Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, June 2, 2019)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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dewy-eyed
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Participle PhrasesParticiples are words formed from verbs that can function as adjectives, as gerunds, or to form the continuous and perfect tenses of verbs. What is a dangling modifier? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Moscow Mathematical PapyrusAlso called the Golenischev Mathematical Papyrus, after the Russian Egyptologist who purchased it in Thebes during the late 19th century, the Moscow Mathematical Papyrus is one of the oldest known Egyptian mathematical papyri. The 18-foot- (5.5-meter-) long papyrus likely dates to the 13th dynasty of Egypt, which began around 1773 BCE and ended after 1650 BCE. It contains 25 mathematical problems and solutions, many of which feature a variable indicating the strength of what alcoholic beverage? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Pontiac's Rebellion: Ojibwas Capture Fort Michilimackinac (1763)In 1763, immediately after the French and Indian Wars, several Native American tribes allied against the British in an uprising that became known as Pontiac's Rebellion, after the Ottawa leader Pontiac. They captured and destroyed many British outposts. On the day of the surprise attack on Fort Michilimackinac, the Ojibwas, or Chippewas, approached the fort without arousing suspicion among the watching British soldiers by staging a game of baaga'adowe—the precursor of what modern sport? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Edward Elgar (1857)Elgar was an English composer whose oratorio The Dream of Gerontius is considered one of the finest examples of English choral music in history. He received his training from his father and succeeded him as organist of St. George's Church, Worcester, in 1885. He earned recognition for his Imperial March, composed in 1897 for Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee, and for his Enigma Variations. His most popular works are his five marches, the first of which is what famous song? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 He died...of a broken heart, a distemper which kills many more than is generally imagined.Henry Fielding (1707-1754) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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have other fish to fry— To have more important or more interesting things to do or attend to. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 St. Elmo's Day (2019)The day known as St. Elmo's Day is actually St. Erasmus's Day, in honor of a third-century Italian bishop who is thought to have suffered martyrdom around the year 304. Erasmus was a patron saint of sailors and was especially popular in the 13th century. Sometimes at sea on stormy nights, sailors will see a pale, brushlike spray of electricity at the top of the mast. In the Middle Ages, they believed that these fires were the souls of the departed, rising to glory through the intercession of St. Elmo. Such an electrical display is still referred to as "St. Elmo's Fire." More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: pointedapothegm - A terse, pointed saying or pithy maxim; it is pronounced AP-uh-them and may also be spelled apophthegm. More... downward-facing dog - Also called downward dog, it is a yoga pose in which the hands and feet are on the floor and one's rear end is pointed up so that the body is in an upside-down V. More... fastigate - To make pointed. More... innuendo - Latin for "by nodding at, pointing to," or "intimating," from in-, "toward," and nuere, "nod." More... | |