Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, September 19, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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ineluctable
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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"Here" and "There"Adverbs of place tell us about an aspect of location associated with the action of a verb, specifying the direction, distance, movement, or position involved in the action. "Here" and "there" are adverbs of place that relate specifically to what? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Fra Mauro MapCommissioned by King Alfonso V of Portugal, Venetian monk and cartographer Fra Mauro and his assistant Andrea Bianco completed a world map in 1459. Strange by today's standards, the map is oriented with the south at the top, as was Arab tradition. Fra Mauro used Marco Polo's travelogues for information about Asia and was one of the first Western cartographers to represent Japan. The map also features a detailed description of Africa, which encouraged Portuguese exploration. Where is the map now? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Ötzi the Iceman Is Discovered by German Tourists (1991)In 1991, two hikers discovered a well-preserved corpse trapped in ice near the border between Austria and Italy. It proved to be that of a man who lived about 5,300 years ago—making it the oldest natural mummy ever found. He was nicknamed Ötzi, for the Ötztal Alps where he was found. Also recovered were clothes, shoes, tools, weapons, fire-starting materials, and medicine. Scientists have since determined that Ötzi ate about eight hours before his death. What did he eat, and how did he die? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Lajos Kossuth (1802)Now considered a national hero, Kossuth was a Hungarian revolutionary who favored dissolving the union between the Hungarian and Austrian crowns. The fiery orator was a principal figure of the 1848 Hungarian Revolution. Appointed provisional governor, he soon became virtual dictator. In 1849, Russian armies intervened in favor of Austria, forcing him to resign. He fled to Turkey and later to Italy, where he watched as Hungary reconciled with the Austrian monarchy. What did he do while in exile? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 All idealization makes life poorer. To beautify it is to take away its character of complexity—it is to destroy it.Joseph Conrad (1857-1924) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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slanging match— A bitter argument or dispute in which each side hurls numerous insults, accusations, or verbal abuse at one another. Primarily heard in UK. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Feast of San Gennaro (2025)San Gennaro, or St. Januarius, 4th-century bishop of Benevento, is the patron saint of Naples, Italy. He is said to have survived a fiery furnace and a den of wild beasts before being beheaded during the reign of Diocletian. His body was brought to Naples, along with a vial containing some of his blood. The congealed blood, preserved since that time in the Cathedral of San Gennaro, is claimed to liquefy on the anniversary of his death each year—an event that has drawn crowds to Naples since 1389. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: modelphantom - A model of a baby used in obstetric demonstration. More... configure - First meant "fashion according to a model." More... pattern - Comes from patron, "something serving as a model." More... Frisbee - Was modeled on pie tins from Mrs. Frisbie's Pies—made by the Frisbie Bakery of Bridgeport, Connecticut—which students began tossing around in the 1920s. More... | |