Futility Closet
Greg Ross
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Top 10 Futility Closet Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Futility Closet episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Futility Closet for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Futility Closet episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
278-Lateral Thinking Puzzles
Futility Closet
12/30/19 • 29 min
Here are six new lateral thinking puzzles -- play along with us as we try to untangle some perplexing situations using yes-or-no questions.
Intro:
Ixonia, Wisconsin, was named at random.
Ben Franklin harnessed the power of long-term interest to make large gifts to Boston and Philadelphia.
The sources for this week's puzzles are below. In two places we've included links to further information -- these contain spoilers, so don't click until you've listened to the episode:
Puzzle #1 is from listener Gabriel Bizcarra.
Puzzle #2 is adapted from Paul Sloane and Des MacHale's 2014 book Remarkable Lateral Thinking Puzzles.
Puzzle #3 is from Greg.
Puzzle #4 is from listener Peter Quinn.
Puzzle #5 is from Greg. Here are two links.
Puzzle #6 is from Sharon. Two links.
You can listen using the player above, download this episode directly, or subscribe on Google Podcasts, on Apple Podcasts, or via the RSS feed at https://futilitycloset.libsyn.com/rss.
Please consider becoming a patron of Futility Closet -- you can choose the amount you want to pledge, and we've set up some rewards to help thank you for your support. You can also make a one-time donation on the Support Us page of the Futility Closet website.
Many thanks to Doug Ross for the music in this episode.
If you have any questions or comments you can reach us at [email protected]. Thanks for listening!
1 Listener
276-An Unlikely Confederate Spy
Futility Closet
12/09/19 • 30 min
As the Civil War fractured Washington D.C., socialite Rose O'Neal Greenhow coordinated a vital spy ring to funnel information to the Confederates. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe one of the war's most unlikely spies, and her determination to aid the South.
We'll also fragment the queen's birthday and puzzle over a paid game of pinball.
Intro:
German officer Ernst Jünger likened the sounds of World War I shelling to "being menaced by a man swinging a heavy hammer."
Bowdoin College compiled a list of odd how-to titles.
NOTE: After this episode was originally released, some listeners objected to our handling of Greenhow's story, saying that we were treating her too sympathetically when she was defending the institution of slavery. They're entirely right about that -- I had focused on her personal story without being sensitive to its larger implications. I'm very sorry for that oversight. We're presenting the story here as it originally ran, and we'll discuss listeners' reactions to it in Episode 279. -- Greg
Sources for our feature:
Ann Blackman, Wild Rose: Rose O'Neale Greenhow, Civil War Spy, 2006.
Ishbel Ross, Rebel Rose: Life of Rose O'Neal Greenhow, Confederate Spy, 1954.
Karen Abbott, Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Women Undercover in the Civil War, 2014.
Rose O'Neal Greenhow, My Imprisonment and the First Year of Abolition Rule at Washington, 1863.
H. Donald Winkler, Stealing Secrets: How a Few Daring Women Deceived Generals, Impacted Battles, and Altered the Course of the Civil War, 2010.
Michael J. Sulick, Spying in America: Espionage from the Revolutionary War to the Dawn of the Cold War, 2014.
Allan Pinkerton, The Spy of the Rebellion, 1886.
John Bakeless, Spies of the Confederacy, 2011.
Ernest B. Furgurson, "The End of Illusions," Smithsonian 42:4 (July/August 2011), 56-64.
Jack Finnegan, "Professional Results for an Amateur," Military History, suppl. "Spies and Secret Missions: A History of American Espionage" (2002), 34-35.
Nancy B. Samuelson, "Employment of Female Spies in the American Civil War," Minerva 7:3 (Dec. 31, 1989), 57.
"Seized Correspondence of Rose O'Neal Greenhow," U.S. National Archives (accessed Nov. 24, 2019).
Rose O'Neal Greenhow Papers, Special Collections Library, Duke University.
