Stephanie Bastek

Stephanie Bastek is the senior editor of the Scholar and the producer/host of the Smarty Pants podcast.

Hue and Cry

Kory Stamper on the weird ways we define color

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday April 3, 2026

Shotgun Ornithology

James H. McCommons on the first American efforts to save the birds

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday March 20, 2026

Eulogy for a Yenta

Jordy Rosenberg on his new novel, Night Night Fawn

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday March 6, 2026

The Carnifex of Cachtice

Shelley Puhak on the murderous legend of Elizabeth Bathory

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday February 20, 2026

What We Talk About When We Talk About Prehistory

Stefanos Geroulanos on how the deep past is used for political ends

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday February 6, 2026

The Snow Maiden

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday January 2, 2026

The Midwife of Black Nationalism

Ashley D. Farmer on the forgotten life of “Queen Mother” Audley Moore

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday December 12, 2025

Ground Truths

Edward McPherson zooms in on the aerial view

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday November 21, 2025

The Dangerous Dead

John Blair on the enduring epidemics of the undead

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday October 31, 2025

For the Love of Foraging

Gabrielle Cerberville on living and eating with the seasons

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday October 17, 2025

Paradise Reclaimed

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday July 26, 2024

Femmes Fantastiques

By Stephanie Bastek | Thursday July 25, 2024

Bathing Badasses

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday July 12, 2024

Turning the World to Powder

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday June 28, 2024

Indiana Absurd

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday May 17, 2024

Changing the Lens

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday May 10, 2024

Let Us Compare Mythologies

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday April 26, 2024

The Spirit of ’68

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday April 12, 2024

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