Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, October 20, 2017)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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chunky
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Collective Nouns: Singular vs. Plural UseCollective nouns usually function as singular nouns in a sentence, but they are occasionally used as plurals, too. How do we determine in which manner the collective noun should be used? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Virtual Retinal DisplayNewly developed virtual retinal display (VRD) technology allows devices to project a graphical display directly onto a user's retina, creating the impression that the display is hovering in space in front of him. In the past, similar systems, which often came in the form of large sunglasses, simply projected images onto a small "screen" in front of the user's eye. Only recently have a number of developments made a true VRD system practical. What applications could VRDs have? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 The Saturday Night Massacre (1973)While investigating the Watergate scandal, special prosecutor Archibald Cox subpoenaed audiotapes of conversations implicating US President Richard Nixon in a cover-up of a burglary of the Democratic headquarters at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, DC. Nixon refused to produce the tapes and ordered the US attorney general and his deputy to fire Cox. On the same Saturday, both men resigned in protest, and public outcry eventually forced Nixon to surrender the tapes. What happened to Cox? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Pauline Bonaparte (1780)A woman of great beauty and considerable scandal, Pauline Bonaparte was Napoleon's favorite sister. She accompanied her first husband on an expedition to subdue Haiti, but he failed and died of yellow fever. Pauline then married a Roman nobleman, but she soon tired of him and returned to Paris, where her scandalous conduct earned her a reputation. Pauline was the only one of Napoleon's siblings to come to his aid when he was exiled to Elba, despite having incurred his disfavor for what? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 On the outskirts of every agony sits some observant fellow who points.Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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in a measure— To a certain degree or extent; somewhat. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Birth of the Bab (2020)Birth of the Bab is a holy day in the Baha’i religion to celebrate the birthday in 1819 of Mirza Ali Mohammad in Shiraz, Persia (now Iran). In 1844, Mirza Ali declared himself the Bab (meaning "gate") and foretold the coming of one greater than he. The day, on which work is suspended, is a happy social occasion for Baha'is. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: tribelow man - On an actual totem pole, it is really the most important man in the tribe. More... tribe - From Latin tribus, it may refer to the three divisions of early Romans, the Latins, Sabines, and Etruscans. More... tribunal - Originally referred to a seat or raised platform for judges, from Latin tribunus, "head of a tribe." More... cannibal - When Columbus was trying to find the Spice Islands, he was told of a tribe of man-eating natives in Cuba and Haiti called Caribs (from which we get Caribbean) or Caniba (Columbus' rendition of the name); the word canib, meaning "brave and fierce," became cannibal, meaning "anthropophagite," a person who eats human flesh. More... | |