Alrighty then, it's the zombie apocalypse! I adopted this topic because a reader suggested to me that I use some more lighthearted topics, and inject some humor. (Apparently I am a bit too stiff) So before I get to some zombie apocalypse survival tips, lets talk about the hard science behind zombies. Could some sort of virus be created that could have the classic zombie effect? The short answer is yes, but it would be very difficult to do, because although the victim is dead, they still have enough motor function to be animated enough to appear to be alive. The closest thing in nature to a zombie virus is actually mad cow disease, a prion. A prion is a distorted protien that after entering the body goes straight to the brain and actually "feeds" on the brain, leaving gaping holes as it reproduces. Brain scans of patients with prions in their system have been compared to shotgun blasts to the head, because of the extensive damage to brain tissue. Fortunately, prions are very easy to contain (only 171 recorded deaths EVER), as they are only transmitted by eating meat from an already infected animal, or in the case of a tribe in New Guinea, cannibalism. Now to be effective a prion would have to be mated with something really contagious, say a virus. Only then could it wreak the havoc depicted in zombie culture.
Zombies were my first avenue into prepping. Freshman year I read The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks, and I became borderline obsessed with zombies. I even had a zombie apocalypse tip of the day. My teacher would ask at the beginning of class "Alright what is today's tip?" And I would mention something from the book, like only 3 in 10 zombies can climb ladders, or some other nonsense. But reading the book got me going with prepping. If you prepped for something as intense as a zombie apocalypse, you are prepared for pretty much anything. In conclusion, I hope you enjoyed this post, and I recommend reading The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks, it is a great survival book that is comedic and just happens to be about zombies.
They should have an episode like this on house...but then again, i don't watch house.
ReplyDeleteI feel as though the zombie apocalypse will never happen. It would have already happened by now. Besides zombies are slow and all we would have to do is climb to a higher elevation do defeat them. However I am comforted to know that scientists are developing strategies to combat this if it ever were to happen. Very interesting stuff though. One can only imagine if this were to really happen..
ReplyDeletePrions are not the best comparison to a zombie-like apocalypse. Think about the many more cases of rabies and the effects it has on people. While everyone says zombies are dead, in every zombie movie or book they act more like they don't know they are dead after being bitten. The brain shuts down if a great deal of damage is given to the body, but if it cannot interpret those signals the being would only die because the brain lost the ability to sustain itself. If rabies was combined with a disease that suppresses the brain's receptors and caused an increase in adrenalin production, an infected person would have the traits of a zombie. The disease is transferred by an infected organism biting a healthy one and drawing blood. The infected then becomes extremely violent and may attack people they have known for years. The only two problems rabies has in exemplifying zombification is the time it takes to invade the person and the fear of water that it produces as a side effect. In any case, preparing for a zombie apocalypse would be quite simple. A zombie would be unable to use complex weapons due to the damage to the brain and would be easily attacked from far away with a bow and arrows, guns, or even heavy rocks thrown from above. Simple traps like tripwires, head-height razor-wire, or camouflaged pits could be used at maximum efficiency. When traveling, a ball and chain could be used to eliminate any attacking zombies simply by swinging it overhead to provide 360 degrees of low-level protection. Finally, stun grenades would render any zombies completely immobile as they would be unable to defend themselves as healthy people instinctively would.
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