Patty Rasmussen is a freelance writer based in the Atlanta area. She’s written about everything from Major League Baseball to economic development to the reason why calico cats are almost always female. Patty enjoys writing for HowStuffWorks because it means she’s usually picked first for trivia teams.
Recent Contributions
We often use the terms heart attack and cardiac arrest interchangeably. But these are two different conditions. How can you tell one from the other?
Don't know how to eat dragon fruit? This stunner of a fruit is as simple to slice as it is pretty to look at. So give it a try. You won't regret it.
The hosel is a little piece of metal that plays a big part in both golf club construction and in the club's performance.
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The baguette is the most popular kind of bread eaten in France. So it only makes sense UNESCO would protect it as an iconic part of its cultural heritage.
As much as we love to spoil our furry little friends with treats from the table, dogs are not human and there are much better food options for them.
Feeling down and need someone to pick you up? Give the kids of Peptoc a call and we guarantee a smile!
You probably use the words mold and mildew interchangeably. But these two types of fungi aren't quite the same. Is one worse?
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In a game against the Texas Rangers Oct. 4, Aaron Judge hit his 62nd home run in the 2022 MLB season, setting a new American League home run record.
The solar system's largest planet will pass closest to Earth at the same time it's at opposition. That means it will be the biggest and brightest it's been in the sky in decades.
Paprika comes from the dried Capsicum annuum variety of red peppers, and can range in flavor from sweet to very hot.
This Georgia baseball team has become a viral phenomenon. How? By changing the rules and making the game fast, fun and wildly entertaining.
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They look like giant marshmallows and are disliked by many NFL players, but may be just what the doctor ordered to protect them against concussions and other head injuries.
Arizona isn't all desert. Take Grand Falls, aka "Chocolate Falls." It is dry most of the year, but when it rains, this waterfall pours.
Graham crackers were invented by Presbyterian minister Sylvester Graham as part of a radical 19th century diet. His goal? To curb joy and sexual desires.
Sorry to disappoint, but they won't be C-3PO's in dark slacks and chest protectors behind home plate. But 'robots' could be the future of calling balls and strikes.
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Nope, the "dog days" have nothing to do with your pooch lying around panting, but everything to do with the dog star, Sirius.
It's a big old world and the number of countries it contains changes all the time. So, do you know how many there are? It's not an easy question.
Ugliness, like beauty, may be in the eye of the beholder. A 17-year-old dog with tumors and a sweet disposition won the annual contest.
First of all, who is Stanley? Also, why is this trophy so dang big?
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In some U.S. states, half of the stores are out of baby formula. How do parents feed babies if they can't get formula? We have some tips.
At age 23, Annie Cohen Kopchovsky, aka Annie Londonderry, set out on an around-the-world cycling adventure. Why did she do it and did she make it?
The Venice Biennale, the oldest biennial art exhibition in the world, is a showcase of all that is new in the world of art, attracting over 500,000 people during its 7-month run.
Standing 1,428 feet tall and just 60 feet wide, Steinway Tower in New York City has earned the nickname, "The Coffee Stirrer."
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The meeting of a group of abolitionist activist women at Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848 became the starting point for the women's rights movement in the U.S., but what brought these women together in the first place?
A brilliant political strategist and Putin critic, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been poisoned, imprisoned and recently ended a hunger strike. What's next for him?