red knee tarantula

Fear and Your Brain

Researchers at Cambridge studied how peoples' brains respond to fear.
scared kid

How Scary is Too Scary?

Halloween poses questions for parents, like how scary is too scary for their kids? The answer depends on when we ask the question.
Albert Anker, Fortune Teller

The Surprising Historical Significance of Fortune-Telling

The possible futures predicted by fortune-telling happen just often enough to tantalize, preying on our deepest aspirations of catching a "big break."
Helena Blavatsky

Spiritualism, Science, and the Mysterious Madame Blavatsky

Madame Helena Blavatsky was the 19th century's most famous and notorious occultist. She was also the godmother of the New Age movement. 
student using laptop

Student Writing in the Digital Age

Essays filled with "LOL" and emojis? College student writing today actually is longer and contains no more errors than it did in 1917.
JSTOR Daily Two Year Anniversary

JSTOR Daily Is Two Years Old

JSTOR Daily is Two! A roundup of some of JSTOR Daily's best work on its 2nd birthday. 
procrastination folders

The Psychological Origins of Procrastination—and How We Can Stop Putting Things Off

The psychology behind procrastination involves how we perceive of value, 
thai spaghetti

“Eastern Spaghetti”: How Italian Food Became a Favorite in Thailand

Thai-Italian fusion is massively popular in Thailand. How did pizza and pasta make their way into Thai cuisine?
Harvard-Michigan football game

How Teddy Roosevelt Changed Football

Is football too violent? It's a problem Teddy Roosevelt once tried to solve from the White House.
September 11 memorial

How 9/11 Changed Americans

15 years after 9/11, what are the lasting effects on Americans' psychology?