This episode of Rabbit Hole of Research finds hosts Joe, Nick, and Georgia joined by Todd Thyberg and Bill Halliar for a deep freeze descent into the paranoid world of The Thing. Together, they dissect the tangled origins of this iconic alien menace—tracing its evolution from John W. Campbell’s 1938 novella Who Goes There?, through 1951’s The Thing from Another World, to John Carpenter’s bleak 1982 masterpiece and its 2011 prequel.

But this isn’t just film history. The crew drills into the speculative biology of The Thing itself: Could such a creature exist? What does it mean to mimic life so perfectly it erases identity? And how many Big Macs would it take to replicate a human from scratch? Along the way, they ponder the philosophical terror of losing the boundary between self and other, question whether The Thing ever left Antarctica, and even ask: What if it infected a Predator?

Part biology, part film theory, part sci-fi mindbender, this episode explores how The Thing has become cinema’s ultimate metaphor for contagion, trust, and the horror of not knowing who—or what—you really are.

Check out what the RHR crew is creating:

Joe:

Red Line: Chicago Horror Stories Anthology featuring a new story by Joe!

Chicago Writers Association Podcast: Talkin’ Science Fiction with Joe Austin

Essay by Joe: From Beyond Press: Specific Knowledge: Jotham Austin, II, PhD on Transformations in Fiction

Joe explores how many calories it would take to transform into monsters across sci-fi and horror—think 222 Big Macs and tubs of Cherry Garcia.

Georgia:

Printmaking Class at Promise You ArtHouse on November 11th. Click here for Details or scan the QR code in image to register!

It’s Science for Weirdos

Want to support the show? Tell your friends. Follow us on social media, Discord, share the podcast, and let us know what topics you are excited about. Leave a Comment. And for email alerts sign-up for the Substack newsletter and never miss an episode, exciting updates or the bonus images we talk about on the episodes.

We want to Hear From You (leave a comment):

Who was The Thing at the end of Carpenter’s 1982 film?

Was it MacReady? Childs? Neither? Both?

If you could infect any alien species or fictional universe with The Thing—who would it be, and why?

What would you do if you were stranded at Outpost 31 and suspected someone was The Thing?

Would you isolate yourself? Run tests? Burn the whole place down?

If The Thing infected a real-world organism—animal, fungus, microbe—which would be the worst-case scenario for Earth?

Go wild: think ants, octopuses, mycelial networks… or even humans with influencer accounts.

Future Episodes & Events

Episode 48 – Perception vs. Perspective

Guest: Katie Lichte-Mullenix

Is your brain lying to you? An exploration of perception, illusion, and how the mind constructs reality.

Episode 49 – The Heart of a Superhero

Guest: Rengasayee (Sai) Veeraraghavan

We crack open the anatomy of heroism—how courage, biology, and myth shape our modern superheroes.

Episode 50 – Gremlins and Holiday Science

Guest: Chris Guzman

A festive foray into chaos theory, creature features, and the secret science behind cinematic holiday mayhem.

Episode 51 – Season 2 Recap: PJs and Holiday Movies

Guests: Whoever wants to celebrate two great seasons!

Grab your pajamas and join the crew as we toast two seasons of curiosity, chaos, and cinematic science—plus a sneak peek at what’s coming in Season 3.

Events:

Joe will be reading with 5 other story tellers at the Printer’s Row Wine Shop and Bar on November 1st.

2pm-4pm

Joe will be reading with other story tellers at the Experimental Station in Hyde Park on November 1st.

5:30-8pm

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