Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, February 14, 2025)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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specious
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Appositive PhrasesIt is very common to use noun phrases (which consist of a noun accompanied by any determiners and modifiers) as appositives to provide more descriptive identifying information about a noun; these appositive phrases can modify both common and proper nouns. What part of speech do they usually begin with? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Gaston PlantéIn 1859, French physicist Gaston Planté invented the lead acid battery, the world's first rechargeable electric battery and the forerunner of the modern automobile battery. His early model consisted of two sheets of coiled lead soaked in sulfuric acid, but he soon revised this design, and just a year later, he presented a nine-cell version to the Academy of Sciences. What mechanical device did Planté invent as part of his investigation into the differences between static and dynamic electricity? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Israeli Knesset Convenes for the First Time (1949)In 1948, following a failed attempt by the UN to divide Palestine, which had been under British mandate, the nation of Israel proclaimed its independence. The first legislative assembly, or Knesset, convened in February 1949 and succeeded the Assembly of Representatives that had functioned as the Jewish community's parliament during the Mandate era. The prime minister and the president are responsible to the Knesset, whose members are elected by popular vote. What does "knesset" mean in Hebrew? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Renée Fleming (1959)Fleming is an American soprano who specializes in opera and lieder, a type of German art song intended for soloists. The daughter of two music teachers, Fleming graduated from SUNY Potsdam in 1981 with a degree in music education and went on to study at Eastman School of Music and Juilliard. Her professional debut was in Austria in 1986. She has won numerous awards for her roles in opera and for the classical music she has recorded. What did Fleming do to pay for her studies at Juilliard? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 To attain happiness in another world we need only to believe something, while to secure it in this world we must do something.Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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make as though— To behave as if; to pretend or make it appear that. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Vinegrower's Day (2025)This pre-harvest vineyard festival in Bulgaria involves pruning the vines and sprinkling them with wine. Ritual songs and dances are performed in hopes of a plentiful grape harvest. In some areas, a "Vine King" is crowned with a wreath of twigs from the vineyards. Everyone treats him with great respect, for it is believed that fertility depends on the King's happiness. Visits to well-known Bulgarian vineyards are organized, the vines are pruned, and guests are given an opportunity to sample the local wine and foods. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: hungerfamine, famish - Famine and famish come from Latin fames, "hunger." More... dissatisfied, unsatisfied - Only a person can be dissatisfied, while an abstract thing (such as hunger) can be unsatisfied. More... piece de resistance - The original context for piece de resistance is what one is able to resist by eating the big dish—pangs of hunger. More... | |