Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, August 23, 2019)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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hideout
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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GerundsA gerund is the "-ing" form of a verb when it functions grammatically as a noun in a sentence. What is a gerund phrase? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 LadybugsCoccinellidae is a family of about 5,000 beetles known in the US as ladybugs and in the UK as ladybirds. The insect's name originated in the Middle Ages, when it was dedicated to the Virgin Mary and called "beetle of Our Lady," likely because Mary was often depicted in a red cloak in early paintings and because the seven spots on the species most common in Europe were associated with her seven joys and seven sorrows. A common myth is that the number of spots on a ladybug’s back indicates what? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Gossamer Condor Wins First Kremer Prize (1977)British industrialist Henry Kremer set up the Kremer Prize in 1959, offering £50,000 to the first group that could fly a human-powered aircraft over a 1-mile (1.6-km) figure-eight course. The aircraft also had to clear a 10-foot (3-m) pole at the start and finish line. Early attempts with heavy aircraft failed, so engineer Paul MacCready took a radically different approach in designing the Gossamer Condor, and his team won the first Kremer Prize in 1977. What was their inspiration? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Henry Lee Lucas (1936)Lucas had an abusive upbringing and began exhibiting violent behavior at an early age—even killing his own mother when he was 23. Little did officers know when they arrested him in 1983 on a weapons charge that they were taking a serial killer—perhaps the most prolific one in US history—off the streets. Lucas eventually claimed responsibility for over 600 murders, but many of his confessions are suspect, and the true number of his victims remains a mystery. Who spared him from execution and why? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Trying to stop slanderers' tongues is like trying to put gates to the open plain.Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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make a run for (someone or something)— To run suddenly and at great speed toward someone or something. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Vulcanalia (2021)Vulcan was the ancient Roman god of volcanic or destructive fire. The Vulcanalia, or festival in honor of Vulcan, was held on August 23, right at the time of year when forest fires might be expected and when the stored grain was in danger of burning. For this reason, Vulcan's cult was very prominent at Ostia, where Rome's grain was stored. At the Vulcanalia, which was observed in Egypt, in Athens, and in Rome, the priest or flamen Volcanis performed a sacrifice, and the heads of families burned small fish they had caught in the Tiber River. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: wanderingevagation - Means mental wandering or digression, also a digression in speech or writing. More... mundivagant - Means "wandering around the world." More... vagation - The action of wandering, straying, or departing from the proper or regular course. More... wanderjahr - Literally German for "wander year," it refers to a year of wandering or travel. More... | |