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.

How money became the universal measuring rod (The Atlantic)
by Eli Cook
When did Americans start saying that some things are priceless? Around the time we started trying to put a price on everything, which was the same time in which we began creating capital investments out of real estate, railroad companies, and enslaved people.

Losing our dreams (New York Magazine)
by Susie Neilson
Americans are getting less REM sleep than we used to. What do we lose when we stop dreaming?

What happens if the U.S. cheats in Iran? (The Washington Post)
by Jane Vaynman
The Trump administration’s policy on the Iran nuclear deal might amount to cheating on the agreement. What would that mean for international relations, or for the ability to negotiate future treaties?

How AI teaches itself to beat humans (Quanta Magazine)
by Kevin Hartnett
When a computer bested the top human player of the game Go last year, it did so by studying 100,000 games played by humans. But now, a new artificial intelligence program has figured out how to play the game even better, all on its own.

The logic of Christian support for Trump (Public Books)
by Tanya Marie Luhrmann
To liberals, Evangelical voters who support President Trump may look like hypocrites, given his very public unchristian behavior. But that impression misses a lot about biblical narratives and political behavior.

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