Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, February 2, 2025)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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suppositious
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Compound PossessionIf two or more nouns (usually people) are shown to have possession of something in a sentence, the placement of the apostrophe changes depending on whether they possess the thing together or separately. This is known as "compound possession." If the people share possession of the same thing, then only one apostrophe is used with the last person listed. If the people possess two separate things, where are apostrophes placed in the sentence? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Vote PairingAlso called vote swapping, vote pairing is an election system that allows people to vote tactically. A person who engages in this sort of vote trading agrees to vote for a less-preferred candidate who has a greater chance of winning in his district, and in exchange, a voter from another district agrees to vote for the candidate the first voter prefers. Though the practice is fairly informal, it can sometimes be quite sophisticated and involve websites that pair up voters. Is the practice legal? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Sled Dogs Reach Nome, Alaska, with Diphtheria Serum (1925)In 1925, a diphtheria outbreak threatened the city of Nome. The town's supply of antitoxin had run out, and a mail shipment would have taken weeks to arrive. After learning of the crisis, 20 mushers and some 150 sled dogs, including the famous Balto, relayed fresh antitoxin 674 miles (1,085 km) in a record five and a half days, preventing an epidemic. Today, the heroic journey is commemorated by the annual Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. How long did a reenactment of the serum run take in 1975? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 George Halas, "Papa Bear" (1895)Halas was a pioneering football player, coach, and owner of one of the 11 original teams in the American Professional Football Association (APFA), the Decatur Staleys. Founded in 1920, the APFA went on to become the National Football League (NFL) in 1922—the same year Halas moved his team to Chicago and renamed it the Bears. Under his leadership, the Chicago Bears won seven NFL championships. In addition to coaching, Halas also played what position during the 1920s? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Democracy means simply the bludgeoning of the people by the people for the people.Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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the inmates are running the asylum— The people least capable of running a group or organization are now in charge. Said especially when the result is total chaos or calamity. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Edison Festival of Light (2025)The Edison Festival of Light is held annually in Fort Myers, Florida, for more than three weeks, encompassing Thomas Edison's birthday. Highlights of the festival include concerts, the coronation of the King and Queen of Edisonia, a children's parade, fireworks, exhibits of Edison's various inventions, and exhibits of regional inventors. The Grand Parade of Light—a nighttime procession of more than 100 bands, floats, and marching units—is the festival's grand finale. Edison's winter home and his Florida laboratory are open to the public year-round. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: small piececollup - A small piece or slice. More... cover slip - The small piece of thin glass that goes over the specimen on a microscope slide. More... brioche - In French, it literally means "split up into small pieces." More... stamp - Originally meant "crush into small pieces; pound"; its sense of "imprint with design by pressure" came into play in the 16th century—and is the semantic basis of postage stamp. More... | |