365-Lateral Thinking Puzzles
Futility Closet29 Nov 2021

365-Lateral Thinking Puzzles

For this final episode of the Futility Closet podcast we have eight new lateral thinking puzzles — play along with us as we try to untangle some perplexing situations using yes-or-no questions.

Intro:

Sears used to sell houses by mail.

Many of Lewis Carroll's characters were suggested by fireplace tiles in his Oxford study.

The sources for this week's puzzles are below. In some cases 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 Greg. Here are two links.

Puzzle #2 is from listener Diccon Hyatt, who sent this link.

Puzzle #3 is from listener Derek Christie, who sent this link.

Puzzle #4 is from listener Reuben van Selm.

Puzzle #5 is from listener Andy Brice.

Puzzle #6 is from listener Anne Joroch, who sent this link.

Puzzle #7 is from listener Steve Carter and his wife, Ami, inspired by an item in Jim Steinmeyer's 2006 book The Glorious Deception.

Puzzle #8 is from Agnes Rogers' 1953 book How Come? A Book of Riddles, sent to us by listener Jon Jerome.

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.

Many thanks to Doug Ross for providing the music for this whole ridiculous enterprise, and for being my brother.

If you have any questions or comments you can reach us at podcast@futilitycloset.com. Thanks for listening!

Avsnitt(365)

349-The National Hotel Disease

349-The National Hotel Disease

In 1857 guests at Washington D.C.'s National Hotel began to come down with a mysterious illness. One of them was James Buchanan, who was preparing to assume the presidency of the United States. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe the deadly outbreak and the many theories that were offered to explain it. We'll also contemplate timpani and puzzle over an Old West astronaut. Intro: The words overnervousnesses and overnumerousnesses are vertically compact. Harvard mathematician George Birkhoff reduced the principle underlying beauty to a formula. Sources for our feature on the National Hotel Disease: Kerry Walters, Outbreak in Washington, D.C.: The 1857 Mystery of the National Hotel Disease, 2014. George Alfred Townsend, Washington, Outside and Inside, 1874. Ruth D. Reichard, "A 'National Distemper': The National Hotel Sickness of 1857, Public Health and Sanitation, and the Limits of Rationality," Journal of Planning History 15:3 (August 2016), 175-190. Brian D. Crane, "Filth, Garbage, and Rubbish: Refuse Disposal, Sanitary Reform, and Nineteenth-Century Yard Deposits in Washington, D. C.," Historical Archaeology 34:1 (2000), 20-38. Homer T. Rosenberger, "Inauguration of President Buchanan a Century Ago," Records of the Columbia Historical Society 57/59 (1957/1959), 96-122. H.J. Forrest, "The National Hotel Epidemic of 1857," Medical Annals of the District of Columbia 16:3 (1947), 132-134. Isaac O. Barnes, "The National Hotel Disease — Letter to Dr. D.H. Storer," New Hampshire Journal of Medicine 7:8 (August 1857), 238-243. "The National Hotel Disease," Scientific American 12:46 (July 25, 1857), 365. "The 'Hotel Endemic' at Washington," Peninsular Journal of Medicine 5:1 (July 1857), 31-34. "National Hotel Disease," New York Journal of Medicine 3:1 (July 1857), 90-92. "Chemical Opinions of the National Hotel Disease," Scientific American 12:37 (May 23, 1857), 296. "National Hotel Disease," Scientific American 12:36 (May 16, 1857), 286. Philip Bump, "Concerns About Members of Congress Being Poisoned Date to 1857 -- and D.C.'s National Hotel," Washington Post, Jan. 14, 2015. Clinton Yates, "Book on National Hotel Disease Shows Not Much Has Changed in D.C. Since 1850s," Washington Post, Oct. 15, 2014. Scott McCabe, "Congressman Dies From D.C. Hotel Affliction," Washington Examiner, July 17, 2012. "National Hotel Disease," [New York] Sun, Nov. 14, 1916. "The National Hotel Disease," Shepherdstown [W.Va.] Register, April 10, 1858 "National Hotel Disease," [Washington, D.C.] Evening Star, June 16, 1857. "Another Victim of the National Hotel Disease," New York Times, May 16, 1857. "The National Hotel Disease," New York Times, May 15, 1857. "The 'National Hotel' Poison," Holmes County [Ohio] Republican, May 14, 1857. "The National Hotel Disease," New York Times, May 8, 1857. "The National Hotel Disease -- Fatal Cases," National Era, May 7, 1857. "The Health of President Buchanan," [Ebensburg, Pa.] Democrat and Sentinel, May 6, 1857. "The Washington Mystery," New York Times, May 5, 1857. "The National Hotel Mystery," New York Times, May 2, 1857. "Death of Hon. John G. Montgomery," [Bloomsburg, Pa.] Star of the North, April 29, 1857. "The Washington Epidemic," Times, April 11, 1857. "Effects of the National Hotel Disease," New York Times, April 4, 1857. "Sickness at the National Hotel," [Wilmington, N.C.] Tri-Weekly Commercial, March 31, 1857. "The Washington Epidemic -- Report of the Committee of the Board of Health," New York Times, March 25, 1857. Ludwig Deppisch, "The National Hotel Disease," The Grog Ration 4:1 (January-February 2009), 1-5. "Historical Highlights: The Mysterious National Hotel Disease," United States House of Representatives (accessed June 23, 2021). Andrew Glass, "National Hotel Disease Claims Many Victims, June 24, 1859," Politico, June 24, 2010. Listener mail: "Feyenoord Keeper Treijtel Shoots Seagull Out of the Sky," De Dag van Toen (accessed June 14, 2021). "Eddy Treijtel over doodgeschoten meeuw: 'Iedereen heeft het gezien, behalve ik,'" [Dutch], Rijnmond, Nov. 15, 2020. "Span's Mother Struck by Line Drive," Associated Press, March 31, 2010. Judge Morton Krase, "Take Me Out to the Courtroom: The Legal Battle for Ownership of Barry Bonds' Historic 73rd Home Run Baseball," Philadelphia Lawyer 67:1 (Spring 2004). "Popov v. Hayashi," Wikipedia (accessed June 25, 2021). "Timpani," Wikipedia (accessed June 14, 2021). "Timpani," Merriam-Webster (accessed June 14, 2021). This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Peter Le Pard. 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!

