Daily Content Archive

(as of Wednesday, June 8, 2022)
Word of the Day

mnemonic

Definition:(noun) A device, such as a formula or rhyme, used as an aid in remembering.
Synonyms:aide-memoire
Usage: The students came up with a mnemonic to help themselves remember the colors of the rainbow.
Daily Grammar Lesson

Second Conditional

Second conditional sentences include a simple past tense verb in the "if clause" and a future tense verb in the main clause, preceded by the auxiliary verb "would." What do these sentences refer to? More...
Article of the Day

Yo-Yo Ma

World-famous American cellist Yo-Yo Ma was born in France to Chinese parents in 1955. A musical prodigy, he gave a public recital in Paris at age six and his first performance at Carnegie Hall at age nine. He later attended the prestigious Julliard School of Music and ascended rapidly to the highest rank of international soloists, winning the Avery Fisher Prize in 1978. What became of a centuries-old cello valued at $2.5 million that Ma accidentally left in a New York City taxi in 1999? More...
This Day in History

Downed US Air Force Pilot Rescued in Bosnia (1995)

On June 2, 1995, US Air Force pilot Scott O'Grady was enforcing a NATO no-fly zone over Bosnia when his F-16 was hit by a surface-to-air missile. He ejected and, for the next six days, survived in the wilderness by eating leaves and ants. During that time, he avoided capture by Serb patrols and made contact with US forces. The Marines then mounted a daring rescue and brought him home. The 2001 film Behind Enemy Lines is loosely based on O'Grady's ordeal. Why did he sue the filmmakers? More...
Today's Birthday

Francis Harry Compton Crick (1916)

While working in a research lab at Cambridge after WWII, Crick helped discover the molecular structure of DNA. It was one of the most important scientific findings of the century, and he shared the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work. He also clarified how cells use DNA to build proteins. During WWII, he was deflected from his original course of research after a bomb hit his lab. Crick later said he had been studying "the dullest problem imaginable" at the time. What was it? More...
Quotation of the Day
Fear is the main source of superstition, and one of the main sources of cruelty. To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom.

Bertrand Russell (1872-1970)

Idiom of the Day

money pit

A business, possession, or other financial commitment that requires or consumes an increasingly large amount of money, especially more than was first anticipated. More...
Today's Holiday

St. Médardus's Day (2025)

St. Médardus, or Médard, who lived from about 470 to 560 CE, was the bishop of Vermandois, Noyon, and Tournai in France. Because he was the patron saint of farmers and good weather, he has come to play a role in weather lore similar to that of the English St. Swithin. In Belgium he is known as the rain saint, and there is an old folk rhyme that says, "If it rains on St. Médard's Day, it will rain for 40 days." More...
Word Trivia

Today's topic: meteor

astrobleme - A crater caused by a meteor. More...

aerolithology - The study of meteors. More...

meteorite - A meteor that survives and makes it to a planet; types of meteorites include siderites/irons, aerolites/stones, and siderolites (iron/stone). More...

falling star - Another name for meteor or shooting star. More...

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