Futility Closet

In 1924 two British mountaineers set out to be the first to conquer Mount Everest. But they never returned to camp, and to this day no one knows whether they reached the top. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll review the case of George Mallory and Andrew Irvin, which has been called "one of the greatest unsolved adventure mysteries of the 20th century." We'll also learn what to do if attacked by a bear and puzzle over the benefits of a water shortage. Intro: Marshall Islanders navigated using "charts" of lashed sticks, threads, and shells. Jan Brueghel's 1617 painting Hearing immortalizes a well-traveled Australian cockatoo. Sources for our feature on George Mallory and Andrew Irvine: Wade Davis, Into the Silence, 2011. Jochen Hemmleb, Larry A. Johnson, and Eric R. Simonson, Ghosts of Everest, 1999. Peter Firstbrook, Lost on Everest, 1999. Ed Douglas, "Lifelong Secret of Everest Pioneer: I Discovered Mallory's Body in 1936," Guardian, Nov. 23, 2013. Nick Squires, "Mallory and Irvi