333-Stranded in the Kimberley

The first woman to circumnavigate the world did so dressed as a man. In 1766, 26-year-old Jeanne Baret joined a French expedition hoping to conceal her identity for three years. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of her historic journey around the globe. We'll also hear Mark Twain's shark story and puzzle over a foiled con artist. Intro: In 1856 Samuel Hoshour wrote an imaginary correspondence full of polysyllabic words. In 1974 Dennis Upper published a study of his intractable writer's block. Sources for our feature on Jeanne Baret: Glynis Ridley, The Discovery of Jeanne Baret, 2010. Sandra Knapp, "History: The Plantswoman Who Dressed as a Boy," Nature 470 (Feb. 3, 2011), 36–37. Eric J. Tepe, Glynis Ridley, and Lynn Bohs, "A New Species of Solanum Named for Jeanne Baret, an Overlooked Contributor to the History of Botany," PhytoKeys 8 (2012), 37. H. Walter Lack, "The Discovery, Naming and Typification of Bougainvillea spectabilis (Nyctaginaceae)," Willdenowia 42:1 (2012), 117-127. Genevieve K. Walden and Robert Patterson, "Nomenclature of Subdivisions Within Phacelia (Boraginaceae: Hydrophylloideae)," Madroño 59:4 (2012), 211-223. Beth N. Orcutt and Ivona Cetinic, "Women in Oceanography: Continuing Challenges," Oceanography 27:4 (2014), 5-13. Londa Schiebinger, "Exotic Abortifacients and Lost Knowledge," Lancet 371:9614 (2008), 718-719. Frank N. Egerton, "History of Ecological Sciences, Part 61C: Marine Biogeography, 1690s–1940s," Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America 100:1 (January 2019), 1-55. Vivienne Baillie Gerritsen, "Moody Wallpaper," Protein Spotlight 33 (2003). Richard H. Grove, "Origins of Western Environmentalism," Scientific American 267:1 (July 1992), 42-47. Allison Bohac and Susan Milius, "Science Notebook," Science News 181:5 (March 10, 2012), 4. Londa Schiebinger, "Jeanne Baret: The First Woman to Circumnavigate the Globe," Endeavour 27:1 (2003), 22-25. Raquel González Rivas, "Gulf 'Alter-Latinas': Cross-Dressing Women Travel Beyond the Gulfs of Transnationality and Transexuality," Southern Literary Journal 46:2 (Spring 2014), 128-139. Andy Martin, "The Enlightenment in Paradise: Bougainville, Tahiti, and the Duty of Desire," Eighteenth-Century Studies 41:2 (Winter 2008), 203-216. Françoise Lionnet, "Shipwrecks, Slavery, and the Challenge of Global Comparison: From Fiction to Archive in the Colonial Indian Ocean," Comparative Literature 64:4 (2012), 446-461. Marie-Hélène Ghabut, "Female as Other: The Subversion of the Canon Through Female Figures in Diderot's Work," Diderot Studies 27 (1998), 57-66. Londa Schiebinger, "Feminist History of Colonial Science," Hypatia 19:1 (Winter 2004), 233-254. Kai Mikkonen, "Narrative Interruptions and the Civilized Woman: The Figures of Veiling and Unveiling in Diderot's Supplément au Voyage de Bougainville," Diderot Studies 27 (1998), 129-147. Londa Schiebinger, "Agnotology and Exotic Abortifacients: The Cultural Production of Ignorance in the Eighteenth-Century Atlantic World," Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 149:3 (2005), 316-343. "5 Underrated Pioneers in Circumnavigation," New York Times, Oct. 14, 2016. Brian Maffly, "Botanical Explorer Jeanne Baret Finally Gets Her Due," Salt Lake Tribune, Jan. 18, 2012. "Incredible Voyage," Wall Street Journal, Jan. 24, 2011. "A Female Explorer Discovered on the High Seas," All Things Considered, National Public Radio, Dec. 26, 2010. "Briefing: Jeanne Baret," [Glasgow] Herald, March 8, 2005, 13. Christine Hamelin, "An Ace Adventurer, a Brilliant Botanist," Kingston Whig, March 5, 2005, 2. Elizabeth Kiernan, "The Amazing Feat of Jeanne Baret," New York Botanical Garden, March 12, 2014. Listener mail: "This Is Your Story," The Ernie Kovacs Show, 1957. David Margolick, "Sid Caesar's Finest Sketch," New Yorker, Feb. 14, 2014. Wikipedia, "Sid Caesar" (accessed March 15, 2019). Wikipedia, "Following the Equator" (accessed April 13, 2019). Wikipedia, "Cecil Rhodes" (accessed April 13, 2019). "Following the Equator, 1895-1896," UC Berkeley Library (accessed April 13, 2019). Mark Twain, Following the Equator, 1897. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener David White. 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 podcast@futilitycloset.com. Thanks for listening!

