Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, October 1, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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contiguous
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Types of Prepositional IdiomsPrepositional idioms combine prepositions with verbs, nouns, or phrases to create idiomatic expressions. What two categories can these expressions be divided into? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Lotus EffectWhen water hits a lotus leaf, it pools up or rolls right off. This so-called lotus effect is due to a complex system of microscopic bumps on the leaf's waxy surface. These superhydrophobic structures protect the lotus from pathogens like fungi, which are easily swept off its leaves by water droplets. Although the lotus effect has been known in Asia for millennia—and was even noted in ancient Hindu texts—it was only scientifically understood in the early 1970s, thanks to the invention of what? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 The Honeymooners Premiers on CBS (1955)The Honeymooners was a short-lived American sitcom based on sketches by comedian Jackie Gleason. It starred Gleason and Audrey Meadows as a struggling working class couple in New York—a drastic departure from other popular comedies of the era that depicted their characters in comfortable, middle-class, suburban environments. Though The Honeymooners was cancelled after just 39 episodes, it has been aired for decades in syndication. What animated TV series did Gleason's show inspire? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz (1903)A Russian-American virtuoso pianist, Horowitz made his debut in Russia at 17. Within years, he was touring internationally, with much success. He eventually settled in the US, where his extraordinary technical virtuosity made him one of the most popular pianists of his time. Always susceptible to nervous strain, in 1953 he decided to quit performing publicly. He returned to the stage in 1965 and occasionally thereafter until his death. Why did Horowitz's father lie about his son's birthday? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 He had discovered a great law of human action, without knowing it—namely, that in order to make a man or a boy covet a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to attain.Mark Twain (1835-1910) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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the outside world— The people, culture, ideas, or experiences beyond an enclosed, sheltered, or remote place, situation or environment. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Nigeria National Day (2025)Also known as Independence Day, this national holiday commemorates the autonomy of Nigeria that officially began October 1, 1960, after being under British control since 1900. Nigeria became a federal republic with a new constitution on October 1, 1963. In 1966 some military officers staged a coup and ruled until other army officers overthrew them in 1975. Civilian rule was restored on the anniversary of freedom, October 1, 1979. The city of Lagos was the capital until 1986, when the government center moved to Abuja. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: sacksachet - Etymologically, a "little sack"—a small packet of perfumed matter. More... cul-de-sac - Literally French for "bottom of a sack," it also means "situation from which there is no escape"; it can be pluralized as cul-de-sacs or culs-de-sac. More... gunny - From Sanskrit goni, "sack," it is the material used for sacks, made from jute or sunn-hemp. More... haversack, knapsack, rucksack - Haversack is from German Haber, "oats," and Sack, "bag, sack"; knapsack is from German knapper, "to bite (food)" and zak, "sack"; rucksack comes from German Rucken, "back," and sack. More... | |