Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, December 23, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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baffle
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Defining ConjugationConjugation refers to the way we inflect (change the form of) verbs to create particular meanings. We usually change a verb in order to reflect grammatical tense, but we can conjugate verbs to reflect what else ? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Eta CarinaeAround 1730, astronomers noted that Eta Carinae—one of the most massive stars known to science—had gotten brighter. It soon faded, only to intensify again in April 1843. Despite its enormous distance from Earth—about 7,500 light years—Eta Carinae became the second brightest star in the sky before again fading. Though the star was not destroyed in the 1843 "supernova imposter event," it could undergo a catastrophic explosion in the relatively near future. How might such an event affect Earth? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Seven Japanese Military Leaders Executed for War Crimes (1948)In the aftermath World War II, thousands of people in Europe and Asia were tried for war crimes. In Tokyo, US General Douglas MacArthur presided over the years-long trial of 28 high-ranking Japanese military and political leaders, all of whom were found guilty. Seven of them—including Hideki Tojo, the former prime minister of Japan—were sentenced to death. A month later, they were executed by hanging. At the execution, MacArthur defied the wishes of US President Harry S. Truman in what way? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Sir Richard Arkwright (1732)Arkwright was a British textile industrialist whose inventions marked an integral step in the Industrial Revolution. His first spinning machine was patented in 1769, and with further innovations he was able to mechanize much of the fabric-production process. The huge cotton mills he founded helped bring about the factory system. Though Arkwright's patents were later disputed, his inventions nevertheless made him very wealthy. As a young man, Arkwright developed a dye for use in what product? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 We have no right to distress any of God's creatures without a very good reason.Anna Sewell (1820-1878) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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be (the) bomb— To be excellent, extremely entertaining, or of very high quality. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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_01.jpg) Larentalia (2020)In ancient Rome, the lares were the beneficent spirits of household and family. Along with the penates (the gods of the storeroom) and the manes (spirits of the dead), they were worshipped privately within the home. Eventually they came to be identified with the spirits of the deceased. During the Larentalia, observed on December 23, offerings were made to the dead, especially at the shrine of Acca Larentia, the nurse of Romulus and Remus, the legendary founders of Rome. A sacrifice was offered on the spot where Acca Larentia was said to have disappeared. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: unluckydismal - Comes from French dies mali, "evil days," and first meant the 24 evil or unlucky days of the medieval calendar (two per month). More... infaust, infausting - Infaust is "unlucky" and infausting is "making unlucky." More... left-handed - Had a meaning of "unlucky" or "unseasonable." More... widdershins - Means "in a direction opposite of the usual one," but can also mean "unlucky." More... | |
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