How could zombies begin?

[MikePizzoff]

2-4-5 Trioxin. Duh.

[bassman]

2-4-5 Trioxin. Duh. Don't forget the acid rain. We all know the characters did.

[Rancid Carcass]

Rage Virus like 28 Days Later To be honest, I think if it happened along the lines of a 28 Days style rage virus I'd be pretty disappointed. I mean if I'm going to get caught up in world ending apocalypse I want proper walking corpse type zombies, not some infected human thing - we only get one shot at this so we might as well do it right!

[Publius]

well he did snort his dad...so i'd buy that one! for a dollar?

[MoonSylver]

well he did snort his dad...so i'd buy that one! for a dollar?

[blind2d]

"Bixby!!!" <--shakes fist in Stephen Colbert fashion.

[Mr_Shadow]

As much as I love zombies (in a fictional world), I don't think that it's possible for a corpse to ever be reanimated after death. Neurogenesis You know all that conversy out there about stem cell research? Well, the whole thing with stem cells is that they can basically be used to re-generate dead cells. Particularly of interest to zombologists like ourselves is neurogenesis http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurogenesis, the method by which they can re-grow dead brain tissue. You can see where this is going. How it can result in zombies: Science can pretty much save you from anything but brain death; they can swap out organs but when the brain turns to mush, you're gone. Right? Well, not for long. They're already able to re-grow the brains of comatose head trauma patients until they wake up and walk around again. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science...00b598b9811763 Couple that with the new ability to keep a dead body in a state of suspended animation http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/11/ma...4-21.html?_r=1 so that it can be brought back to life later, and soon we'll be able to bring back the dead, as long as we get to them quickly enough. That sounds great, right? Well, this lab http://www.2000plus.mpg.de/e/90/article/ dedicated to "reanimation research" (yes, that's what they call it) explains how the process of "reanimating" a person creates a problem. It causes the brain to die off from the outside in. The outside being the cortex, the nice part of you that makes humans human. That just leaves the part that controls basic motor function and primitive instincts behind. You don't need the cortex to survive; all you need is the stem and you'll still be able to mindlessly walk and eat and enjoy Grey's Anatomy. This is how chickens can keep walking around after they've been beheaded (including one case where the chicken lived for 18 months without a head)http://www.miketheheadlesschicken.org/story.php. So, you take a brain dead patient, use these techniques to re-grow the brain stem, and you now have a mindless body shambling around, no thoughts and no personality, nothing but a cloud of base instincts and impulses. That, ladies and gentlemen, is what we like to call a real, live, undead fucking zombie. So there. Chances this could cause a zombie apocalypse: Think about it. Under every legal system in the world, all rights and responsibilities are terminated at death. All it takes is someone with resources and a need for a mindless workforce of totally obedient slave labor. How long until somebody tries this? I'm betting somebody in the world, maybe North Korea, will have a working zombie by Christmas.

[Sammich]

Here is a english dubbed video from a german (or french?) scientist discussing how parasites influence behavior of host insects. With genetic engineering I wonder if something like this could be made to infect humans and create hell on earth.

[MoonSylver]

That sounds great, right? Well, this lab http://="http://www.2000plus.mpg.de/.../e/90/article/ dedicated to "reanimation research" (yes, that's what they call it) explains how the process of "reanimating" a person creates a problem. It causes the brain to die off from the outside in. The outside being the cortex, the nice part of you that makes humans human. That just leaves the part that controls basic motor function and primitive instincts behind. . So, you take a brain dead patient, use these techniques to re-grow the brain stem, and you now have a mindless body shambling around, no thoughts and no personality, nothing but a cloud of base instincts and impulses. That, ladies and gentlemen, is what we like to call a real, live, undead fucking zombie. So there. . Yeah, but do they wanna eat people? Good stuff Mr. Shadow.

[Mr_Shadow]

Here is a english dubbed video from a german (or french?) scientist discussing how parasites influence behavior of host insects. With genetic engineering I wonder if something like this could be made to infect humans and create hell on earth. alright here goes.... Brain Parasites Parasites that turn victims into mindless, zombie-like slaves are fairly common in nature. There's one called toxoplasmosa gondii http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxoplasma_gondii that seems to devote its entire existence to being terrifying. This bug infects rats, but can only breed inside the intestines of a cat. The parasite knows it needs to get the rat inside the cat (yes, I realize this sounds like the beginning of the most fucked-up Dr. Seuss poem ever) so the parasite takes over the rat's freaking brain, and intentionally makes it scurry toward where the cats hang out. The rat is being programmed to get itself eaten, and it doesn't even know. Of course, those are just rats, right? How it can result in zombies: Hey, did we mention that half the human population on Earth is infected with toxoplasmosa, and don't know it? http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Scienc...sp?NewsNum=547 Hey, maybe you're one of them. Flip a coin. Oh, also, they've done studies and shown that the infected see a change in their personality and have a higher chance of going batshit insane. http://www.corante.com/loom/archives...et_masters.php Chances this could cause a zombie apocalypse: Humans and rats aren't all that different; thats why they use them to test our drugs. All it takes is a more evolved version of toxoplasmosa, one that could to do us what it does to the rats. So, imagine if half the world suddenly had no instinct for self-preservation or rational thought. Even less than they do now, I mean. If you're comforting yourself with the thought that it may take forever for such a parasite to evolve, you're forgetting about all the biological weapons programs around the world, intentionally weaponizing such bugs. You've got to wonder if the lab workers don't carry out their work under the unwitting command of the toxoplasmosa gondii already in their brains. If you don't want to sleep at night, that is. You may be protesting that technically these people have never been dead and thus don't fit the dictionary definition of "zombies," but we can assure you that the distinction won't matter a whole lot once these groaning hordes are clawing their way through your windows.