Daily Content Archive
(as of Saturday, October 2, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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antipathy
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Subjunctive Mood - Expressing WishesOne of the most straightforward ways of using the subjunctive mood is when we want to describe a wish for something to be different than it is or was. How do we generally construct these sentences? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Bank RunsA bank run occurs when a large number of bank customers withdraw their funds because they believe the bank is, or might become, insolvent. By definition, bank runs tend to be self-fulfilling prophecies: as more people withdraw their deposits, the likelihood of default increases. A significant factor in the Great Depression of the 1930s in the US, bank runs can have lasting psychological effects. What popular American film's protagonist contemplates suicide due to a looming banking failure? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Pasilalinic-Sympathetic Compass Demonstrated (1851)French occultist Jacques Toussaint Benoit's pasilalinic-sympathetic compass was a contraption developed based on his belief that when two snails touch, they create a telepathic bond. His "snail telegraph" contained 24 snails, each associated with an individual letter of the alphabet as well as with a snail counterpart in a second device. One could theoretically transmit a message by touching the snails, eliciting reactions from their counterparts. What happened when he demonstrated his device? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Charles Albert of Sardinia (1798)The complex and controversial king of Sardinia-Piedmont from 1831 to 1849, Charles Albert helped inspire the growing drive for Italian independence. In 1848, the spread of revolutionary ideas forced him to grant a constitution. Seeking to lead the liberation of Italy, he went to war with Austria that same year, and again in 1849, but was twice defeated. After abdicating in favor of his son, he went into exile and soon died. Charles was called the "number one enemy" of what? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 It's all very well to read about sorrows and imagine yourself living through them heroically, but it's not so nice when you really come to have them, is it?Lucy Maud Montgomery (1874-1942) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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have (one's) head in the sand— To refuse to acknowledge or deal with problems, danger, or difficulty, especially in the hopes that they will resolve themselves. The phrase is a reference to ostriches, which were believed (incorrectly) to hide their heads in the ground at the sight of approaching danger. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Guinea Independence Day (2023)Guinea became an independent republic on this day in 1958, after having been a French colony since the late 19th century. Independence Day is a national holiday celebrated all over the country with parades, dances, and sports competitions, especially in the capital city of Conakry. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: trickssnow park - An area of a piste, or ski trail, created for snowboarders and skiers to do tricks. More... intricate - From Latin in-, "into," and tricae, "tricks, perplexities." More... monkeyshines - A combination of monkey and shines, "capers, tricks." More... whist - The game was originally called whisk, from "whisking away" the cards after the tricks had been taken. More... | |