22 Apr 201932min

In February 1943, hundreds of German women joined in a spontaneous protest in central Berlin. They were objecting to the roundup of some of the city's last Jews -- their husbands. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe the Rosenstrasse protest, a remarkable example of civil disobedience. We'll also ponder whether a computer can make art and puzzle over some unusual phone calls. Intro: Between 1946 and 1953, British wordplay maven Leigh Mercer published 100 immortal palindromes in Notes & Queries. In 1933 English sculptor John Skeaping recorded his opinions of his contemporaries inside a horse of mahogany. Sources for our feature on the Rosenstrasse demonstration: Nathan Stoltzfus, Resistance of the Heart: Intermarriage and the Rosenstrasse Protest in Nazi Germany, 2001. Wolf Gruner and Ursula Marcum, "The Factory Action and the Events at the Rosenstrasse in Berlin: Facts and Fictions About 27 February 1943: Sixty Years Later," Central European History 36:2 (2003), 179-208. Nathan Stoltzfus, "Historical Evidence and Plausible History: Interpreting the Berlin Gestapo's Attempted 'Final Roundup' of Jews (Also Known as the 'Factory Action')," Central European History 38:3 (2005), 450-459. Wolf Gruner, "A 'Historikerstreit?' A Reply to Nathan Stoltzfus' Response," Central European History 38:3 (2005), 460-464. Michael Geyer, "Resistance of the Heart: Intermarriage and the Rosenstrasse Protest in Nazi Germany (review)," Journal of Church and State 40:1 (Winter 1998), 189-190. "The Rosenstrasse Incident Is Recounted," Canadian Jewish News, Feb. 27, 1997, 11. Jeff McMillan, "A Moment of Courage in Hitler's Berlin," Chronicle of Higher Education 43:8 (Oct. 18, 1996), A9. Evan B. Bukey, "Widerstand in der Rosenstrasse: Die Fabrik-Aktion und die Verfolgung der 'Mischehen' 1943 (review)," Holocaust and Genocide Studies 21:2 (Fall 2007). Ron Madson, "The Restoration of Conscientious Objection," Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 51:4 (Winter 2018), 77-103, 251. Nathan Stoltzfus, "Dissent in Nazi Germany," Atlantic 270:3 (September 1992), 86-94. Nathan Stoltzfus and Mordechai Paldiel, "Rosenstrasse at 75," Jerusalem Post, Feb. 24, 2018. Julia M. Klein, "The Time Hitler Blinked," Forward, Aug. 5, 2016, 23-24. "Lecture: Nonviolent Resistance to Nazis," University Wire, Nov. 3, 2013. Dori Laub, "In Search of the Rescuer in the Holocaust," Historical Reflections 39:2 (Summer 2013), 40-56. Susan Neiman, "To Resist Hitler and Survive," New York Times, Feb. 3, 2008. Barbara Kellerman, "Those Who Stood Against Hitler," New York Times, Feb. 3, 2008. J. Kelly Nestruck, "The Good Germans," National Post, Sept. 24, 2004, PM9. Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim, "'Give Us Our Husbands Back!'" Jerusalem Post, April 25, 2003, 10. "She Won't Use 'Holocaust' or 'Kristallnacht,'" Oakland Tribune, April 13, 2003, 1. Norm Guthartz, "Triumph Over Hatred," Jerusalem Post, Sept. 18, 1997, 9. Nathan Stoltzfus, "Unsung Heroes Defied the Nazis: Too Often Resistance Is Seen as a Choice of Martyrdom vs. Passivity," Philadelphia Inquirer, March 18, 1997, A.13. Anne Karpf, "A Remarkable Demonstration of Love," Times, Dec. 12, 1996, 36. David Molner, "History Lesson: In 1943 Berlin, a Group of Wives Won the Release of Their Jewish Husbands," Chicago Tribune, Nov. 28, 1993, 11. "27 February 1943: The Rosenstrasse Protest," Holocaust Memorial Day Trust (accessed March 31, 2019). "The Rosenstrasse Demonstration, 1943," United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (accessed March 31, 2019). Max Rennebohm, "German Wives Win the Release of Their Jewish Husbands (Rosenstrasse Protest), 1943," Global Nonviolent Action Database, May 18, 2011. Listener mail: Svea Eckert, "Inside the Fake Science Factory," DEF CON 26, Sept. 17, 2018. (The description of the WASET sting starts at about 10:50.) SCIgen - An Automatic CS Paper Generator. Adam Conner-Simons, "How Three MIT Students Fooled the World of Scientific Journals," MIT News, April 14, 2015. "Springer and Université Joseph Fourier Release SciDetect to Discover Fake Scientific Papers," Springer, March 23, 2015. Mike Rugnetta, "This Episode Was Written by an AI," PBS Idea Channel, June 29, 2016. Mike Rugnetta, "Can an Artificial Intelligence Create Art?", PBS Idea Channel, June 30, 2016. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Jennifer Sinnott. 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 podcast@futilitycloset.com. Thanks for listening!