"The Wild Rose of Washington," New York Times, Aug. 22, 2011.
"Spy Loved, Died in Line of Duty," [Wilmington, N.C] Morning Star, Dec. 31, 1999, 23.
"Civil War Day by Day," Washington [D.C.] Herald, Sept. 30, 1914, 4.
"Fair Southern Spies," [Savannah, Ga.] Morning News, Sept. 29, 1896, 5.
"Blockade Running," [Winston, N.C.] Western Sentinel, Jan. 14, 1886.
"A Rich New Year's Gift," Yorkville [S.C.] Enquirer, Feb. 6, 1862, 1.
"The Female Traitors in Washington," New York Herald, Jan. 22, 1862, 2.
"Mrs. Greenhow's Indignant Letter to Mr. Seward," New York Herald, Dec. 16, 1861, 4.
Phyllis F. Field, "Greenhow, Rose O'Neal," American National Biography, February 2000.
Listener mail:
"Public Holidays in Western Australia," Government of Western Australia Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (accessed Nov. 27, 2019).
Wikipedia, "Oscar Wilde" (accessed Nov. 27, 2019).
Howard Markel, 1 Listener
271-The Fraudulent Life of Cassie Chadwick
Futility Closet
11/04/19 • 32 min
In 1902, scam artist Cassie Chadwick convinced an Ohio lawyer that she was the illegitimate daughter of steel magnate Andrew Carnegie. She parlayed this reputation into a life of unthinkable extravagance -- until her debts came due. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe Chadwick's efforts to maintain the ruse -- and how she hoped to get away with it.
We'll also encounter a haunted tomb and puzzle over an exonerated merchant.
Intro:
Inventor Otis L. Boucher offered a steel suit for soldiers during World War I.
The tippe top leaps up onto its stem when spun.
Sources for our feature on Cassie Chadwick:
Kerry Segrave, Women Swindlers in America, 1860-1920, 2014.
Alan F. Dutka, Misfortune on Cleveland's Millionaires' Row, 2015.
George C. Kohn, The New Encyclopedia of American Scandal, 2001.
William Henry Theobald, Defrauding the Government: True Tales of Smuggling, From the Note-book of a Confidential Agent of the United States Treasury, 1908.
Karen Abbott, "The High Priestess of Fraudulent Finance," Smithsonian.com, June 27, 2012.
"Chadwick, Cassie L.," Encyclopedia of Cleveland History (accessed Oct. 20, 2019).
Lindsay Kernohan, "Cassie Chadwick: A Very Double Life," Strathroy [Ontario] Age Dispatch, May 17, 2018, A7.
Sadie Stein, "Impostors Among Us," Town and Country, February 2017.
"Top 10 Imposters," Time, May 26, 2009.
"Mrs. Chadwick Measured," Poughkeepsie Journal, Dec. 30, 2004, C.1.
"Femme Fatale," D&B Reports 40:4 (July/August 1992), 47.
"Cassie Chadwick's Jewels," The Bankers Magazine 106:3 (March 1923), 551.
Arthur B. Reeve, "New and Old South Sea Bubbles," World's Work 41:1 (November 1920), 31-35.
C.P. Connolly, "Marvelous Cassie Chadwick," McClure's Magazine 48:1 (November 1916), 9-11, 65-71.
Walter Prichard Eaton, "The Gullible Rich," Munsey's Magazine 46:3 (December 1911), 335-340.
"Cassie Chadwick Fretted Life Away in Ohio Prison," Cañon City [Colo.] Record 30:42 (October 17, 1907), 12.
"Cassie Chadwick Dies in Prison," New York Times, Oct. 11, 1907.
"Mrs. Chadwick Broken Down," Chickasha [Indian Territory] Daily Express, Feb. 19, 1907.
"Mrs. Chadwick's Sentence," New York Times, March 28, 1905.
"Carnegie Sees Note; Laughs at Bad Spelling of Chadwick Trust Agreement," New York Times, March 6, 1905.
