Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, June 24, 2019)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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billow
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Gender in NounsThere are some instances in which nouns are declined to show masculine or feminine gender. How is a noun made feminine? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 PlanetariumsA planetarium is a building that houses an optical device, also called a planetarium, that projects images of celestial bodies and other astronomical phenomena onto a domed ceiling. The first modern planetarium was constructed in 1924 for the Deutsches Museum in Munich, Germany. The "space race" of the 1950s and 60s boosted global interest in planetariums, and by the end of the 20th century, there were more than 100 major planetariums worldwide. What device was the forerunner of the planetarium? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Sally Ride Returns to Earth (1983)Before astronaut Sally Ride became the first American woman to reach outer space, she made a name for herself as a nationally-ranked tennis player. After earning her bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees from Stanford University, she took part in her first space shuttle mission in 1983, serving on board the Challenger. She later served on the panels that investigated the Challenger and Columbia shuttle disasters. What two women preceded Ride in space? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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a.JPG) Jack Dempsey (1895)Born in Manassa, Colorado, Dempsey was an American boxer and world heavyweight champion. Nicknamed the "Manassa Mauler," he emerged from fights on saloon floors to seal his slugging reputation in his first title fight by knocking down the gigantic champion, Jess Willard, seven times in the first three minutes. He successfully defended his title five times before losing to Gene Tunney in an upset. What happened during the rematch, and why did it come to be called the "Long Count" bout? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Misery generates hate.Charlotte Bronte (1816-1855) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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throw a wobbly— To suddenly become very upset or intensely angry and make a big display of it. Primarily heard in UK, Australia. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Inti Raymi Fiesta (2022)The Inti Raymi Festival is an ancient Winter Solstice festival celebrated by the Incas in Peru on June 24. The original Inti Raymi involved animal sacrifices performed at the top of La Marca when the sun reached its zenith. Today the main celebration takes place in Cuzco, where there is a special procession and mock sacrifice to the sun, followed by a week-long celebration involving folkloric dances and regional arts and crafts displays. Bonfires are still lit in the Andes Mountains to celebrate the rebirth of the sun, and people burn their old clothes as a way of marking the end of the harvest cycle. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: sailingaloof - Comes from sailing, in which ships keep clear of coastal rocks by holding the vessel "luff"—"to the windward"; so, to hold "a-luff" means to "keep clear." More... jibe - Meaning "be compatible, consistent," it may come from the earlier jibe, "to shift a sail from side to side while sailing in the wind." More... plain sailing - Probably comes from plane sailing, a way of determining a ship's position based on its moving on a plane (flat surface). More... aback - Originated in sailing, as a ship was taken aback when a strong gust of wind suddenly blew the sails back against the mast, causing the ship to stop momentarily. More... | |