15 Apr 201934min

In 1871, while the Great Chicago Fire was riveting the nation's attention, a blaze six times as deadly was ravaging a desperate town in northeastern Wisconsin. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of the Peshtigo fire, the deadliest wildfire in American history. We'll also watch an automated western and puzzle over some discounted food. Intro: Harry Mathews composed a poem in which every syllable is doubled. In 1766, French draughtsman Charles-Louis Clérisseau painted a Roman room to resemble a ruin. Sources for our feature on the Peshtigo fire: Denise Gess and William Lutz, Firestorm at Peshtigo, 2002. Peter Pernin, "The Great Peshtigo Fire: An Eyewitness Account," Wisconsin Magazine of History 54:4 (Summer 1971), 246-272. United States Department of Agriculture, Report on Forestry, Volume 3, 1882. William F. Steuber Jr., "The Problem at Peshtigo," Wisconsin Magazine of History 42:1 (Autumn 1958), 13-15. Hutch Brown, "'The Air Was Fire': Fire Behavior at Peshtigo in 1871," Fire Management Today 64:4 (Fall 2004), 20-30. Sara E. Caton, et al., "Review of Pathways for Building Fire Spread in the Wildland Urban Interface Part I: Exposure Conditions," Fire Technology 53:2 (2017), 429-473. Jack Cohen, "The Wildland-Urban Interface Fire Problem," Forest History Today 11 (2008), 20-26. Lisa A. Schulte and David J. Mladenoff, "Severe Wind and Fire Regimes in Northern Forests: Historical Variability at the Regional Scale," Ecology 86:2 (2005), 431-445. Robert N. Meroney, "Fire Whirls and Building Aerodynamics," Proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Wind Engineering, 2003. Stewart Holbrook, "The Peshtigo Fire," American Scholar 13:2 (Spring 1944), 201-209. Michael E. Telzrow, "The Peshtigo Fire," New American 22:5 (March 6, 2006), 33-38. John Steele Gordon, "Forgotten Fury," American Heritage 54:2 (April/May 2003), 35. Tom Skilling, "Was Peshtigo Fire Worse Than the Great Chicago Fire?" Chicago Tribune, Oct. 7, 2018. Chelsey Lewis, "Remembering America's Deadliest Forest Fire," Wausau [Wis.] Daily Herald, July 22, 2018, C.3. Michael S. Rosenwald, "'The Night America Burned': The Deadliest — and Most Overlooked — Fire in U.S. History," Washington Post, Dec. 6, 2017. Warren Gerds, "Tin Can May Date Back to Peshtigo Fire Relief," Green Bay (Wis.) Press Gazette, Dec. 10, 2011, C.1. Jay Jones, "The 140-Year-Old Mystery of the 'Forgotten Fire,'" Los Angeles Times, Oct. 9, 2011, L.3. Everett Rosenfeld, "Top 10 Devastating Wildfires," Time, June 8, 2011. Cynthia Crossen, "Deja Vu: In 1871, Chicago Blaze Made News, But More Died in Wisconsin Fire," Wall Street Journal, Aug. 4, 2004, A.5. Warren Gerds, "Hallowed Reminders," Green Bay [Wis.] Press Gazette, July 24, 2004, E.3. Greg Tasker, "Worst Fire Largely Unknown," Baltimore Sun, Oct. 10, 2003. Dennis McCann, "History Seared Into Peshtigo's Memory," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, April 20, 2003, 1H. James Zabawski, "Peshtigo Fire Tale Stirs Sympathy," Madison [Wis.] Capital Times, Aug. 9, 2002, 13A. Susan Lampert Smith, "Peshtigo Fire Images Burn Hot in Memory," Wisconsin State Journal, Sept. 10, 2000, 1C. Dennis McCann, "'Menacing Crimson' Blaze Raged Through Peshtigo," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Oct. 8, 1998, 2. Jerry Resler, "Where the World Ended Peshtigo Marks 125th Anniversary of Fire That Killed 1,200," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Sept. 15, 1996, 1. Bill Stokes, "Life and Death in the Forest 122 Years Later, Peshtigo Still Bears the Scar," Chicago Tribune, Oct. 3, 1993, 1. Casey Bukro, "Fire Alarm Recalls Night of Horror 121 Years Ago," Chicago Tribune, June 23, 1992, 7. "Continent's Worst Blaze Always Overshadowed," Washington Post, Oct. 9, 1988, A12. Jay Clarke, "On the Night Chicago Burned, a Storm of Fire Consumed Peshtigo, Wis.," Chicago Tribune, Nov. 17, 1985, 25. "The Great Peshtigo Fire," Newsweek, Oct. 15, 1979, 32. Peter J. Burns, "The Peshtigo Fire," Saturday Evening Post 243:3 (Winter 1971), 88-113. "Town to Correct Error in History," St. Petersburg [Fla.] Times, Jan. 9, 1954. "The Wisconsin Fires," New York Times, Nov. 13, 1871. "Wisconsin Fires," The Carroll [City, Iowa] Herald, Oct. 25, 1871. "A Cyclone of Fire," New-Orleans Commercial Bulletin, Oct. 18, 1871. "The Peshtigo Fire," National Weather Service. Peshtigo Fire Museum. Listener mail: MIT Centennial Film, "The Thinking Machine," 1960. John E. Pfeiffer, The Thinking Machine, 1962. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Michael Grigoriev, who sent this corroborating link (warning -- this spoils the puzzle). 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 podcast@futilitycloset.com. Thanks for listening!