5 Juli 202132min

348-Who Killed the Red Baron?

348-Who Killed the Red Baron?

In 1918, German flying ace Manfred von Richthofen chased an inexperienced Canadian pilot out of a dogfight and up the Somme valley. It would be the last chase of his life. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe the last moments of the Red Baron and the enduring controversy over who ended his career. We'll also consider some unwanted name changes and puzzle over an embarrassing Oscar speech. Intro: In the early 1970s, AI researcher James Meehan tried to teach a computer to retell Aesop's fables. In 1983, Jacob Henderson appealed a burglary conviction on the ground that the indictment was illiterate. Sources for our feature on the death of Manfred von Richthofen: Norman Franks and Alan Bennett, The Red Baron's Last Flight: A Mystery Investigated, 1998. Dale M. Titler, The Day the Red Baron Died, 1990. P.J. Carisella and James W. Ryan, Who Killed the Red Baron?, 1969. Dan Hampton, Lords of the Sky: Fighter Pilots and Air Combat, From the Red Baron to the F-16, 2014. Nicolas Wright, The Red Baron, 1977. Floyd Phillips Gibbons, The Red Knight of Germany: The Story of Baron von Richthofen, Germany's Great War Bird, 1959. Bob Gordon, "The Fearless Canadian Flier Who Led the Red Baron to His Death," Aviation History 31:2 (November 2020). O'Brien Browne, "Deadly Duo," Aviation History 24:1 (September 2013), 44-49. O'Brien Browne, "Shooting Down a Legend," MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military History 23:2 (Winter 2011), 66. James S. Corum, "The Other Richthofen," World War II 23:3 (August/September 2008) 28-37. Jonathan M. Young, "Against DNIF: Examining von Richthofen's Fate," Air Power History 53:4 (Winter 2006), 20-27. A.D. Harvey, "Why Was the Red Baron's Fokker Painted Red? Decoding the Way Aeroplanes Were Painted in the First World War," War in History 8:3 (July 2001), 323-340. Henning Allmers, "Manfred Freiherr von Richthofen's Medical Record -- Was the 'Red Baron' Fit to Fly?" Lancet 354:9177 (Aug. 7, 1999), 502-504. M. Geoffrey Miller, "The Death of Manfred von Richthofen: Who Fired the Fatal Shot?" Sabretache: The Journal and Proceedings of the Military History Society of Australia 39:2 (June 1998), 16-29. Carl Dienstbach, "Fighting in a Three-Decker Airplane," Popular Science Monthly 93:3 (September 1918), 386-387. Laurence La Tourette Driggs, "Aces Among Aces," National Geographic 33:6 (June 1918), 568-580. Tom Gilling, "Who Shot Down Manfred von Richthofen, Germany's Fearsome 'Red Baron'?" The Australian, March 30, 2021. Catherine and Michael Greenham, "How the Red Baron Met His Fate," [Durban] Mercury, April 30, 2018. "Lord Ashcroft: Why We Should Salute the Red Baron, the German Flying Ace Who Killed 73 British Servicemen," Telegraph, April 22, 2018. Todd Leopold, "Who Really Killed the Red Baron? Account Offers New Wrinkle," CNN, Oct. 19, 2015. Chris Must, "Who Killed the Red Baron?" Smiths Falls [Ont.] EMC, April 9, 2009. Brian Bergman, "Wings of a Hero," Maclean's 118:7 (Feb. 14, 2005), 37. Randy Boswell, "Red Baron Was a 'Sitting Duck,'" Vancouver Sun, Sept. 21, 2004. Evan Hadingham, "Who Killed the Red Baron?" NOVA, September 2003. "Red Baron Kill Questioned," [Sarnia, Ont.] Observer, Feb. 5, 2003. "Capt. Richthofen Killed: On This Day, 23 April 1918," Times, April 23, 1996. Donald Jones, "Did He or Didn't He Kill the Red Baron," Toronto Star, Dec. 1, 1990. Kathryn Watterson, "War Ace Still Bears Witness to History," New York Times, Oct. 9, 1988. William E. Burrows, "Here He Is in His Fokker Triplane -- The Red Baron," New York Times, April 7, 1968. "Capt. Brown, Flyer, Killed Richthofen," New York Times, March 10, 1944. "Who Killed Richthofen?" [Brisbane, Qld.] Courier-Mail, Dec. 8, 1937 T.A. Trevethan, "The Killing of Richthofen," Brisbane Courier, Feb. 20, 1930. A. Roy Brown, "My Fight With Richthofen," Minneapolis Sunday Tribune, June 3, 1928. Floyd Gibbons, "The Red Knight of Germany," [Washington D.C.] Evening Star, June 13, 1927. "Says Canadians Shot Richthofen in Lines," New York Times, Nov. 29, 1925. Harold Callender, "Knightly Foemen Honored in War," New York Times, Nov. 29, 1925. "Richthofen's Fate," [Adelaide] Register, March 4, 1925. "Slayer of Von Richthofen," New York Times, June 10, 1918. "Who Killed Richthofen?" [Sydney] Daily Telegraph, April 26, 1918. "Honor Richthofen," New York Times, April 25, 1918. "Richthofen Died With Bullet in Heart Fighting in the Air," New York Tribune, April 24, 1918. "Who Killed the Red Baron?" NOVA, June 2, 2013. Amanda Rebbeck, "Who Killed the Red Baron?" Australian War Memorial, Feb. 6, 2008. Listener mail: "Icelandic Name," Wikipedia (accessed June 18, 2021). "Patronymic," Wikipedia (accessed June 18, 2021). Andie Sophia Fontaine, "Two Icelandic Sisters Fight to Determine Their Own Surnames," Reykjavik Grapevine, Oct. 14, 2019. Jon Henley, "Icelandic Girls Can't Be Called Harriet, Government Tells Family," Guardian, June 26, 2014. "Harriet Finally Gets Her Passport," Iceland Monitor, Aug. 28, 2015. "Dweezil Zappa," Wikipedia (accessed June 18, 2021). This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Kelly Schoettlin, 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!

