Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, March 23, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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cold-blooded
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Using ParenthesesParentheses indicate parenthetical information—that is, any additional information that is not integral to the writing that appears outside of the parentheses. This information may comprise a fragment (a word, phrase, or clause) or one or more complete sentences. What dictates how we use parentheses in relation to other punctuation? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Nepenthes Rajah: The Plant with an AppetiteNepenthes rajah is a carnivorous pitcher plant species endemic to Borneo. Its most distinctive features—giant urn-shaped traps, called pitchers, containing water and digestive fluid—allow it to catch and digest insects and even small vertebrates and mammals. These pitchers also host a number of organisms with which it is thought to form symbiotic relationships. Called nepenthebionts, many of these organisms are so specialized that they cannot survive anywhere else. What are some examples? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Russia's Czar Paul I Assassinated (1801)After his mother, Catherine the Great, suffered a stroke, Paul I ascended to the throne. The new czar instituted a number of reforms that angered the nobility and provoked a conspiracy against him. On the night of his murder, Paul was confronted in his bedroom and pressured to sign his abdication. When he refused, the assassins struck him with a sword, strangled him, and trampled him to death. Though he did not participate in the attack, his successor knew about the plot. Who was he? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Wernher von Braun (1912)Devoted to the pursuit of rocketry and spaceflight since his teenage years, German rocket scientist Wernher von Braun was responsible for the successful development of the German V-2 rocket, thousands of which were launched against London and Antwerp during World War II's final year. Nevertheless, at the close of the war, von Braun was brought to the US and soon became a prime figure in the cold war arms race and later in the space program. What notable American projects did he work on? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 There is nothing so degrading as the constant anxiety about one's means of livelihood.W. Somerset Maugham (1874-1965) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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dark days— Times of extreme misfortune or difficulty. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Pakistan Day (2023)This national holiday is also known as Republic Day, and it is the anniversary of a 1940 resolution calling for a Muslim country for Muslim Indians. On the same day in 1956, Pakistan became an Islamic republic within the British Commonwealth. Pakistan Day is celebrated with parades and fairs. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: vigorvim, vigor - Vim is the same as vigor. More... bouncing - In bouncing baby, it means "vigorous." More... feckful - Means "efficient, vigorous," or "powerful." More... macho, machismo - Macho is from Mexican Spanish, meaning "male animal or plant" or "masculine, vigorous"—from Latin masculus, "male"; machismo (pronounced mah-CHEEZ-mo) is based on macho. More... | |