Daily Content Archive
(as of Saturday, December 2, 2017)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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doyen
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| Article of the Day | |
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 The SeabeesThe Seabees are a US Navy unit whose name derives from the two-letter abbreviation of their official title: Construction Battalions. The unit was founded at the start of WWII, and before it was over, more than 325,000 Seabees had fought and built airstrips, bridges, roads, warehouses, hospitals, and housing on six continents and hundreds of islands. Seabees have served in every major conflict since and participate in peacetime goodwill missions. How many Seabees currently serve in the Navy? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Benazir Bhutto Becomes First Female Leader of a Muslim Nation (1988)The daughter of a Pakistani prime minister executed following a coup, Bhutto was keenly aware of the risks of political life. Nevertheless, she chose to follow in her father's footsteps and in 1988 became prime minister of Pakistan, becoming the first woman to lead a Muslim nation. Dogged by allegations of corruption, she fled the country in 1999. She returned in late 2007 and, after escaping one attempt on her life, was assassinated. Who stood accused of the 1996 murder of her brother? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Peter Carl Goldmark (1906)A Hungarian engineer and inventor, Goldmark immigrated to the US in 1933 and went to work in the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) laboratories. There he developed the first commercial color television system, but it was not compatible with existing black-and-white television sets and was soon superseded by one that was. Later, he developed the system that would allow the US Lunar Orbiter to relay photographs from the Moon to Earth. What did he invent that revolutionized the recording industry? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Calamities are of two kinds: misfortunes to ourselves, and good fortune to others.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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I'll be hanged if I (do something)— I am determined not to do something. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Ngondo Festival (2022)For the majority of the Sawa, a coastal ethnic group in Cameroon, guidance comes from the Jengu water spirits. The annual Ngondo Festival is a special occasion for Sawa chiefs to petition these spirits for prophecies and warnings and to communicate those messages to a gathered assembly. The event, which lasts a few weeks, takes place on the banks of the Wouri River in the country's most populous city, Douala. Various cultural activities accompany the discernment process of the festival. Activities preceding the water feast include traditional wrestling competitions, a canoe race, and a Miss Ngondo pageant. More... | |