8 Apr 201931min

In 1869, two well diggers in Cardiff, N.Y., unearthed an enormous figure made of stone. More than 600,000 people flocked to see the mysterious giant, but even as its fame grew, its real origins were coming to light. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of the Cardiff giant, one of the greatest hoaxes of the 19th century. We'll also ponder the effects of pink and puzzle over a potentially painful treatment. Intro: Edgar Rice Burroughs invented a variant of chess for a book set on Mars. Due to an unfortunate edict, a ladder in Jerusalem has remained unmoved for 200 years. Sources for our feature on the Cardiff giant: Scott Tribble, A Colossal Hoax, 2008. Nate Hendley, The Big Con, 2016. Magnus Magnusson, Fakers, Forgers and Phoneys, 2007. Brian Innes, Fakes & Forgeries, 2005. Mark Rose, "When Giants Roamed the Earth," Archaeology 58:6 (2005), 30-35. Barbara Franco, "The Cardiff Giant: A Hundred Year Old Hoax," New York History 50:4 (October 1969), 420-440. James Taylor Dunn, "The Cardiff Giant Hoax," New York History 29:3 (July 1948), 367-377. Michael Pettit, "'The Joy in Believing': The Cardiff Giant, Commercial Deceptions, and Styles of Observation in Gilded Age America," Isis 97:4 (December 2006), 659-677. Julian D. Corrington, "Nature Fakes," Bios 27:3 (October 1956), 159-169. Kat Eschner, "The Cardiff Giant Was Just a Big Hoax," Smithsonian.com, Oct. 16, 2017. Jessie Szalay, "Cardiff Giant: 'America's Biggest Hoax,'" Live Science, Aug. 16, 2016. Ruth Mosalski, "Cardiff Giant Turned Out to Be Really Big US Hoax," South Wales Echo, Jan. 21, 2017, 24. Gerald Smith and George Basler, "Hull Earned a Spot in 'Con Man's Hall of Fame,'" [Binghamton, N.Y.] Press & Sun-Bulletin, Oct. 6, 2014, 4. Ed Kemmick, "'Petrified' Man Was Big Attraction in Turn-of-the-Last-Century Montana," Billings Gazette, March 13, 2009. Bill White, "Cardiff Giant, Piltdown Man -- And Now Heydt Man," [Allentown, Pa.] Morning Call, March 10, 2001, B3. "It Was a Giant Joke, Now Largely Forgotten," Associated Press, Nov. 14, 1999, L3. Roger Munns, "19th Century Hoax Now Just an Interesting Relic," Los Angeles Times, March 16, 1997, 11. Harvey Berman, "Prehistoric Giant Was a Hoax," [Montreal] Gazette, May 18, 1991, J8. Bob Hughes, "The Cardiff Giant: How a Great Hoax Came to Life in a North Side Barn," Chicago Tribune, June 2, 1985, 10. "Cardiff Giant in Suit," New York Times, April 18, 1949. Louis C. Jones and James Taylor Dunn, "Cardiff Giant Again," New York Times, May 23, 1948. "'Cardiff Giant' Sale Barred by Fort Dodge," Associated Press, Aug. 4, 1934. "Syracuse Plea Fails to Get Cardiff Giant," Associated Press, Dec. 6, 1930. Ruth A. Gallaher, "The Cardiff Giant," The Palimpsest 2:9 (1921), 269-281. "Gigantic Hoax Fools Scientists," El Paso [Texas] Herald, June 8, 1912, 10. "The Cardiff Giant: A Hoax That Took," Coeur d'Alene [Idaho] Evening Press, April 15, 1910, 4. Frank Lewis Ford, "The Last of a Famous Hoax," The Scrap Book 3:2 (April 1907), 221-223. "Cardiff Giant Fake Recalled by Death of the One of the Sculptors," Butte [Mont.] Inter Mountain, Nov. 8, 1902, 14. "Cardiff Giant Fake," [Marshalltown, Iowa] Evening Times-Republican, Nov. 6, 1902, 2. Andrew D. White, "The Cardiff Giant," The Century Illustrated Monthly Magazine, 64:6 (October 1902), 948-955. "The History of the Cardiff Giant," Scranton [Pa.] Tribune, June 24, 1899, 11. "Cardiff Giant Fraud," Salt Lake [Utah] Herald, April 23, 1899. "He Made the Giant," Reading [Pa.] Eagle, Feb. 10, 1889, 2. "The Cardiff Giant," in The History of Sauk County, Wisconsin, Western Historical Company, 1880, 547-552. "More About the Colorado Cardiff Giant," New York Times, Sept. 30, 1877. "The Cardiff Giant's Carpet-Bag," New York Times, Dec. 10, 1876. W.A. McKinney, "The Cardiff Giant," English Mechanics and the World of Science, 22:562 (Dec. 31, 1875), 393-394. "The Cardiff Giant Again," New York Times, May 11, 1874. "Can a Married Woman Hold Property in a Cardiff Giant?" St. Louis Democrat, Dec. 12, 1872. "The Cardiff Giant," College Courant 5:22 (Dec. 11, 1869), 347. "The Cardiff Giant," Harper's Weekly 13:675 (Dec. 4, 1869), 776. "The Cardiff Giant a Humbug," Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society, December 1869 meeting, 161-163. Today the giant resides at the Farmers' Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y. Listener mail: "About Us," Town of Chicken (accessed March 15, 2019). "ptarmigan," Oxford Living Dictionaries (accessed March 15, 2019). "ptarmigan," Dictionary.com (accessed March 15, 2019). "Chicken of Chicken, Alaska" (accessed March 15, 2019). Wikipedia, "Chicken, Alaska" (accessed March 15, 2019). Danny Payne, "Paint the Town Pink: Iowa's Unusual Tactic of Messing With Its Opponents," Sports Illustrated, Sept. 24, 2015. Rick Brown, "Hayden Fry Jokes About Health, Pink Locker Room," Des Moines Register, Aug. 30, 2014. Mark Snyder, "Michigan Football Covers Iowa's Pink Visitors Locker Room," Detroit Free Press, Nov. 12, 2016. Mark Wogenrich, "Penn State Readies for Iowa and Its Soothing Pink Locker Room," [Allentown, Pa.] Morning Call, Sept. 19, 2017. Alexander G. Schauss, "The Physiological Effect of Color on the Suppression of Human Aggression: Research on Baker-Miller Pink," International Journal of Biosocial Research 2:7 (1985), 55-64. Wikipedia, "Baker-Miller Pink" (accessed March 16, 2019). Oliver Genschow, et al., "Does Baker-Miller Pink Reduce Aggression in Prison Detention Cells? A Critical Empirical Examination," Psychology, Crime & Law 21:5 (2015), 482-489. Morwenna Ferrier, "This Colour Might Change Your Life: Kendall Jenner and Baker-Miller Pink," Guardian, Jan. 10, 2017. Natalie Way, "In the Pink: The Secret Wall Color for Dropping Pounds and Calming Down," realtor.com, Jan. 12, 2017. Jake New, "The Meaning of Pink," Inside Higher Ed, Aug. 29, 2014. Kabir Chibber, "Sports Teams Think the Color Pink Can Help Them Win," Quartz, Aug. 22, 2018. "Norwich City Paint Carrow Road Away Dressing Room Pink," BBC, Aug. 20, 2018. "Norwich City Stats," FootyStats (accessed March 19, 2019). This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Neil de Carteret, who sent this corroborating link (warning -- this spoils the puzzle). 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 podcast@futilitycloset.com. Thanks for listening!