"Mr. Carnegie on Hand for Chadwick Trial," New York Times, March 5, 1905.
"Chadwick Indictments," New York Times, Feb. 22, 1905.
"Motion to Quash," St. John Daily Sun
1 Listener
255-Death on the Ice
Futility Closet
07/01/19 • 34 min
In 1914, 132 sealers found themselves stranded on a North Atlantic icefield as a bitter blizzard approached. Thinly dressed and with little food, they faced a harrowing night on the ice. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of the Newfoundland sealing disaster, one of the most dramatic chapters in Canadian maritime history.
We'll also meet another battlefield dog and puzzle over a rejected necklace.
Intro:
England has seen some curious cricket matches.
In 1940 two Australian planes collided in midair and landed as one.
Above: Crewmembers carry bodies aboard the Bellaventure. Sources for our feature on the 1914 sealing disaster:
Cassie Brown, Death on the Ice: The Great Newfoundland Sealing Disaster of 1914, 2015.
Melvin Baker, "The Struggle for Influence and Power: William Coaker, Abram Kean, and the Newfoundland Sealing Industry, 1908–1915," Newfoundland and Labrador Studies 28:1 (2013).
Willeen Keough, "(Re-) Telling Newfoundland Sealing Masculinity: Narrative and Counter-Narrative," Journal of the Canadian Historical Association/Revue de la Société historique du Canada 21:1 (2010), 131-150.
R.M. Kennedy, "National Dreams and Inconsolable Losses: The Burden of Melancholia in Newfoundland Culture," in Despite This Loss: Essays on Culture, Memory, and Identity in Newfoundland and Labrador, 2010, 103-116.
Kjell-G. Kjær, "Where Have All the Barque Rigged Sealers Gone?", Polar Record 44:3 (July 2008), 265-275.
Helen Peters, "Shannon Ryan, The Ice Hunters: A History of Newfoundland Sealing to 1914, Newfoundland History Series 8 [review]," Newfoundland and Labrador Studies 12:1 (1996).
Raymond Blake, "Sean Cadigan, Death on Two Fronts: National Tragedies and the Fate of Democracy in Newfoundland, 1914–34 [review]," Newfoundland and Labrador Studies 30:1 (2015).
Michael Harrington and Barbara Moon, "Tragedy on Ice: One of the Most Dramatic Disasters in Canadian History Occurred on the Newfoundland Ice Floes in 1914," Maclean's 113:48 (Nov. 27, 2000), 76.
"Disaster on the Ice," [Winnipeg] Beaver 89:3 (June/July 2009), 22-23.
Guy Ray, "Seal Wars," Canadian Geographic 120:2 (January/February 2000), 36-48.
Jenny Higgins, "1914 Sealing Disaster," The [Newfoundland and Labrador] Independent, April 1, 2011.
Sue Bailey, "Newfoundland Marks 1914 Sealing Disaster With Father and Son's Frozen Embrace," Guelph Mercury, March 30, 2014.
"Frozen Embrace to Mark 1914 Tragedy at Sea," Prince George [B.C.] Citizen, March 31, 2014, A.13.
"The 1914 Sealing Disaster: 100 Years Later," CBC News, March 30, 2014.
Francine Kopun, "Gale of 1914 Proved Deadly," Toronto Star, April 24, 2007, A8.
Tim B. Rogers, "The Sinking of the Southern Cross," [Winnipeg] Beaver 89:3 (June/July 2009), 16-22.
Alison Auld and Michael MacDonald, "Questions Raised About Coast Guard's Actions in Fatal Sealing Accident," Canadian Press, March 29, 2008.
Joanna Dawson, "Newfoundland's 1914 Sealing Disaster," Canada's History, March 31, 2014.
Sean T. Cadigan, "Tuff, George," Dictionary of Canadian Biography (accessed June 16, 2019).
