Daily Content Archive

Word of the Day
parsimonious Definition: (adjective) Excessively unwilling to spend. Synonyms: penurious Usage: I had to sue my parsimonious landlord for not giving me enough heat this winter.

Article of the Day

45x90 Points If you were to split the Earth's surface in to four parts, the center of each part would be a 45X90 point—the location between the geographical North or South Pole and the equator, and between the prime meridian and the 180th meridian. Two of the points are in the Pacific Ocean and Indian Ocean, respectively. Another is in Poniatowski, Wisconsin, where visitors can become members of the 45X90 Club by signing a logbook. Only a few people claim to have visited the final 45X90 point. Where is it? More...

This Day in History

First Ascent of the Eiger's North Face (1938) Switzerland's Eiger mountain was first summited in 1858, but the sheer north face of the 13,025-foot (3,970-m) Alpine peak was not successfully climbed until 1938, when two independent pairs of climbers met on the face, joined forces, and reached the summit as a team. It has been climbed many times since, sadly with many fatalities, which, due to the cliff's high visibility, occur in full view of nearby villages. Since 1935, how many people have died climbing the Eiger's so-called Murder Wall? More...

Today's Birthday

Amelia Mary Earhart (1897) After attending an air show in 1920, Earhart, who had previously worked as a military nurse and a social worker, decided she wanted to become a pilot. She bought her first plane the following year. In 1928, she became the first woman to fly across the Atlantic as a passenger, and four years later, she became the first female pilot to make the trip solo. In 1937, her plane mysteriously vanished over the Pacific as she and a copilot attempted to circumnavigate the globe. What happened to them? More...

Quotation of the Day
A fool with a heart and no brains is just as unhappy as a fool with brains and no heart. Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821-1881)

Idiom of the Day
pay (one's) last respects — To show or express one's respect for someone who has died, especially by attending their funeral, wake, memorial service, etc. More...

Today's Holiday

World Santa Claus Congress (2023) The World Santa Claus Congress is held every July at the Bakken amusement park in Klampenborg, Denmark. The three-day event typically brings together more than 100 Santa Clauses from more than a dozen countries, including Japan and Venezuela, discussing such subjects as how to walk like, laugh like, and exude the generous spirit of Santa Claus. They dance around a Christmas tree and enjoy a traditional Danish Christmas feast of roast pork, cabbage and rice pudding. By tradition, the Santas also travel by antique fire engines and buses to a nearby beach for an annual dip in the sea. More...