Recent Articles

Roller Coaster Population

A census of roller coasters in the U.S. and Canada

With links to details by roller coaster types: steel or wood; and 4th dimension, bobsled, flying, inverted, sitting/standing/suspended types.

Foreign borders by state

The length in miles of the borders of 17 U.S. states

There are 5,525 miles of border shared with Canada and 1,933 miles shared with Mexico. This is the breakdown by state.

Origin of the ‘Czernek’ surname

History of this common Czech or Polish name

The family name “Czernek”, which comes from the the basic root “czarn-“, meaning “black” in Slavic languages from Czech to Russian, dates to at least 1389 in Poland. The same root world is commonly used for “cierne pivo”, literally “black beer” but more accurately “dark beer” in modern Czech or Polish.

People search

Conducting people search for Dummies

Doing a search for people on the Internet is not difficult and you needn’t pay a service like Intellius or KnowX. This article details search techniques with links to dozens of public databases that will yield more information than any online service could ever assemble.

Baking French bread

The perfect French baguette is possible at home, if you avoid some common pitfalls.

Dummy-proof techniques for a crusty loaf of French bread, with detailed troubleshooting tips.

French bread recipe

Printable copy of ingredients and directions for "Baking French bread" knol

English and metric measures both included

People search

Andy's techniques and sources for personal searches

Doing a search for people on the Internet is not difficult and you needn’t pay a service like Intellius or KnowX. This article details search techniques with links to dozens of public databases that will yield more information than any online service could ever assemble.

Peace Corps impact

Impact of Peace Corps service from comments by volunteers in December, 1996 study

The final question of the 1996 study done by A. Juanita Graul and the Peace Corps was: “Do you have any additional comments about the impact of Peace Corps service on your life or on the U.S.?”

Spinach Sombé

Traditionally this African dish uses manioc leaves, but spinach is an excellent substitute.

An authentic African recipe would use manioc leaves, which are hard to find in the U.S. but spinach is a common substitute, even in Africa.

Samosas

Meat pastries that make an excellent appetizer or main dish.

Samosas are commonly served in East Africa, most often fried. But this recipe uses puff pastry to get the same light outer dough, with less mess and oil.