The Zombie Apocalypse is Coming

12/17/2012

This is the one time we can absolutely confirm that, as Discovery Channel prepares to air the premiere of “Zombie Apocalypse” tonight, Tuesday 18 at 10/9c. Could humans really turn into zombies? Hear from scientists who are seriously studying the question, and from the “zombie preppers” who are getting ready for what they believe is the inevitable. It may not be what the Mayans were thinking about when they were creating the Mayan Calendar (don’t worry, we’ve got you covered on the Mayan Doomsday Prophecy), but in today’s world many think zombies could actually be a part of society’s demise. Who knows though…perhaps zombies were all part of the Mayan vision of the end.

What ARE these things?: Zombies don’t need much of an introduction or explanation as they’ve overtaken pop culture books, movies and events. We know them as the human “undead”; those who stagger, covered in blood, with only one mission in mind – to feast on those of us who haven’t been turned. The only way to stop them? Get them in the brain.

Tickle’s Take on Zombies:  They are so well known that even in the hills of Appalachia, the Moonshiners talk about zombies and have some opinions on a potential Zombie Apocalypse. Here’s Tickle’s Take on Zombies and what he’d do to protect himself. Think treadmills.

What, Us Worry?: So how much do we really need to worry about this zombie phenomenon? Scientists have been studying the zombie story since the late 80’s, as a landmark case of a man rising from the dead after 18 years in Haiti captivated us.  The “Zombie Project,” not surprisingly came to some  mixed conclusions, but was considered serious enough to be printed up in the top medical journals of the day.

The “Zombie Project” is not the only attempt by scientists to understand what might cause humans to turn into flesh eating zombies. It’s a sobering bit of business…and the key lies in the brain. Some believe parasites could invade our brain as they sometimes do with animals in nature, causing them to run towards death scenarios. Others think neurotoxins or some other chemical intervention could send us over the cliff towards blood lusting insanity.

Come On Science! Save Us!: As you’ll see in “Zombie Apocalypse” tonight, Tuesday 18 at 10/9c, some scientists believe  the possibility of a mutated virus could very well attack our brains, and given the density of our population, affected individuals could take out entire cities in very little time. In fact, there are rare cases of people being driven to symptoms of zombie like madness by viral contagions, but please don’t panic. Scientists will point out such cases are very rare and are just examples of how a virus could be an important area of study.  In fact, not only are scientists studying the mutation of viruses, they are examining each part of our brains and how they function to understand how to arrest a pandemic, should one arise.

Zombie-palooza: If you aren’t tired of learning about our quirky clumsy, flesh eating cousins, we have an entire feature dedicated to your questions and preparatory needs.  If you need to just let loose with a little practice, we’ve even got a zombie game for you.

Let loose and enjoy the madness of this burgeoning pop culture phenomenon, but don’t forget to watch tomorrow as Zombie Apocalypse airs tonight, Tuesday 18 @ 10/9c to get the inside look at the very strange story of zombies. Plus don’t forget to check out our exploration of the Mayan Doomsday Prophecy, read the stories and join the conversation.

 

Comments

[Asdf]

Zombies would scorch in the sun for being rotting corpses, plus other animals would pick them off. Evolutionary, they're a horrible species.

[Zombie Survivor]

Hi there,
good job.
i reblogged this for german zombie survivors ;-)

alsways remember - don´t feed the Zombies!

[Thomas]

I cant wait until the zombie Apocalypse!
Im already ready!

[dave]

watching zombie preppers,, are there really people that stupid?

[Ron]

This is almost as bad as ancient aliens on the history channel. If you're going to spend an hour giving free rain to believers, then end the show with a reality check from the perspectives held by the majority of scientists. This is as far from scientific reporting as it gets.

Unless of course this is sarcastic humor, in which case its brilliant!