how many of you think a zombie Apocalypse will never happen

[lht10]

i'm not saying there won't be zombies just read this http://www.cracked.com/article_15643_5- ... appen.html but might just not be apcolptic like might last a month or somethen before it goes away from major country just read this http://www.cracked.com/article_18683_7- ... ickly.html so maybe we'll have 1,000 dead zombie bodies lieing in some pit's but just burn them and eventully there will be a cure like i don't know bleeching bites tenirens shots

[lht10]

be fore you say this is off topic realize this talk about them killling themselves and how wounds would be treeted

[Jamie]

1) Not OT, but not First-Aid either...moved to Zombie Biology.

2) I believe that a zombie apocalypse will never happen.

3) Welcome to Zombie Squad!

4) In general, posts that are spell-checked and well-written will get more play and attention than train-of-thought posts/threads.

Jamie

[IronKnuckles]

I reserve the right to change my opinion anywhere between morning coffee and night cap. I however will never completely rule out the chance. I only joined this forum to learn as much as possible so if or when it does happen I'll be sitting pretty.

[carolinafan]

Periods are your friend too....my head hurts from reading that.

That being said, I don't think true, movie-type zombies will ever happen, but like IronKnuckles said, you never know. Thus, one of the mottoes of ZS, if you're prepared for zombies you're prepared for pretty much anything(paraphrasing)

[SHTFSurvivalist]

50/50

[thesupremeking]

whenever I read the title of threads like this, I always click on it so I can say hi to the new person.
welcome aboard. The chances are somewhere in the neighborhood of .00001%

[majorhavoc]

The day I seriously consider possible outcomes based on something I read on http://www.Cracked.com is the day I want someone from ZS to find my address, drive over and shoot me.

Please.

[Bunsen]

... how wounds would be treeted

I wouldn't do that if I were you. I'm pretty sure putting Treet on a wound would create zombies. And no, Jamie, don't try to sterilize them with Treetka either.

[Draug]

Ask any legit professor or scientist that knows the human body and they will tell you NO, It's impossible. Numerous historical cases of diseased people with zombie-like characteristics are a reality but as far as an actual rotting corpse coming back to life to eat the living-- that's impossible. As soon as the body dies necrosis begins. Dead cells can not come back to life and they will continue to deteriorate. You can stimulate nerves on the recently dead but this is only for a short time after death and with each passing moment the body continues to break down. You will no longer be able to electrically stimulate the nerves once they decay past a certain point. If scientists could stimulate nerves along with keeping the "zombies" in a refrigerated room to preserve their cells as long as possible they might be able to create a full on zombie with a shelf life of maybe a couple hours. In that case, I'd say the Romero-type zombies are not something we should ever have to worry about....unless you live in an extremely cold climate and you're too dumb to just step to the side to avoid a lumbering corpse hooked to all kinds of electrical wires necessary for the reanimation process.
The spread of disease, famine, and collapse of modern society is something we should all worry about and by saying we are preparing for a "Zombie Apocalypse" is SOMEWHAT more of a light-hearted, pop-culture approach in dealing with a world threatening outbreak. The whole zombie pop-culture movement is a much more fun way of dealing with our current tough times and being prepared for whatever may come is always a good idea, zombies or no zombies.

[DarkAxel]

Is a Zombocalypse a possibility? Why, yes. Anything is possible. But the Probability is so low its almost nil.

Welcome to ZS, OP.

[squinty]

You guys are all in denial. I say it's in it's early stages right nAAARRRRRRGGHHHH!




(brains?)

[Dawgboy]

I for one, cannot wait to welcome our new Zombie Overlords...

[Draug]

Is a Zombocalypse a possibility? Why, yes. Anything is possible. But the Probability is so low its almost nil.

Welcome to ZS, OP.

