Americans have long viewed beavers as nuisances. But their dams are important for water management, helping to store and recharge depleted groundwater.

The things travelers bring home reflect their worldviews. In 19th c. Niagara Falls, souvenirs revealed problematic stereotypes about Native Americans.

The skeleton of Charles Byrne, the “Irish Giant," has been displayed in London's Hunterian Museum for 200 years. Byrne wanted a different resting place.

At Hesdin, in France, the idyllic beauty of the grounds met the sadistic slapstick of the castle’s “engines of amusement.”

ProPublica's audio of crying children in detention centers touched a nerve. Humans are keenly attuned to the sounds of crying, in part because of evolution.

In the early 20th century, baseball was a magnet for illegal gambling. But when the Chicago White Sox threw the World Series, Jews became the scapegoats.

Eighty-seven-year-old Narayan Lavate, and his wife, Iravati, 78, say they are “leading unproductive and obsolete lives.”

Some folklorists have hypothesized that the mythical beasts and monsters of legend were actually inspired by shadowy collective memories of megafauna.

From 1932 to 1968, the Chisso chemical factory discharged up to 600 tonnes of mercury into the Shiranui Sea. This led to mass poisoning and a UN treaty.

Well-researched stories from Pacific Standard, Public Books, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.