John is a freelance writer based in the suburbs of Atlanta. A longtime sports scribe with too much time covering college sports, the NFL, the NBA and Major League Baseball, he now writes on science, health, history, current events and whatever other weird non-sports stories that he and the editors at HowStuffWorks dream up. He has a journalism degree from Arizona State, a wife, a son, a dog that sheds too much and a bad case of eyestrain.
Recent Contributions
If our living space is to become outer space, we have a lot of challenges to address. And our first line of defense will be space architects.
By John Donovan
Commercial flight is extremely safe. But could it be even safer if airplanes had shoulder harnesses instead of lap belts?
By John Donovan
What happens when twins are reunited decades later? And how in the world can you explain separated twins giving their firstborn son or their family dog the same exact name?
By John Donovan
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A disturbing noise, somewhere between a window-rattling bass and a brain-numbing deep thrum has bugged the heck out of residents in the city of Windsor, Ontario, Canada for years, and it's called the Windsor Hum.
By John Donovan
The Panama Canal has been one of the world's biggest engineering feats since it was built nearly by hand in the 1900s.
By John Donovan
Many of Sigmund Freud's well-known theories have been discredited by modern psychiatry. Does that include the Oedipus complex?
By John Donovan
Humans are a diverse lot — which is good! The question of ethnicity vs. race vs. nationality is a source of much debate, even among experts.
By John Donovan
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When it comes to water witches we're faced with two distinct possibilities. One, they're either really good, at pulling a fast one on desperate landowners looking for groundwater. Or, two, they actually know what they're doing.
By John Donovan
It's easy to equate Caucasian with white. But the word Caucasian touches on issues deeper than skin color. HowStuffWorks looks at its true meaning.
The MOAB is the largest nonnuclear bomb ever used by the U.S. So what makes it OK to drop this bomb and not a nuclear warhead? We dive in to find out.
By John Donovan
Israel's Iron Dome defense system is capable of intercepting — and destroying — thousands of incoming rockets targeting civilian areas. Here's how the sophisticated system works.
By John Donovan
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Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was just named world's busiest airport, again. What lands the ATL in the No. 1 spot again and again?
By John Donovan
Sinking a hole-in-one is way more difficult than Tiger Woods and those other professionals make it look.
By John Donovan
Emmett Till's vicious kidnapping and lynching still stands out among the thousands of lynchings in the U.S. after the Civil War. What was it about his murder that made the world stand up and take notice?
By John Donovan
Part of the fun is trying to finagle a spot at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park viewing site in late spring.
By John Donovan
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In fascism, the State is all that matters, and constant conquest is necessary to glorify that State. But how do you convince people to support a philosophy that denies their personal value? Is fascism really still alive today?
By Julia Layton & John Donovan
John Adams was the first vice president of the United States, a role he thought was contrived and insignificant. But the VP function has changed, and Adams played a huge part in that. He also became the second president of the U.S.
By John Donovan
Super Bowl Sunday is a football fan's nirvana. It's when the NFL champion is decided once and for all. But the day is about way more than just football.
By Kevin Bonsor & John Donovan
Want to see Super Bowl LVII in person? It won't be easy. But we'll show you how to get into the best position to catch a Hail Mary ticket or two.
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The Select Committee investigating Jan. 6 just subpoenaed former president Donald Trump. What happens if he ignores the subpoena?
By John Donovan
Jim Thorpe overcame almost insurmountable obstacles, from a rough childhood to racial discrimination, to become one of the world's greatest athletes of all time.
By John Donovan
College sports just wouldn't be the same without those silly costumed humans (and live animals) parading around the sidelines pumping up the fans.
By John Donovan
Though it's been around for more than 150 years, Juneteenth was still a mystery to many. But now, it's the newest federal holiday in the U.S.A.
By John Donovan
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The soldiers who stand vigil over the Tomb are the Sentinels of The Old Guard, a hand-picked group dedicated to honoring the memory of those who gave their lives for their country.
By John Donovan
Arne Johnson stabbed a man to death in 1981. His intended legal defense? Guilty by reason of demonic possession. Did it work?
By John Donovan