the Communists seized power there in 1948, but the day continued to be recognized in the US with special banquets, addresses, religious services, and cultural programs. Communities with large Czech or Slovak populations may also mark the occasion. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: piercesashimi - Thinly sliced raw fish with a sauce, it is a compound formed from sashi, "pierce," and mi, "flesh." More... point - "Sharp end" is the etymological notion underlying point, from Latin pungere, "pierce, prick." More... stake - Meaning "post," it comes from a Germanic base meaning "pierce, prick." More... stick - Comes from Germanic meaning "be sharp, pierce, prick"; the piercing notion led to "becoming fixed in something" and then "adhering." More... | |