Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, March 4, 2022)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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captious
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Numbered and Lettered ListsSimilar to quotation marks, parentheses are always used in pairs—we cannot have a single parenthesis (the name for one of the brackets on its own) without its match appearing elsewhere nearby. The one exception is when we structure a list in what way? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Geisha: "Art Person"A geisha is a traditional Japanese artist-entertainer skilled at conversation, singing, and dancing. The geisha system likely originated in the 17th century to provide a class of well-trained entertainers separate from courtesans and prostitutes. Even though geisha are usually women, the first ones were actually men. The numbers of geisha have declined from some 80,000 in the 1920s to a few thousand today. Why did geisha often paint their teeth black as part of their formal make-up? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Frederick Barbarossa Elected King of the Germans (1152)Frederick Barbarossa was elected King of Germany in 1152 and crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 1155. Shortly thereafter, an apparent misunderstanding with Pope Adrian IV led Frederick to mount military operations against Italy and install an antipope in opposition to Adrian's successor. The schism continued for some time, but Frederick and the Catholic pontiff ultimately reconciled. According to scholars, what factors may have contributed to Frederick's drowning death in the shallow Saleph River? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Henry the Navigator (1394)Henry the Navigator, a Portuguese prince, figured strongly in Portugal's early development as a colonial empire. Though not a navigator himself, Henry was a great patron of exploration and is credited with establishing a school for navigators and encouraging the study of navigational instruments and cartography. Under his patronage, Portuguese sailors explored and colonized Madeira, the Cape Verde Islands, and the Azores. Where did Henry get the money to fund these expeditions? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 It has been a bitter mortification for me to digest the conclusion that the 'race is for the strong' and that I shall probably do little more but be content to admire the strides others made in science.Charles Darwin (1809-1882) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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castles in the sky— Dreams, hopes, or plans that are impossible, unrealistic, or have very little chance of succeeding. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Omizutori Matsuri (2023)Omizutori Matsuri is marked by religious rites that have been observed for 12 centuries at the Buddhist Todaiji Temple in the city of Nara, Japan. During this period of meditative rituals in the first two weeks of March, the drone of recited sutras and the sound of blowing conchs echo from the temple. On March 12, young monks on the temple gallery brandish burning pine-branches, shaking off burning pieces. Spectators below try to catch the sparks, believing they have magic power against evil. On March 13, the ceremony of drawing water is observed to the accompaniment of ancient music. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: snubsneb - A reprimand or a snub. More... avert - Etymologically, it means "to turn away": blows can be averted, but not pain; a snub can be averted, but not a humiliation; violence can be averted, but not damage. More... cold shoulder - This term for a snub started when people overstayed their welcome and were served cold beef shoulder, rather than hot food. More... snouch - To snouch someone is to snub or treat with scorn. More... | |