Daily Content Archive
(as of Tuesday, December 20, 2022)| Word of the Day | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
phylactery
| |||||||
| Article of the Day | |
|---|---|
 The Ganges RiverSacred to Hindus, the 1,560-mile (2,510-km) Ganges River in northern India rises from the Gangotri glacier in the Himalayas and empties into the Bay of Bengal after branching into many distributaries. Although the river is highly polluted due to its proximity to major population centers, a rare species of freshwater dolphin and a critically endangered type of shark live in its waters, and its fertile plain supports many crops. About how many people are thought to live in the Ganges basin? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
|---|---|
 The Louisiana Purchase (1803)Early American settlers in the western territories depended on the Mississippi River's port of New Orleans for commerce. When Spain retroceded New Orleans to France in 1800, Americans feared their access to the river would be blocked, so President Thomas Jefferson sent negotiators to broker a deal for the port city. Why did Napoleon ultimately sell the entire Louisiana territory, including New Orleans, to the US for only about 4 cents per acre, or a sum total of $15 million? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
|---|---|
 Samuel Mudd (1833)Mudd was the physician who set the broken leg of John Wilkes Booth, Abraham Lincoln's assassin, just hours after Booth fled the crime scene. A Confederate sympathizer, Mudd was accused of aiding Booth's escape and tried along with Booth's other accomplices. Throughout, Mudd maintained that he had not recognized the disguised Booth, an acquaintance of his, and had been unaware of the assassination, but he was nonetheless convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. Why was he pardoned in 1869? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
|---|---|
 Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man.Francis Bacon (1561-1626) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
|---|---|
blind date— A date between two people who have not previously met. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
|---|---|
 Newport Harbor Christmas Boat Parade (2022)Newport Harbor Christmas Boat Parade is a nightly parade of boats at Newport Beach, California. More than 150 boats of all kinds, wildly decorated with lights depicting Santa Claus, snowmen, and other symbols of winter, join the parade. Some boats carry huge inflated figures and many play music. The floating parades started in 1908 as a Fourth of July spectacular. In 1946, the city put a tree and carolers on a barge and towed it around the harbor, and that began the current December parades. Today, about a million spectators watch them during the festival. More... | |