Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, April 27, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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subside
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Modal Auxiliary Verbs - WouldThe modal auxiliary verb "would" has a variety of functions and uses, including replacing "will" for things that happened or began in the past, or describing hypothetical situations. What type of mood is used to express hypotheticals and desires? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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.JPG) EuthanasiaDerived from the Ancient Greek expression meaning "good death," euthanasia refers to the practice of ending a life, typically in cases of terminal illness, either by painlessly causing death or failing to prevent death from natural causes. Illegal in most countries, euthanasia is a controversial subject, not only because of the many moral dilemmas associated with it, but also because the word itself can be defined in many ways. What does Hippocrates say about euthanasia in the Hippocratic Oath? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Disgruntled Engineer Jams HBO's Satellite Signal (1986)In the early morning hours of April 27, 1986, a Florida electronics store owner moonlighting as a satellite uplink technician decided to protest what he considered unfair programming subscription rates for satellite dish owners. Overriding the signal of the cable network HBO, he transmitted a message to be seen by anyone watching HBO at the time. "Captain Midnight," as he called himself, was eventually fined $5,000 for the stunt. What did he elect to say in those few minutes of airtime? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Herbert Spencer (1820)Admired by some and loathed by others, Spencer was one of the most discussed Victorian thinkers. An English sociologist and philosopher, he was an advocate of the theory of social Darwinism. In his vast, multi-volume System of Synthetic Philosophy, he held that the physical, organic, and social realms are interconnected and develop according to identical evolutionary principles. To describe his theory of sociocultural evolution, he coined what well-known phrase? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 It is a hopeless endeavor to attract people to a theater unless they can be first brought to believe that they will never get into it.Charles Dickens (1812-1870) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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a little leery— Cautious, wary, or uncertain of a given person, place, or thing. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 South Africa Freedom Day (2021)On April 27, 1994, the Republic of South Africa held its first democratic elections. The African National Congress (ANC) won the election, bringing with it socio-economic change that improved the lives of all South Africans, especially the poor. Every year, South Africa celebrates Freedom Day, a public holiday that commemorates the anniversary of the historic day in 1994. Special cultural events and exhibitions are held in various venues around Cape Town, the legislative capital of South Africa, and other locations around the country. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: hoodapartheid - From Dutch apart, "separate," and -heid, "-hood," it is pronounced uh-PAHR-tayt or uh-PAHR-tight. More... chaperone, chaperon - Chaperone comes from French chaperon, meaning "hood" or "cowl, head covering," which was worn from the 16th century by ladies who served as guides and guardians; chaperon is the standard spelling and chaperone is a variant resulting from pronunciation. More... cobra - From Portuguese cobra de capello, "snake with hood"—based on Latin colubra, "snake." More... hood - Etymologically, hood and hat are the same word, ultimately both meaning "head-covering." More... | |