Think of an asteroid, and a dry, rocky body may spring to mind. But Ceres, king of the asteroid belt, is helping to throw cold water on that stereotype. Whether frozen in the permanent shadows of its polar craters or mixed into its icy surface layers, water … Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
During the “Red Scare” that followed World War I, US Attorney General Alexander Mitchell Palmer attempted to deport political radicals, dissidents, and aliens in the notorious “Palmer Raids.” The first raid took place in late 1919. The second series of raids began in January 1920. In total, some 3,000 allegedly subversive aliens were rounded up for deportation. A few hundred were deported, but the vast majority were released. The raids were preceded by bombings targeting what officials? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
A secular holiday, Handsel Monday was important among the rural people of Scotland. “Handsel” was something given as a token of good luck, particularly at the beginning of something; the modern house-warming gift would be a good example. Thus Handsel Monday was an occasion for gift giving at the start of the new year, and it remained a Scottish tradition from the 14th until the 19th century. Eventually it was replaced by Boxing Day, and the custom of giving farm laborers and public servants some extra money or a small gift on this day continues. Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Barlach was an outstanding German expressionist sculptor, graphic artist, and writer. Through the power of his simple, angular, and compact forms, he communicated intense emotion and compassion. From clay modeling he turned to wood carving and woodcutting, which imbued his work with a rough-hewn quality. He achieved fame in the 1920s and 30s with the execution of several war memorials for the Weimar Republic. Why were many of Barlach’s works destroyed or confiscated as “degenerate art”? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
An essential part of almost all cellular processes, enzymes are biological catalysts, proteins that can accelerate the rates of chemical reactions by several orders of magnitude. Enzymes serve a wide variety of functions inside living organisms, especially in the digestive systems of animals, where they help break down large molecules like starches and proteins. Like a key for a lock, each enzyme is specific to one molecule. What household products use enzymes to speed up biochemical reactions? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Definition: (noun) An arbor or a passageway of columns supporting a roof of trelliswork on which climbing plants are trained to grow.
Synonyms: arbor, bower.
Usage: The thick vegetation met overhead, interlacing into a natural pergola.
Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Strange things exist 13,000 feet below the ocean surface, such as the lumps of the metal manganese that slowly accrete like pearls along the deep seafloor. In certain places, especially in the Pacific, the spherical clumps of varying diameter form vast … Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Signed by Canada, Mexico, and the US, NAFTA created the world’s largest free-trade area. The agreement immediately lifted tariffs on the majority of goods produced by the signatory nations, and it called for the gradual elimination of most of the remaining barriers to cross-border investment and to the movement of goods and services among the three countries. Critics claim that NAFTA has led to job loss in the US due to the prevalence of maquiladoras, which are what? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
In Salvador, Brazil, the festival known as Bom Jesus dos Navegantes is celebrated on New Year’s Day. A procession of small boats decorated with flags and streamers carries a statue of the Lord Jesus of Seafarers from the main harbor to the outlying beach of Boa Viagem. Thousands of spectators line Salvador’s beaches to catch a glimpse of the spectacle. According to legend, sailors participating in the event will never die by drowning. A similar procession takes place on the same day in Angra dos Reis, 90 miles south of Rio de Janeiro. Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Stieglitz was the first art photographer in the US. More than any other American, he compelled the recognition of photography as a fine art. After editing a series of photography magazines, he established the famous gallery “291” in New York City. The gallery soon broadened its scope from fine-art photography and introduced to the US works by members of the modern French art movement, including Cézanne and Picasso. It also exhibited the works of what American artist whom Stieglitz later married? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary