Daily Content Archive

Word of the Day
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Article of the Day

Mottainai When Kenyan environmentalist and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Wangari Maathai visited Japan in 2005, she encountered a word that has no direct English translation: mottainai. Although the meaning of term has evolved throughout Japanese history, it is used today to indicate a sense of regret over the waste of anything useful. Maathai has since promoted the use of the word to raise awareness about conservation issues. What English expression is closest in meaning to that of mottainai? More...

This Day in History

Federal Emergency Declared at Love Canal in New York (1978) In the 1940s and 50s, an abandoned canal in Niagara Falls, New York, became a dumping ground for chemical waste. It was later filled in, and after the land was given to the city of Niagara Falls by the chemical company, houses and an elementary school were built there. By the late 1970s, toxic chemicals had risen to the surface, and residents were found to have a high incidence of chromosome damage. A federal emergency was declared in 1978, and residents were evacuated. What happened to them? More...

Today's Birthday

Emil Nolde (1867) Nolde was a German painter and printmaker. Fervently religious, he often painted supernatural imagery, such as demonic heads and mystic appearances. Impressed by the art he saw on a 1913 expedition to the East Indies, he began to paint brooding landscapes and colorful flowers. As a printmaker, he was noted for his crudely cut, stark black-and-white woodcuts. Though he was an early advocate of the Nazi party, the party condemned his art and forbade him to paint. What did he do instead? More...

Quotation of the Day
The mystery of the beginning of all things is insoluble by us; and I for one must be content to remain an agnostic. Charles Darwin (1809-1882)

Idiom of the Day
be put in (one's) place — To be humbled or have one's dignity lowered (by someone); to be made aware that one is not as important, respected, influential, etc., as one thinks. More...

Today's Holiday

Purple Heart Day (2025) Purple Heart Day is observed in the United States and commemorates the establishment in 1782 of the Badge of Military Merit, an award created by George Washington to honor soldiers for their distinguished action in battle. On August 7 throughout the country, local chapters of the Military Order of the Purple Heart sponsor services to remember and honor medal recipients from their communities. These ceremonies often feature prayers, military music, reminiscences by award recipients, and speeches by government and military officials. More...