Daily Content Archive
(as of Tuesday, August 13, 2024)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Defining MoodGrammatical mood refers to the way in which a verb is used to express certain meaning by the speaker or writer. In linguistics, moods are broken down into two main categories: realis moods (expressing what is real or true) and irrealis moods, which express what? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Copito de NieveThe most popular resident of the Barcelona Zoo during his life, Copito de Nieve was an albino Western Lowland Gorilla—the only known albino gorilla. Originally captured in 1966 in what is now Equatorial Guinea, where he was called Nfumu Ngi, or "White Gorilla," he later gained fame as Copito de Nieve, Spanish for "Snowflake," a nickname given to him by National Geographic magazine. During his nearly 40 years in captivity, Snowflake fathered 22 offspring. How many survived to adulthood? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Circus Acrobat Otto Witte Crowned King of Albania? (1913)Witte was a German citizen and circus acrobat who claimed to have impersonated his way into being crowned King of Albania in 1913—by some accounts, on August 13. According to Witte, he enjoyed the royal harem and reigned for several days before being discovered as an impostor. Though he was likely lying, his story was picked up by several publications, including Time magazine. What novel may have given Witte the idea for his story, and what other novel was then based on Witte? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Lucy Stone (1818)In 1847, Stone became the first Massachusetts woman to graduate college. Not long after, she began speaking on women's rights. An effective orator, she is said to have swayed antagonistic audiences and inspired Susan B. Anthony to join the cause. She kept her own name after marriage as a protest against the unequal laws applied to married women, and others who did the same called themselves "Lucy Stoners." She caused an uproar by wearing "bloomers." What were they, and why were they so named? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 The desire of power in excess caused the angels to fall; the desire of knowledge in excess caused man to fall.Francis Bacon (1561-1626) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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be running on fumes— To be continuing to operate with no or very little enthusiasm, energy, or resources left. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Nemoralia (2024)The Nemoralia was an ancient Roman festival in honor of the goddess Diana held at Nemi, in the territory of Aricia about 16 miles southeast of Rome. Diana was worshipped throughout Rome and Latium (now western Italy) on August 13, the day on which her temple on the Aventine Hill had been dedicated by Servius Tullius. But her most famous cult was in Aricia, where the Nemoralia was observed to protect the vines and the fruit trees. It is still common in some parts of the Orthodox Christian Church for worshippers to make offerings of new wheat and cakes to the Theotokos on that day. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: presencehoodoo - A person who practices voodoo; the word also describes a person or thing whose presence is supposed to bring bad luck. More... al fresco - Implies the presence of some nearby structure (one does not hike al fresco). More... pyrosis - Heartburn is actually pyrosis, caused by the presence of gastric secretions, called reflux, in the lower esophagus. More... evince - To indicate, to reveal the presence of a quality or feeling. More... | |