What If: Science, Theory, and Possibilities

Deserts won't remain barren wastelands. Discover how transforming the world's deserts into lush farmland could impact our planet. What are the costs of terraforming, and how might turning deserts into farmland affect the Amazon rainforest? Transcript and sources For questions or concerns, contact us at Underknown. Get our 100 best episodes in one mind-blowing book: Buy here Join this channel to ge...

Spa days are the ultimate relaxation retreat. Many people enjoy soaking in warm pools or natural hot springs. But what happens if you immerse yourself in a hot spring for an entire day? Could a 24-hour soak leave you looking like a prune, or might it overheat your internal organs? Transcript and sourcesQuestions or concerns? Contact us Get our 100 best episodes in one mind-blowing book: Get the bo...

Mood swings, baby brain. Until now, potential pregnancy complications are something only those of us with uteruses experienced. But what if men could get pregnant too? Men statistically work more in business, politics and lawmaking. If men got pregnant, abortions could become legal or more easily available in many places. Paid leave for pregnancies would probably be more commonplace. If men could...

Picture this: it’s a scene from a disaster movie. The oceans are ablaze and burning out of control. Have you entered the ninth circle of hell? Nope. We’re rebuilding the oceans. This time, they’re not saltwater oceans. These oceans are made of gasoline! What would the environmental impact be? Why would gasoline oceans destroy international trade? And (the question we’ve all been asking) would it m...

What a wonderful day for some kayaking out on the open sea. Wait a second. Why is the water spiraling? Is this a whirlpool? How could you end up getting sucked in? What would spinning down that drain feel like? And what would happen if you had a bigger boat? What are the Lofoten Islands in Norway known for? How dangerous is the Moskstraumen maelstrom? Transcript and sources: https://whatifshow.com...

Do you ever think human evolution is a little slow? What if we cranked up the speed and had you evolve 1,000 years in one day? In what ways would your appearance change? How would new technology shape your life? How would it change the way you think? What would nanobots and artificial intelligence help with? Transcript and sources: https://whatifshow.com/what-if-you-evolved-1000-years-in-a-day/ Qu...

Imagine a world of endless possibilities where every decision splits reality, creating infinite parallel universes. How would your life differ across these realities, and how might these universes intersect? Transcript and sources: whatifshow.com Questions or concerns? Contact us: underknown.com/contact Get our 100 best episodes in one mind-blowing book: http://bit.ly/ytc-the-what-if-100-book Join...

Welcome to the Solar System construction zone. Today, you'll be using our cosmic sandbox to build a brand new planet. What would you need to create a rocky planet like Earth? Where should this planet be located to be habitable? And how would this affect the rest of our Solar System? What are planetesimals? Timeline: 00:00 Building your own planet.00:39 Planetesimals and protoplanets.02:50 Four key...

The Mullaperiyar Dam, a historical structure that predates your grandparents, faces the risk of sudden failure. Explore the factors that could lead to its collapse and the potential devastation for nearby communities. Understand the scale of damage from a dam breach and how a minor earthquake might trigger a major disaster. Read the full transcript and sources. Got questions or concerns? Contact u...

Billions of years ago, a planet collided with Earth, possibly creating the Moon and introducing alien life. What remnants of this planet exist today? Could there be advanced humanoid aliens living within Earth's surface in subterranean cities? Transcript and sources: What If Aliens are Living Inside Earth? Questions or concerns? Contact us at Underknown Get our 100 best episodes in one mind-blowin...

Ice caps on both poles of the planet are melting. If all this ice were to melt, it would be catastrophic. How much would sea levels rise? How would this impact global temperatures? What would this mean for life on Earth? Would coastal lands be completely submerged? What will happen to places like Denmark, the Maldives, and Singapore? Transcript and sources: https://whatifshow.com/world-earths-ice-...

OK, stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart. Bend your knees, stick your butt out and squat. Great. Now do that again and again, all day long. How many squats would you be able to do? What would happen to your body? And would your butt be enormous by the end of the day? What will happen to your quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes after this? 00:00 Can you do squats for 24 hours straight?...

Twenty years later, the Matrix is once again asking us to make an ultimate choice. Would you rather live comfortably in the Matrix or wake up in a terrifying reality? Well, brace yourself. This computer now controls your life down to the last detail. What if your world was a simulation? Could you ever trust your senses? Would you find glitches in the code? And if this is a simulation, who's runnin...

Dedicated to Sullivan Jones (2012-2022), a bright young What If fan and part of the Underknown family forever. RIP Get a chance to win our gorgeous What If 100 book! Comment your favorite line from the song and suggest what our next song should be about. The most creative comment will get the book! 🎉 Questions or concerns? Contact us at https://underknown.com/contact/ Get our 100 best episodes in...

Several volcanoes around the world are being woken up on purpose. The mission? To use volcanic eruptions to protect the Earth from global warming. In what ways could you activate a volcano? How could you do this in the safest way possible? And would this save the planet or create more climate chaos? How will they stop climate change? What is solar geoengineering? Transcript and sources: whatifshow...

What's the worst pain you've experienced? A broken bone? Touching something hot? Maybe stepping on a sharp toy? In this What If experiment, discover what real pain feels like. What would be the most painful experience you could have? What different types of pain would you feel? And why could this pain be good for you? How does the nervous system respond to pain? Why is trigeminal neuralgia so pain...

Imagine if all the Earth's oxygen disappeared, just for an hour. Could you hold your breath that long? What would happen to the atmosphere, and could Earth recover from this global suffocation? Explore the effects on your inner ear and the potential disappearance of the ozone layer. Transcript and sources: whatifshow.com Questions or concerns? Contact us at underknown.com/contact Get our 100 best...

Hang on because we're about to screech to a halt. The Earth is going to stop spinning for five seconds. How much damage would this sudden stoppage cause? What would you experience in different parts of the world? And when the Earth starts spinning again, would it still be habitable? How would the day and night cycle be affected? Why would there be strong winds? Transcript and sources Questions or...

The time for talk is over. Now the biggest countries on Earth are fighting for global supremacy. What would happen if the United States started World War III? Who would the U.S. attack first? Could we use robot soldiers? Or would nuclear power win the day? What is adaptive camouflage, and what are other kinds of modern warfare that could be used? Timeline:00:00 Starting World War III00:41 Tensions...

Elon Musk wants to nuke Mars. What are the consequences? Without nukes, life on Mars might be like this: You'd live in giant glass domes, and grow small portions of food inside. Watch the full episode here. Produced with love by Underknown in Toronto: Underknown Contact us at Underknown Contact #ElonMusk #Mars #nuke #SpaceX #glassdomes #Marscolonization See show notes: https://inlet.fm/what-if-sci...

"I ain't afraid of no ghost!" Of course not. You're in the Ghostbusters universe. With a quick stomp, demons are as good as gone. So how would life change if you could bust ghosts in real life? Would you need to reinvent nuclear power? Or just a whole lot of money? And could you get slimed? Transcript and sources: whatifshow.com Questions or concerns? Contact us at underknown.com Get our 100 best...

The Middle Ages, a time when you were more likely to die on the toilet than take a bath. And now you're going there with an educational mission. It's up to you now. Let's show the Middle Ages how it's done. Would you be tried as a witch? Could you cure all diseases? Or would you accidentally create a new pandemic? Would you be able to discover electricity? Will smallpox be cured? What are garderob...

Jupiter is the biggest planet in our Solar System, with 79 moons, just behind Saturn's 82. Imagine the night sky with all these moons. How would Earth's tides be affected? What beauty or disaster would this bring? 00:00 79 Different Moons in the Night Sky00:37 Jupiter02:02 Jupiter's Moons: Io, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto03:57 Thanks to our sponsor, Grammarly!04:51 Earth's Rotation and Axis Get 20%...

One second you are out cold. The next, you’re on the operating table in the middle of heart surgery. Welcome to your most terrifying nightmare. What happens when anesthesia doesn’t work? Would you feel everything that is happening to your body? And why wouldn’t you be able to tell your surgeon you’re awake? Transcript and sources: whatifshow.com Questions or concerns? Contact us at underknown.com/...

If you were going for a refreshing swim, the last thing you’d expect is to suffocate from toxic gases. But when it comes to Lake Kivu, this is one dangerous body of water you wouldn’t want to dive into. What makes this lake so hazardous? What would be the physical consequences of swimming in it? And how could the lake be on the verge of a toxic explosion? Transcript and sources: here Questions or...