Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, April 11, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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subaltern
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Intensifiers vs. MitigatorsIntensifiers are the opposite of mitigators, which are used to decrease the intensity of the words they modify. What is the mitigator in the following sentence? "After eating dinner, everyone in the room was a little bit full." More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 GymnosophistsThe word "gymnasium" comes from a Greek word meaning "to exercise naked." Its root, gumnos, meaning "naked," is also found in "gymnosophist." The gymnosophists were members of an ancient Hindu ascetic sect devoted to mystical contemplation. They wore little to no clothing, as they regarded it as detrimental to purity of thought. What Greek philosopher known as the founder of pure skepticism came under the influence of the gymnosophists while traveling to India with Alexander the Great? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Brixton Riot (1981)In the early 1980s, south London's Brixton neighborhood was plagued by severe social and economic problems, including high rates of unemployment and crime and poor housing conditions. In 1981, in an effort to reduce street crime, police began stopping and searching anyone they deemed suspicious—a policy that many residents of the predominantly black community found discriminatory and heavy-handed. Eventually, the angry residents rioted. How many people were injured during the clash? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Charles Evans Hughes, Sr. (1862)Hughes was an American statesman and jurist. He served as governor of New York and as a Supreme Court justice before losing the 1916 presidential race, one of the closest in US history. It has been reported that, on the night of the election, Hughes went to bed believing he had won. According to the story, a reporter later called and was told that "the president is asleep," to which he responded, "When he wakes up, tell him he isn't the president." What did Hughes do after losing the election? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 The skeleton of the whale furnishes but little clue to the shape of his fully invested body.Herman Melville (1819-1891) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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(someone's) hands are full— Someone is too busy or has too much going on to be able to do or become involved with anything else. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Galveston Island FeatherFest (2025)Begun in 2002, the Galveston Island FeatherFest is intended to celebrate the "birds and natural heritage of the Upper Texas Coastal area." Some 300 species of birds are found on Galveston Island in the springtime as they stop off during their migration north. The FeatherFest allows bird enthusiasts the chance to go on field trips to photograph and watch the birds. Prominent environmental writers, naturalists, and artists are the leaders of these field trips. Seminars, workshops, and lectures on the wildlife in the community are also available, and a FeatherFest Photo Contest is held. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: tortoiseshellpad - Another name for a tortoise. More... testudinate - Means "slow-moving; like a turtle," from Latin testudo, "tortoise," and also describes something curved or vaulted like a turtle shell. More... Galapagos Islands - Named for the massive tortoises living there, from Old Spanish galapago, "tortoise." More... turtle, tortoise, terrapin - Turtle is applied to those living in water and tortoise to those that live on land, while terrapins live in fresh water; turtle and tortoise may come from the Latin root tort, with reference to the animals' twisted feet. More... | |