Daily Content Archive
(as of Saturday, November 7, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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foregather
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Modal Verbs that Indicate AbilityBecause modal auxiliary verbs can be quite similar in how they are used, it is sometimes unclear when it's more appropriate to use one instead of another. For instance, "can" and "could" can both be used to indicate physical, mental, or functional ability in doing something. What is the difference between "can" and "could"? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Lowell Mill GirlsSituated on the Merrimack River, the city of Lowell, Massachusetts, was home to dozens of textile mills in the mid-19th century. Attracted by the promise of high wages, thousands of young women came to the mills for work. Living and working together in close quarters, they developed a distinct community. When profits declined, hours were increased, wages were lowered, and the women organized strikes and started a labor reform organization. In 1853, their workday was shortened to how many hours? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Basketball Star Earvin "Magic" Johnson Announces He Has HIV (1991)Johnson had been a basketball star for more than a decade when he announced, at a press conference, that he had tested positive for HIV and would retire. He vowed to battle the disease, while confirming that neither his pregnant wife nor their unborn child was infected. As a popular athlete, Johnson helped combat the stigma of HIV, which was then predominantly associated with disproportionately affected groups such as drug addicts and homosexuals. Did Johnson ever return to basketball? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Lise Meitner (1878)An eminent Austrian physicist, Meitner fled Nazi Germany for Sweden in 1938. There, she formulated the concept of nuclear fission and proposed the term for the process. Though the Nobel Prize for the discovery went to physicist Otto Hahn, the element meitnerium was named in her honor. She was critical of scientists who remained in Germany during the Nazi era yet staunchly refused to participate in the atomic bomb research that resulted from her work. Why did Hahn once give her a diamond ring? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 There are certain queer times and occasions in this strange mixed affair we call life when a man takes this whole universe for a vast practical joke.Herman Melville (1819-1891) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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take the weight off (one's) feet— To lie or (especially) sit down, generally after being upright for a long period of time. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 American Indian Heritage Month (2025)The first general American Indian Day was observed on the second Saturday in May 1916, but since 1995, the month of November has been observed as American Indian Heritage Month. Although the largest Native American populations can be found in Oklahoma, Arizona, California, New Mexico, and North Carolina, many other states have come up with ways to draw attention to their unique contribution to American culture. Most celebrations focus on educational and promotional events, displays of Native American art and dance, and agricultural fairs. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: secondsblipvert - A TV advertisement of a few seconds' length. More... centiday - A period of 14 minutes 24 seconds, a hundredth of a day, used especially in the study of plant growth. More... fireflies, lightning bug - Fireflies glow for a while but die down; lightning bugs flash their taillights for only a few seconds and never in the same place twice. More... | |