Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, March 28, 2022)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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plectrum
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Using "Should"The modal verb "should" is used to politely express obligations or duties. It is also used to ask for or issue advice, suggestions, and recommendations; to describe an expectation; to express surprise; and to create what kind of sentences? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Leaning Tower of PisaIn 1173, construction began on the final building of the cathedral complex in Pisa, Italy. The bell tower was designed to stand 185 feet (56 m) tall, but uneven settling of its foundation caused its 5.5-degree lean. Work was suspended several times, but the structure was still leaning upon completion in the 14th century. The tower's tilt only worsened over time, prompting a recent strengthening project to prevent collapse. How did the tower narrowly escape destruction during World War II? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 US Supreme Court Decides Stump v. Sparkman (1978)Stump v. Sparkman is a leading US Supreme Court decision on judicial immunity. It involves a young woman who was suing a judge who had previously ordered her to be sterilized. The Supreme Court, in a 5-3 decision, reversed a prior Court of Appeals ruling, deciding that two criteria must be examined when determining whether an act warrants judicial immunity and holding that the judge could not be sued because he had acted within his jurisdiction. What were the circumstances of the case? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Mario Vargas Llosa (1936)Vargas Llosa is a Peruvian writer and politician. His novels paint a portrait of Peruvian society that is both severe and tender. As an author, he often explores themes of humanity's struggle for freedom and the freedom found in art, and his works tend to reflect his commitment to social change. In 2010, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. The award came 20 years after his unsuccessful bid for the Peruvian presidency. What famous observation about Mexico's government did he once make? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Death is only a launching into the region of the strange Untried; it is but the first salutation to the possibilities of the immense Remote, the Wild, the Watery, the Unshored...Herman Melville (1819-1891) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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shotgun house— (chiefly Southern United States slang) A one-story house in which each room is in a straight alignment with the others, connected by a continuous hallway running from the front to the back of the residence. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Teachers' Day in the Czech Republic (2022)March 28 is the birthday of Jan Amos Komensky (or John Comenius; 1592-1670), a noted educational reformer and theologian in the former Czechoslovakia. Komensky was the first person to write an illustrated textbook for children, used for teaching Latin words; he was also a proponent of compulsory education. It has been traditional for children to honor him on Teachers' Day, or Komensky Day, by bringing flowers and gifts to their teachers. The day is also observed with lectures, music, and educational activities. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: thighham, hamstring - Originally, the part of the leg behind the knee was called the ham, and then the tendon near the ham was the hamstring; by extension, the ham became the thigh and buttock together. More... haunch - The buttock and thigh together. More... hockshin, gambrel - The underside of the thigh is the hockshin or gambrel. More... thigh - Etymologically, the "plump" part of the leg, from an Indo-European base meaning "swell" or "fat." More... | |