Crowned at age 14, after his mother helped her lover, Roger de Mortimer, depose his father, Edward III reigned over England for 50 years. He wielded little power at first but after a few years seized the reins of government, had Mortimer executed, and forced his mother into retirement. Edward’s long reign saw the ravages of the Black Death as well as vital developments in legislature and government. In 1337, he laid claim to the French crown, provoking what century-long conflict? Discuss
Month: November 2022
grab and go
(used before a noun; sometimes hyphenated) Characterized by being very quick and easy to obtain, access, and use. Watch the video
The Northern Lights
The northern lights, or aurora borealis, are a luminous display of various forms and colors in the night sky of the Northern Hemisphere. They are caused by high-speed electrons and protons from the Sun, which are trapped in the radiation belt above Earth and channeled toward the polar regions by Earth’s magnetic field. These electrically charged particles enter the atmosphere and collide with air molecules, exciting them to luminosity. Who coined the name “aurora borealis” for this phenomenon? Discuss
salubrious
Definition: (adjective) Conducive or favorable to health or well-being.
Synonyms: healthy, good for you.
Usage: She owned a cheerful vegetarian restaurant where she sold protein shakes and other salubrious refreshments.
Discuss
San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge Opens to Traffic (1936)
The “Bay Bridge” is a toll bridge linking the California cities of Oakland and San Francisco. About 280,000 vehicles cross it each day. San Francisco residents first recognized the need for a bridge spanning the San Francisco Bay during the Gold Rush when they found themselves cut off from the newly built railroad on the far side of the bay. However, construction of the span was delayed until 1933. Originally, the bridge was to be named after Governor James Rolph. What thwarted this plan? Discuss
Auguste Rodin (1840)
Rodin was a French sculptor noted for his renderings of the human form. He spent 37 years working on The Gates of Hell, a monumental sculptural group commissioned for a proposed Musée des Arts Décoratifs and inspired by Dante’s Inferno. The project was never finished, but many of the 186 figures intended for it, including The Thinker, The Three Shades, and The Kiss, were later presented as individual works. Who was The Thinker intended to represent? Discuss
God almighty!
An exclamation of surprise, shock, frustration, exasperation, anger, or annoyance. Watch the video
Corfu
Corfu is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, off the coast of Albania. The second largest of the Ionian Islands, Corfu rises 2,980 feet (910 m) at Mt. Pantokrator in the northeast but is largely a fertile lowland producing olive oil, figs, wine, and citrus fruit. The island has been identified with Scheria, the island of the Phaeacians in Homer’s Odyssey. It was settled around 730 BCE by Corinthian colonists. What Empress of Austria commissioned the building of a summer palace there? Discuss
windbreaker
Definition: (noun) A trademark used for a warm outer jacket having close-fitting, often elastic, cuffs and waistband.
Synonyms: anorak, parka, windcheater.
Usage: George’s windbreaker was torn, and he shivered in the cold night air.
Discuss
Battle of Taranto (1940)
The Battle of Taranto during World War II marked the first all-aircraft naval attack in history. The results were definitive, as British planes destroyed much of the Italian fleet anchored in Taranto, in an arm of the Ionian Sea. The battle is seen as a turning point in military history, marking the end of the reign of “big-gun” battleships and leading to the rise of naval air power. Certain aspects of the attack were studied as part of the planning for what other notorious aerial assault? Discuss