Daily Content Archive
(as of Tuesday, May 2, 2023)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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haversack
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Domain AdverbsWe use specific viewpoint adverbs to delimit, or specify, what part or aspect of something we are talking about. These adverbs are often called domain adverbs, and are almost limitless. "Officially" is an example of a domain adverb. What are some others? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 SunflowersThe sunflower is a plant native to the New World and common throughout the US. Its stem can grow up to 10 ft (3 m) tall, and its flower head, commonly having yellow rays, can reach 1 ft (30 cm) in diameter. The sunflower was domesticated around 1000 BCE in the Americas, where the Incas venerated it as an image of their sun god, and it reached Europe in the 16th century. It is valued today for its oil-bearing seeds that can be made into bread. The sunflower is the state flower of what US state? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 First Ascent of Shishapangma (1964)Located in south-central Tibet near the border of Nepal, Shishapangma is the fourteenth highest mountain in the world and the lowest of the eight-thousanders—peaks in the Himalayan and Karakoram mountain ranges that exceed a height of 8,000 m (26,247 ft). Scaled in 1964, it was the last eight-thousander to be climbed because China imposed severe travel restrictions on foreigners at the time. It is considered one of the easiest eight-thousanders to summit; nevertheless, how many have died trying? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Athanasius Kircher (1601?)One of history's great polymaths, Kircher was a German archeologist, mathematician, biologist, astronomer, musicologist, and physicist who knew Hebrew, Aramaic, Coptic, Persian, Latin, Greek, and various modern languages. He tried to decipher one of the most ancient writing systems—Egyptian hieroglyphics—but most of his thoughts on the subject proved incorrect. An avid inventor, he built playful devices including a talking and eavesdropping statue that used a primitive intercom, and what else? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Reason sits firm and holds the reins, and she will not let the feelings burst away and hurry her to wild chasms. The passions may rage furiously, like true heathens, as they are; and the desires may imagine all sorts of vain things: but judgment shall still have the last word in every argument, and the casting vote in every decision.Charlotte Bronte (1816-1855) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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fork over the dough— To pay, generally unwillingly, a certain amount of money. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Land Diving (Nagol) (2023)On Pentecost Island in Vanuatu, land diving, or Nagol, is a centuries-old fertility ritual and the precursor of bungee jumping. Tree branches, trunks, and vines from the forest are used to create a tower—about 85 feet tall. Facing a test of resolve and courage, island men and boys ascend the tower with liana vines. After the diver leaps off the tower, the vines stretch nearly to the ground and the diver ducks his head out of the way and lets his shoulders touch the land. During the ritual, the entire village assembles under the tower to dance, sing, and encourage the divers. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: pursuitdachshund - German for "badger hound," from its original breeding purpose to pursue a badger (etc.) that has taken refuge in a burrow. More... invite - Comes from Latin invitare, from an Indo-European root meaning "to go after something, pursue with vigor, desire." More... logology - The pursuit of word puzzles; also the science of words. More... sue - From Latin sequi, "follow," it first meant "follow, go in pursuit of." More... | |