Kristen Hall-Geisler is a freelance writer and book editor living in Oregon. As an automotive journalist since 2006, she's honed her research and interviewing skills with HowStuffWorks, The New York Times, TechCrunch, Popular Science, US News & World Report and more. She loves falling down the rabbit hole of research and emerging with a book or article that others find useful and — she hopes — entertaining while still being based on solid sources. She is the author of the historical novel "Skull and Sidecar" as well as the nonfiction books "Take the Wheel: A Woman’s Guide to Buying a Car Her Own Damn Self" and "Lightning in a Throttle: Three Early Electric Vehicle Victories."
Recent Contributions
Putting sugar in someone's gas tank has long been rumored to ruin someone's car. But does it really work?
If a device has a motor, engine or spring, it probably has gears! But what do gears do, exactly, and how do they do it?
By Karim Nice & Kristen Hall-Geisler
Diatomic elements are molecules composed of only two atoms, every time, always. There are only seven of them on the entire periodic table.
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Purified water will 'instantly freeze' under certain conditions, and you can even make it happen at home. Is it magic? No. It's science!
You've heard this bit of hair care advice before, but is it true?
Nikola Tesla was a pretty cool guy. Companies and rock bands have been named for him, and he pops up in Hollywood movies regularly. Not bad for one of history's greatest inventors. But what did he do to earn his fame? Here are some of Tesla's standout inventions.
Venomous and poisonous mean very different things and are often used incorrectly. We'll clear up the confusion.
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There are no books at this library; instead you check out people. Why? To talk to them and help shatter the stereotypes that divide us.
Surely you've heard the phrase before. You've probably used it. But where did it come from and what is the meaning behind it?
"Then" and "than" have confused some people for ever — probably because they sound alike. However, there's an easy way to know which word to use.
This quirky behavior known as 'making biscuits' is common in domestic cats. But why do cats knead and what are they saying when they're mixing dough?
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You know the story behind the martini: James Bond always orders his "shaken, not stirred." But what's the story behind the classic glass it's always served in?
Spring is around the corner and you know what that means! It's time for spring cleaning.
Liquor and liqueur are spelled so similarly, it's easy to confuse them for being the same. But they're not. So how are they different?
Grab your BFFs, girls. Galentine's Day is coming and we're celebrating like Leslie Knope!
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There are a lot of theories about why wine bottles have dents (or punts) on the bottoms. Do they still serve a purpose?
These days, people are looking for ways to find and share more joy instead of feeling happy about someone else's misfortune. That feeling of shared joy is called freudenfreude.
We all grew up playing 'Ring Around the Rosie.' But what does it even mean?
We have to get our car's regular oil changes and replace our car's tires. But how do we have to do routine maintenance on our car's transmissions?
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Is 'Jim Wilson' really a code name airlines use to refer to a corpse being transported on a plane? Or just an urban myth?
There are tons of squirrel species around the world. Do they all have the same life span?
There's nothing quite like the smell of a new car interior. It's not exactly a fresh scent, but it's definitely an unused scent. So what really causes that "new car smell"?
Nobody wants a tailor up in their crotch taking personal measurements. But why would you when you can learn how to measure your inseam instead?
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You've surely heard it in the movies even if you've never used it. So who came up with the phonetic alphabet and why is it used?
Smudged eyeglasses are the worst. So how do you clean them without leaving loads of scratches? Hint: It's not with Windex.