A George Saunders Outtake
George Saunders' trademark dark humor is especially on display in this "deleted scene" from the novella Pastoralia, available for free here.
Retelling the American West in the Museum
In a time filled with “alternative truths,” historian Marsha Weisiger argues for more sophisticated approaches to telling the history of the American West.
The Dead Sea Scrolls: Still Unscrolling
The Dead Sea Scrolls, discovered some 70 years ago after 2000 years in the desert, have had a controversial and conflicted life.
Why Were Americans Obsessed With Ghosts in the 1940s?
In 1940s America, two folklorists undertook the task of collecting and studying the "modern" ghost stories of their time.
The World’s Cutest Mammal on the Brink
The Ili Piku, aka "Magic Rabbit," of China is endangered. But Pika populations are declining globally, not just in China.
Suggested Readings: Wealth, Evil, and Our Impermanent Personalities
Our pick of well-researched stories from around the web that bridge the gap between news and scholarship. From the editors of JSTOR Daily.
Unpacking the Racially-Charged Term “Superpredators”
In the ‘90s, racialized terms like “wilding” and “superpredators” conjured moral panic, which justified the Crime Bill and other similar propositions.
The Secret Ingredient For Better Self-Care
One form of preventative medicine that is important, and which health policy barely considers: social connections between people.
Melville’s Confidence Man Today
Does Herman Melville's 1857 novel The Confidence-Man have anything to tell us about our present day? Philip Roth thinks so.