Daily Content Archive
(as of Tuesday, February 18, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
arcanum
| |||||||
| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
|---|---|
Ungradable AdverbsNot all adverbs are gradable in nature. For example, "absolutely," "completely," "totally," and "utterly" are all ungradable adverbs. These are used to modify ungradable adjectives, and they cannot move up and down on a scale. Do they have a comparative form? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
|---|---|
 Ethelred the UnreadyEthelred was about 10 years old when his half-brother, the King of England, was murdered—possibly by Ethelred's advisors. He took the throne in 978 CE and reigned for nearly 40 tumultuous years. Danes began attacking the coast of England while he was still a teen. He failed to mount an organized defense against them, and his later massacre of a Danish settlement provoked more attacks. Though often translated as "unready," Ethelred's epithet, "Unraed," may have in fact been a pun meaning what? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
|---|---|
 Race Car Driver Dale Earnhardt Dies in Daytona 500 Crash (2001)Earnhardt was a seven-time champion and one of NASCAR's most successful drivers when he was killed at the 2001 Daytona 500 race. In the final lap, his car veered abruptly down the track and made contact with two others before hitting a concrete retaining wall head-on at about 160 mph (258 km/h). He was killed instantly. In the wake of the tragedy, NASCAR launched an intensive safety campaign and the Florida Legislature passed the Earnhardt Family Protection Act changing what laws? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
|---|---|
 Yoko Ono (1933)Ono is a Japanese artist, musician, author, and peace activist best known for her marriage to John Lennon of the Beatles. She was raised in Japan and the US, where she started exploring conceptual and performance art. A member of the Fluxus movement, Ono developed a reputation as an avant-garde filmmaker, conceptual artist, performance artist, and experimental musician. Her 1964 Cut Piece, a commentary on identity, gender issues, suffering, and loneliness, invited the audience to do what? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
|---|---|
 The fortunes of war more than any other are liable to frequent fluctuations.Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
|---|---|
halfway decent— Somewhat good, useful, or enjoyable, but not very; passable. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
|---|---|
 Al Bustan International Festival of Music and the Arts (2020)The Al Bustan International Festival of Beirut, Lebanon, annually presents a program of music dance, marionettes, and theater. While chamber music dominates the program, the festival also includes works of opera, orchestral music, and choral music. Each year, the festival offers more than 30 performances over the five-week festival period in February and March. During the festival, participating artists offer master classes and workshops at the National Conservatoire in Beirut and other institutions throughout Lebanon. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
|---|---|
Today's topic: measuredApgar score - A measure of a baby's well-being taking into consideration respiratory effort, skin color, heart rate, muscle tone, and sense of smell (named for American anesthesiologist Virginia Apgar). More... datum line - The horizontal or base line, from which the heights of points are reckoned or measured, as in the plan of a railway, etc. More... scantling - Means "measured or prescribed size" or a "set of standard dimensions." More... military time - Time measured on a 24-hour scale of 0100-2400 hours. More... | |