Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, June 22, 2016)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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nimiety
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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The Modal VerbsA modal auxiliary verb is used to change the meaning of other verbs (commonly known as main verbs) by expressing modality—that is, asserting (or denying) possibility, likelihood, ability, permission, obligation, or future intention. What are the nine "true" modal auxiliary verbs? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Lymph NodesThese white blood cell-filled filters are the lymphatic system's filtration units. They collect and destroy dangerous bacteria, viruses, and foreign particles that infiltrate the body. There are approximately 500 to 600 lymph nodes throughout the body, with clusters in the neck, underarms, chest, groin, and abdomen. The bean-shaped nodes normally range in size from a few millimeters up to 2 centimeters but may become enlarged due to the presence of a tumor. What else causes lymph nodes to swell? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Kodak Announces Discontinuation of Kodachrome Film (2009)Manufactured by Kodak from 1935 to 2009, Kodachrome was the first commercially successful color film and was used to capture some of the most iconic images of the late 20th century. The film was known for its stability—if stored properly, it could be developed decades after being exposed and would retain its color and density for decades. Yet, advances in digital photography and the development of competing films considerably reduced demand. What famous images were recorded on Kodachrome? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 John Herbert Dillinger, Jr. (1903)Raised in Indiana by a widowed father, Dillinger served a prison term for attempted robbery, then organized a gang and terrorized the Midwest in 1933. He became one of the most notorious criminals in the US. The infamous bank robber escaped jail twice, was involved in 16 killings, and was declared "public enemy number one" before being killed on a Chicago street by FBI agents at the age of 31. He was so well-known that at the scene of his death, bystanders collected what macabre souvenirs? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 The way to love anything is to realize that it might be lost.Gilbert Chesterton (1874-1936) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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at a (single) stroke— All at once, with a single decisive or powerful action. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Lajkonik (2017)The most popular folk festival in Kraków, Poland, Lajkonik is believed to commemorate the horseman who carried the news of the Tartar defeat during the 13th-century Tartar invasions. A bearded horseman in oriental costume riding a richly draped wooden hobby-horse—the Lajkonik—collects money from the crowds lining the streets, tapping each donor with his rod to bring them good luck. Eventually he ends up in the market square, where he dances for the assembled dignitaries and receives from them a sack of money and a glass of wine, which he consumes after toasting the well-being of the city. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: surroundedinvolve - First meant "enfold, surround, wrap." More... enclave, exclave - An enclave is a group or area different from the surroundings, a secured area within another secured area, from Latin clavis, "key"; an exclave is the same thing, but usually describes a portion of a country separated from the main part and surrounded by politically alien territory. More... woebegone - Begone in woebegone means "beset" or "surrounded," so the word means "beset by woe." More... glade - Originally referred to a part of water not frozen over, but surrounded by ice, drawing an analogy to the same word for an opening in the woods. More... | |
| In the News | |
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Is Chameleon Spit Sticky Enough to Ensnare Its Huge Meals?Chameleons have powerful, speedy tongues. If one of these colorful lizards decides it wants a snack, the unsuspecting prey is in the animal's mouth within seconds. The chameleon simply fires its long, elastic tongue out of its mouth at high speed and whips it ... More... | |