Buzz
In recent years, zombies have exploded into mainstream pop culture. We're captivated by them (even if it's hard to explain why), and some of us are even preparing for the moment when the zombie apocalypse becomes a reality. Others are eagerly awaiting it.
Surprisingly, it's not as absurd as it may seem. In fact, there's a wealth of knowledge to be gained from studying zombies. Some insights are serious, others are more lighthearted, but they are all undeniably captivating.
10. The Power of Smelling Like the Dead
A classic survival tactic: cover yourself in blood and guts, move at a slow pace, and avoid drawing attention while navigating through a zombie horde. But is this really an effective strategy?
Science—and zombie theory—suggests that this method could actually work to get through a mob of hungry zombies. Raychelle Burks, a chemist and researcher at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, explains that zombies, with their limited mental abilities, rely heavily on basic senses, especially smell, to differentiate between other zombies and a living human meal. The idea is that by mimicking the scent of a zombie, you could fool them into thinking you’re one of their own.
While the common method of smelling like the dead (by covering yourself in guts) might be effective in the short term, it’s not very practical. That’s when Burks came up with a new idea: death cologne for your zombie apocalypse survival kit. She combined chemistry with zombie theory to create Eau de Death. This cologne would need to be mass-produced to be feasible, and it would contain substances like sulfhydryl methanethiol (to create the rotten egg smell) and organic amines like putresine and cadaverine to mimic the stench of decomposition. Burks’ team even discovered how E. coli bacteria could be used to help facilitate the chemical process for mass-producing this life-saving cologne.
9. The Spread of the Pop Culture Zombie Infection
According to Sarah Reehl, a graduate student from Utah State University, zombies aren’t just a trend in pop culture; they’re a phenomenon that spreads much like a zombie plague itself. By applying a SIR model (Susceptible, Infected, and Recovered), she analyzed linguistic trends over time to understand how cultural words, concepts, and images emerge and spread. She examined factors such as how likely these trends are to spread between individuals, how long they remain popular, and how often they’re used. Reehl based her data on the slang terms 'groovy' and 'jitney' (a term for a U.S. nickel), tracking their rise and fall in popularity through the vast collection of documents in Google’s massive digital archive.
Reehl then applied this model to the word 'zombie.' According to her findings, the pop culture zombie plague is set to remain dominant for the next 25 years. Eventually, it will become just as iconic as other legendary creatures like the vampire. The prediction is that the peak of zombie mania will hit in 2038, and it will begin to fade around 2080.
8. Animals Are Our First Line of Defense
Although zombie hordes might strike terror in us, many animals would see this chaotic scene not as a nightmare but as a grand buffet. David Mizejewski, a naturalist with the National Wildlife Federation, points out that it’s easy to forget that we have some powerful allies in the animal kingdom. While we’re disgusted by the sight of zombies, animals would view the situation quite differently—more like an opportunity for lunch.
Vultures could pose a serious threat to zombies, and that’s a rather unsettling truth. When you donate your body to science, you never quite know how it will be used. In one instance, a body donated to Texas State University’s Forensic Anthropology Research Facility became a vulture’s meal as part of an experiment. The facility has a dedicated outdoor human decomposition lab, where researchers placed a human body outside to observe how vultures would impact it. While the goal was to understand decomposition in outdoor crime scenes and refine forensic timelines, the result was chilling: A group of vultures can reduce a body to bones in just five hours.
In the event of a widespread zombie apocalypse, vultures wouldn’t be the only scavengers taking advantage of the situation. Other birds of prey, such as crows, would eagerly feast on zombie flesh. Larger predators, like bears, wouldn’t hesitate to finish off a zombie either. Zombies that come into contact with more herbivorous animals could also meet their end quickly, as numerous reptiles and insects would contribute to the clean-up process, breaking down the remains.