25 Mars 201934min

In 1903, French physicist Prosper-René Blondlot decided he had discovered a new form of radiation. But the mysterious rays had some exceedingly odd properties, and scientists in other countries had trouble seeing them at all. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of N-rays, a cautionary tale of self-deception. We'll also recount another appalling marathon and puzzle over a worthless package. Intro: In the 1960s, two dolphins at Hawaii's Sea Life Park were inadvertently switched and performed each other's acts. Franz Bibfeldt is an invisible scholar at the University of Chicago divinity school. Sources for our feature on Prosper-René Blondlot and the N-rays: René Blondlot, Julien François, and William Garcin, "N" Rays: A Collection of Papers Communicated to the Academy of Sciences, With Additional Notes and Instructions for the Construction of Phosphorescent Screens, 1905. William Seabrook, Doctor Wood, 1941. Walter Gratzer, The Undergrowth of Science: Delusion, Self-Deception, and Human Frailty, 2001. Terence Hines, Pseudoscience and the Paranormal, 2003. Richard C. Brown, Are Science and Mathematics Socially Constructed?, 2009. Robert W. Proctor and E.J. Capaldi, Psychology of Science: Implicit and Explicit Processes, 2012. Paul Collins, Banvard's Folly, 2015. Roelf Bolt, The Encyclopaedia of Liars and Deceivers, 2014. Walter Gratzer and Walter Bruno Gratzer, Eurekas and Euphorias: The Oxford Book of Scientific Anecdotes, 2004. Robert W. Wood, How to Tell the Birds From the Flowers, 1907. Robert W. Wood, "The n-Rays," Nature 70:1822 (1904), 530-531. Mary Jo Nye, "N-Rays: An Episode in the History and Psychology of Science," Historical Studies in the Physical Sciences 11:1 (1980), 125-156. Robert T. Lagemann, "New Light on Old Rays: N Rays," American Journal of Physics 45:281 (1977), 281-284. Irving M. Klotz, "The N-ray Affair," Scientific American 242:5 (1980), 168-175. John Butler Burke, "The Blondlot n-Rays," Nature 70 (June 30, 1904), 198. John Butler Burke, "The Blondlot n-Rays," Nature 69 (Feb. 18, 1904), 365. Jeffrey Kovac, "Reverence and Ethics in Science," Science and Engineering Ethics 19:3 (September 2013), 745-56. Nancy S. Hall, "The Key Role of Replication in Science," Chronicle of Higher Education 47:11 (Nov. 10, 2000), B14. "The Blondlot Rays," British Medical Journal 1:2245 (Jan. 9, 1904), 90. "The Romance of the Blondlot Rays," British Medical Journal 1:2244 (Jan. 2, 1904), 35-36. "Blondlot and Prof. Wood on the N-Rays," Scientific American 91:25 (Dec. 17, 1904), 426. Malcolm Ashmore, "The Theatre of the Blind: Starring a Promethean Prankster, a Phoney Phenomenon, a Prism, a Pocket, and a Piece of Wood," Social Studies of Science 23:1 (1993), 67-106. Luis Campos, "The Birth of Living Radium," Representations 97:1 (Winter 2007), 1-27. "The Latest Wonder of Science," Public Opinion 4:36 (Jan. 28, 1904), 115-116. J.J. Stewart, "The N-Rays of Blondlot," Knowledge & Scientific News 2:10 (September 1905), 218-219. "Science and Invention: Radio-Activity," Current Literature 38:3 (March 1905), 258. J.R. Whitehead, "Radioactivity and Radiation," Electrical World and Engineer 43:7, 310. Mark Pilkington, "N-Rays Exposed," Guardian, Sept. 1, 2004. "Latest Scientific Discovery," Leavenworth [Wash.] Echo, April 8, 1910, 4. Listener mail: Karen Abbott, "The 1904 Olympic Marathon May Have Been the Strangest Ever," Smithsonian.com, Aug. 7, 2012. Wikipedia, "1904 Summer Olympics" (accessed March 7, 2019). Wikipedia, "Athletics at the 1904 Summer Olympics – Men's Marathon" (accessed March 7, 2019). Brian Cronin, "Sports Legend Revealed: A Marathon Runner Nearly Died Because of Drugs He Took to Help Him Win," Los Angeles Times, Aug. 10, 2010. Wikipedia, "George Eyser" (accessed March 9, 2019). Wikipedia, "Andarín Carvajal" (accessed March 9, 2019). "1956 Olympic Long Jump Champion Krzesinska Dies," IAAF News, Dec. 30, 2015. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Murli Ravi. Here are two corroborating links (warning -- these spoil the puzzle). 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 podcast@futilitycloset.com. Thanks for listening!