"Anything is possible", not quite. As a realist I refuse to agree with that statement. My computer is not going to grow legs and run away, my water is not going to turn into wine, and a million dollars is not going to appear out of thin air on the floor next to me. Some things just are not possible. I am as enlightened as anyone regarding the potential of disasters and I know that bad things happen around the world all the time. Unexpected occurances happen to the unprepared masses and thats why they are remembered as "disasters" instead of looked back on as inconvenient occurances that the prepared people survived without turmoil. Yes, unexpected things happen but they are all natural scientific occurances. Now, rotting meat that holds no life other than the bacteria that is now feeding on it cannot come back to life. It goes against every law of nature and just because people get excited over movies and TV shows doesn't mean that now suddenly "anythings possible". There has never been any proven account of the dead coming back to life and for the obvious reason that it is not possible according to nature.
The whole idea of zombies pre-dates history but even then it was misunderstood as were many other natural happenings. I mean, not too long ago, sick people were often thought to be possessed and instead of helping them people would kill them. Irrational minds breed insane ideas. For example: Thousands of years ago when someone would come down with a brain disease and wander off into the woods, the family would assume they were most certainly dead judging by how sick and wasted away they were. If the sick would come wandering back home looking all malnourished, covered in dirt, and bloody from falling and bumping into things, people would freak out and assume their dead loved one came back from the dead to seek vengeance for whatever reason. They would then kill the person, burn the body so it won't come back again, and then bury the remains. This sort of irrational reaction to a natural occurance resulted in many ancient cultures having traditional burials that would prevent zombies from rising up in the first place. Once again, the irrational pre-scientific enlightened mind created the idea of the zombie very similar to how people were burned for witchcraft when there was a very non-satanic explaination for what these women were doing. It's kind of sad that after all the advancements in science and how humans like to think they are so smart, there are so many out there that are STILL thinking as our pre-enlightened ancestors did! Are you zombie believers going to shoot your kids when they come down with some rare disease that makes them look like zombies? I sure hope not. Lets all just accept this pop-culture trend for what it is--a trend! Sure, being prepared is a good thing. I live a prepared lifestyle similar to most of you but the difference is, I know the difference between reality and fictional movie creations.

[thesupremeking]

Is a Zombocalypse a possibility? Why, yes. Anything is possible. But the Probability is so low its almost nil.

Welcome to ZS, OP.

Lets all just accept this pop-culture trend for what it is--a trend!

HOW DARE YOU SIR!

Now to get real, Zombies as in dead coming back to life; impossible for above mentioned reasons.

Zombie like symptoms as in rage, lack of facial recognition of relatives, lack of language understanding, overwhelming urge to bite/attack others to spread a zombie like virus, that is probable. Oh wait I just described rabies!

If a rabies like virus mutated to not kill the host and also had very fast onset of symptoms, that is zombies in my book.

the only reason rabies hasn't decimated the population is that illness to onset of the crazies is a long time, they are easy to tie down and quarantine weeks before, also as soon as the craziness kicks in you die very shortly afterward. A little mutation here, a little mutation there and BAM, there you go.


I often used to discuss this possibility with virologists in my dept and most agree that a zombie style virus is definitely in the realm of possibilities.

[Draug]

Is a Zombocalypse a possibility? Why, yes. Anything is possible. But the Probability is so low its almost nil.

Welcome to ZS, OP.

Lets all just accept this pop-culture trend for what it is--a trend!

HOW DARE YOU SIR!

Now to get real, Zombies as in dead coming back to life; impossible for above mentioned reasons.

Zombie like symptoms as in rage, lack of facial recognition of relatives, lack of language understanding, overwhelming urge to bite/attack others to spread a zombie like virus, that is probable. Oh wait I just described rabies!

If a rabies like virus mutated to not kill the host and also had very fast onset of symptoms, that is zombies in my book.

the only reason rabies hasn't decimated the population is that illness to onset of the crazies is a long time, they are easy to tie down and quarantine weeks before, also as soon as the craziness kicks in you die very shortly afterward. A little mutation here, a little mutation there and BAM, there you go.


I often used to discuss this possibility with virologists in my dept and most agree that a zombie style virus is definitely in the realm of possibilities.

I really don't see the point of your post for you have only added further validity to my posts. I already mentioned that there are some diseases that cause the victim to have "zombie-like" symptoms but like I already said, there is a logical explaination that has nothing to do with reanimated corpses. Whether we are talking about rabies or a scenario like in the movie 28 Days Later, the culprit is a virus causing a living human to act erratic, not a dead body coming back from the grave. Sorry guys, this is not the 16th century. Luckily there are those with educations so not everyone is screaming "aaahhhh it's a zombie" whenever someone catches a rare disease in this day and age.