"The 1914 Sealing Disaster," Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage (accessed June 16, 2019).
Wes Kean and the S.S. Newfoundland.
Listener mail:
Wikipedia, "Rin Tin Tin" (accessed June 19, 2019).
Michael Schaub, "'Rin Tin Tin': The Dog Who Never Died," National Public Radio, Sept. 29, 2011.
Linda Holmes, 1 Listener
103-Legislating Pi
Futility Closet
04/24/16 • 33 min
In 1897, confused physician Edward J. Goodwin submitted a bill to the Indiana General Assembly declaring that he'd squared the circle -- a mathematical feat that was known to be impossible. In today's show we'll examine the Indiana pi bill, its colorful and eccentric sponsor, and its celebrated course through a bewildered legislature and into mathematical history.
We'll also marvel at the confusion wrought by turkeys and puzzle over a perplexing baseball game.
Please consider becoming a patron of Futility Closet -- on our Patreon page you can pledge any amount per episode, and all contributions are greatly appreciated. You can change or cancel your pledge at any time, and we've set up some rewards to help thank you for your support.
You can also make a one-time donation via the Donate button in the sidebar of the Futility Closet website.
Sources for our feature on the Indiana pi bill:
Edward J. Goodwin, "Quadrature of the Circle," American Mathematical Monthly 1:7 (July 1894), 246–248.
Underwood Dudley, "Legislating Pi," Math Horizons 6:3 (February 1999), 10-13.
Will E. Edington, “House Bill No. 246, Indiana State Legislature, 1897,” Proceedings of the Indiana Academy of Science 45, 206-210.
Arthur E. Hallerberg, "House Bill No. 246 Revisited," Proceedings of the Indiana Academy of Science 84 (1974), 374–399.
Arthur E. Hallerberg, "Indiana's Squared Circle," Mathematics Magazine 50:3 (May 1977), 136–140.
David Singmaster, "The Legal Values of Pi," Mathematical Intelligencer 7:2 (1985), 69–72.
Listener mail:
Zach Goldhammer, "Why Americans Call Turkey 'Turkey,'" Atlantic, Nov. 26, 2014.
Dan Jurafsky, "Turkey," The Language of Food, Nov. 23, 2010 (accessed April 21, 2016).
Accidental acrostics from Julian Bravo:
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn:STASIS starts at line 7261 (“Says I to myself” in Chapter XXVI).
Frankenstein:CASSIA starts at line 443 (“Certainly; it would indeed be very impertinent” in Letter 4).MIGHTY starts at line 7089 (“Margaret, what comment can I make” in Chapter 24).
Moby Dick:BAIT starts at line 12904 (“But as you come nearer to this great head” in Chapter 75). (Note that this includes a footnote.)
The raw output of Julian's program is here; he warns that it may contain some false positives.
At the paragraph level (that is, the initial letters of successive paragraphs), Daniel Dunn found these acrostics (numbers refer to paragraphs):
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare: SEMEMES (1110)
Emma: INHIBIT (2337)
King James Bible: TAIWAN (12186)
Huckleberry Finn: STASIS (1477)
Critique of Pure Reason: SWIFTS (863)
Anna Karenina: TWIST (3355)
At the word level (the initial letters of successive words), Daniel found these (numbers refer to the position in a book's overall word count -- I've included links to the two I mentioned on the show):
Les Miserables: DASHPOTS (454934)
Critique of Pure Reason: TRADITOR (103485)
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare: ISATINES (373818)
Through the Looking Glass: ASTASIAS (3736)
War and Peace: PIRANHAS (507464) (Book Fifteen, Chapter 1, paragraph 19: "'... put it right.' And now he again seemed ...")
King James Bible: MOHAMAD (747496) (Galatians 6:11b-12a, "... mine own hand. As many as desire ...")
