Morrison is an African-American writer and former editor for Random House whose work helped bring African-American literature into the mainstream. In 1988, she won the Pulitzer Prize for Beloved, which is now included in the canon of American literature, and she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993. Her fiction is noted for its poetic language, lush detail, and emotional intensity. Why did she call Bill Clinton “our first Black president”? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Also known as Rashtriya Prajatantra Divas, this holiday commemorates the introduction of a democratic system of government in Nepal, which had been ruled by the Rana family since the mid-19th century. Two other national holidays in Nepal are Unity Day, January 11—celebrating the unification of the various principalities into one country more than 200 years ago—and Constitution Day, November 8—observing the adoption of a new Nepalese constitution in 1990. Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Pluto was discovered by the astronomer Clyde Tombaugh at the Lowell Observatory in Arizona while he was searching for “Planet X,” a hypothetical planet that was believed to exist beyond Neptune. Pluto was long regarded as a planet, but following the discovery of other, larger Kuiper belt objects, astronomers recognized the need to reclassify Pluto. In 2006, the International Astronomical Union ended official recognition of Pluto as a planet. What is Pluto’s current classification? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Definition: (noun) A person who renounces material comforts and leads a life of austere self-discipline, especially as an act of religious devotion.
Synonyms: abstainer.
Usage: His rough clothes and starved frame gave him the look of an ascetic, and he refused the food they tried to give him.
Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Fate alone saw the meaning of the web it wove, the might of it, and its place in the making of a world’s history. Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
The San are an indigenous people of Africa, mainly found in Botswana, Namibia, Angola, and South Africa. Once nomadic hunters and gatherers of wild food in desolate areas like the Kalahari Desert of southwest Africa, most of the San now live in settlements and work on cattle ranches or farms. The San have a rich folklore, are skilled in drawing, and have a remarkably complex language characterized by the use of clicks. What plant used by the San has been patented, and why? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Considered by many to be the greatest basketball player of all time, Michael Jordan ended his career with a regular-season scoring average of 30.1 points per game, the highest in NBA history. He won six NBA championships, was league MVP five times, and earned two Olympic gold medals. Jordan’s mid-air acrobatics and slam dunk skills are legendary and earned him the nickname “Air Jordan.” After retiring from basketball in 1993, Jordan surprised fans by beginning a career in what sport? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
At the Bonden (or Bonten) Festival at Yokote in the Akita Prefecture of Japan, each district of the city has a team of young men to carry its bonden in a race to the Asahiokayama-jinja shrine. The bonden is a 10-foot (3-m) bamboo pole, draped with heavy cloth and topped by a platform holding a figure of the Animal of the Year. Those carrying the bonden gradually increase their pace until they are running, often pushing members of competing teams to the ground to be the first to the top. The team that arrives first wins the privilege of offering its bonden to the kami, or god. Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Garry Kasparov is a chess grandmaster and one of the strongest players in history. He was the youngest person to become the World Chess Federation’s World Chess Champion, a title he held from 1985 until 1993. In 1996, Kasparov played against a super-computer called “Deep Blue,” which was capable of evaluating 100 billion positions each turn. He lost the first game, but rebounded in the next five games to beat the machine. What happened when Kasparov faced the computer in a rematch a year later? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
Definition: (verb) To make (something burdensome or painful) less intense or severe.
Synonyms: alleviate, relieve, palliate.
Usage: Food, however, became scarce, and I often spent the whole day searching in vain for a few acorns to assuage the pangs of hunger.
Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary