In this mini recap of Episode 39: Johnny Storm and Spontaneous Combustion, the Rabbit Hole of Research crew — Joe, Nick, and Georgia — return to the flames of Johnny Storm and explore the biological plausibility of Marvel’s Human Torch. With highlights from the main episode featuring Dr. David Pincus (University of Chicago), they revisit ideas like spontaneous combustion, dehydration mitigation, phase-separated stress responses, and the role of extremophiles in extreme heat survival. Along the way, they ask hard-hitting questions like: Can you be a vegetarian superhero? How many Big Macs does it take to fuel flame flight? And what makes an extremophile extreme? It’s science, laughter, glands, ooze — and a teaser of the final Fantastic Four member Reed Richards, and what the crew is watching, reading, and playing.
It’s science, it’s fiction, it’s science for weirdos.
And don’t forget to Pre-order: Red Line: Chicago Horror Stories Anthology featuring a new story by Joe!
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Stay curious, stay speculative, stay safe, and we’ll catch you in the next rabbit hole. Love Y'all!
Future Episodes & Events:
Fantastic Four Science Series (Episodes 37–40) – Leading up to the MCU Fantastic Four movie (releasing July 25, 2025):
Ep. 40 – Stretching the Human Body
Guest: Dr. Maria Dowell (Northwestern), breaking down Mr. Fantastic, elasticity, and anatomical plausibility
Events:
Book Club Q&A – July 29:
Joe will lead a live Q&A at Reed’s Local for Will You Still Love Me If I Become Someone Else? by Jotham Austin II.
Joe at Dragon Con – Aug 28–Sep 1:
Joe appears as an Attending Professional at Dragon Con in Atlanta. Come talk comics, body horror, or biophysics at the panels!
Links, Resources, and Topics Mentioned in mini and/or full episode:
Featured Full Episode:
More on Extremophiles:
Fantastic Microbes and Where to Find Them – The Scientist
https://www.the-scientist.com/fantastic-microbes-and-where-to-find-them-73029
Topics from the Main & Mini Episodes:
Spontaneous combustion and thermal stress
Gland theory and ooze containment
Protein stability at high temperatures
Liquid-liquid phase separation
Potential skin adaptations and bio-shields
Big Mac fuel estimates for flame power
Extremophiles that survive heat, cold, acid, and methane
Vegetarian and vegan superheroes (Beast Boy, Todd from Scott Pilgrim)
The biology of superhero dietary needs
Science & Fiction Connections in Episode
Extremophiles → Superhero Physiology: Drawing parallels between microbes that survive volcanic vents and Johnny Storm’s theoretical flame resistance.
Biological Phase Separation → Fireproof Cells: Cells reorganizing their internal structure during heat stress, possibly explaining how Johnny avoids burning from the inside out.
Fast Metabolism → Big Mac Math: Using speculative calorie estimates to calculate what kind of diet would fuel a superhero made of flame.
Vegetarian Superheroes: Reflecting on character lore (Beast Boy, Scott Pilgrim’s Todd Ingram) and how diet intersects with power and identity.
Speculative Evolution: The idea that Johnny’s biology could have evolved or been engineered to rely on alternative fuels like hydrogen or methane — just like real extremophiles.
Images From the Basement Studio:
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