Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, June 24, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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self-assured
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Gender in NounsThere are some instances in which nouns are declined to show masculine or feminine gender. How is a noun made feminine? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Cottingley FairiesIn the early 20th century, cousins Elsie Wright and Frances Griffiths created a series of photographs in which they were seen interacting with what appear to be fairies. The images provoked heated debate and even gained the attention of famed Sherlock Holmes author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who championed their authenticity. Though the women initially claimed the fairies were real, they finally admitted otherwise in 1981. Even then, Griffiths insisted that one image was genuine. Which one? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Sally Ride Returns to Earth (1983)Before astronaut Sally Ride became the first American woman to reach outer space, she made a name for herself as a nationally-ranked tennis player. After earning her bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees from Stanford University, she took part in her first space shuttle mission in 1983, serving on board the Challenger. She later served on the panels that investigated the Challenger and Columbia shuttle disasters. What two women preceded Ride in space? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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a.JPG) Jack Dempsey (1895)Born in Manassa, Colorado, Dempsey was an American boxer and world heavyweight champion. Nicknamed the "Manassa Mauler," he emerged from fights on saloon floors to seal his slugging reputation in his first title fight by knocking down the gigantic champion, Jess Willard, seven times in the first three minutes. He successfully defended his title five times before losing to Gene Tunney in an upset. What happened during the rematch, and why did it come to be called the "Long Count" bout? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Insensible as he is to a thousand wants, and removed from harassing cares, may not the savage be the happier man of the two?Herman Melville (1819-1891) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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throw a wobbly— To suddenly become very upset or intensely angry and make a big display of it. Primarily heard in UK, Australia. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Inti Raymi Fiesta (2022)The Inti Raymi Festival is an ancient Winter Solstice festival celebrated by the Incas in Peru on June 24. The original Inti Raymi involved animal sacrifices performed at the top of La Marca when the sun reached its zenith. Today the main celebration takes place in Cuzco, where there is a special procession and mock sacrifice to the sun, followed by a week-long celebration involving folkloric dances and regional arts and crafts displays. Bonfires are still lit in the Andes Mountains to celebrate the rebirth of the sun, and people burn their old clothes as a way of marking the end of the harvest cycle. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: sailingaloof - Comes from sailing, in which ships keep clear of coastal rocks by holding the vessel "luff"—"to the windward"; so, to hold "a-luff" means to "keep clear." More... jibe - Meaning "be compatible, consistent," it may come from the earlier jibe, "to shift a sail from side to side while sailing in the wind." More... plain sailing - Probably comes from plane sailing, a way of determining a ship's position based on its moving on a plane (flat surface). More... aback - Originated in sailing, as a ship was taken aback when a strong gust of wind suddenly blew the sails back against the mast, causing the ship to stop momentarily. More... | |