The Great Gatsby: ISLAMIC (5712)
Huckleberry Finn: ALFALFA (62782)
Little Women: CATFISH (20624)
From Vadas Gintautas: Here is the complete list of accidental acrostics of English words of 8 letters or more, found by taking the first letter in successive paragraphs:
TABITHAS in George Sand: Some Aspects of Her Life and Writings by René Doumic
BASSISTS in The Pilot and his Wife by Jonas Lie
ATA...
098-The St. Albans Raid
Futility Closet
03/21/16 • 32 min
Seemingly safe in northern New England, the residents of St. Albans, Vermont, were astonished in October 1864 when a group of Confederate soldiers appeared in their midst, terrorizing residents, robbing banks, and stealing horses. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of the St. Albans raid, the northernmost land action of the Civil War.
We'll also learn about Charles Darwin's misadventures at the equator and puzzle over a groundskeeper's strange method of tending grass.
Please consider becoming a patron of Futility Closet -- on our Patreon page you can pledge any amount per episode, and all contributions are greatly appreciated. You can change or cancel your pledge at any time, and we've set up some rewards to help thank you for your support.
You can also make a one-time donation via the Donate button in the sidebar of the Futility Closet website.
Sources for our feature on the St. Albans raid:
Dennis K. Wilson, Justice Under Pressure: The Saint Albans Raid and Its Aftermath, 1992.
Robin W. Winks, The Civil War Years: Canada and the United States, 1998.
Stuart Lutz, "Terror in St. Albans," Civil War Times Illustrated 40:3 (June 2001).
Rick Beard, "When the Rebels Invaded Vermont," New York Times, Oct. 17, 2014.
"A Reminiscence of the St. Albans Raid," Montreal Daily Witness, April 5, 1878.
"Confederate Raid on St. Albans, Vt.," Pittsburgh Gazette Times, Oct 21, 1914.
"Leader of Raid on St. Albans, Vermont, Centre of Controversy at Champlain Celebration," Boston Evening Transcript, May 9, 1912.
Edgar Andrew Collard, "Of Many Things ...," Montreal Gazette, March 28, 1969.
"English View of the St. Albans Raid Case," Halifax Morning Chronicle, Jan. 24, 1865.
Listener mail:
Wikipedia, "Line-Crossing Ceremony" (accessed March 18, 2016).
R.D. Keynes, ed., Charles Darwin's Beagle Diary, 2001.
Jacqueline Klimas, "Navy Leaders Try to Stamp Out Hazing, But Many Sailors Question the Rules," Military Times, July 2, 2013.
Wikipedia, "Plimsoll Shoe" (accessed March 18, 2016).
This week's lateral thinking puzzle is from Paul Sloane and Des MacHale's 1998 book Ingenious Lateral Thinking Puzzles.
You can listen using the player above, download this episode directly, or subscribe on iTunes or via the RSS feed at http://feedpress.me/futilitycloset.
Many thanks to Doug Ross for the music in this episode.
If you have any questions or comments you can reach us at [email protected]. Thanks for listening!
070-Sunk by a Whale
Futility Closet
08/24/15 • 33 min
In 1820, the Nantucket whaleship Essex was attacked and sunk by an 85-foot sperm whale in the South Pacific, a thousand miles from land. In this episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of the attack, which left 20 men to undertake an impossible journey to South America in three small whaleboats.
We'll also learn about an Australian athlete who shipped himself across the world in a box in 1964 and puzzle over an international traveler's impressive feat of navigation.
Sources for our feature on the whaleship Essex:
Owen Chase, Narrative of the Most Extraordinary and Distressing Shipwreck of the Whaleship Essex, 1821.
Thomas Farel Heffernan, Stove by a Whale: Owen Chase and the Essex, 1981.
Thomas Nickerson et al., The Loss of the Ship Essex, Sunk by a Whale, 2000.
Nathaniel Philbrick, In the Heart of the Sea, 2000.
Herman Melville, Moby-Dick, 1851.
Adam Summers, "Fat Heads Sink Ships," Natural History 111:7 (September 2002): 40-41.