28 Juni 202132min

347-The Cottingley Fairies

347-The Cottingley Fairies

In 1917, two young cousins carried a camera into an English dell and returned with a photo of fairies. When Arthur Conan Doyle took up the story it became a worldwide sensation. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of the Cottingley Fairies, a curiosity that would remain unexplained for most of the 20th century. We'll also remember a ferocious fire and puzzle over a troublesome gnome. Intro: Poet Harry Graham found "a simple plan / Which makes the lamest lyric scan." In the 1920s, Otto Funk fiddled across the United States. Sources for our feature on the Cottingley fairies: Jason Loxton et al., "The Cottingley Fairies," Skeptic 15:3 (2010), 72B,73-81. Russell Miller, The Adventures of Arthur Conan Doyle: A Biography, 2008. Arthur Conan Doyle, The Coming of the Fairies, 1922. Timothy R. Levine, Encyclopedia of Deception, 2014. Jerome Clark, Encyclopedia of Strange and Unexplained Physical Phenomena, 1993. Joe Cooper, "Cottingley: At Last the Truth," The Unexplained 117 (1982), 2338-2340. A. Conan Doyle, "The Cottingley Fairies: An Epilogue," Strand 65:2 (February 1923), 105. Kaori Inuma, "Fairies to Be Photographed!: Press Reactions in 'Scrapbooks' to the Cottingley Fairies," Correspondence: Hitotsubashi Journal of Arts and Literature 4 (2019), 53-84. Douglas A. Anderson, "Fairy Elements in British Literary Writings in the Decade Following the Cottingley Fairy Photographs Episode," Mythlore 32:1 (Fall/Winter 2013), 5-18. Bruce Heydt, "The Adventure of the Cottingley Fairies," British Heritage 25:2 (May 2004), 20-25. Helen Nicholson, "Postmodern Fairies," History Workshop Journal 46 (Autumn 1998), 205-212. Michael W. Homer and Massimo Introvigne, "The Recoming of the Fairies," Theosophical History 6 (1996), 59-76. Alex Owen, "'Borderland Forms': Arthur Conan Doyle, Albion's Daughters, and the Politics of the Cottingley Fairies," History Workshop 38 (1994), 48-85. "The First, and Best Known, of the Cottingley Fairy Photographs," Nature 346:6281 (July 19, 1990), 232. "Away With the Fairies," Country Life, Nov. 11, 2020, 128-129. Leslie Gardner, "Notes on Mr S. F. Sanderson's Presidential Address, 21 March 1973, on 'The Cottingley Fairy Photographs,'" Folklore 86:3/4 (Autumn-Winter 1975), 190-194. S.F. Sanderson, "The Cottingley Fairy Photographs: A Re-Appraisal of the Evidence," Folklore 84:2 (Summer 1973), 89-103. David Barnett, "Fairy Tales," Independent, March 28, 2021. "Cottingley Fairies: How Sherlock Holmes's Creator Was Fooled by Hoax," BBC News, Dec. 5, 2020. "Cottingley Fairies Fake Photos to Go Under the Hammer," Guardian, March 31, 2019. Edward Sorel, "The Spiritual Life of Arthur Conan Doyle," New York Times, Dec. 28, 2018. Phil Penfold, "One Hundred Years on From the Famous Cottingley Hoax, Why People Still Believe in Fairies," Yorkshire Post, Feb. 13, 2018. Emily Hourican, "A Country Devastated by War, a Famous Author Desperate to Believe in the Spiritual World and Two Little Girls Who Borrowed a Camera ... the Fascinating Story of the Cottingley Fairies," Belfast Telegraph, Sept. 2, 2017. Hazel Gaynor, "Inside the Elaborate Hoax That Made British Society Believe in Fairies," Time, Aug. 1, 2017. David Barnett, "Why Do So Many People Still Believe in the Cottingley Fairies?" Telegraph, July 17, 2017. Mark Branagan, "Academic's Daughter: Curse of Cottingley Fairies Destroyed My Poor Father's Life," Express, Jan. 15, 2017. Sarah Freeman, "How the Cottingley Fairies Cost My Parents Their Marriage," Yorkshire Post, Dec. 28, 2016. Martin Wainwright, "Obituary: Joe Cooper: He Got the Cottingley Fairy Fakers to Confess," Guardian, Aug. 25, 2011. Chris Cheesman, "Obituary: Geoffrey Crawley: Photographic Scientist Who Played a Key Role in Debunking the Cottingley Fairies," Guardian, Nov. 16, 2010. Rick Whelan, "The Enchanting and Phony Cottingley Fairies," [Stratford] Beacon Herald, Nov. 11, 2010. "Geoffrey Crawley: Photographic Expert and Journalist Who Exposed the Myth of the Cottingley Fairies That Had Been Championed by Arthur Conan Doyle," Times, Nov. 10, 2010. Margalit Fox, "Geoffrey Crawley, 83, Dies; Gently Deflated a Fairy Hoax," New York Times, Nov. 6, 2010. James Johnston, "Memorabilia of 'Fairies' Hoax for Auction," Scotsman, March 12, 2001. Mel Hunter, "Fairy Tales," Birmingham Post, March 6, 2001. Vicki Goldberg, "Photography View; Of Fairies, Free Spirits and Outright Frauds," New York Times, Feb. 1, 1998. "Famous Fairy Photos 'Fakes,'" Canberra Times, March 21, 1983. "Shows Photo of Elves: English Theosophist Here to Lecture on 'Coming of the Fairies,'" New York Times, Feb. 3, 1927. "Has Conan Doyle Gone Mad?" [Perth] Mirror, Jan. 13, 1923. "'The Coming of the Fairies' Made Real by Conan Doyle," New York Tribune, Oct. 15, 1922. "Hoax or Revelation?" Illustrated London News 161:4352 (Sept. 16, 1922), 444. Frank Conroy, "Fairies Photographed," New York Times, Jan. 2, 1921. Naomi Rea, "Faked 'Fairy' Photographs From a Famous 20th-Century Hoax Could Fetch $90,000 at Auction," artnet, April 2, 2019. Karen Sayers, "The Cottingley Fairies: A Study in Deception," Leeds University Library, Oct. 28, 2020. Colin Harding, "Griffiths, Frances, (1907–1986)," Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Sept. 1, 2017. Listener mail: "The King's Cross Fire," London Fire Brigade (accessed June 9, 2021). "Medical Detectives (Forensic Files) - Season 8, Episode 42 - Flashover," YouTube, March 24, 2016 (video). "King's Cross Fire," Wikipedia (accessed Jun. 9, 2021). "Trench Effect," Wikipedia (accessed June 9, 2021). "Flashover," Wikipedia (accessed June 9, 2021). Ryan Meeks, "Gail Halvorsen, aka the 'Candy Bomber,' Has Recovered From COVID-19," KSL News Radio, Jan. 24, 2021. "Rhoticity in English," Wikipedia (accessed June 12, 2021). "Rhotic," Merriam-Webster (accessed June 12, 2021). "Microcosm: Portrait of a Central European City," Wikipedia (accessed June 12, 2021). "Wroclaw, Breslau, Vratislav ... One City, Many Names," In Your Pocket, July 23, 2020. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Rohan Bassett. It's based on an item in Steven Levy's 2011 book In the Plex. 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!