[Malleolus]

Is a Zombocalypse a possibility? Why, yes. Anything is possible. But the Probability is so low its almost nil.

Welcome to ZS, OP.

Lets all just accept this pop-culture trend for what it is--a trend!

HOW DARE YOU SIR!

Now to get real, Zombies as in dead coming back to life; impossible for above mentioned reasons.

Zombie like symptoms as in rage, lack of facial recognition of relatives, lack of language understanding, overwhelming urge to bite/attack others to spread a zombie like virus, that is probable. Oh wait I just described rabies!

If a rabies like virus mutated to not kill the host and also had very fast onset of symptoms, that is zombies in my book.

the only reason rabies hasn't decimated the population is that illness to onset of the crazies is a long time, they are easy to tie down and quarantine weeks before, also as soon as the craziness kicks in you die very shortly afterward. A little mutation here, a little mutation there and BAM, there you go.


I often used to discuss this possibility with virologists in my dept and most agree that a zombie style virus is definitely in the realm of possibilities.

I really don't see the point of your post for you have only added further validity to my posts. I already mentioned that there are some diseases that cause the victim to have "zombie-like" symptoms but like I already said, there is a logical explaination that has nothing to do with reanimated corpses. Whether we are talking about rabies or a scenario like in the movie 28 Days Later, the culprit is a virus causing a living human to act erratic, not a dead body coming back from the grave. Sorry guys, this is not the 16th century. Luckily there are those with educations so not everyone is screaming "aaahhhh it's a zombie" whenever someone catches a rare disease in this day and age.

Let's keep the insults to a minimum here my friend. Most anyone who describes a zombie on this forum don't think that hands of the recently deceased are going to be popping up out of the ground. I myself have posted that in any circumstance that we have "zombie's" it's either going to be a virus or a parasite of sorts. Rabies is a good example, it shuts down the septum and damages a few other parts and the person looses the ability to control their anger and other impulses, eventually it kills off the host. Simply a mutation, or any number of chemicals that could be genetically engineered to piggyback the virus, that halts the infection's ability to spread to the rest of the brain would be more than adequate to induce a long term zombie-like state. The only other mutation that would need to occur is a dramatic increase in symptom onset. We've seen this happen many times naturally with other viruses, off the top of my head is HIV, which the new strain the virus can cause AIDS in a few months rather than the years it took the first strain. The flu is another example, it mutates so often that you have to get a new vaccination for the new strain every year. It is probable in my book because of the aforementioned. There are "voodoo" zombies, or the person if fed a chemical cocktail that induces such a deep comatose state that it's almost impossible to tell they are alive without extensive evaluation. These people are put into crypts or what have you then dug out by the voodoo priest who gave them the cocktail, given the serum, and then are enslaved by the priest. If a virus could induce the same comatose state till it fully... germinates (can't remember the proper term), then it would very much seem like the dead returning to life. No, they aren't literally dead, but when they're nibbling on your arm you're not going to care that much about the semantics.

[squinty]

Folks, this is a just for fun subforum where we debate the biology of an admittedly fictitious horror movie monster. I enjoy the speculation, but there is really nothing worth arguing about in this subforum.

If dead hands don't start popping up out of the ground, I want my money back. I expect my Zombie Apocalypses to have lot's of dead hands reaching skyward out of graveyards, golf courses and flowerbeds.

[thesupremeking]

I really don't see the point of your post for you have only added further validity to my posts. I already mentioned that there are some diseases that cause the victim to have "zombie-like" symptoms but like I already said, there is a logical explaination that has nothing to do with reanimated corpses. Whether we are talking about rabies or a scenario like in the movie 28 Days Later, the culprit is a virus causing a living human to act erratic, not a dead body coming back from the grave. Sorry guys, this is not the 16th century. Luckily there are those with educations so not everyone is screaming "aaahhhh it's a zombie" whenever someone catches a rare disease in this day and age.

wow johnny new guy doesn't seem to play well with others. No offense man but do you expect to be the final poster of every thread you comment on? Get used to push back on here at ZS, also the point of my post was MEANT to back you up on your thoughts. Relax and welcome aboard.

