A contained pile is a pile that is enclosed on at least one of its sides. Since a traditional pile exists in a 360 degree environment, the term “sides” can be loosely interpreted. Basically, the contained pile is buffeted by a straight edge at any point along its circumference. The edge need not be straight in the 90 degree angle sense, but must meet the pile at a congruency. The pile must not continue on the other side of this edge. If it does, this constitutes a new pile. If the pile grows over an inhibiting ledge, then it becomes a traditional pile, and is no longer deemed contained. To semantically clarify, the bottom surface that a pile rests upon is not considered as a restrictive edge, merely a gravitational inhibitor.

  Contained piles are common within the household because most people perceive exposed piles as untidy. The garbage bin is a perfect example of a contained pile. The thinking in most homes is that unwanted refuse cannot be allowed to pile up naturally, it must be kept out of sight in an opaque container to be disposed into a more natural pile miles away. This is very practical. Other examples of contained piles include boxes in the attic filled with various old toys and bowling trophies, a bordered compost heap or leaves collected against a street curb. Any pile that meets a wall is contained.

  There is nothing inherently disingenuous about contained piles, but as mentioned in some other chapter, contained piles may be easily co-opted into the capitalist stack structure. Four-sided contained piles may be tempting to stack in an attempt to “save