Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, February 18, 2024)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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insidious
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Defining the PredicateSentences must always include both a subject and a predicate. The predicate is, essentially, everything in the sentence that follows the subject. It is made up of at least one finite verb. What else can the predicate include? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 GroupthinkIn order to minimize conflict and avoid embarrassment, group members often refrain from promoting viewpoints that deviate from the apparent group consensus. This mode of thinking is known as "groupthink" and is characterized by extensive self-censorship among group members who unquestioningly believe in the morality of the group. Striving for unanimity without appraising alternative courses of action can often have dire consequences. What fiasco inspired the study of the concept of "groupthink"? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Race Car Driver Dale Earnhardt Dies in Daytona 500 Crash (2001)Earnhardt was a seven-time champion and one of NASCAR's most successful drivers when he was killed at the 2001 Daytona 500 race. In the final lap, his car veered abruptly down the track and made contact with two others before hitting a concrete retaining wall head-on at about 160 mph (258 km/h). He was killed instantly. In the wake of the tragedy, NASCAR launched an intensive safety campaign and the Florida Legislature passed the Earnhardt Family Protection Act changing what laws? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Yoko Ono (1933)Ono is a Japanese artist, musician, author, and peace activist best known for her marriage to John Lennon of the Beatles. She was raised in Japan and the US, where she started exploring conceptual and performance art. A member of the Fluxus movement, Ono developed a reputation as an avant-garde filmmaker, conceptual artist, performance artist, and experimental musician. Her 1964 Cut Piece, a commentary on identity, gender issues, suffering, and loneliness, invited the audience to do what? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 The land of literature is a fairy-land to those who view it at a distance, but, like all other landscapes, the charm fades on a nearer approach, and the thorns and briars become visible.Washington Irving (1783-1859) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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make ground— To become more successful, popular, important, or accepted. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Gambia Independence Day (2025)Gambia gained independence from Britain on February 18, 1965, and became a constitutional monarchy. On that day, people gathered in Bathurst for music, dancing, and the replacement of the Union Jack with the Gambian flag. A public vote in 1970 made the Republic of the Gambia a British Commonwealth. Independence Day is a national holiday in Gambia. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: laylay - As in layperson, it derives from Greek laikos, "of the people"—as opposed to clerics. More... nest egg - Poultry farmers formerly placed a porcelain or other fake egg in a hen's nest to encourage it to lay more eggs—from this came nest egg, money saved to encourage the making of more. More... lay, lie - To lay is to place something; to lie is to recline. More... | |