18 Mars 201932min

In 1799 two Royal Navy ships met on the Caribbean Sea, and their captains discovered they were parties to a mind-boggling coincidence that would expose a crime and make headlines around the world. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of the shark papers, one of the strangest coincidences in maritime history. We'll also meet some Victorian kangaroos and puzzle over an expedient fire. Intro: Hungarian composer György Ligeti wrote a symphonic poem for 100 metronomes. In 1935 a 7-year-old Berliner fell in love with Adolf Hitler. Sources for our feature on the shark papers: Edgar K. Thompson, "Tale of the Nancy Brig," Mariner's Mirror 56:1 (January 1970), 97-104. D.A. Proctor, "Notes: Michael Fitton," Mariner's Mirror 79:2 (May 1993), 206-208. Edward Warren Guyol, "The Navy, the Shark, and the 'Nancy' Brig," Harper's Weekly 52:2708 (Nov. 14, 1908), 29. W.J. Fletcher, "Michael Fitton," Temple Bar 114:5 (July 1898), 350-364. Clinton Vane de Brosse Black, Tales of Old Jamaica, 1966. Edward Rowe Snow, Marine Mysteries and Dramatic Disasters of New England, 1976. Sir Philip Manderson Sherlock, Jamaica Way, 1962. Caroline Rochford, Forgotten Songs and Stories of the Sea, 2016. Xavier Maniguet, The Jaws of Death: Sharks as Predator, Man as Prey, 2007. Julia W. Wolfe, "Shark Tale of Jamaica; Old Papers at Kingston Tell a Strange Sea Story of 1799," New York Times, April 20, 1941. "Pirates Convicted by Shark," [Burnie, Tasmania] Advocate, July 2, 1935. "The Shark That Ate the Papers of the Nancy Brig," Otago [New Zealand] Daily Times, June 12, 1920. "The King's Dominion of the Islands: Major and Minor West Indian Notes," United Empire: The Royal Colonial Institute Journal 7:4 (April 1916), 271-276. "Odds and Ends," Wide World Magazine 1:5 (August 1898), 554-560. "Miscellaneous," [Portland, Maine] Eastern Argus, June 5, 1833, 1. Henry Baynham, "Fitton, Michael," Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Jan. 3, 2008. Listener mail: Angus Trumble, "'O Uommibatto': How the Pre-Raphaelites Became Obsessed With the Wombat," Public Domain Review, Jan. 10, 2019. "The Kangaroo in England," Country Life Illustrated 3:72 (May 21, 1898), 617-618. David J. Travis, Andrew M. Carleton, and Ryan G. Lauritsen, "Regional Variations in US Diurnal Temperature Range for the 11–14 September 2001 Aircraft Groundings: Evidence of Jet Contrail Influence on Climate," Journal of Climate 17:5 (2004), 1123-1134. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Bob Seidensticker. 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 podcast@futilitycloset.com. Thanks for listening!