21 Juni 202130min

346-A Desperate Winter in Antarctica

346-A Desperate Winter in Antarctica

In 1898 a Belgian ship on a scientific expedition was frozen into the sea off the coast of Antarctica. During the long polar night, its 18 men would confront fear, death, illness, and despair. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe life aboard the Belgica during its long, dark southern winter. We'll also consider a devaluing signature and puzzle over some missing music. Intro: George S. Kaufman was uninterested in Eddie Fisher's dating problems. The Hatter and the March Hare impugn one another's honesty. Sources for our feature on the Belgian Antarctic Expedition of 1897–1899: Julian Sancton, Madhouse at the End of the Earth: The Belgica's Journey Into the Dark Antarctic Night, 2021. Roland Huntford, The Last Place on Earth, 1985. T.H. Baughman, Before the Heroes Came: Antarctica in the 1890s, 1994. Marilyn Landis, Antarctica: Exploring the Extreme, 2001. Frederick Albert Cook, Through the First Antarctic Night, 1898-1899: A Narrative of the Voyage of the "Belgica" Among Newly Discovered Lands and Over an Unknown Sea About the South Pole, 1900. Henryk Arçtowski, The Antarctic Voyage of the Belgica During the Years 1897, 1898, and 1899, 1902. Patrick De Deckker, "On the Long-Ignored Scientific Achievements of the Belgica Expedition 1897-1899," Polar Research 37:1 (2018), 1474695. Alexandru Marinescu, "An Original Document About the History of the Antarctic Expedition 'Belgica,'" in Charles W. Finkl and Christopher Makowski, eds., Diversity in Coastal Marine Sciences: Historical Perspectives and Contemporary Research of Geology, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Remote Sensing, 2017. Jacek Machowski, "Contribution of H. Arçtowski and AB Dobrowolski to the Antarctic Expedition of Belgica (1897-1899)," Polish Polar Research 19:1-2 (1998), 15-30. Kjell-G. Kjær, "Belgica in the Arctic," Polar Record 41:3 (2005), 205-214. Roger H. Charlier, "Philatelic Panorama of Some Belgian Antarctic Marine Contributions, 19th-21st Centuries: From Belgica to Princess Elisabeth," Journal of Coastal Research 26:2 (2010), 359-376. Hugo Decleir and Gaston R. Demarée, "The Belgica Antarctic Expedition, 1897-1899: A View, 120 Years Later," Okhotsk Sea and Polar Oceans Research 5 (2021), 7-14. Claude de Broyer and Thierry Kuyken, "The Celebration of the Centennial of the Belgica Antarctic Expedition: A Tribute to the Pioneers," Polish Polar Research 22:1 (2001), 71-76. Ian N. Higginson, "Roald Amundsen's Belgica Diary: The First Scientific Expedition to the Antarctic, Edited by Hugo Decleir," Arctic 54:1 (2001), 86-87. Henryk Gurgul, "Henryk Arçtowski and Antoni Dobrowolski in the Hundredth Anniversary of 'Belgica' Expedition to Antarctica," Oceanologia 39:2 (1997), 197-199. Evert Lataire et al., "The Contradictions Between the Original Three Master Belgica and Present Regulations," in Royal Institution of Naval Architects, Historic Ships 2009, 2009. Roger H. Charlier et al., "Belgica's Antarctic Toponymic Legacy," Journal of Coastal Research 26:6 (November 2010), 1168-1171. Peder Roberts, "Belgium's Day in the Midnight Sun," Metascience 12:3 (November 2003), 345-348. Pat Millar, "The Tension Between Emotive/Aesthetic and Analytic/Scientific Motifs in the Work of Amateur Visual Documenters of Antarctica's Heroic Era," Polar Record 53:3 (May 2017), 245-256. Pat Millar, "Frederick A. Cook: The Role of Photography in the Making of His Polar Explorer-Hero Image," Polar Record 51:4 (July 2015), 432-443. H.R. Guly, "'Polar Anaemia': Cardiac Failure During the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration," Polar Record 48:2 (April 2012), 157-164. Shane McCorristine and Jane S.P. Mocellin, "Christmas at the Poles: Emotions, Food, and Festivities on Polar Expeditions, 1818-1912," Polar Record 52:5 (September 2016), 562-577. Lawrence A. Palinkas and Peter Suedfeld, "Psychological Effects of Polar Expeditions," Lancet 371:9607 (Jan. 12-18, 2008), 153-63. Arnoldus Schytte Blix, "On Roald Amundsen's Scientific Achievements," Polar Research 35:1 (2016), 1-7. Paul Pelseneer and Henryk Arçtowski, "The Belgian Antarctic Expedition," Geographical Journal 19:3 (March 1902), 387-389. Henryk Arçtowski, "The Antarctic Voyage of the 'Belgica' During the Years 1897, 1898, and 1899," Geographical Journal 18:4 (October 1901), 353-390. W.T. Blanford, et al., "The Antarctic Voyage of the 'Belgica' During the Years 1897, 1898, and 1899: Discussion," Geographical Journal 18:4 (October 1901), 390-394. Peter J. Anderson, "How the South Was Won," Wilson Quarterly 5:4 (Autumn 1981), 52-68. David H. Stam and Deirdre C. Stam, "Bending Time: The Function of Periodicals in Nineteenth-Century Polar Naval Expeditions," Victorian Periodicals Review 41:4 (Winter 2008), 301-322. Julian Sancton, "The Antarctic Expedition That Changed Modern Medicine," Time, May 12, 2021. Tom Kizzia, "Moving to Mars," New Yorker, April 13, 2015. Julian Sancton, "A Brief History of People Losing Their Minds in Antarctica," GQ, May 3, 2021. Julian Sancton, "The Explorer Who Charted the Course to Peace in Antarctica," Boston Globe, May 16, 2021. Sara Wheeler, "Freezing for Belgium," Wall Street Journal, May 13, 2021. Nicole Cliffe, "The Tale of a Chaotic and Failed Attempt to Explore Antarctica in 1897," New York Times, May 6, 2021. "Baron de Gerlache, Explorer, Dies, 69; Led Expeditions to Arctic and Antarctic -- Head of Belgian Marine Bureau," New York Times, Dec. 5, 1934. "Cook's Antarctic Trip; Joined the Belgica Expedition at the Last Moment," New York Times, Sept. 3, 1909. "A Visit to the Antarctic Region," San Francisco Call, June 24, 1899. "Return of Dr. Cook," [Meriden, Conn.] Journal, June 23, 1899. Frederick A. Cook, "A Trip to the Antarctic," New York Times, Jan. 2, 1898. "Belgian Antarctic Expedition (1897-1899)," Frederick A. Cook Digital Exhibition, Ohio State University (accessed May 30, 2021). Listener mail: vlogbrothers, "John's World Record," YouTube, April 2, 2021 (video). Jane Wakefield, "App Used by Emergency Services Under Scrutiny," BBC News, April 29, 2021. Jane Wakefield, "Rescuers Question What3Words' Use in Emergencies," BBC News, June 1, 2021. Zack Whittaker, "What3Words Sent a Legal Threat to a Security Researcher for Sharing an Open-Source Alternative," TechCrunch, April 30, 2021. Aaron Toponce's Twitter profile. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Izzy Cope. 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!