David R. Carrier, Stephen M. Deban, and Jason Otterstrom, "The Face That Sank the Essex: Potential Function of the Spermaceti Organ in Aggression," Journal of Experimental Biology 205:12 (June 15, 2002), 1755-1763.
Henry F. Pommer, "Herman Melville and the Wake of The Essex," American Literature 20:3 (November 1948): 290-304.
Fourteen-year-old cabin boy Thomas Nickerson was at the helm at the time of the attack; he made this sketch later in life. "I heard a loud cry from several voices at once, that the whale was coming foul of the ship. Scarcely had the sound of their voices reached my ears when it was followed by a tremendous crash. The whale had struck the ship with his head directly under the larboard fore chains at the waters edge with such force as to shock every man upon his feet."
Thanks to listener David Balmain (and David McRaney's "You Are Not So Smart" podcast) for the tip about penurious javelinist Reg Spiers' 1964 postal odyssey to Australia. Further sources for that segment:
Jason Caffrey, "The Man Who Posted Himself to Australia," BBC World Service, March 6, 2015.
Reg Spiers, "I Posted Myself in a Box From England to Australia," Financial Times, June 19, 2015.
"Going East in a Coffin," Chicago Herald, Oct. 25, 1887.
This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Jason Wood, who sent this corroborating link (warning -- this spoils the puzzle).
You can listen using the player above, download this episode directly, or subscribe on iTunes or via the RSS feed at http://feedpress.me/futilitycloset.
Use this link to get video and audio lectures at up to 80 percent off the original price from The Great Courses.
Please consider becoming a patron of Futility Closet -- on our Patreon page you can pledge any amount per episode, and all contributions are greatly appreciated. You can change or cancel your pledge at any time, and we've set up some rewards to help thank you for your support.
You can also make a one-time donation via the Donate button in the sidebar of the Futility Closet website.
Many thanks to Doug Ross for the music in this episode.
If you have any questions or comments you can reach us at [email protected]. Thanks for listening!
157-The Brutal History of Batavia's Graveyard
Futility Closet
06/12/17 • 33 min
In 1629, a Dutch trading vessel struck a reef off the coast of Australia, marooning 180 people on a tiny island. As they struggled to stay alive, their leader descended into barbarity, gathering a band of cutthroats and killing scores of terrified castaways. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll document the brutal history of Batavia's graveyard, the site of Australia's most infamous shipwreck.
We'll also lose money in India and puzzle over some invisible Frenchmen.
Intro:
In 1946, an Allied dentist inscribed "Remember Pearl Harbor" on Hideki Tojo's dentures.
Sigourney Weaver named herself after a character in The Great Gatsby.
Sources for our feature on the Batavia mutiny:
Mike Dash, Batavia's Graveyard, 2002.
Mike Sturma, "Mutiny and Narrative: Francisco Pelsaert's Journals and the Wreck of the Batavia," The Great Circle 24:1 (2002), 14-24.
"We Are Still on the Batavia," Queen's Quarterly 12:4 (Winter 2005), 489.
Bruce Bennett, "Politics and Spying: Representations of Pre- and Early Australia," Antipodes 22:1 (June 2008), 17-22.
"Batavia," Ships of the World: An Historical Encyclopedia, 1997, 52-53.
D. Franklin, "Human Skeletal Remains From a Multiple Burial Associated With the Mutiny of the VOC Retourschip Batavia, 1629," International Journal of Osteoarchaeology 22:6 (Jan. 19, 2011), 740-748.
Michael Titlestad, "'Changed as to a Tiger': Considering the Wreck of the Batavia," Antipodes 27:2 (December 2013), 149-156.
Mark Staniforth, "Murder and Mayhem," dig 8:4 (April 2006), 20-21.
Christopher Bray, "The Wreck of the Batavia [review]," Financial Times, Aug 17, 2007.
"Batavia's History," Western Australian Museum (accessed May 28, 2017).
