Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, May 26, 2017)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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invertebrate
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Middle VoiceThe so-called middle voice is an approximate type of grammatical voice in which the subject both performs and receives the action expressed by the verb. Middle voice and active voice use the same verb structure in a sentence, so how can we distinguish between the two? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Blombos CaveLocated in a limestone cliff on the coast of South Africa, Blombos Cave is an archaeological site made famous in the 1990s, when excavators uncovered 75,000-year-old beads, 80,000-year-old bone tools, and some of the earliest evidence of fishing, dating back approximately 140,000 years. The finds suggest the existence of cognitive behaviors not previously associated with Middle Stone Age people. What other items have been found at the site? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Vauxhall Bridge Opens in London (1906)Vauxhall Bridge is an arch bridge over the River Thames in central London. Despite its public garden and location, the Vauxhall area was sparsely populated before the 19th century, and a plan for a bridge there was hatched in 1809 to help develop the area. The resulting bridge was in terrible shape by the end of the century, however, and construction on a new, richly decorated, steel-and-granite replacement began in 1898. A major transport artery today, the bridge is adorned with what statues? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Al Jolson (1886)Jolson was one of the most popular entertainers in the US in the 1930s. The son of a rabbi, he had planned to be a cantor but instead became a singer and comedian. By the age of 15, he was touring in vaudeville and minstrel shows. His 1909 blackface performance of "Mammy" was a hit, and he performed on Broadway and the radio. In 1927, he starred in the first feature-length "talkie," The Jazz Singer. How do scholars differ in their analysis of Jolson's use of blackface in his performances? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 As long as war is regarded as wicked it will always have its fascination. When it is looked upon as vulgar, it will cease to be popular.Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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have eyes bigger than (one's) stomach— To take more food than one is actually capable of eating. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 French Open Tennis (2020)The French Open is one of the four major tournaments that make up the Grand Slam of tennis. (The others are the Australian Open, the United States Open, and Wimbledon.) The French National Championship, played at the Stade Roland Garros in Auteil, France, on red-clay courts, was instituted in 1891 but wasn't opened to players from other nations until 1925. It became an open (to both amateurs and professionals) in 1968. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: knightesquire - At its root, it means "shield bearer (in service to a knight)," from Latin scutarius. More... forget-me-nots - May have gotten their name from the last words of a knight who drowned while trying to pick these flowers by a riverside. More... heart on one's sleeve - Comes from chivalry, when a knight wore a scarf or other item from his lady tied to his sleeve. More... | |