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Earwax

Known by the medical term cerumen, earwax is the waxy secretion of the ceruminous glands and hair follicles of the external auditory canal. Earwax protects the ears by trapping dust, microorganisms, and foreign particles and preventing them from entering and damaging the ear. However, excess or impacted cerumen can impair hearing, and a number of methods exist to alleviate earwax impaction. One method considered dangerous and ineffective by doctors is ear candling, which is what? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

lowlife

Definition: (noun) A person who is deemed to be despicable or contemptible.

Synonyms: dirty dog, git, puke, rotter, scum bag, skunk, so-and-so, stinker, bum, crumb, rat.

Usage: Only a lowlife would steal money from his own child.
Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Medora Musical

Every night from mid-June through Labor Day in Medora, North Dakota, there is a musical extravaganza known as the Medora Musical—a patriotic song-and-dance salute to Theodore (“Teddy”) Roosevelt and his Rough Riders. The musical is performed in a natural amphitheater featuring an outdoor escalator to get people to their seats. The colorful buttes and ravines of the Badlands form a dramatic backdrop for the Broadway-class variety show. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

The Book of Martyrs

Popularly known as The Book of Martyrs, The Actes and Monuments of These Latter and Perilous Dayes was published by English Protestant clergyman John Foxe in the 16th century to praise Protestants martyred during the reign of Catholic monarch Mary I, who earned the nickname “Bloody Mary” for her religious persecutions. Lavishly illustrated, it was widely read and influenced popular opinion about Roman Catholicism for several centuries. How much did the book’s first edition cost? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

forgo

Definition: (verb) Do without or cease to hold or adhere to.

Synonyms: foreswear, waive, dispense with, relinquish.

Usage: The tortures of the accused did not equal mine; she was sustained by innocence, but the fangs of remorse tore my bosom and would not forgo their hold.
Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

The Kerala School of Astronomy and Mathematics

The Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics in India flourished between the 14th and 16th centuries. Kerala scholars discovered a procedure for determining the position of the Moon every 36 minutes and methods for estimating the movement of the planets. While attempting to solve astronomical problems, the scholars independently created a number of important mathematical concepts, centuries before the invention of calculus in Europe. What was their most important discovery? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

windpipe

Definition: (noun) Membranous tube with cartilaginous rings that conveys inhaled air from the larynx to the bronchi.

Synonyms: trachea.

Usage: Poisonous vapors … crept like evil spirits over the ship, stealing into the nostrils and windpipes of the unwary and causing fits of sneezing and coughing.
Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

National Agriculture Fair at Santarem

The most important agricultural fair in Portugal is held for 10 days in June each year at Santarém, capital of the rich agricultural province of Ribatejo. Although the focus of the Ribatejo Fair is on farming and livestock breeding, there is also a colorful program of bullfighting, folk singing, and dancing, as well as a procession of campinos, or bull-herders. Many other European countries exhibit farm animals and machinery at the Feira Nacional de Agricultura. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Pole of Inaccessibility

A pole of inaccessibility is, due to its distance from geographic features that could provide access, a region’s most difficult-to-reach point. It is a geographic construct, not a physical phenomenon. The oceanic pole of inaccessibility, Point Nemo, lies in the S Pacific, 1,670 mi (2,688 km) from land. The northern pole of inaccessibility is at the approximate center of the most consolidated portion of arctic pack ice. How is the N American pole of inaccessibility used for US national defense? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

illusionist

Definition: (noun) Someone who performs magic tricks to amuse an audience.

Synonyms: conjurer, magician, prestidigitator.

Usage: The illusionist snapped his fingers and was suddenly holding a dove, much to the delight of his adoring audience.
Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary