Patrick Kiger
Patrick J. Kiger has written for HowStuffWorks since 2008 covering a wide array of topics, from history and politics to pop culture and technology. He worked as a newspaper reporter for the Pittsburgh Press, and the Orange County Register in California, where he covered one of the biggest serial murder cases in U.S. history, and also as a staff writer at Baltimore Magazine. As a freelancer, Patrick has written for print publications such as GQ, Mother Jones and the Los Angeles Times, and on the web for National Geographic Channel, Discovery News, Science Channel and Fast Company, among others. In recent years, he's become increasingly interested in how technological advances are altering urban life and the design of cities, and has written extensively on that subject for Urban Land magazine. In his spare time, Patrick is a longtime martial arts student and a fan of crime fiction, punk rock and classic Hollywood films.
RECENT CONTRIBUTIONS
The Manhattan Project built the city of Oak Ridge in rural Tennessee, where secret facilities produced uranium-235 for the atomic bomb.
The big blacked-out sections of the Mueller report are calling attention to redaction. The process of redaction can be sophisticated or simple. And sometimes, not completely fool-proof.
JFK. Tupac. Bonnie and Clyde. They each died in a car, but what happened to those famous vehicles after the fact?
Mathematician Andrew Booker has found the three cubes that add up to the number 33, a long-unsolved math problem.
Although it doesn't happen often, large passenger jets crash for many reasons, from mechanical failure to pilot error.
A Boston-based company plans to manufacture a supersonic business jet that will replace windows with video screens.
Cleaning an airliner for the next flight is a complex undertaking that must be carried out rapidly.
A blanket and pillow can transform a long, uncomfortable flight into a sleepfest, but not all airlines still hand them out. When they do, are they clean and safe to use?
The Boeing 737 first flew into the world a half century ago. Here's the scoop on Boeing's fastest-selling airplane.
Wouldn't it be a good idea to retest drivers every so often? Experts say not really.
NASA is hoping to begin sending scientific probes to the moon in 2019 on private spacecraft, in preparation for a manned lunar mission in 2028.
The Ancient Earth visualization map shows the movement of the planet's tectonic plates in a really cool way.
They keep our miles and miles of unruly cords untangled and out of the way. But how do they work?
When you call 911 in the U.S., you expect an ambulance to come roaring to your aid in a matter of minutes. But how are ambulances dispatched — and why do they cost so much?
NASA's Mars rover Opportunity's last words were: "My battery is low and it's getting dark."
For years, speculation has surrounded the government's high security animal disease research center, which is slated to close in 2023.
The forward momentum on recycling has stalled in the U.S. and other countries, but some experts say there's still potential for growth.
A handful of other countries have electoral colleges, but they're very different in function and purpose from the one that decides U.S. presidential elections.
Ever sat on an airplane and wondered how your laptop works at 30,000 feet?
A new study reports that the U.S. Endangered Species Act has helped marine mammal and sea turtle populations to significantly regenerate.
