Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, October 12, 2015)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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verrucose
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| Article of the Day | |
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 PetroglyphsPetroglyphs are images created in rock by incising, pecking, carving, and abrading the rock surface. These rock carvings are found across the world and are often associated with prehistoric communities. The oldest known petroglyphs have been dated to about 12,000 years ago, and are thought to have been an early form of symbolic communication or perhaps a sort of “pre-writing.” What is the one continent on which petroglyphs have not been discovered? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 WWI Nurse Edith Cavell Executed for Aiding Allied Soldiers (1915)An English nurse, Cavell was working to improve the nursing standards at a Brussels hospital when World War I broke out. After Germany occupied Belgium, she became involved with an underground group that helped about 200 Allied soldiers escape to the Netherlands. In 1915, she was arrested by the German occupation authorities and court-martialed. Despite diplomatic pressure on Germany, she was executed and became a celebrated martyr of the Allies. What reportedly went wrong at the execution? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Edith Stein (1891)Born into an observant Jewish family, Stein converted to Christianity in 1922. After studying philosophy, she became a nun in 1934. She moved from Germany to the Netherlands to avoid Nazi persecution, but in 1942 she was arrested because of her Jewish heritage. She was sent to the Auschwitz concentration camp and died in the gas chamber that year. She was canonized by Pope John Paul II in 1998 and is also known as Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. With what miracles is Stein credited? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 If fun is good, truth is still better, and love best of all.William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863) | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Feast of the Virgin of the Pillar (2018)According to legend, the Virgin Mary appeared to St. James the Apostle when he was in Saragossa (Zaragoza), Spain. She spoke to him from the top of a pillar, which he interpreted as a sign that he should build a chapel where the column stood. The Feast of the Virgin of the Pillar is observed with special masses and processions, such as the Gigantes—giant cardboard and canvas figures representing Spanish kings and queens or famous literary and historical figures—and the cabezudos, or "big heads"—grotesque puppets with huge heads. More... | |