Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, November 2, 2016)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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| Article of the Day | |
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 The Ryutin AffairThe Ryutin Affair, one of the last attempts of the Soviet Communist Party to oppose Stalin, took place in 1932, when Martemyan Ryutin, an Old Bolshevik, decided to secretly oppose the controversial Soviet leader. In a nearly 200-page document now known as the "Ryutin Platform," he called for Stalin's elimination and a "fresh start," but he was soon identified as the author, imprisoned, and ultimately executed. What happened when Stalin initially proposed the death penalty for Ryutin? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 First and Only Flight of the "Spruce Goose" (1947)A few years before going into complete seclusion, millionaire aviator and airplane manufacturer Howard Hughes built and piloted the only flight of the Hughes H-4 Hercules, the largest flying boat—indeed the largest airplane—in history. He designed the seaplane as a troop and materiel transport for the US War Department and manufactured it almost entirely from wood because of wartime restrictions on the use of aluminum. Though nicknamed the "Spruce Goose," it was actually primarily made of what? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Daniel Boone (1734)Boone was a legendary American frontiersman who blazed a permanent trail across the Appalachian Mountains in 1775. Known as "Wilderness Road," it became a major route for westward migration in the US. Boone also established Boonesboro, Kentucky, and was captured by Shawnee Indians while trying to defend it. He escaped after five months but moved to the Missouri Territory after losing his land claims in Kentucky. He gained international fame after what British poet mentioned him in an epic? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 To found principles of government upon too advantageous an estimate of the human character is an error of inexperience, the source of which is so amiable that it is impossible to censure it with severity.John Quincy Adams (1767-1848) | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Balfour Declaration Day (2018)On November 2, 1917, Arthur J. Balfour, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, sent a letter to Lord Rothschild indicating that the British government was in favor of establishing a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine. Although this may not seem to be as significant an event as Israel Independence Day, the Jewish people felt that the British government's commitment to their cause was very important. The day on which it was made has been kept as a semi-holiday ever since. More... | |