Daily Content Archive

Word of the Day
dilettante Definition: (noun) A dabbler in an art or a field of knowledge. Synonyms: sciolist Usage: He claimed to be serious about his paintings, but he was at heart a mere dilettante.

Article of the Day

Shamanism Shamanism is premised on the belief that the visible world is pervaded by invisible spirits that affect the lives of the living. Intermediaries known as shamans are believed to have contact with these forces and to be able to cure illness, foretell the future, and control natural events. Some societies distinguish shamans who cure from sorcerers who harm, while others believe that all shamans have both curative and deadly powers. What methods do shamans use to make contact with the spirit world? More...

This Day in History

Grand National Assembly of Turkey Is Founded (1920) The treaty negotiated between the Allies and the Ottoman Empire at the end of WWI liquidated the Ottoman Empire and virtually abolished Turkish sovereignty, but nationalists under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk were committed to establishing a sovereign Turkish state. During the struggle for independence, Atatürk pushed for the creation of a national assembly, which declared itself the supreme governing power when convened in 1920. When did it formally declare the sovereignty of Turkey? More...

Today's Birthday

Max Planck (1858) Planck was an influential German physicist whose work on black body radiation earned him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1918. He also discovered the elementary quantum of action, now known as Planck's constant. As the influential president of the Kaiser Wilhelm Society, he denounced Hitler's persecution of Jewish scientists and resigned in protest in 1937. Tragically, four of Planck's five children died before he did. One of his sons was executed after being implicated in what plot? More...

Quotation of the Day
It is not down in any map; true places never are. Herman Melville (1819-1891)

Idiom of the Day
a night out — An evening spent having an enjoyable time away from home, as in a restaurant, theater, bar, or other such locations. More...

Today's Holiday

Turkey National Sovereignty and Children's Day (2023) This festival was started in 1920 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Turkish Republic, who recognized how important children were to his country's future and dedicated this day to them. On this national public holiday, Atatürk is honored with special services in Ankara, Turkey's capital city, at the monument built for him. Afterward, a children's program takes place in which children from around the world wear festive traditional costumes and dance and sing. In Istanbul, a similar celebration is held in the national soccer stadium. More...