Skip to content
Two glass of fresh pure water on white background with sunlight deep shadow of glass.

Before Brita: A Brief History of Water Filtration

From ancient Egypt to post-industrial London, societies have long recognized the benefits of clean water and—mostly—have done what they can to provide it.

In the Limelight

In the Stereoscope, Another World

Developed in the nineteenth century, the stereoscope gave people a new way of seeing themselves and the world around them.

Roundup

Image from a poster for safe sex awareness

Reading for LGBTQ+ History Month

October is LGBTQ+ History Month, so the JSTOR Daily editors have rounded up a few of our favorite stories to mark the occasion.

Cabinet of Curiosities

Opera di M. Bartolomeo Scappi, cuoco secreto di Papa Pio V

The Wild West of Papal Conclaves

In the sixteenth and seventeenth century, the death of a pope led to all sorts of chaos, from the destruction of art to armed violence in the streets.

Suggested Readings

Well-dressed spy illustration.

Spies, Fashion, and Pet Cemeteries

Well-researched stories from Aeon, Harvard Public Health, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.

Most Recent

A detail from Portrait of Ferry Carondelet with his Secretary by Sebastiano del Piombo, 1510

The Merchants of Venice—In Code

Sixteenth-century Venice conducted its affairs in code, so much so that cryptology was professionalized and regulated by the state.
Liberia and the Centennial exhibition, 1876

Building a New Virginia in Liberia

Black American voluntary migrants to Liberia were eager to embrace their African roots, but their vision for the country was very much an American one.

More Stories

In the Limelight

In the Stereoscope, Another World

Developed in the nineteenth century, the stereoscope gave people a new way of seeing themselves and the world around them.

Roundup

Image from a poster for safe sex awareness

Reading for LGBTQ+ History Month

October is LGBTQ+ History Month, so the JSTOR Daily editors have rounded up a few of our favorite stories to mark the occasion.

Cabinet of Curiosities

Opera di M. Bartolomeo Scappi, cuoco secreto di Papa Pio V

The Wild West of Papal Conclaves

In the sixteenth and seventeenth century, the death of a pope led to all sorts of chaos, from the destruction of art to armed violence in the streets.

Suggested Readings

Well-dressed spy illustration.

Spies, Fashion, and Pet Cemeteries

Well-researched stories from Aeon, Harvard Public Health, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.

Long Reads

The Suffragette Down with the Tom Cats

A Purrrrfect Political Storm

Crazy cat ladies have come to dominate this election season. It’s hardly the first time.
"Fresh, red cloves grow on the branch, green leaves. Zanzibar, Tanzania"

Cloves: The Spice that Enriched Empires

Behind one humble spice lies a complex history of empires and profit, commodities and globalization.
A man in drag and a man in male clothes looking into each others' eyes. Photographic postcard.

Preserving History at the Digital Transgender Archive with Portico

Portico helps preserve underrepresented community content and collections, including the wide-ranging materials of the Digital Transgender Archive.
Portrait of Aldous Huxley, 1920s

When Aldous Huxley Dropped Acid

In Hollywood, the esteemed ex-pat made the acquaintance of Alfred Hubbard, a Kentucky-born smuggler of ill-repute who introduced him to a brave, new world.

The practice of polygamy came to symbolize the ability of the federal government to enforce its laws over the will of the state.

The Sovereignty of the Latter-day Saints

Doing Math with Intellectual Humility

Math class is an opportunity to teach students both how to use conjecture to arrive at knowledge and how to learn from the logic of peers.
Photo taken in the Bourbaki Congress of 1938 in Dieulefit

The Mathematical Pranksters behind Nicolas Bourbaki

Bourbaki was gnomic and mythical, impossible to pin down; his mathematics just the opposite: unified, unambiguous, free of human idiosyncrasy.
Karate chop

The Physics of Karate

A human hand has the power to split wooden planks and demolish concrete blocks. A trio of physicists investigated why this feat doesn't shatter our bones.