Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, March 27, 2016)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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roomer
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Conjunctive AdverbsConjunctive adverbs (also called linking adverbs or connecting adverbs) are a specific type of conjunction specifically used to connect two independent clauses. What punctuation mark is traditionally used when we join two independent clauses with a conjunctive adverb? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 AllergiesAn allergy is an abnormally high sensitivity to an otherwise harmless foreign substance, or allergen, that leads to an exaggerated response of the natural immune defense mechanism. Allergens can be airborne substances, infectious agents, foods, contactants, or physical agents; and reactions can range from the relatively benign runny nose to severe inflammation, anaphylactic shock, and even death. Why do some scientists believe that children with no siblings are more prone to allergies? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Good Friday Earthquake near Anchorage, Alaska (1964)With a magnitude of 9.2, the earthquake that struck east of Anchorage at rush hour on Good Friday 1964 was one of the strongest ever recorded. About 130 people died, most in the subsequent tsunami, and much of downtown Anchorage was destroyed. The quake's effects were felt around the world—boats were sunk as far away as the Gulf of Mexico. Within a day, 11 aftershocks measuring 6.0 or higher were reported. In the months after, residents endured thousands of smaller ones. How long did they last? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Nathaniel Currier (1813)Before photojournalism rendered illustrations of the news obsolete, Currier printed more than 7,000 lithographs—prints made using a stone block etched with grease to reproduce drawings—that greatly increased the public demand for graphic images. With his partner James Ives, he established outlets across the country, selling high-quality prints of disasters, landscapes, satirical subjects, and domestic scenes. Ives was neither a lithographer nor an artist, so why did Currier make him his partner? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 I love good sense above all, perhaps because I have none.Gustave Flaubert (1821-1880) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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have (a) skeleton(s) in (one's)/the closet— To have (an) embarassing, unpleasant, damaging, or incriminating secret(s) from one's past. Primarily heard in US. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Birthday of the Goddess of Mercy (2016)The birthday of the Goddess of Mercy is a celebration of Kuan Yin, the Bodhisattva ("Buddha-to-be") of infinite compassion and mercy. Depicted as both masculine and feminine, and one of the most beloved of Buddhist deities, he or she is accepted not only by Buddhists but also by the Japanese, Chinese, and Koreans. Women especially celebrate Kuan Yin. In Malaysia, hundreds of devotees bearing joss sticks, fruit, flowers, and sweet cakes gather at temples dedicated to Kuan Yin to pray for her benevolence. At the old temple at Jalan Pitt, Penang, puppet shows are staged in celebration of her. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: sledbobber - A person who rides a bobsled or bobsleigh (meaning "short sled"). More... pung - Once the name for a one-horse sled or wagon. More... skate, ski, sled - The word skate was originally plural and comes from Dutch schaats, which derived from an Old French word for "stilt," but the connection is unclear. Skate appeared in English in the mid-17th century. Ski, in English by 1755, was borrowed from Norwegian, and ultimately from Old Norse for "snowshoe." Sled came from Flemish and Germanic sledde, between 1325 and 1388, for a "vehicle for transporting heavy goods," and is related to sledge and sleigh. More... toboggan - Comes from Canadian French from Micmac tobakun or Abnaki udabagan, "sled, sleigh." More... | |