Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, July 26, 2017)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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disjunct
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Generic "You"The second-person pronouns are also often used to indicate an unspecified person. This is sometimes referred to as "generic you," "impersonal you," or "indefinite you." This is less formal than its counterpart, the pronoun "one," but it is sometimes preferred. Why? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Principality of SealandThe Principality of Sealand is a purported micronation located on HM Fort Roughs, a former World War II sea fort located in the North Sea six miles (10 km) off the coast of Suffolk, England. Since 1967, the installation has been occupied by the associates and family of Paddy Roy Bates, a former British Army Major and pirate radio broadcaster who claims it is a sovereign and independent state. What court rulings have involved Sealand and its status as a sovereign nation? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 The Short Creek Raid (1953)Before dawn on July 26, 1953, more than 100 Arizona state police officers and National Guard soldiers entered Short Creek, home to about 400 Mormon fundamentalists, many of whom illegally practiced polygamy. Almost the whole community was arrested, and 263 children were seized from their parents. Arizona's governor described it as a "police action against insurrection," but the raid drew widespread criticism. Community members knew the raid was coming. What were they doing when officers arrived? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Jane "Jinny" Bunford (1895)Standing well over seven and a half feet tall, Bunford was twice recognized during her lifetime as the tallest person in the world. She is also believed to have had the longest hair, at 8 ft 1 in (2.5 m) long. Though she died in 1922, she was featured in the 1971 Guinness Book of World Records after her skeleton was discovered on display at Birmingham University. Bunford's height likely resulted from her pituitary gland secreting excessive growth hormones after what childhood accident? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Positiveness is a good quality for preachers and orators, because he that would obtrude his thoughts and reasons upon a multitude, will convince others the more as he appears convinced himself.Jonathan Swift (1667-1745) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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good gracious— A mild exclamation of surprise, alarm, dismay, annoyance, or exasperation. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Liberia Independence Day (2023)This especially important Liberian holiday is celebrated with a parade, a party for the diplomatic corps in Monrovia, and a grand ball in the evening. Similar events are held throughout the country. The day commemorates the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1847 by the various settlements of the country, establishing the first independent black republic in Africa. After independence, elections were held, and Joseph Jenkins Roberts was elected the first president in January 1848. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: medical termbrainstorm - By the 1890s, it was a medical term for "mental explosion". More... canities - The medical term for the graying or whitening of hair. More... repercussion - First a medical term for "repressing an infection." More... tension - Originally a medical term for the condition of being physically strained. More... | |