Futility Closet An idler's miscellany of compendious amusements

Futility Closet is a collection of entertaining curiosities in history, literature, language, art, philosophy, and mathematics, designed to help you waste time as enjoyably as possible.

You can read Futility Closet on the web, subscribe by RSS, or sign up to receive a free daily email -- see "Subscribe by Email" in the sidebar.

The site is growing, so we've set up a separate blog on which readers can join in a discussion of future endeavors. Click the "Blog" link at left.