Sarah Taillier, "Unearthed Grave Sheds Light on Batavia Shipwreck Mass Murder," Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Feb. 3, 2015.
"Australia Dig Unearths Batavia Mutiny Skeleton," BBC News, Feb. 4, 2015.
Libby-Jane Charleston, "The Batavia Mutiny and Massacre of 1629 Is Still Revealing Secrets," Huffington Post, July 2, 2016.
Karl Quinn, "Mutiny, Shipwreck, Murder: The Incredible True Story Russell Crowe Wants to Film," Sydney Morning Herald, March 30, 2016.
Interest in the Batavia was reawakened in the 1960s, when archaeologists began to examine the site of the mutiny. This victim, excavated in 1963, had received a cutting wound to the head; the right shoulder blade was broken, and the right foot was missing.
Listener mail:
Andrew Levy, "Doctors Solve Mystery of a Man Who 'Died From Laughter' While Watching The Goodies After His Granddaughter Nearly Dies From Same Rare Heart Condition," Daily Mail, June 20, 2012.
Wikipedia, "2016 Indian Banknote Demonetisation" (accessed June 9, 2017).
"The Dire Consequences of India's Demonetisation Initiative," Economist, Dec. 3, 2016.
Micheline Maynard, "The 'Zion Curtain' Is About to Fall in Utah, and Restaurants Can't Wait," Forbes, March 29, 2017.
Donald Hoffman, "Do We See Reality As It Is?" TED, March 2015.
This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Aden Lonergan. Here's a corroborating link (warning -- this spoils the puzzle).
You can listen using the player above,
360-Haggard's Dream
Futility Closet
10/11/21 • 30 min
In 1904, adventure novelist H. Rider Haggard awoke from a dream with the conviction that his daughter's dog was dying. He dismissed the impression as a nightmare, but the events that followed seemed to give it a grim significance. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe Haggard's strange experience, which briefly made headlines around the world.
We'll also consider Alexa's expectations and puzzle over a college's name change.
Intro:
Marshall Bean got himself drafted by reversing his name.
An air traveler may jump into tomorrow without passing midnight.
"Bob, although he belonged to my daughter, who bought him three years ago, was a great friend of mine, but I cannot say that my soul was bound up in him," Haggard wrote. "He was a very intelligent animal, and generally accompanied me in my walks about the farm, and almost invariably came to say good morning to me."
Sources for our feature on Haggard's nightmare and its sequel:
H. Rider Haggard, The Days of My Life, 1923.
Mrs. Henry Sidgwick, "Phantasms of the Living," Proceedings of the Society for Psychical Research 86:33 (October 1922), 23-429.
H. Rider Haggard, Delphi Complete Works of H. Rider Haggard, 2013.
Peter Berresford Ellis, H. Rider Haggard: A Voice From the Infinite, 1978.
C.L. Graves and E.V. Lucas, "Telepathy Day by Day," Bill Peschel, et al., The Early Punch Parodies of Sherlock Holmes, 2014.
Harold Orel, "Hardy, Kipling, and Haggard," English Literature in Transition, 1880-1920 25:4 (1982), 232-248.
"Spiritualism Among Animals" Public Opinion 39:18 (Oct. 28, 1905), 566.
"Character Sketch: Commissioner H. Rider Haggard," Review of Reviews 32:187 (July 1905), 20-27.
"Rider Haggard on Telepathy," Muswellbrook [N.S.W.] Chronicle, Oct. 8, 1904.
"Case," Journal of the Society for Psychical Research 11:212 (October 1904), 278-290.
"Mr. Rider Haggard's Dream," [Rockhampton, Qld.] Morning Bulletin, Sept. 24, 1904.
"Has a Dog a Soul?" [Adelaide] Evening Journal, Sept. 21, 1904.
"Spirit of the Dog," The World's News [Sydney], Sept. 10, 1904.
