Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, August 1, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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self-possession
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Expressing Equality Using "As … As"One way of expressing similarities, differences, or changes with comparative adverbs is by using the structure "as … as." What construction do we use to describe two things as equal? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Sargon of AkkadSargon of Akkad was a 24th-century BCE Mesopotamian king who established one of the first multiethnic and centrally ruled empires in history. His dynasty lasted approximately 160 years, and his vast territory extended from Elam to the Mediterranean Sea and included Mesopotamia, parts of modern-day Iran, Syria, and possibly portions of the Arabian Peninsula. An account of Sargon's early childhood from his purported autobiography closely resembles that of what religious figure? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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.svg.png) The Swiss Confederation Is Formed (1291)Despite its ethnic and religious diversity, Switzerland has maintained one of the world's oldest democracies for more than 700 years. Concerned about the encroaching Habsburg Empire, the three mountain communes of Uri, Schwyz, and Unterwalden formed a defensive league in 1291, laying the foundations of the Swiss Confederation. Today, Switzerland is well known for its neutrality and reluctance to join the European Union. In 2002, it became one of the last nations to do what? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (10 BCE)The nephew of Tiberius, Claudius became the Roman emperor unexpectedly, after Caligula was murdered. Sickly, unattractive, and scholarly, he tended to disfavor the upper classes and cater to the freedmen. He expanded the frontiers, invading Britain in 43 CE. He spent lavishly on public works and extended Roman citizenship throughout the empire. Having executed his scheming third wife, he married his niece, who then likely poisoned him. What modern diagnoses might explain his lifelong ill health? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 One of the strange things about living in the world is that it is only now and then one is quite sure one is going to live forever and ever and ever.Frances Hodgson Burnett (1849-1924) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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out of steam— Completely exhausted, fatigued, or without energy or motivation. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Benin Independence Day (2020)On August 1, 1960, Benin declared its independence from France, ending 70 years as a French colony. Independence Day is a national holiday observed throughout the country, especially in the capital city of Porto Novo. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: voteco-opt - "To select (someone) for a group or club by a vote of members," it is from Latin cooptare, "to choose as a colleague or member of one's tribe"; its sense of "take over" came by 1953. More... ostracism - In ancient Greece, when it was proposed that a person be sent into exile, a vote was taken and the method of registering the vote involved putting the name on a piece of broken pottery called ostrakon; casting the vote was ostrakizein, giving us English ostracism. More... red state, blue state - A red state is any U.S. state that tends to vote for candidates of the Republican party in a general election; a blue state votes for Democratic candidates. More... chirotonize - To elect by voting or to vote. More... | |