Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, April 26, 2019)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Subjunctive MoodThe subjunctive mood refers to verbs that are used to describe hypothetical or non-real actions, events, or situations. What is the subjective mood most commonly used to express? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 RetrovirusesA retrovirus is a type of RNA virus that reproduces itself by transcribing its DNA into the genetic material of the host cell. These viruses are therefore used as vectors by genetic engineers to import foreign DNA into certain cells. Retroviruses sometimes destroy the cells whose DNA they alter, as with HIV, and sometimes cause them to become cancerous, as with the viruses that cause certain leukemias. What enables retroviruses to rapidly develop resistance to antiviral drugs? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Studio 54 Opens in New York (1977)The disco craze was relatively short-lived, beginning in the mid-1970s and fading by the 1980s, yet it had a lasting influence on the music scene. A beat-driven style of dance music, disco got its name from the "discotheque," the type of nightclub where it originated. No discotheque was more central to disco than Studio 54, the Manhattan club famous for its mix of celebrities, beautiful people, and hedonism. The club paralleled disco's demise and closed in 1980. What is the space used for today? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Fanny Blankers-Koen (1918)Representing her native Netherlands, Blankers-Koen made her Olympic debut at the 1936 Berlin Games but failed to medal. Two years later, she set her first world record in track and field. Unfortunately for her, both the 1940 and 1944 Games were cancelled due to WWII, so she had to wait until 1948's Summer Games in London to compete again. In addition to losing precious years, the athlete gave birth twice in the interim. Still, she went on to win four gold medals in London, earning what nickname? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Considering how foolishly people act and how pleasantly they prattle, perhaps it would be better for the world if they talked more and did less.W. Somerset Maugham (1874-1965) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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go Galt— To reduce, restrict, or cease one's work or productivity as a means of social protest against increased marginal tax rates, limits on tax deductions, or the use of tax income for purposes one finds morally objectionable. Taken from the name John Galt, a character in Ayn Rand's novel Atlas Shrugged. Primarily heard in US, South Africa. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Tanzania Union Day (2021)On April 26, 1964, the East African countries of Tanganyika and Zanzibar merged to form the United Republic of Tanzania. Union Day celebrates this merger. In the city of Dar es Salaam, speeches and a parade mark Union Day. Dignitaries from nearby countries join Tanzanian government officials in these festivities. In 2004, to mark Union Day, Tanzanian president Benjamin Mkapa pardoned nearly 4,500 prisoners who had been sentenced for minor crimes or who had less than three years to serve of a longer sentence. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: inhabitantinfernal - An inhabitant of the underworld can be called an infernal. More... sherpa - Literally means "inhabitant of an eastern country." More... aborigine - From Classical Latin meaning "ancestors," it was spelled with a capital A as the name of the primeval Romans; the first people called aborigines were the original inhabitants of Italy and Greece and aborigine was specifically applied to the inhabitants of a country ab origine, "from the beginning." More... sylvans - Natives or inhabitants of forests or woods. More... | |