11 Mars 201934min

In 1898, two lions descended on a company of railway workers in British East Africa. For nine months they terrorized the camp, carrying off a new victim every few days, as engineer John Patterson struggled to stop them. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll track the "man-eaters of Tsavo" and learn what modern science has discovered about their motivations. We'll also consider more uses for two cars and puzzle over some prolific penguins. Intro: MIT drops a piano off a building every year. French architect Étienne-Louis Boullée proposed honoring Isaac Newton with a sarcophagus inside a 500-foot globe. Sources for our feature on the Tsavo man-eaters: John Henry Patterson, The Man-Eaters of Tsavo, 1907. J.H. Patterson, "The Man-Eaters of Tsavo: The Lions That Stopped a Railway," Wide World Magazine 10:55 (October 1902), 3-12; 10:56 (November 1902), 112-118. J.H. Patterson, "The Man-Eating Lions of Tsavo," Field Museum of Natural History, 1926. Philip Caputo, Ghosts of Tsavo, 2002. Bruce D. Patterson, The Lions of Tsavo, 2004. Julian C. Kerbis Peterhans and Thomas Patrick Gnoske, "The Science of 'Man-Eating' Among Lions Panthera leo With a Reconstruction of the Natural History of the 'Man-Eaters of Tsavo,'" Journal of East African Natural History 90:1 (2001), 1-41. T.P. Gnoske, G.G. Celesia, and J.C. Kerbis Peterhans, "Dissociation Between Mane Development and Sexual Maturity in Lions (Panthera leo): Solution to the Tsavo Riddle?" Journal of Zoology 270:4 (2006), 551-560. Justin D. Yeakel, et al., "Cooperation and Individuality Among Man-Eating Lions," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 106:45 (2009), 19040-19043. Bruce D. Patterson, et al., "Livestock Predation by Lions (Panthera leo) and Other Carnivores on Ranches Neighboring Tsavo National Parks, Kenya," Biological Conservation 119:4 (2004), 507-516. Bruce D. Patterson, "On the Nature and Significance of Variability in Lions (Panthera leo)," Evolutionary Biology 34:1-2 (2007), 55-60. Bruce D. Patterson, Ellis J. Neiburger, Samuel M. Kasiki, "Tooth Breakage and Dental Disease as Causes of Carnivore-Human Conflicts," Journal of Mammalogy 84:1 (Feb. 28, 2003), 190–196. Roland W. Kays and Bruce D. Patterson, "Mane Variation in African Lions and Its Social Correlates," Canadian Journal of Zoology 80:3 (March 2002), 471. Larisa R.G. DeSantis and Bruce D. Patterson, "Dietary Behaviour of Man-Eating Lions as Revealed by Dental Microwear Textures," Scientific Reports 7:1 (2017), 904. Ellis J. Neiburger and Bruce D. Patterson, "The Man-Eaters With Bad Teeth," New York State Dental Journal 66:10 (2000), 26. "The Tale Teeth Tell About Legendary Man-Eating Lions of Tsavo," Laboratory Equipment, April 19, 2017. Alba Tomasula y Garcia, "The Lions of Tsavo: Man-Made Man-Eaters," Western Humanities Review 68:1 (Winter 2014), 195-200. Paul Raffaele, "Man-Eaters of Tsavo," Smithsonian Magazine, January 2010. Jason Bittel, "Why Man-Eating Lions Prey on People -- New Evidence," National Geographic, April 19, 2017. Mindy Weisberger, "What Drove Tsavo Lions to Eat People? Century-Old Mystery Solved," Live Science, April 19, 2017. David Salisbury, "The Tale Teeth Tell About the Legendary Man-Eating Lions of Tsavo," Vanderbilt University, April 19, 2017. Can Buckley, "Irishman's Account of Man-Eating Lions, 'the Ghost' and 'the Darkness,' in Africa," Irish Examiner, April 29, 2017. Ed Yong, "How Many People Did the Man-Eating Lions of Tsavo Actually Eat?" Discover, Nov. 2, 2009. Gemma Tarlach, "Infamous Man-Eaters of Tsavo Ate Like Zoo Animals," Discover, April 19, 2017. Jennifer McNulty, "Legendary 'Man-Eating' Lions of Tsavo Likely Ate About 35 People -- Not 135, Say Scientists," UCSC Newscenter, Nov. 1, 2009. Hannah Osborne, "Infamous Man-Eating Tsavo Lions Were Apparently Suffering From Toothache," Newsweek, April 19, 2017. Restored by a taxidermist, the lions are currently on display in the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. Listener mail: "Sweden's Jobs Agency to Lay Off 4,500 Staff," The Local Sweden, Jan. 30, 2019. Greg Myre, "Gas Lines Evoke Memories of Oil Crises in the 1970s," The Picture Show, National Public Radio, Nov. 10, 2012. Wikipedia, "Odd–Even Rationing" (accessed Feb. 23, 2019). Wikipedia, "1973 Oil Crisis" (accessed Feb. 23, 2019). Wikipedia, "1979 Oil Crisis" (accessed Feb. 23, 2019). Carl Bialik, "Fuel Rationing Is Hard to Gauge," Wall Street Journal, Nov. 16, 2012. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Mat Spedding, based on an item he heard on the podcast No Such Thing As a Fish. Here are three corroborating links (warning -- these spoil the puzzle). 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 podcast@futilitycloset.com. Thanks for listening!

