Daily Content Archive
(as of Saturday, March 30, 2019)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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soporific
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Relative ClausesRelative clauses (also known as adjective clauses or adjectival clauses) are dependent clauses that provide descriptive information about a noun or noun phrase. What introduces a relative clause? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Church of St. George, LalibelaThe Church of St. George, Lalibela, is a monolithic church in Lalibela, Ethiopia, hewn entirely from a single block of stone. Known as Bete Giyorgis in Amharic—a Semitic language spoken in Ethiopia—it was built in the early 13th century as the last of the 11 stone churches in the Lalibela area. According to Ethiopian cultural history, the church was built after King Lalibela had a vision in which he was instructed to construct the church. According to the story, who told him to do so? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Hymen Lipman Patents Pencil with Attached Eraser (1858)In prehistoric times, lumps of colored earth or chalk were used as markers. The so-called lead pencil—a rod of graphite encased in wood—first came into use in the 16th century. However, it was not until the 19th century that the eraser was added—an innovation that earned Hymen Lipman a patent in 1858. In 1862, he sold his patent to Joseph Reckendorfer for $100,000. Why did the US Supreme Court rule in 1875 that Reckendorfer's patent was invalid? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Francisco Goya (1746)Goya was a Spanish painter and printmaker whose work profoundly influenced 19th-century European art. He started out designing tapestries for the royal manufactory of Santa Bárbara and was appointed painter to Charles III in 1786. By 1799—under the patronage of Charles IV—he had become Spain's most successful and fashionable artist. Goya's works address all aspects of Spanish life, including the political and social turmoil of his day. Why did his art come under the scrutiny of the Inquisition? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Death? Why this fuss about death? Use your imagination, try to visualize a world without death!...Death is the essential condition of life, not an evil.Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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broad shoulders— The ability and/or willingness to accept multiple demands and responsibilities. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Doctors' Day (2019)Since 1933 this day has been set aside to honor America's physicians. It is the anniversary of the day in 1842 on which Dr. Crawford W. Long removed a tumor from the neck of a man while the patient was anesthetized by ether. Dr. Long was the first acclaimed American physician to use ether as an anesthetic agent in a surgical procedure. The red carnation is the official flower associated with Doctors' Day. The American Medical Association promotes various activities to mark this day, including walk-a-thons and blood drives. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: modecomportment, deportment - Deportment adds the sense of action or activity to a mode of conduct or behavior; comportment, "behavior or bearing," does not have this. More... dictionary - Based on Latin dictio(n-), "mode of expression" or "word," then dictionarius, "a repertory of words or phrases." More... diet - Comes from Greek diaita, "a way of life, mode of living." More... mode - Originally a tune or air and later a scheme of sounds. More... | |