Some of the world's most baffling criminal cases were solved thanks to some seemingly harmless point about language. Take the Unabomber, for example.

Well-researched stories from around the web that bridge the gap between news and scholarship. Brought to you each Tuesday from the editors of JSTOR Daily.

In nature, death creates its own unique ecosystem. These carcass-based mini-ecosystems are extremely dynamic.

Failure is in fashion, but this isn't some new passing trend. How universities and the medical profession have embraced the idea of "failing better."

The July 30, 1975, disappearance of labor leader Jimmy Hoffa sparked public fascination because he was an important cog in the nation's economy.

Why were cowboys and pioneers so obsessed with their baked goods? A look at the birth of sourdough culture (har har) in the United States.

Earthworms are often portrayed as beneficial to the environment, but in North America's temperate forests, they are a disaster in action.

When you think of the aesthetic life of Elvis Presley, you probably think of the gaudy glitz of Graceland. But what did the tacky décor really mean?

The legend of Pisco punch did not die with its creator, Duncan Nicol.

Outside intervention in Venezuela is built on the idea that the fallout of a failed state has ramifications beyond its national borders.