Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, April 14, 2022)Word of the Day | |||||||
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ether
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Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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AppellationsWhen a person has additional words added to their name (known as an appellation), this becomes part of the proper noun and is also capitalized. However, some linguists identify these not as proper names but as what? More... |
Article of the Day | |
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SnakesSnakes are scaly, cold-blooded, carnivorous reptiles related to lizards. They tend to be limbless and move by muscular contraction. Though they have razor-sharp teeth, they do not chew their prey but instead swallow it whole with the help of a loosely attached jaw. Because their bodies are tubular, some paired organs must be staggered within the body, and one of the two lungs is generally non-functional and sometimes even absent. Why are snakes associated with healing and medicine? More... |
This Day in History | |
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Public Kinetoscope Parlor Opens in New York (1894)The kinetoscope is an early motion picture exhibition device that creates the illusion of movement by conveying a filmstrip of sequential images over a light source with a high-speed shutter. The first public kinetoscope parlor was opened in New York City in 1894 and introduced the basic approach that would become the standard for all cinematic projection before the advent of video. The venue had 10 machines, each showing a different short movie. How much did it cost to view all 10 films? More... |
Today's Birthday | |
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Frank Serpico (1936)Serpico is a retired New York City police officer who is most famous for being the first officer in US history to testify about widespread police corruption. Just months before he testified in 1971, he was shot in the face during a drug bust under suspicious circumstances, leading some to believe that corrupt officers had set him up. Shortly thereafter, Serpico, a film based on his life and starring Al Pacino, was released. When asked why he testified, what did Serpico respond? More... |
Quotation of the Day | |
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Nothing is more humiliating than to see idiots succeed in enterprises we have failed in. Gustave Flaubert (1821-1880) |
Idiom of the Day | |
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stand on the shoulders of giants— To make discoveries, insights, or progress due to the discoveries or previous work of great minds that have come before. More... |
Today's Holiday | |
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Takayama Matsuri (2023)Held twice a year in Japan, in the spring and the autumn, the Takayama Festival is famous for its elaborately decorated yatai (festival floats), which are adorned with beautiful fabrics, lacquered wood, and patterned metals. Twelve of these floats appear at the April festival, held at Takayama's Hie Shrine, and 11 participate in the October festival. Some yatai feature performances of kabuki (puppet plays), often performed by mechanical marionettes. A highlight of the festival is the parade of gongs known as tokeigaku, which produce a unique kind of folk music. More... |
Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: netdream catcher - A decorative Native American object in the form of a hoop and net with attachments such as feathers. More... net - As in "without deductions," it came from French net, "neat," and then evolved to mean" free from any (further) deduction." More... reticule - An older term for a small handbag, it alludes to the fact that they were originally made of netted fabric—Latin rete, "net," became reticulum, "netted bag." More... retina - From Latin rete, "net," as there is a net of nerves making up this layer of the eyeball. More... |