cock in the henhouse

The only male in an all-female environment. More...

Maundy Thursday (Holy Thursday)

Also known as Sheer Thursday or Holy Thursday, this is the day preceding Good Friday. It commemorates Jesus's institution of the Eucharist during the Last Supper, celebrated by Christians since the middle of the fourth century. The Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion still celebrate the rites of Maundy Thursday, which may include handing out special coins known as "Maundy money" to the aged and the poor, instead of footwashing. Also on this day, the sacramental Holy Oils, or chrism, are blessed. More...

Nothing is more beautiful than the love that has weathered the storms of life. The love of the young for the young, that is the beginning of life. But the love of the old for the old, that is the beginning of things longer.

Jerome K. Jerome (1859-1927)

Clarence Darrow (1857)

Darrow was an American lawyer and a leading member of the American Civil Liberties Union. He worked to free anarchists charged with murder in the Haymarket Riot, and his defense of Eugene V. Debs established his reputation as a union lawyer. Later came sensational criminal cases that displayed his eminence as a defense lawyer, especially the Loeb-Leopold murder case. Perhaps his most famous case was the Scopes trial, in which he defended a high school teacher who was charged with what? More...

Construction of St. Peter's Basilica Begins (1506)

With a capacity of over 60,000 people, St. Peter's Basilica is the one of the world's largest churches as well as one of the world's holiest Catholic sites. Begun by Pope Julius II in 1506 and completed more than a century later, it was built to replace Old St. Peter's, erected by Constantine over Peter's traditional burial site. Michelangelo and Bernini were among its many architects, and a number of their masterpieces adorn its interior. Why is St. Peter's not considered a cathedral? More...

Qanats

Known by many names throughout the Middle East and North Africa, qanats are water management systems used to provide water to human settlements and for irrigation in hot, arid, and semi-arid climates. Qanats are constructed as a series of well-like vertical shafts that tap into subterranean water and are connected by a gently sloping tunnel. Since the destination is lower than the source, the water drains into it by gravity. How were qanats used in ancient times to store ice in the desert? More...

Coordinating Conjunctions

Coordinating conjunctions are used to join two or more words, phrases, or independent clauses. There are seven coordinating conjunctions in English, which can be remembered using what acronym? More...

cogwheel

(noun) A toothed wheel that engages another toothed mechanism in order to change the speed or direction of transmitted motion.

Synonyms: gear

Usage: Wheels began to revolve faster and faster, levers and cogwheels to work, chimes to play, figures to pop out, and the hands to advance with regular motion.