Daily Content Archive
(as of Saturday, January 18, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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bilious
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Common Modifier MistakesIf we place a modifier too far away from the thing it describes, it can become a "misplaced modifier." We must also make sure that the thing being modified is explicitly stated in the text, otherwise we might be left with a "dangling modifier." What is a "squinting modifier"? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Men's SkirtsOutside of Western culture, men's clothing commonly includes skirts and skirt-like garments, such as the dhoti or lungi in India and the sarong in South and Southeast Asia. Some long robes also resemble a skirt or dress, including the Middle Eastern and North African caftan and djellaba. One of the most well-known skirt-like garments for men is the kilt, which is usually made of a tartan wool and is part of traditional male garb in the Scottish Highlands. What is the Utilikilt? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Legionnaire's Disease Mystery Declared Solved (1977)In July 1976, members of the American Legion veterans association who were gathered at a Philadelphia hotel began falling ill with a mysterious respiratory ailment that sickened 221 and killed 34. Months later, the US Centers for Disease Control announced that a new bacterium—Legionella pneumophila—had been identified as the culprit. It had spread through the hotel's air conditioning system. In 2010, it was reported that 20% of Legionella infections may come from what surprising source? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Joseph Bonanno, AKA Joe Bananas (1905)Born in Sicily, Bonanno came to the US illegally in 1924. He settled in Brooklyn and became a bootlegger and mob enforcer. In 1931, he founded the Bonanno crime family, one of five families that dominated organized crime in New York City. He ruled the family for decades, and although his empire stretched across the country and involved gambling, loan sharking, and drug trafficking, he was never convicted of a serious crime. He died in Arizona at the age of 97. What was the "Banana Split"? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Death is a dignitary who when he comes announced is to be received with formal manifestations of respect, even by those most familiar with him.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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be not just another pretty face— To have distinguishing achievements, intelligence, skills, or abilities beyond what was or may have been assumed. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Festival of St. Peter's Chair (2021)At the Vatican in Rome, St. Peter is honored as bishop of Rome and the first pope. The current pope, wearing his triple crown and vestments of gold cloth, is carried in his chair of state in a spectacular procession up the nave of St. Peter's Basilica. He is deposited behind the altar on a richly decorated throne that enshrines the plain wooden chair on which St. Peter is believed to have sat. The ceremony dates back to at least 720 and is regarded as one of the most magnificent ecclesiastical observances to be held at St. Peter's. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: maintainedpetite maison - A love nest or a residence maintained for a mistress. More... standing army - A permanent army maintained in time of peace and war. More... parochial school - A school established and maintained by a religious body, from Latin parochialis, "of a parish." More... radio silence - A status in which all fixed or mobile radio stations in an area stop transmitting (sometimes limited to certain frequency bands) for the period of time during which this status exists. More... | |