14 Juni 202133min

345-Climbing Mont Blanc

345-Climbing Mont Blanc

In 1838, Frenchwoman Henriette d'Angeville set out to climb Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in the Alps, against the advice of nearly everyone she knew. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll follow d'Angeville up the mountain to fulfill what she called "a monomania of the heart." We'll also escape Australia in a box and puzzle over a fixed game. Intro: In 1986, Florida bankruptcy judge A. Jay Cristol issued an order inspired by "a little old ebony bird." Puzzling poet S.R. Ford fits 10 guests into nine rooms. Sources for our feature on Henriette d'Angeville: Rebecca A. Brown, Women on High: Pioneers of Mountaineering, 2002. David Mazel, Mountaineering Women: Stories by Early Climbers, 1994. Peter H. Hansen, The Summits of Modern Man, 2013. Nathan Haskell Dole, The Spell of Switzerland, 1913. Francis Henry Gribble, The Early Mountaineers, 1899. Charles Edward Mathews, The Annals of Mont Blanc: A Monograph, 1898. Albert Richard Smith, Mont Blanc, 1871. Delphine Moraldo, "Gender Relations in French and British Mountaineering: The Lens of Autobiographies of Female Mountaineers, From d'Angeville (1794-1871) to Destivelle (1960-)," Journal of Alpine Research 101:1 (2013). Diana L. Di Stefano, "The Summits of Modern Man: Mountaineering After the Enlightenment," Canadian Journal of History 50:1 (Spring/Summer 2015), 213-215. Gerry Kearns, Mary Kingsley, and Halford Mackinder, "The Imperial Subject: Geography and Travel in the Work of Mary Kingsley and Halford Mackinder," Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers 22:4 (1997), 450-472. Bénédicte Monicat, "Autobiography and Women's Travel Writings in Nineteenth-Century France: Journeys Through Self-Representation," Gender, Place & Culture: A Journal of Feminist Geography 1:1 (1994), 61-70. Walther Kirchner, "Mind, Mountain, and History," Journal of the History of Ideas 11:4 (October 1950), 412-447. J.M. Thorington, "Henriette d'Angeville au Mont-Blanc," American Alpine Journal, 1949. Sherilyne J. King, "Crags & Crinolines," Tenth Annual Hypoxia Symposium, McMaster University, October 1997. Pascale Gorguet Ballesteros, "Women in Trousers: Henriette d'Angeville, a French Pioneer?" Journal of Design, Creative Process & the Fashion Industry 9:2 (2017), 200-213. Karen Stockham, "'Home Is Just Another Range of Mountains': Constructions of 'Home' in Women's Mountaineering Auto/biographies," Auto/Biography Yearbook 2014, 2015, 90-104. Claire Evans, "'But What Do I Wear?': A Study of Women's Climbing Attire," in Maria Vaccarella and Jacque Lynn Foltyn, eds., Fashion-Wise, 2013. Anne Ruderman, "Boots, a Tent and a Chic Chapeau: Women Hike in Footsteps of Pioneers," Concord [N.H.] Monitor, April 18, 2004. Susan Spano, "Intrepid Women Inspire New Heights," Calgary Herald, Feb. 22, 2003. Alice Thomson, "Day of the Spiderwoman: Women Climbers," Times, May 18, 1993. Hjalmar Josephi, "On Montblanc 1838," Sydney Mail, June 26, 1935. "Mont Blanc's Bride," Saint Paul Globe, Sept. 27, 1897. Karen Stockham, "It Went Down Into the Very Form and Fabric of Myself": Women's Mountaineering Life-Writing 1808-1960, dissertation, University of Exeter, 2012. Listener mail: Nuala McCann, "Crate Escape: Search for Irishmen Who Airmailed Brian Robson Home," BBC News NI, April 7, 2021. Jason Caffrey, "The Copycat Who Nearly Died Air-Mailing Himself Home," BBC News, April 7, 2015. Alison Healy, "'The Crate Escape': Two Irishmen Who Helped Mail Friend Home From Australia Sought," Irish Times, April 6, 2021. Alison Healy, "Man to Meet Irish Friend Who Helped Airmail Him From Australia," Irish Times, April 17, 2021. Heather Murphy, "A Man Who Shipped Himself in a Crate Wants to Find the Men Who Helped," New York Times, April 14, 2021. "From the Archives, 1965: Stowaway's Box Seat in Airliner," Sydney Morning Herald, April 9, 2021. "New Year's Day," Wikipedia (accessed May 23, 2021). This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Steven Jones, 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!

