Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, November 15, 2017)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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smorgasbord
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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"Wh-" Questions"Wh-" questions (or "question word questions") are questions that seek information by posing a question with a "wh-" question word ("who," "what," "where," "when," "why," and "how"). What kind of answer do these questions seek? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Bomb-Sniffing RatsThe Gambian pouched rat, with its superb sense of smell and tractable personality, has been used recently to locate land mines in its native Africa. Trained from a young age to associate the smell of explosives with a reward, the rodents learn to alert their handlers to the presence of mines. There are several advantages to using rodents rather than dogs in such operations, among them the fact that they are fairly small and thus rarely cause mines to detonate. Why has the US banned their import? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 First of Two Istanbul Bombings (2003)In a pair of dual truck bomb attacks carried out days apart in Istanbul, Turkey, terrorists took the lives of over 50 people and injured some 700. The first attack targeted two synagogues during Sabbath services. A truck bomb was detonated at each, killing dozens and injuring hundreds more. Five days later, suicide bombers detonated truck bombs at Istanbul's HSBC Bank headquarters and British consulate. What country handed over to Turkey 22 suspects who reportedly fled there after the attacks? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 John I "the Posthumous" of France (1316)For the five days he lived, John I, son of Louis X, was king of France. He thus had the shortest reign of any recognized French king. Because his uncle, Philip V, succeeded him, rumors swirled that Philip had caused John's death. Another story claimed that a dying child had been substituted for John, who was then raised in Siena. In the mid-1300s, a Sienese man named Giannino di Guccio began claiming that he was John I and traveled through Europe seeking recognition. What happened to him? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Prosperity is the blessing of the Old Testament; adversity is the blessing of the New.Francis Bacon (1561-1626) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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be (of) no use to man or beast— To be completely useless; to serve no purpose; to be unsuitable to anyone or anything. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Feast Day of the German-Speaking Community (2021)Each of the autonomous regions of Belgium observes its own feast day. This day is an occasion for German speakers to celebrate their ethnic heritage and political autonomy. To mark the occasion, regional flags are hung from public buildings in the German-speaking region as well as at locations outside the region with affiliations to the German-speaking community. This holiday falls on the same date as the King's Birthday, a celebration of Leopold I (1790–1865) that has special relevance for the community. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: laylay - As in layperson, it derives from Greek laikos, "of the people"—as opposed to clerics. More... nest egg - Poultry farmers formerly placed a porcelain or other fake egg in a hen's nest to encourage it to lay more eggs—from this came nest egg, money saved to encourage the making of more. More... lay, lie - To lay is to place something; to lie is to recline. More... | |