[majorhavoc]

I really don't see the point of your post for you have only added further validity to my posts. I already mentioned that there are some diseases that cause the victim to have "zombie-like" symptoms but like I already said, there is a logical explaination that has nothing to do with reanimated corpses. Whether we are talking about rabies or a scenario like in the movie 28 Days Later, the culprit is a virus causing a living human to act erratic, not a dead body coming back from the grave. Sorry guys, this is not the 16th century. Luckily there are those with educations so not everyone is screaming "aaahhhh it's a zombie" whenever someone catches a rare disease in this day and age.

Dude, chill out, OK? Reanimated corpses are your personal definition of zombies, not everyone else's. We're adults here. We don't even need box office validation from movies like "28 Days Later" to expand the definition of zombies to include victims of some bizarre viral infection that causes rabies like symptoms. The OP posed a question that admittedly embraced the preposterous. Rational minds will take and address that scenario as they see fit. No need to insinuate people are operating at a middle ages mentality just because they disagree with you.

I see you have yet to introduce yourself. Why don't you drop by the Introductions forum and tell us a bit about yourself?

[crypto]

Are you zombie believers going to shoot your kids when they come down with some rare disease that makes them look like zombies? I sure hope not. Lets all just accept this pop-culture trend for what it is--a trend! Sure, being prepared is a good thing. I live a prepared lifestyle similar to most of you but the difference is, I know the difference between reality and fictional movie creations.

Sparkly vampires are a trend.

Zombies are a force of nature.


P.S.: I dont have kids, but I'm shooting any walking dead kids if they get bitey, I dont care whose they are.



P.P.S.: This is Zombie Biology, go be a joyless dick in the more serious parts of the forums.

P.P.S.: Or FrugalSquirrels, or wherever all the joyless dicks go to talk about preparedness.

[Draug]

Let's keep the insults to a minimum here my friend. Most anyone who describes a zombie on this forum don't think that hands of the recently deceased are going to be popping up out of the ground. I myself have posted that in any circumstance that we have "zombie's" it's either going to be a virus or a parasite of sorts. Rabies is a good example, it shuts down the septum and damages a few other parts and the person looses the ability to control their anger and other impulses, eventually it kills off the host. Simply a mutation, or any number of chemicals that could be genetically engineered to piggyback the virus, that halts the infection's ability to spread to the rest of the brain would be more than adequate to induce a long term zombie-like state. The only other mutation that would need to occur is a dramatic increase in symptom onset. We've seen this happen many times naturally with other viruses, off the top of my head is HIV, which the new strain the virus can cause AIDS in a few months rather than the years it took the first strain. The flu is another example, it mutates so often that you have to get a new vaccination for the new strain every year. It is probable in my book because of the aforementioned. There are "voodoo" zombies, or the person if fed a chemical cocktail that induces such a deep comatose state that it's almost impossible to tell they are alive without extensive evaluation. These people are put into crypts or what have you then dug out by the voodoo priest who gave them the cocktail, given the serum, and then are enslaved by the priest. If a virus could induce the same comatose state till it fully... germinates (can't remember the proper term), then it would very much seem like the dead returning to life. No, they aren't literally dead, but when they're nibbling on your arm you're not going to care that much about the semantics.