7 Juni 202132min

344-Martin Couney's Incubator Babies

344-Martin Couney's Incubator Babies

For more than 40 years in the early 20th century, Martin Couney ran a sideshow in which premature babies were displayed in incubators. With this odd practice he offered a valuable service in an era when many hospitals couldn't. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe Couney's unusual enterprise, which earned both criticism and praise. We'll also marvel over an Amazonian survival and puzzle over a pleasing refusal. Intro: The inventor of the Dewey Decimal System suggested that GHEAUGHTEIGHPTOUGH might spell potato. John VI of Portugal listened to visitors through his throne. Sources for our feature on Martin Couney: Dawn Raffel, The Strange Case of Dr. Couney: How a Mysterious European Showman Saved Thousands of American Babies, 2018. Janet Golden, Babies Made Us Modern: How Infants Brought America Into the Twentieth Century, 2018. Elizabeth A. Reedy, American Babies: Their Life and Times in the 20th Century, 2007. Mhairi G. MacDonald, Mary M. K. Seshia, and Martha D. Mullett, Avery's Neonatology: Pathophysiology & Management of the Newborn, 2005. Jeffrey P. Baker, The Machine in the Nursery: Incubator Technology and the Origins of Newborn Intensive Care, 1996. David M. Allen and Elizabeth A. Reedy, "Seven Cases: Examples of How Important Ideas Were Initially Attacked or Ridiculed by the Professions," in David M. Allen and James W. Howell, eds., Groupthink in Science: Greed, Pathological Altruism, Ideology, Competition, and Culture, 2020. Nils J. Bergman, "Birth Practices: Maternal-Neonate Separation as a Source of Toxic Stress," Birth Defects Research 111:15 (Sept. 1, 2019), 1087-1109. Betty R. Vohr, "The Importance of Parent Presence and Involvement in the Single-Family Room and Open-Bay NICU," Acta Paediatrica 108:6 (June 2019), 986-988. Claire Prentice, "The Man Who Ran a Carnival Attraction That Saved Thousands of Premature Babies Wasn’t a Doctor at All," Smithsonian, Aug. 19, 2016. "When Preemies Were a Carnival Sideshow," Modern Healthcare 45:32 (Aug. 10, 2015), 36. Judith S. Gooding et al., "Family Support and Family-Centered Care in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: Origins, Advances, Impact," Seminars in Perinatology 35:1 (February 2011), 20-28. Magdalena Mazurak and Małgorzata Czyżewska, "Incubator Doctor and the Dionne Quintuplets: On the Phenomenon of Exhibiting Premature Infants," Dental and Medical Problems 43:2 (2006), 313-316. Elizabeth A. Reedy, "Historical Perspectives: Infant Incubators Turned 'Weaklings' Into 'Fighters,'" American Journal of Nursing 103:9 (September 2003), 64AA. Hannah Lieberman, "Incubator Baby Shows: A Medical and Social Frontier," History Teacher 35:1 (November 2001), 81-88. Jeffrey P. Baker, "The Incubator and the Medical Discovery of the Premature Infant," Journal of Perinatology 20:5 (2000), 321-328. Gerald M. Oppenheimer, "Prematurity as a Public Health Problem: US Policy From the 1920s to the 1960s," American Journal of Public Health 86:6 (1996), 870-878. Lou Ann Bunker-Hellmich, "A Case Study of Space Use and Visiting Policy in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit," Children's Environments Quarterly 4:3 (Fall 1987), 25-32. Richard F. Snow, "American Characters: Martin Couney," American Heritage 32:4 (June/July 1981). Leo Stern, "Thermoregulation in the Newborn Infant: Historical, Physiological and Clinical Considerations," in George Franklin Smith, D. Vidyasagar, and Patricia N. Smith, eds., Historical Review and Recent Advances in Neonatal and Perinatal Medicine, 1980. Rutledge Rutherford, "Infant Incubators," Technical World Magazine 4:1 (September 1905), 68-73. Joanne Palmer, "'The Strange Case of Dr. Couney,'" Jewish Standard, Nov. 1, 2018. Heidi Stevens, "Saved by Science, Twins Displayed in Incubators at Chicago's 2nd World's Fair Are Now 84 and Nestled Happily in the Suburbs," Chicago Tribune, Aug. 30, 2018. Rick Kogan, "Mysterious 'Doctor' Couney Saved Thousands of Premature Babies -- and Put Them on Display at the Fair," Chicago Tribune, Aug. 25, 2018. Will Pavia, "Fairground 'Doctor' Who Saved Babies," Times, July 28, 2018. "How One Man Saved a Generation of Premature Babies," BBC News, May 23, 2016. Frank Eltman, "'Incubator Babies' Want Their Story Told," [Montreal] Gazette, Aug. 1, 2015. William Brangham, "How a Coney Island Sideshow Advanced Medicine for Premature Babies," PBS NewsHour, July 21, 2015. Michael Pollak, "The Incubated Babies of the Coney Island Boardwalk," New York Times, July 31, 2015. Michael Brick, "And Next to the Bearded Lady, Premature Babies," New York Times, June 12, 2005. Daniel B. Schneider, "F.Y.I.," New York Times, Dec. 13, 1998. "Martin A. Couney, 'Incubator Doctor,'" New York Times, March 2, 1950. "Incubator's Class of '39 Lifts Cups to Old Times," New York Times, June 15, 1940. Paul Harrison, "New York Letter," Brownsville [Texas] Herald, Aug. 8, 1933. "5,000 Babies Owe Their Lives to Gas Heat," Newark [Ohio] Leader, April 16, 1926. "Storks Are to Be Taken at the World's Fair Despite the Big War in Europe," [Clarksburg, W.Va.] Daily Telegram, Sept. 3, 1914. "Inventor Is Pleased," Minneapolis Journal, Aug. 4, 1905. Listener mail: Manuela Andreoni, "His Plane Crashed in the Amazon. Then Came the Hard Part," New York Times, March 28, 2021. Stephen Gibbs, "Crash Pilot Lives to Tell Tale of 38 Days Lost in the Amazon," Times, March 30, 2021. P.S.M. Chandran, "Why Age Fraud in Indian Sports Is So Prevalent," The Wire, May 6, 2020. Nagraj Gollapudi, "Age Fraud - BCCI Offers Amnesty Scheme to Players, Promises 'Stern Actions' to Curb Menace," ESPNcricinfo, Aug. 3, 2020. Shashank Kishore, "Indian Cricket's Age-Fraud Problem," ESPNcricinfo, June 28, 2019. "Afridi Reveals His Real Age – Sort Of," Cricket Network, May 3, 2019. "Shahid Afridi Reveals His Real Age in Autobiography," ESPNcricinfo, May 2, 2019. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Jack McLachlan. 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!

