Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) was granted independence from France on August 7, 1960. It had been a French colony since 1893. Independence Day is a national holiday in Ivory Coast, celebrated with parades, dancing, and fireworks. Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Heathcoat was not the first person to invent a lacemaking machine, but his apparatus was the first to produce an exact imitation of handmade pillow lace. Patented in 1809, it was the most complex textile machine then in existence. Heathcoat decided to capitalize on his invention by opening a lace mill, but textile workers, angry that they were being replaced by machines, attacked and destroyed it in 1816. Undeterred, he opened a new mill elsewhere. What happened to the steam plough he invented? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
An indoor version of the sport known as soccer or—to those in many parts of the world—football, futsal is a fast-paced game that emphasizes improvisation, creativity, and technique. Credited with helping some of the world’s best soccer players develop their skills, futsal is played by two five-person teams and employs a smaller, less bouncy ball than traditional soccer. Its courts, unlike those of other forms of indoor soccer, are bordered by lines rather than walls. How did futsal get its name? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Definition: (adjective) Of or being a legal marriage between a person of royal or noble birth and a partner of lower rank, in which it is agreed that no titles or estates of the royal or noble partner are to be shared by the partner of inferior rank nor by any of the offspring of the marriage.
Synonyms: left-handed.
Usage: Lola Montes, a dancer, became the morganatic wife of King Louis of Bavaria and was created Countess of Landsfeld.
Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
It was a solution no parent wants to hear: To get rid of a brain tumor and stop their young son’s seizures, surgeons would need to cut out one-sixth of his brain. But for Tanner Collins, it was the best option. A slow-growing tumor was causing … Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
After Germany surrendered in May 1945, the Allied forces focused on ending the war in the Pacific. Japan refused to surrender, dismissing the Allies’ vows to devastate the country. The atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima was the first ever dropped on a populated area. At least 130,000 people were killed, injured, or declared missing, and 90 percent of the city was leveled by the blast. Another atomic bomb was dropped on the city of Nagasaki three days later. When did Japan surrender? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
British Columbia, Canada’s westernmost province, joins several other communities in holding a civil holiday on the first Monday in August. For local residents, this day honors the pioneers who established the colony of British Columbia in the 19th century. There are a number of events that take place in the province’s capital, Victoria, but the most popular is the “Symphony Splash,” an annual performance of modern and classical music by the Victoria Symphony Orchestra. Held on a barge on the city’s Inner Harbor, the concert draws thousands of tourists and locals. Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Born into slavery, Taylor was secretly—and illegally—educated during her childhood. As a young woman, she served as a Union army nurse during the American Civil War. She became the first African American to openly teach former slaves in Georgia and the first African-American woman to publish a memoir of her wartime experiences, Reminiscences of My Life in Camp with the 33d United States Colored Troops, Late 1st S.C. Volunteers. How did she end up with Union troops in the first place? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Principally used by labor organizations to win improved wages and working conditions or by consumers to pressure companies to change their practices, boycotts can be employed in many ways. Though use of the method dates back further, the practice was named in 1880 for Captain Charles Cunningham Boycott, an English land agent in Ireland whose ruthlessness in evicting tenants led his employees to refuse all cooperation with him and his family. What type of boycott is illegal in the US? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Definition: (adjective) Befitting or characteristic of those who incline to social exclusiveness and who rebuff the advances of people considered inferior.
Synonyms: cliquish, snobby, clannish, clubby.
Usage: I expected Susan, the daughter of a multimillionaire, to be snobbish, but she was actually warm and friendly.
Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary