Shows / That's Absurd Please Elaborate
That's Absurd Please Elaborate
Seriously researched answers to absolutely ridiculous questions. New episodes every week.
Episodes
- That's Absurd Please Elaborate
Too Much Hug Then Die, I Guess | Halloween Episode!
It's Halloween, nerds, which means it's time to get into the really horrifying stuff: the limits of the human body. Trace and Julian explore the science of…
- That's Absurd Please Elaborate
The Tiniest Arsonists Possible | LIVE from the Bay Area Science Festival ft. Vanna Tran
Let's say your house is on fire. Bummer. Worse, the only sort of fluid you have handy to douse said flames is gasoline. Lots and lots of gasoline (that's your…
- That's Absurd Please Elaborate
Could AA Batteries Replace a Star?
Our Sun is an absolutely RIDICULOUS power source, pumping out more energy every second than most of us can even begin to wrap our heads around. And while AA…
- That's Absurd Please Elaborate
Min-Maxing Human Decomposition
This week, we bodily embrace spooky season by digging into the science of what happens when a body returns its borrowed flesh. From flesh-eating microbes and…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateFlinging Freaky Fast Formicids!
When it comes to tiny insects, the ants (formicidae) are an incredible family of organisms. They can build complex structures, they’ve invented and practice…
- That's Absurd Please Elaborate
How Much Jello is TOO Much?
Gelatin is a surprisingly strange material, especially when you stop serving it by the spoonful and start measuring it by the swimming pool. Julian looks into…
- That's Absurd Please Elaborate
The Search for Love and Other Rare Things
The universe is chock-full of things that are hard to find, but figuring out which one deserves the title of “rarest” turns out to be surprisingly complicated…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateHorror of Human Limb Regrowth
Nature has handed out some wildly uneven perks. While certain animals can regrow entire limbs, humans are limited to patch jobs. Julian and Trace dig into what…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateToo Much Mucus, Not Enough Face
If you’ve ever been sick and wondered how a seemingly endless supply of mucus can fit inside your face, you’re not alone. This week, Trace and Julian…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateTen Seconds of Zero Gravity… Every DAY?!
This week, Julian and Trace imagine a world where gravity vanishes for ten seconds every day. There, they discover that humanity would have a lot more to worry…
- That's Absurd Please Elaborate
Freaky Mermaids, "REAL" Dragons, and Trace's Evil Twin|feat Ellen Weatherford (Just the Zoo of Us)|TAPE Classic
🎶 Game of Thrones theme 🎶 DRA-GONS. WHAT ARE DRAG-ONS? LET US KNOWWWWWW OR MER-MAIDS. FRICKIN’ MER-MAIDS… HOW THEY GOOOOO? PLUS JUUUU-LIAN WANTS TO CHECK ON…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateCuidado: Piso Mojado
This week, Trace and Julian investigate a deceptively simple mystery: why do things look darker when they’re wet? Although the question sounds almost too…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateSmooth Sailingn’t
This week, Julian and Trace imagine a world where humanity never got around to inventing ships and discovers that the consequences run a WHOLE lot deeper than…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateAI Chefs and Unqualified Sled Dogs | TAPE Classic
In this TAPE classic, Trace tackles a transportation problem of his own creation by figuring out just how many chihuahuas it would take to complete the…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateThe Most Boring Day in History
This week, Trace and Julian embark on a surprisingly existential mission: finding the most boring day in history. Easy, right? Just pick a day where nothing…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateCherenkov Radiation & Clownfish Polycules
This week, Trace dives into the eerie blue glow of Cherenkov radiation—the phenomenon that makes nuclear reactors look suspiciously like sci-fi props—and asks…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateTaste the Brainbow!
This week, Julian launches an investigation into “Big Sun” and its wild claim that humans can somehow absorb vitamins from a giant nuclear fireball 93 million…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateIt’s a Fart Rocket Breakthrough! | TAPE Classic
In this TAPE Classic episode, Trace explores the science of stasis, diving into hyper-sleep, cryogenic freezing, and whether humanity might one day be able to…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateThe Flow Must Go On | feat. Ella Hubber
This week, Trace and Julian are joined by special guest Dr. Ella Hubber as they embark on a quest to stop natural processes both big and small. Julian combines…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateThe Rain on Titan Falls Mainly as Methane
If our magic button killed every microbe on Earth — all bacteria, all viruses, gone — what would be left standing? Spoiler: You'd be missing something…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateBONUS: Health vs Hype with the American Medical Association | feat. Trace Dominguez
Did you know our very own Trace Dominguez is the host of another podcast, Health vs Hype with the American Medical Association? Every week on HvH Trace talks…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateCloudy with a Chance of Blunt Force Trauma
This week, Trace and Julian accidentally stumble into what may be the most in-depth discussion of a certain food-based weather movie ever recorded. To…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateNature’s Got Talent | feat. Chelsea "Foxanne" Gohd
This week, Trace conducts a cosmic investigation into whether our nearest celestial neighbor is secretly trying to sunburn us, only to find that the real…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateThe Human Body is a Topologist’s Nightmare
This week, Julian explores whether animals can be allergic to humans, digging into all things histamine to find out if nature has ever collectively decided…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateThe Relativistic Adventures of Rita Excreta
If we had a nickel for every time Julian answered a question involving pigeons, we’d have two nickels. Not that many, but weird that it’s happened twice. This…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateOh No the Goalie is… Everywhere | feat. Tom Scott | TAPE Classic
Hi fellow nerds! As many of you may know, Julian is back at school as an engineering student. As many of you may ALSO know, that's freakin' hard! So to give…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateShear Bounce in Every Ounce
Is that a slogan for hair shampoo or fizzy drinks? Well, kick back, relax, and crack open a can—or, you know, be like us and choose from one of the many flat…
That's Absurd Please ElaboratePlanckmaxxing
This week, Trace digs into whether life could’ve ever gotten its start somewhere else—say, Mars, for example—quickly pointing out that our lovely planet's…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateCoast to Coast Riding a Pizza Surfboard
If you’ve been itching for a cross-country trip, you could just book a flight like a normal person… but where’s the fun in that? This week, Julian (heroically)…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateDo Squid Need Glasses?
This week on the pod, Julian makes a groundbreaking discovery: contrary to popular belief, humans and squid are, in fact, very different animals. One species…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateFondueing What Shouldn’t Be Fondone
This week, Trace turns a completely normal human behavior into a full-blown scientific investigation, uncovering how airflow, temperature, and mouth geometry…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateEither You Iocaine or You 1-0-can’t | TAPE Classic
Hi all! As I'm sure those of you with the patience to sit through the end credits know, the show is edited and produced by Kyle Sisk. Kyle is the glue holding…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateSumptuous 'Saurus Soars in a Seriously Staticky Sweater | TAPE Classic
Hey all! This week, we're rebroadcasting a very memorable TAPE episode from last June to give ourselves a bit of a break: Julian's flight school classes…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateNothing Suspicious About Collecting Spicy Pigeons
.... . .-.. .-.. --- / .- -. -.. / .-- . .-.. -.-. --- -- . / - --- / .- -. --- - .... . .-. / .-- .. .-.. -.. / . .--. .. ... --- -.. . / --- ..-. / - .... .-…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateYou're Gonna Need At Least 8,000 More Pirates
This week, Trace takes a closer look at one of the boldest maneuvers in pirate cinema: whether a determined crowd could actually flip something the size of an…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateThis Man Built a Piss Rocket. Seriously. | feat. Lieven Scheire
This week, we’re rewriting the rules of life, starting at the molecular level and ending 250 miles above Earth. Julian digs into what would happen if our…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateGimmie Glue, a Lever, and a Frickin' 1999 Toyota Corolla
This week on the most serious, most dramatic podcast ever recorded, Trace finally takes Archimedes up on his little boast: “Give me a lever and I can move the…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateAin't No Rule Says Bodily Fluids Can't Be Seasoning
This week, Julian—hoping to crown the true MVP of the animal kingdom—drafts the ultimate basketball beast, while Trace turns up the heat to find out whether…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateD&D Pee and Chickpea TNT
In this emergency rerun episode, Trace’s quest for answers takes him to a magical fantasy land of wizards, frozen keys, and bodily fluids. Meanwhile Julian…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateA Tiny Space Between an Ablution and Electrocution
Both Julian and Trace did ‘a journalism’ this week! First, Julian learns that electricity is NOT magic (but will kill you) by calling a relative who makes…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateTrippin' Unicorn Learny Journey ✨️
This week Julian hunts the medical mysteries behind the mystical unicorn horn, and Trace reads a loooooooot of government regulations looking to get tripped up…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateWhich Came Last: the Tortoise or the Onion Unraveling into Nothingness?
Anyone who’s ever had to educate a talking donkey would know, onions have layers (just like ogres). But, just like in the story with the giant, green, scottish…
That's Absurd Please ElaboratePapyrus is Temporary but a Body on Pluto is Forever | Feat. Ralph Crewe
This week Julian takes a pleasant trip down to his local Egyptian library and tries to save it from burning to the ground and dramatically altering the course…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateLasagna Batteries? Aww Heli(copter) Yeah!
It’s our first episode of the new year! Welcome to 2026! In this, wild episode Trace (recording from his parent’s sun room) explores the chemistry and power of…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateThis'll be weird… Happy Holidays from TAPE!
Like Boromir said, "It is a gift! Let us use it against them!" The internet has been taken over by #lofi girls, so we commissioned an artist to turn Julian and…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateRed Sky at Night Batman’s Delight! | feat. Yasmin Khan (TYT) & Jasmine Miller (Give Directly)
Support your giving goals this holiday season! Go to GiveDirectly.org/Absurd and get a 100% match by Giving Multiplier! (Don't dilly-dally this match is only…
- That's Absurd Please Elaborate
The Soundtrack of Eternity (Good Band Name)
If your life had a soundtrack what would it be? Up-tempo action music? Epic orchestral swells? Romantic… xylophones? Are xylophones romantic? We don’t know…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateThe Buffet Hates to See THIS Tardigrade Coming | LIVE from the Bay Area Science Festival
We did another live show!! I’m not sure how we convinced the Bay Area Science Festival that we are a legitimate podcast, but, hey, people actually showed up to…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateThanksgiving Rerun: Melting Witches with Inflated Heads
Happy American Turkey Consumption Day! 🦃 In honor of the national holiday we've let Kyle out of his editing dungeon and let him celebrate with his family…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateStuck in a Time Loop while ‘Doing Taxes’ | feat. Danielle Bezalel
If we say: Making whoopee. Polishing the broomstick. The pickle tickle. Shagging. Enjoying Taco Tuesday. Parking the beef bus in Tuna Town. Waxing the carrot…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateWho's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf? Civil Engineers
You know what's passé? Chemical rockets. Powering a space ship by harnessing the expanding gasses of a controlled explosion and shooting off to parts unknown…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateWhat if humans laid eggs…? | Feat. Marco Wendt
Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, Over my quaint and curious human egg, forgotten I should stretch my leg— While I nodded, nearly…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateDrunk Vampires and Malodius Mammals | Halloween Special!
In this special HALLOWEEN EPISODE ⚡️ Julian and Trace wear out Kyle’s lightning button ⚡️ and answer some SpoOOoOooOOOoky questions about ⚡️ dangerous animals…
That's Absurd Please ElaboratePûre Information About Food and Poops
When can we all admit that we’re all scrolling instagram while sitting on the toilet? When will we admit that foods with more surface area are just darn…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateWhen Wildlife ATTACKS
Locusts, Squirrels, and Birds OH MY! In this wild episode of the show, Julian drones on like the queen he is all about airplanes and bees. Then, Trace finds…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateTHE 100 1/2TH ABSURDAGANZA CONTINUES
Dearest Listeners, We write from our recording studio's trenches. The air is thick and oppressive. The relentless heat tests our resolve. Our studios, once…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateTHE 100TH EPISODE ABSURDAGANZA!
WE DID IT. WE MADE 100 PODCAST EPISODES WITHOUT MISSING AN UPLOAD (almost). To celebrate Trace and Julian decided to do it big. How big? TEN WHOLE QUESTIONS…
That's Absurd Please Elaborate"MINIONS! Lower Mr. Bond into the Saliva Pool!"
Tired of having to do all your evil deeds yourself? Well with this one simple organism and some ethically dubious genetic engineering you too could have your…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateZooming in on Nano Paintings (They're a BIG deal)
Want to make a nanoscale image of the Mona Lisa? Listener Kodiak does. All they have to do is learn a bit of quantum mechanics, some thermochemical…
That's Absurd Please ElaborateThis Giant Moon Makes Your Bones Float
The hip bone connected to the basalt rock The femur bone connected to the lunar maria The foot bone connected to the gravitational equilibrium of the celestial…