"Thought-Telepathy: H. Rider Haggard's Dog," [Sydney] Daily Telegraph, Aug. 31, 1904.
"Dog's Spirit Talks," The World's News [Sydney], Aug. 27, 1904.
"Telepathy (?) Between a Human Being and a Dog," [Sydney] Daily Telegraph, Aug. 25, 1904.
"Mr. Rider Haggard's Ghost Dog," Kansas City Star, Aug. 22, 1904.
"The Nightmare of a Novelist," Fresno Morning Republican, Aug. 21, 1904.
"Psychological Mystery," Hawaiian Star, Aug. 20, 1904.
H.S., "Superstition and Psychology," Medical Press and Circular 129:7 (Aug. 17, 1904), 183-184.
"Canine Telepathy," [Montreal] Gazette, Aug. 10, 1904.
"Telepathy (?) Between a Human Being and a Dog," Times, Aug. 9, 1904.
"Haggard and His Dog," Washington Post, Aug. 7, 1904.
"Mr. Haggard's Strange Dream," New York Times, July 31, 1904.
"Country Notes," Country Life 16:395 (July 30, 1904), 147-149.
"Mr. Rider Haggard's Dream," Light 24:1229 (July 30, 1904), 364.
"Telepathy Between Human Beings and Dogs," English Mechanic and World of Science 79:2053 (July 29, 1904), 567.
John Senior, Spirituality in the Fiction of Henry Rider Haggard, dissertation, Rhodes University, 2003.
Wallace Bursey, Rider Haggard: A Study in Popular Fiction, dissertation, Memorial University of Newfoundland, 1972.
Morton N. Cohen, "Haggard, Sir (Henry) Rider," Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Sept. 23, 2004.
Li...
107-Arthur Nash and the Golden Rule
Futility Closet
05/29/16 • 29 min
In 1919, Ohio businessman Arthur Nash decided to run his clothing factory according to the Golden Rule and treat his workers the way he'd want to be treated himself. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll visit Nash's “Golden Rule Factory” and learn the results of his innovative social experiment.
We'll also marvel at metabolism and puzzle over the secrets of Chicago pickpockets.
Sources for our feature on Arthur Nash:
Arthur Nash, The Golden Rule in Business, 1923.
(Undercover journalist Ruth White Colton's September 1922 article for Success Magazine is quoted in full in this book.)
Jeffrey Wattles, The Golden Rule, 1996.
Arthur Nash, "A Bible Text That Worked a Business Miracle," American Magazine 92:4 (October 1921), 37.
"Golden Rule Plan at Clothing Mill Makes Profits for Owners," Deseret News, Dec. 16, 1920.
"Golden Rule Nash Offers 7-Hour Day," Schenectady Gazette, July 4, 1923.
"Arthur Nash, Who Shared With Employees, Is Dead," Associated Press, Oct. 31, 1927.
The poem "Miss T." appears in Walter de la Mare's 1913 collection Peacock Pie:
It’s a very odd thing — As odd as can be — That whatever Miss T. eats Turns into Miss T.; Porridge and apples, Mince, muffins and mutton, Jam, junket, jumbles — Not a rap, not a button It matters; the moment They're out of her plate, Though shared by Miss Butcher And sour Mr. Bate; Tiny and cheerful, And neat as can be, Whatever Miss T. eats Turns into Miss T.
This week's lateral thinking puzzle is taken from Henry O. Wills' memorably titled 1890 autobiography Twice Born: Or, The Two Lives of Henry O. Wills, Evangelist (Being a Narrative of Mr. Wills's Remarkable Experiences as a Wharf-Rat, a Sneak-Thief, a Convict, a Soldier, a Bounty-Jumper, a Fakir, a Fireman, a Ward-Heeler, and a Plug-Ugly. Also, a History of His Most Wondrous Conversion to God, and of His Famous Achievements as an Evangelist).
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Many thanks to Doug Ross for the music in this episode.
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