24 Maj 202130min

343-Operation Cowboy

343-Operation Cowboy

In April 1945, a group of American soldiers learned that hundreds of Lipizzaner horses were being held on a farm in western Czechoslovakia -- and set out to rescue them before the Red Army could reach them. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of Operation Cowboy, one of the strangest episodes of World War II. We'll also learn about an NBA brawl and puzzle over a technology's link to cancer deaths. Intro: What's wrong with these Martian census numbers? Japanese puzzle maven Nob Yoshigahara offered this perplexing model. Sources for our feature on Operation Cowboy: Mark Felton, Ghost Riders: When U.S. and German Soldiers Fought Together to Save the World's Most Beautiful Horses in the Last Days of World War II, 2018. Stephan Talty, Operation Cowboy: The Secret American Mission to Save the World’s Most Beautiful Horses in the Last Days of World War II, 2014. David R. Dorondo, "Enemies Unite to Rescue Equestrian Captives," Army 69:8 (August 2019), 70-71. Mark Felton, "Operation Cowboy -- How American GIs & German Soldiers Joined Forces to Save the Legendary Lipizzaner Horses in the Final Hours of WW2," Military History Now, Nov. 25, 2018. Karen Jensen, "'Something Beautiful,'" World War II 24:4 (November 2009), 52-59,5. Boris Brglez, "The 3rd Army Rescue of the Lipizzaners," United States Army Medical Department Journal, January-March 2009, 59-63. Renita Foster, "Saving the Lippizaners: American Cowboys Ride to the Rescue," Armor 107:3 (May-June 1998), 22-23. Susan Davis, "Operation Cowboy in 1945 a Group of U.S. Soldiers Liberated 375 Lipizzans From Nazi Captivity," Sports Illustrated, Oct. 16, 1995. Marea Donnelly, "Hoof Dares Wins," [Surry Hills, N.S.W.] Daily Telegraph, Sept. 8, 2018. Matt Thompson, "WWII Soldier's Heroism Finally Coming to Light in His Hometown," [Toledo] Blade, May 29, 2016. Jennifer Bunn, "2CR, Czech Republic Remember Operation Cowboy," army.mil, May 2, 2016. Molly Bompane, "Army Europe, Czech Republic Celebrates 70th Anniversary of Operation Cowboy," army.mil, May 27, 2015. Jane Shilling, "History: The Beautiful Lipizzaner Breed Has Endured a Brutal 20th Century, Discovers Jane Shilling," Sunday Telegraph, Aug. 5, 2012. Dan Craft, "Lipizzaners Saved in War," McClatchy-Tribune Business News, Sept. 28, 2006. Listener mail: Charlie Miller, "What's the Record for Most Foul Balls Hit in a Single At-Bat?" Athlon Sports, Jan. 23, 2013. Harker Davies, "Randy Johnson Kills Dove," YouTube (video). "Randy Johnson Kills Dove With Pitch," ABC News, March 26, 2001. "Valencian Trinquet," Wikipedia (accessed May 6, 2021). "Valencian Pilota," Wikipedia (accessed May 6, 2021). TheNBAFreak, "Malice at the Palace," YouTube (video). "Pacers–Pistons Brawl," Wikipedia (accessed May 5, 2021). "Top 10 List of Worst NBA Fights, Cheap Shots," NBA News, April 23, 2012. Scott Gleeson, "Metta Sandiford-Artest and Stephen Jackson Reflect on 'Malice at the Palace': Fans 'Started It'," USA Today, Nov. 10, 2020. "Suspensions Without Pay, Won't Be Staggered," ESPN, Nov. 21, 2004. Michael McCarthy, "Fan Who Ignited Brawl Forever Banned From Pistons' Home Games," USA Today, Nov. 17, 2006. Zach Buckley, "The 5 Fights That Changed the NBA," Bleacher Report, May 23, 2020. "Carlisle: 'I Was Fighting for My Life Out There,'" ESPN, Nov. 20, 2004. "Recurring Jokes in Private Eye," Wikipedia (accessed May 8, 2021). "Arkell v. Pressdram," Letters of Note, Aug. 7, 2013. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Elliot Kendall, based on an item in James Hallenbeck's 2003 book Palliative Care Perspectives. 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!

