Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, July 6, 2017)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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exiguity
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Comparative AdjectivesComparative adjectives are adjectives that compare differences between the attributes of two nouns. We form comparative adjectives either by adding "-er" to the end of the adjective, or by adding what word before the adjective? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Buddhas of BamyanOnce the largest examples of standing Buddha carvings in the world, the Buddhas of Bamyan were two monumental statues carved into the side of a cliff in Afghanistan's Bamyan Valley. Built during the 6th century, the statues were destroyed in 2001 by the Islamist Taliban government, which decreed that the figures were idolatrous and bombarded them with dynamite and tank barrages for nearly a month. The Afghan government has since proposed that the statues be recreated using what technologies? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Hartford Circus Fire (1944)The Hartford Circus Fire was one of the worst fire disasters in US history. While thousands of spectators in Hartford, Connecticut, were enjoying an afternoon performance of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, a fire broke out in the tent. The big top, waterproofed with a coating of paraffin and gasoline, quickly collapsed in flames, trapping hundreds beneath it. About 169 people died. What song is traditionally used by circuses to discretely alert staff when an emergency arises? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 John Paul Jones (1747)One of the greatest heroes of the US Navy, Jones emigrated from Scotland at the start of the American Revolution. In 1779, while commanding the Bonhomme Richard, he engaged the British Serapis in battle. With his ship on fire and sinking, he answered a call to surrender by saying, "I have not yet begun to fight!" Eventually, the crew of the badly damaged Serapis surrendered, and Jones and his men boarded her. Where were Jones's remains—lost for over a century—found in 1905? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 The first duty of a lecturer—to hand you after an hour's discourse a nugget of pure truth to wrap up between the pages of your notebooks, and keep on the mantelpiece forever.Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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torqued off— Particularly irritated, frustrated, or exasperated. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Birthday of the Dalai Lama (2021)This celebration is held on July 6 for the birthday of the current Dalai Lama, the spiritual and political head of Tibet. The present Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso (b. 1935), is the latest in the line that began in the 14th century. Each Dalai Lama is believed to be the reincarnation of the preceding one, and when a Dalai Lama dies, Tibetan lamas search throughout the country for a child who is his reincarnation. The birthday is observed today by exiles in India with family picnics, traditional dances and singing, and incense-burning ceremonies to appease the local spirits. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: trumpetkazoo, bazooka - Dutch bazu, "trumpet," gives us the words kazoo and bazooka, the latter originally being a form of kazoo that was a long sounding-horn. More... jubilee - Comes from Hebrew yobhel, "ram's horn," which was used as a trumpet to proclaim the jubilee, a year of emancipation and restoration (every 50 years). More... taratantara - The sound of a bugle or trumpet can be called taratantara. More... | |