I would like to start by saying I did not join this site to insult anyone and I'm sorry if I did. I do enjoy some of the old zombie films but that is not why I joined this site. I joined to converse with others that believe in being prepared in case society collapses, not because I believe in zombies. Now I never intended to insult anyone nor do I think I did but you sure seem to think I have so maybe I should just say what's on my mind? No matter what cold hard truth of science and history I point out, you all seem to be looking past the reality and just speaking out of love for this zombie fantasy. I'll just address all of your rebuttals in this one post instead of a many individual posts to clearify your oversight.
First, the question: "How many of you think a zombie apocalypse will never happen?" Whether you agree with me or not, I have just as much right to be adding my two cents to this topic seeing as how every argument has two sides. It was said by Squinty that he enjoys the speculation, but there is really nothing worth arguing about in this subforum. There is no arguing on my behalf, just an insertion of logic into a very unrealistic question. I'm as calm about this topic as any. I can engage in a debate without losing my temper so there is no need to bring my attitude into question. You guys keep telling me to "chill out" and "relax" when it seems as if I'm actually the only one who is typing without emotion, just sense and facts.
Second, I don't doubt the possibility of a widespread pandemic, it is very likely and as history has proved--it IS a "Force" of nature as user Crypto would say. Sure sparkly vampires are a trend but so are zombies. Just look at the popularity boom over the last decade. More zombie movies have been made since 2001 than all other years combined. Comic books, videogames, TV series, hundreds of crappy movies, websites, the list is growing at an all time rate proving that current society is infatuated with zombies. In case you don't know the definition, this is called a TREND, not a "force of nature" as I already clearly proved it is NOT by hard scientific evidence. There has been a logical explaination for every culture of people claiming they were encountering "zombies". Whether they were sick, drugged or under hypnosis there has always been logic behind the fallacy of zombies. I mean come on guy, even my mother watches The Walking Dead. If that doesn't show how much of a trend zombies is I don't know what does? Senior citizens are enjoying the zombie trend!
Third, I'd like to talk about the word "zombie" itself. The definition is as follows: #1 Zombie--is a term used to denote an ANIMATED CORPSE brought back to life by mystical means, such as witchcraft. The term is often FIGURATIVELY applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli.
#2 Zombie--the body of a DEAD person given the semblance of life, but mute and will-less, by a supernatural force, usually for some evil purpose. As Majorhavoc said to me, "Reanimated corpses are YOUR personal definition of zombies, not everyone else's." Well, sorry to tell you but my definition is THE definition not only used by me but used by anyone who actually goes by the facts. Just because someone is diseased and acting zombie-LIKE does not change the definition of the word itself. They are still just sick, ALIVE humans acting zombie-like. Now if the question was "How many of you think a zombie-LIKE apocalypse will never happen?" I'd say it would be foolish to believe it will never happen seeing as how it already has happened numerous times throughout history and could very likely happen again. The question was worded as wondering if a fictitious creature with no scientific proof of ever existing would never happen. To this I would say, YES. It will never happen. Something else will most likely happen in a large scale but it won't be caused by vampires, evil villains that leap from rooftop to rooftop wearing a cape and having underwear on the outside out their outfit, leprechauns, the Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny, or your beloved zombies. People should be spending more time in their youth reading about science and history than reading comic books and letting their imagination take precedent over reality.
Fourth, I'm not here to poke fun at anyone for his/her beliefs, I'm here to find others in my area that share the desire to protect themself and their family in times of civic and global unrest. Since I don't spend that much time online, this is the first website I came across involving preparedness that had members in Western NY so I joined and don't plan on joining any others. Whether you guys base your actions on facts or theories, I don't care. Like I said, I'm not here to cause trouble but like everyone else, I'm entitled to speak my mind. If you agree with me or not it is not going to have any affect on my day to day life so it does not concern me. I'm just glad to see people are starting to wise up these days and take notice that society is not always safe from tragedy. After 9/11 people have been more concerned about being prepared for disaster and regardless of what they are preparing for it is just nice to see people are starting to use their heads because we can't always rely on our Gov't to get us out of trouble. If I were a betting man I'd bet on the Gov't actually being the cause of the next pandemic so they are the last people I'd bank on saving us. Who knows what kind of virus or monstrosity they are creating in their labs right now?

[wee drop o' bush]

I really don't see the point of your post for you have only added further validity to my posts. I already mentioned that there are some diseases that cause the victim to have "zombie-like" symptoms but like I already said, there is a logical explaination that has nothing to do with reanimated corpses. Whether we are talking about rabies or a scenario like in the movie 28 Days Later, the culprit is a virus causing a living human to act erratic, not a dead body coming back from the grave. Sorry guys, this is not the 16th century. Luckily there are those with educations so not everyone is screaming "aaahhhh it's a zombie" whenever someone catches a rare disease in this day and age.

I see you have yet to introduce yourself. Why don't you drop by the Introductions forum and tell us a bit about yourself?

That's a great idea, intros are always welcome

OT: I wouldn't ever rule a Zombie Epidemic out. I think it's highly unlikely, but...

[raptor]

IMO anything is possible.
That said IMO the probability of a zombie outbreak is too remote to measure.

I would put the odds in the realm of winning the jackpot on 3 different Powerball lottery drawings (assuming no cheating or fixes) in a row, using the same ticket numbers. Theoretically it is possible to do so... but not very likely.