17 Maj 202131min

342-A Slave Sues for Freedom

342-A Slave Sues for Freedom

In 1844 New Orleans was riveted by a dramatic trial: A slave claimed that she was really a free immigrant who had been pressed into bondage as a young girl. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe Sally Miller's fight for freedom, which challenged notions of race and social hierarchy in antebellum Louisiana. We'll also try to pronounce some drug names and puzzle over some cheated tram drivers. Intro: In 1992, a Florida bankruptcy judge held a computer in contempt of court. The 1908 grave of Vermont atheist George P. Spencer is inscribed with his credo. Sources for our feature on Sally Miller: Carol Wilson, The Two Lives of Sally Miller: A Case of Mistaken Racial Identity in Antebellum New Orleans, 2007. Paul Finkelman, Free Blacks, Slaves, and Slaveowners in Civil and Criminal Courts: The Pamphlet Literature, 2007. Gwendoline Alphonso, "Public & Private Order: Law, Race, Morality, and the Antebellum Courts of Louisiana, 1830-1860," Journal of Southern Legal History 23 (2015), 117-160. Emily West, "The Two Lives of Sally Miller," Slavery & Abolition 30:1 (March 2009), 151-152. Carol Lazzaro-Weis, "The Two Lives of Sally Miller: A Case of Mistaken Racial Identity in Antebellum New Orleans," Journal of Southern History 74:4 (November 2008), 970-971. Frank Towers, "The Two Lives of Sally Miller: A Case of Mistaken Identity in Antebellum New Orleans," American Historical Review 113:1 (February 2008), 181-182. Scott Hancock, "The Two Lives of Sally Miller: A Case of Mistaken Racial Identity in Antebellum New Orleans," Journal of American History 94:3 (December 2007), 931-932. Daneen Wardrop, "Ellen Craft and the Case of Salomé Muller in Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom," Women's Studies 33:7 (2004), 961-984. Patricia Herminghouse, "The German Secrets of New Orleans," German Studies Review 27:1 (February 2004), 1-16. Marouf Hasian Jr., "Performative Law and the Maintenance of Interracial Social Boundaries: Assuaging Antebellum Fears of 'White Slavery' and the Case of Sally Miller/Salome Müller," Text & Performance Quarterly 23:1 (January 2003), 55-86. Ariela Gross, "Beyond Black and White: Cultural Approaches to Race and Slavery," Columbia Law Review 101:3 (April 2001), 640-690. Stephan Talty, "Spooked: The White Slave Narratives," Transition 85 (2000), 48-75. Carol Wilson, "Sally Muller, the White Slave," Louisiana History: The Journal of the Louisiana Historical Association 40:2 (Spring 1999), 133-153. Ariela J. Gross, "Litigating Whiteness: Trials of Racial Determination in the Nineteenth-Century South," Yale Law Journal 108:1 (October 1998), 109-188. Carol Wilson and Calvin D. Wilson, "White Slavery: An American Paradox," Slavery & Abolition: A Journal of Slave and Post-Slave Studies 19:1 (1998). Wilbert E. Moore, "Slave Law and the Social Structure," Journal of Negro History 26:2 (April 1941), 171-202. "Case of Salome Müller," Law Reporter 8:7 (November 1845), 332-333. Nina C. Ayoub, "'The Two Lives of Sally Miller: A Case of Mistaken Racial Identity in Antebellum New Orleans,'" Chronicle of Higher Education, Oct. 19, 2007. Carol Edwards, "Story of German Slave Girl 'Extraordinary,' But Is It True?", [Charleston, S.C.] Post and Courier, March 20, 2005. Mary-Liz Shaw, "'The Lost German Slave Girl' Unravels a Mystery of Old South," Knight Ridder Tribune News Service, Jan. 26, 2005. Gregory M. Lamb, "The Peculiar Color of Racial Justice," Christian Science Monitor, Jan. 25, 2005. Linda Wolfe, "Sally Miller's Struggle to Escape Slavery Ended in Celebrated Case," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Jan. 23, 2005. Debra J. Dickerson, "Making a Case for Freedom: Was a White German Girl Forced Into Slavery?" Boston Globe, Jan. 23, 2005. Jonathan Yardley, "The Case of Sally Miller," Washington Post, Jan. 20, 2005. "Strange Case in New Orleans," Alexandria Gazette, July 3, 1845. "City Affairs," New-York Daily Tribune, July 11, 1844. Madison Cloud, Improvising Structures of Power and Race: The Sally Miller Story and New Orleans, dissertation, Baylor University, 2015. Carol Wilson, "Miller, Sally," American National Biography, April 2008. Listener mail: David Lazarus, "Wonder Where Generic Drug Names Come From? Two Women in Chicago, That's Where," Los Angeles Times, July 23, 2019. "Naming Law in Sweden," Wikipedia (accessed April 30, 2021). "Baby Named Metallica Rocks Sweden," BBC News, April 4, 2007. Meredith MacLeod, "Sweden Rejects 'Ford' as Name for Canadian-Swedish Couple's Son," CTVNews, Nov. 9, 2018. "Naming Law," Wikipedia (accessed April 30, 2021). "Naming in the United States," Wikipedia (accessed April 30, 2021). Tovin Lapan, "California Birth Certificates and Accents: O'Connor Alright, Ramón and José Is Not," Guardian, April 11, 2015. "AB-82 Vital records: diacritical marks" (as amended), California Legislative Information, Sept. 15, 2017. This week's lateral thinking puzzle was contributed by listener Charlotte Greener. 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!

10 Maj 202133min

Populärt inom Historia

massmordarpodden
p3-historia
historiska-brott
olosta-mord
historiepodden-se
motiv
historianu-med-urban-lindstedt
rss-massmordarpodden
krigshistoriepodden
nu-blir-det-historia
militarhistoriepodden
rss-borgvattnets-hemligheter
harrisons-dramatiska-historia
palmemordet
rss-seriemordarpodden
rss-folkets-historia
rss-historiens-mysterier
vetenskapsradion-historia
rss-brottshistoria
rss-historiskt-skvaller