Videos
Podcasts
Blogs
Quizzes
GamesAbout Amanda Arnold
When Amanda was a kid, she spent most of her time running around outside. So she's happy she grew up to be HowStuffWorks.com adventure editor, where her "work" is to edit articles about travel and the great outdoors. When she's not at the office drinking free Cokes and blogging, she enjoys running, playing the guitar and spending time with her dog, River. Amanda has a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Georgia and an M.F.A. in creative writing from Georgia State University. You can find Amanda on Twitter at @CoolestStuffHSW and on Facebook at the official CoolestStuff page.
Most Recent: Amanda Arnold Postings
The Mysterious Margate Shell Grotto
by Amanda Arnold | November 23, 2011
What if, one day, you discovered a grotto in your backyard?
This has not happened to me. But in 1853, it happened to a kid named Joshua Newlove in Margate, England. When a hole in the ground appeared during the digging of a duck pond, Joshua’s father, a school headmaster named James Newlove, lowered Joshua into the hole to see what was below.
Study Abroad in England … for Vacation
by Amanda Arnold | November 14, 2011
So what if you’re not in college anymore? You can still study abroad in England at Oxford and Cambridge. Here’s the scoop:
Oxford offers a program called the Oxford Experience. For about $1,818 (1,335 pounds), you’ll take a one-week course in something like …
Cute Animal Friday: Bat-eared Fox
by Amanda Arnold | November 4, 2011
This is the bat-eared fox and it can hear larvae chewing.
It’s no wonder it can hear larvae chewing when its ears are almost half as tall as its little body. Ears = 5.3 inches (13.4 centimeters). Body up to the shoulders = 11 to 15 inches (28 to 28 centimeters).
The airlines have been hurting something awful for, like, seven years. And naturally that pain has been transferred to you, the consumer. Here are some tips from travel guru Pauline Frommer (that I picked up from her talk at the Atlanta Travel and Adventure Show) on how to fly cheap:
I attended the Atlanta Travel and Adventure Show over the weekend, where I listened to a couple of talks by Pauline Frommer, creator of Pauline Frommer Guidebooks, who was spilling over with delightful tips on how to travel free and cheap.
Here’s what’s free right now in travel:
Strange Souvenirs: Catalonia’s el Caganer
by Amanda Arnold | October 24, 2011
Let’s just say that Catalans are comfortable with poop.
If you ever visit the Catalonia region of Spain, you may find yourself face-to-face with a figurine called “el Caganer” — or “the great defecator.” He’s not exactly a religious figure. He’s more just a guy who’s pulled his pants down, squatted and right now is doing a No. 2. In front of you.
Norway’s fjords are wooing me again — this time via Terje Sorgjerd’s latest video “The Water.” Doesn’t it look like such a lush, peaceful place?
Take a look:
Monsanto, Portugal: Where Homes Are Made of Boulders
by Amanda Arnold | October 19, 2011
If you can’t move a boulder, you should just wrap your house around it and give it a big hug.
Here we are in Monsanto — oldest town in Portugal and designated “most Portuguese” in the 1940s, according to Rough Guides. It’s perched high on a hill just beneath an ancient castle, above a valley and, most importantly, among many large gray rocks.
Leaf Peepr, the Leaf Peeping App
by Amanda Arnold | October 13, 2011
A few Octobers ago, I ate no fewer than 50 boiled peanuts on the ride up to the North Georgia mountains in hopes of seeing yellow and red leaves, and arrived to a sad, leaf-free trail. But that was then and this is now — when there’s a leaf peeping app called “Foliage Leaf Peepr” right there on your phone.
Lip-locked and Love-locked on a Bridge in Europe
by Amanda Arnold | October 11, 2011
I’ll tell you who isn’t afraid of commitment: the Hohenzollernbruecke bridge in Cologne, Germany. The bridge was reconstructed after it was bombed during World War II, and since then it’s been padlocked with the immortal love of thousands of couples from around the world, according to SFGate. Just look at all these “love locks”!
Recent Postings by Category
BrainStuff
- Thank You and Best Wishes to Marshall Brain
- Contest – Design a $300 house and win $25,000
- How the Philtrum works – the place under your nose where your face comes together
The Coolest Stuff on the Planet
- Traveling on the Orient Express
- Deep-fried Goodness at Carnival
- The Colors of the Running of the Bulls
Keep Asking
- Why can a 5 foot 8 inch man dunk a basketball on a 10 foot rim while some people of taller stature can’t?
- What happens to our sun once it runs out of fuel?
- How do we know the age of the universe?
Stuff Mom Never Told You
- Who invented the Christmas card?
- How the Kinsey Report Fueled Whiskey Sales
- How to Get Your Wedding Announcement into The New York Times
Stuff to Blow Your Mind
- Blow Your Mind: In the Lair of the Rat King
- Mandala: Memory Palace, Inception and Simulated Worlds
- Virgin Galactic: $200,000 Ticket to Ride
Stuff You Should Know
- The Southern Death Cult, the Maya and Georgia
- Deformed Baby Spider Brains
- Amazing Medical Conditions: Maple Syrup Urine Disorder
The Stuff of Genius
CarStuff
- Was Chrysler’s “It’s Halftime in America” Super Bowl commercial a little too political?
- Why is NASA studying car safety?
- Tips for in-car Navigation Systems
How-to Stuff
- How to Make the Most of a Gallery Crawl (When You’re on a Shoestring Budget)
- How to Swim with Dolphins (When Deep Water Terrifies You)
- How to Cure a Homemade Cookie Craving Without Turning on the Oven
PopStuff
- PopStuff Show Notes: Episode 40: Did movies ruin love?
- PopStuff Show Notes: Episode 39: Urban Legends
- PopStuff Show Notes: Episode 38: Defending Disney Princesses?
Stuff They Don't Want You To Know
Stuff to Change the World
- Who will own the Arctic?
- Obesity: The New Global Crisis
- Bill Gates Makes For A Pretty Decent Cartoon
Stuff You Missed in History Class
- Butch Cassidy: Should we read between the lines?
- Are we rooting for D.B. Cooper?
- Party Time: A Look at Unconventional Politics
