Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, July 18, 2016)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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punctilious
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Whose vs. Who'sBeware of the common error of confusing "whose" and "who's." "Whose" is an interrogative adjective or pronoun. What is "who's"? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The GavelUsed by judges, presiding officers, and auctioneers, gavels are small ceremonial mallets often struck against a block to call for attention or punctuate rulings. Because it is often used forcefully and therefore broken, the gavel in the US House of Representatives is plain, wooden, and easily replaced. The US Senate gavel is made of solid ivory and is actually a replica. Which US Vice President splintered the original—which had been used since 1789—during a heated debate on nuclear energy? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 La Cantuta Massacre (1992)In 1992, a professor and nine students from Lima's La Cantuta University were abducted by a military death squad, murdered, and secretly buried. The murders occurred during the presidency of Alberto Fujimori and his government's battle against the guerilla terrorist group Shining Path. The massacre contributed to Fujimori's conviction in 2009 on charges of human rights abuses, for which he was sentenced to 25 years in prison. What bombing was used as a justification for the La Cantuta Massacre? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Robert Hooke (1635)Hooke was a prolific English physicist, mathematician, and inventor. He was a geometry professor and the curator of experiments for the Royal Society. An architect as well, he played a major role in the surveying and rebuilding of London after the 1666 fire. Considered the greatest mechanic of his age, he made myriad improvements to astronomical instruments and timepieces. In his pioneering book Micrographia, he described his microscopic observations of plant tissue and coined what term? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Influence, n.: In politics, a visionary quo given in exchange for a substantial quid.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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endgame— The final stages of a process, development, or activity. An allusion to the last stage in chess, when the majority of pieces have been removed from the board. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Uruguay Constitution Oath Taking Day (2019)The country of Uruguay adopted its first constitution on July 18, 1830, shortly after becoming independent in 1828. The 1830 constitution, modeled after the American and French constitutions, created executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. Later constitutions checked the powers of the president and provided for a separation of church and state. To commemorate the adoption of Uruguay's first constitution, speeches are given by government officials and a parade featuring a military band, mounted cavalry, and soldiers is held in the capital city of Montevideo. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: horrorhorrible, horror, horrid - Horrible, horror, and horrid are from Latin horrere, "stand on end" (hair) or "tremble, shudder," and the original sense of horrid was "bristly, shaggy, rough." More... horrific, horrendous, horrible, horrid - In decreasing degree of horror: horrific, horrendous, horrible, horrid. More... pant - The shock that makes you "gasp" is behind the word pant, from Latin phantasiare, "gasp in horror." More... terror, horror - Terror is stronger than horror, though it usually lasts for a shorter time. More... | |