Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, March 31, 2022)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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ersatz
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Factitive Verbs vs. Causative VerbsCausative verbs tie a subject to other parts of the sentence that reveal more about the subject. In this way, they serve a similar function to factitive verbs. How do the two types of verbs differ? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Great Red Spot: Jupiter's StormThe Great Red Spot (GRS) is a very large, high-pressure atmospheric feature on the planet Jupiter, characterized by anticyclonic winds circulating at a speed of about 248 mph (400 km/h). The storm has persisted on Jupiter's surface for more than 300 years since first observed. The cause of its reddish color is unknown, and it tends to vary from brick-red to brownish. The GRS is not to be confused with another storm on Jupiter called "the Baby Red Spot," which was initially what color? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 UNIVAC Computer Delivered to the US Census Bureau (1951)By 1870, the US population was so large that hand-counting the census was no longer feasible. Despite the invention of a counting machine, by the time the 1880 census was tabulated, it was almost 1890. Dealing with so much data remained a problem until the late 1940s, when the Census Bureau commissioned the first civilian computer. In 1951, it was used to count part of the 1950 census and was so successful that the bureau bought another. What presidential election did UNIVAC correctly predict? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Jack Johnson (1878)The son of two ex-slaves, Johnson was the world's first African-American heavyweight champion. At the height of his career, Johnson was excoriated by the press for having twice married white women, and he offended white supremacists by defeating former champion James J. Jeffries, the "Great White Hope." In 1912, Johnson was convicted under the Mann Act for transporting his wife-to-be across state lines. Sentenced to a year in prison, he fled the country. What happened when he returned? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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a motor mouth— A person who talks incessantly or irrepressibly. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Malta Freedom Day (2023)In 1814, Malta became a crown colony of the British empire. Although Malta gained independence in 1964, the British armed forces did not completely leave until March 31, 1979. This freed Malta of foreign military occupation for the first time in history. In Malta, Freedom Day is a public holiday that commemorates the day the last of the British military left the Maltese Islands. On this holiday, a ceremony is held at the War Memorial in Floriana. The main events of the day take place around the Freedom Day Monument in Vittoriosa. In the afternoon, a competitive regatta is held in Grand Harbour. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: toesgronk, cheese, toe-jam - The stuff between your toes. More... pantaraxia - Any actions aimed at keeping people on their toes. More... plantar pad, digital pads - The plantar pad is the larger pad of a cat's foot; the digital pads are on the toes. More... | |