Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, April 22, 2015)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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flummox
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Defining the PeriodThe period (also known as a full stop, especially in British English) is a punctuation mark ( . ) primarily used to indicate the end of a sentence. It appears as a single dot on the bottom line of the text, and it comes immediately after what in a sentence? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 LASIK SurgeryLASIK is a form of refractive laser eye surgery performed by ophthalmologists to correct myopia, hyperopia, and astigmatism. The surgery generally eliminates the need for glasses or contact lenses and is a less painful alternative to photorefractive keratectomy. LASIK is a two step process. First, a flap of corneal tissue is created and folded back to reveal the cornea, which is then remodeled with a laser. What have studies revealed about the safety and efficacy of LASIK? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 SWAT Team Retrieves Elián González from Relatives in Miami (2000)In late 1999, 5-year-old Elián González and his mother left Cuba on a boat with a dozen other people seeking asylum in the US. Elián's mother and several others died during the voyage, and Elián was found on an inner tube by fishermen off the coast of Florida. He was released into the custody of his uncle in Miami, but his father in Cuba pressed for his return. The custody dispute ended in an armed raid on the Miami house, and Elián returned to Cuba with his father. What has he said since? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Rita Levi-Montalcini (1909)A dual citizen of Italy and the US, Levi-Montalcini did her most important work with American biochemist Stanley Cohen. Studying mouse tumors implanted in chicken embryos, the pair isolated a nerve-growth factor in 1952, the first of many cell-growth factors found in animals. For this discovery, they were awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. In 2001, she was made a "senator for life" in the Italian senate. In what unusual place did Levi-Montalcini build her first laboratory? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Every man can see things far off but is blind to what is near.Sophocles (496 BC-406 BC) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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a motor mouth— A person who talks incessantly or irrepressibly. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Earth Day (2018)The first Earth Day was observed on April 22, 1970, to draw public attention to the need for cleaning up the earth's air and water and for conserving our natural resources. Earth Day is now observed regularly throughout the United States and in many other countries. Typical ways of celebrating Earth Day include planting trees, picking up roadside trash, and conducting various programs for recycling and conservation. Schoolchildren may be asked to use only recyclable containers for their snacks and lunches, and families often try to give up wasteful habits. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: roastrule the roost - Was first "rule the roast," as it referred to the master of the house who sat at the head of the table. More... steak - Seems to be related to Old Norse steikja, "roast on a spit," and stikna, "be roasted." More... dry roast - To roast without oils. More... rotisserie - First meant a restaurant or shop specializing in roasted or barbecued meat. More... | |
| In the News | |
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Newly Discovered Frog Has Transparent Belly, Looks Like KermitDiscovering new species in the wild is hard enough. Discovering new species in the wild that look like hugely popular... More... | |