Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, August 5, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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insolence
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Slash vs. BackslashThe slash must not be confused with a backslash ( \ ), which is used in computer programming but not in written English. When a distinction between the two needs to be made, what is the slash sometimes called? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Maison du RoiThe Maison du Roi was the entourage that attended to the needs of the French royal family from the 14th to the 19th century. It was administered by the chief steward of France until the 1700s, when a ministry was organized to oversee the thousands of employees tasked with duties such as managing the king's stables, hunting for the king's meat, providing the king's food and entertainment, and attending to the king's spiritual needs. What was the Grand Panetier charged with overseeing? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Cowra Breakout: One of the Biggest Escapes in History (1944)During World War II, Japanese prisoners of war at a camp near Cowra, Australia, orchestrated one of the largest prison escapes of the war. Armed only with makeshift weapons, hundreds of Japanese prisoners stormed the machine gun posts and overwhelmed the guards. Some prisoners, rather than escaping, attempted or committed suicide, or were killed by fellow soldiers. The breakout resulted in the deaths of four Australian soldiers and 231 Japanese prisoners. How many managed to escape? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Joseph Merrick, "The Elephant Man" (1862)Known as "The Elephant Man," Merrick was an Englishman who suffered from a severely disfiguring disease, mistakenly thought to have been elephantiasis, that caused growths all over his skin and bone surfaces and made it difficult for him to walk and speak. He escaped from a workhouse at 21 to join a freak show, where he was discovered by a physician who later admitted him to London Hospital. He was cared for there until his death at age 27. What rare syndrome likely caused his deformities? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Judge the goodness of a book by the energy of the punches it has given you. I believe the greatest characteristic of genius, is, above all, force.Gustave Flaubert (1821-1880) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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gun it— To accelerate or increase speed suddenly or rapidly; to travel or move very quickly. Usually said while traveling in an automobile. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Hanagasa Odori Matsuri (2023)One of the largest festivals in the Tohoku region of Japan, Hanagasa Odori Matsuri is held in Yamagata on August 5-7. Thousands of dancers holding hanagasa, which are hats made out of bamboo or rush and decorated with flowers, dance through the city while spectators cheer them on. The rhythmic pulse of the hanagasa songs keeps the dancers moving together as they march down the city streets yelling "Yassho! Makasho!" and twirling their hats to the left, right, up, and down. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: housesginnel - A long narrow passage between houses. More... row house - Part of an unbroken line or series of houses. More... domal - Means of or pertaining to a house or houses. More... vicinal, vicinity - Vicinal, from Latin vicus, "group of houses," means "of or pertaining to a neighborhood"—hence, vicinity. More... | |