4 Mars 201934min

In 1873 a Methodist missionary in New York City heard rumors of a little girl who was kept locked in a tenement and regularly whipped. She uncovered a shocking case of neglect and abuse that made headlines around the world. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell how one girl's ordeal led to a new era in child welfare. We'll also outsource Harry Potter and puzzle over Wayne Gretzky's accomplishments. Intro: By a 1976 resolution, George Washington forever outranks every other officer in the U.S. Army. Humorist Robert Benchley invented some creative excuses for missing deadlines. Sources for our feature on Mary Ellen Wilson: Eric A. Shelman and Stephen Lazoritz, The Mary Ellen Wilson Child Abuse Case and the Beginning of Children's Rights in 19th Century America, 2005. Susan J. Pearson, The Rights of the Defenseless: Protecting Animals and Children in Gilded Age America, 2011. Frank R. Ascione, Children and Animals: Exploring the Roots of Kindness and Cruelty, 2005. John E.B. Myers, Child Protection in America: Past, Present, and Future, 2006. Karel Kurst-Swanger and Jacqueline L. Petcosky, Violence in the Home: Multidisciplinary Perspectives, 2003. Mary Renck Jalongo, "The Story of Mary Ellen Wilson: Tracing the Origins of Child Protection in America," Early Childhood Education Journal 34:1 (August 2006), 1-4. Lela B. Costin, "Unraveling the Mary Ellen Legend: Origins of the 'Cruelty' Movement," Social Service Review 65:2 (June 1991), 203-223. Sallie A. Watkins, "The Mary Ellen Myth: Correcting Child Welfare History," Social Work 35:6 (November 1990), 500-503. Jini L. Roby, "Child Welfare Workers in the Legal Arena: What Works, What Doesn't," Child & Youth Care Forum 30:5 (October 2001), 305-319. John E.B. Myers, "A Short History of Child Protection in America," Family Law Quarterly 42:3 (Fall 2008), 449-463. Susan Vivian Mangold, "Protection, Privatization, and Profit in the Foster Care System," Ohio State Law Journal 60 (1999), 1295. Natan Sznaider, "Compassion and Control: Children in Civil Society," Childhood 4:2 (1997). Marian Eide, "The First Chapter of Children's Rights," American Heritage 41:5 (July/August 1990). Wanda Mohr, Richard J. Gelles, Ira M. Schwartz, "Shackled in the Land of Liberty: No Rights for Children," Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 564:1 (July 1999), 37-55. Gerald P. Mallon, "From the Editor: The Legend of Mary Ellen Wilson and Etta Wheeler: Child Maltreatment and Protection Today," Child Welfare 92:2 (March/April 2013), 9-11. Amy D. Ronner, "Dostoevsky as Juvenile Justice Advocate and Progenitor of Therapeutic Jurisprudence," St. Thomas Law Review 30:1 (Fall 2017), 5-41. "Mary Ellen Wilson: Fact and Fiction," [Wooster, Ohio] Daily Record, April 29, 2017, 7. Howard Markel, "Case Shined First Light on Abuse of Children," New York Times, Dec. 14, 2009. Daniel Bergner, "The Case of Marie and Her Sons," New York Times Magazine, July 23, 2006. Al Baker, "Plan to Hasten Abuse Inquiries Came Up Short," New York Times, Jan. 21, 2006. "Mary Ellen Wilson," New York Times, June 14, 1874. "Mary Ellen Wilson," New York Times, June 2, 1874. "The Custody of Mary Ellen Wilson," New York Times, May 1, 1874. "Mary Ellen Wilson," New York Times, April 22, 1874. "Mary Ellen Wilson; Further Testimony in the Case Two Indictments Found Against Mrs. Connolly by the Grand Jury," New York Times, April 14, 1874. "Mary Ellen Wilson; Further Testimony as to the Child's Ill Treatment by Her Guardians," New York Times, April 12, 1874. "The Mission of Humanity; Continuation of the Proceedings Instituted by Mr. Bergh on Behalf of the Child, Mary Ellen Wilson," New York Times, April 11, 1874. "Mr. Bergh Enlarging His Sphere of Usefulness," New York Times, April 10, 1874. Listener mail: Mary Ilyushina and Lianne Kolirin, "Russia Reopens Investigation Into 60-Year-Old Dyatlov Pass Mystery," CNN, Feb. 4, 2019. "Russia's Reopening the Investigation of the Spooky Dyatlov Pass Incident," The Chive, Feb. 8, 2019 (warning: contains some potentially disturbing photos and one strong expletive). Emma Friedlander, "Russian Investigators Are Reopening the Dyatlov Pass Case. But What Is It?" Moscow Times, Feb. 14, 2019. Wikipedia, "Tiddles" (accessed Feb. 12, 2019). Rob Baker, "Tiddles, a rather fat cat that lived in the public lavatories at Paddington Station - 1978 - photo by Chris Moorhouse," Twitter, Jan. 22, 2019. Anna Menta, "Absurd New 'Harry Potter' Book Written By Predictive Text Already Has Fan Art," Newsweek, Dec. 14, 2017. Gael Fashingbauer Cooper, "Harry Potter Chapter Written by Bots Is Magically Terrible," CNET, Dec. 12, 2017. Charles Pulliam-Moore, "This New Harry Potter Chapter, Written With Predictive Keyboards, Is Magically Unhinged," io9, Dec. 12, 2017. Shannon Liao, "This Harry Potter AI-Generated Fanfiction Is Remarkably Good," The Verge, Dec 12, 2017. Evan Narcisse, "That Freaky Bot-Written Harry Potter Chapter Got Turned into a Freaky Cartoon," io9, Feb. 13, 2018. Botnik. Harry Potter and the Portrait of What Looked Like a Large Pile of Ash. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Mandie Bauer. Here's a corroborating link (warning -- this spoils the puzzle). 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 podcast@futilitycloset.com. Thanks for listening!

25 Feb 201933min