Futility Closet

John Hornby left a privileged background in England to roam the vast subarctic tundra of northern Canada. There he became known as "the hermit of the north," famous for staying alive in a land with very few resources. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast, we'll spend a winter with Hornby, who's been called "one of the most colorful adventurers in modern history." We'll also consider an anthropologist's reputation and puzzle over an unreachable safe. Intro: In 1902, Ambrose Bierce proposed that we learn to sever our social ties. Can it make sense to pray for a change in the past? Sources for our feature on John Hornby: Malcolm Waldron, Snow Man: John Hornby in the Barren Lands, 1931. Pierre Berton, Prisoners of the North, 2011. David F. Pelly, Thelon: A River Sanctuary, 1996. Morten Asfeldt and Bob Henderson, eds., Pike's Portage: Stories of a Distinguished Place, 2010. Misao Dean, Inheriting a Canoe Paddle: The Canoe in Discourses of English-Canadian Nationalism, 2013. Michael D. Pitt, Beyon