7. Zombies Are Afflicted by Consciousness Deficit Hypoactivity Disorder
Despite their struggle to communicate, psychoanalyzing a zombie may seem impossible. However, zombie researcher Bradley Voytek, a neuroscientist from the University of California–San Diego, and his colleague Timothy Verstynen, a professor at Carnegie Mellon, have gathered extensive research on zombie brain function. From their work, they’ve come to a definitive diagnosis, offering insight into what ails the undead mind.
Researchers analyzed the symptoms of zombies and worked backward to determine which brain functions are still active. Most zombies exhibit memory loss and will attack loved ones as if they were strangers, which indicates the hippocampus is no longer functioning—though some zombie variations may retain partial memory. While they can still move, their movements are far from human-like, suggesting the cerebellum is still active but severely damaged or atrophied. The aggressive behavior and inability to control basic instincts point to damage in the orbital frontal cortex, which normally governs human desires and needs.
Zombies haven’t lost the ability to make sounds, but they’ve lost the capacity to speak, which are distinct abilities. They can still make noise, but cannot form coherent words, which implies damage to the brain regions responsible for processing language. Specifically, the areas that help us understand speech (Wernicke’s area) and convert thoughts into speech (Broca’s area) have been affected.
The brain mapping based on these zombie traits led to the identification of a medical condition that mirrors the state of a zombie brain. It has been termed consciousness deficit hypoactivity disorder (CDHD), a condition that is now used to describe this particular brain dysfunction.
6. The Ideal Location for Surviving a Zombie Apocalypse
The concept of a zombie apocalypse is often portrayed as an unlikely event, but it's not completely out of the realm of possibility. However, it probably won’t unfold exactly as depicted in pop culture. Typically, you'll see news broadcasts with frantic reporters listing the cities that have fallen while showing footage of crowds of the undead marching through fields and city streets.
If it were to happen, the process would likely be much slower than the dramatic depictions in movies. Statisticians at Cornell University have modeled how a zombie outbreak would spread. Assuming it’s caused by a virus or illness, the infection would likely take just a few days to spread through a major city, while rural areas might remain largely untouched for months. By that time, the disease could be contained or even cured. If you're in the continental US, one of the last areas to be impacted would be the Rocky Mountains, although that may change now that everyone knows to head there.
The speed of the infection’s spread depends on several factors. Researchers modeled variables like how quickly zombies move, how fast the infection takes hold, and whether or not it's contained—plus the possibility of infected people escaping to other places, such as on planes. As with many aspects of zombie science, it offers a fascinating look into how diseases spread.
5. Zombies in Space
In 2014, Stephen Kane, a professor at San Francisco State University, published a paper titled 'A Necro-Biological Explanation for the Fermi Paradox.' Though released on April Fools’ Day, the concept behind it is surprisingly thought-provoking.
The Fermi Paradox investigates the high probability of planets near us hosting life, yet questions why we have not yet made contact. The statistical likelihood of nearby alien civilizations suggests that it's strange we haven't heard from anyone. According to Kane, this could be because some of these planets are suffering from a condition called SNAP, or Spontaneous Necro-Animation Psychosis.
The theory proposes this: Earth has had ample time to develop a variety of deadly diseases. From influenza and cholera to smallpox, we’ve seen major plagues wipe out large portions of the human population. It's very possible that similar plagues, even those associated with zombie-like behavior, could have evolved on other planets.
Kane, a respected astronomer and teacher, adapted the Drake Equation to study nearby planets, factoring in elements like the likelihood of life and the duration of its existence. He also considered the possibility of a necro-virus evolving on these planets.
Based on his calculations, Kane found that within just 100 parsecs of Earth, over 2,500 planets have been affected by zombies. He argues that it makes perfect sense. Given the probability of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe, we should have already been contacted. But with the existence of SNAP, one alien civilization could accidentally spread the infection to others. This could explain why we haven’t made contact yet: space zombies.
4. Zombie Ethics and Cognitive Dissonance
From the comfort of our couch, it might seem like a no-brainer: when it comes down to facing a zombie or becoming its next meal, there doesn’t seem to be a real choice. However, there is a deeper psychological issue at play here, and it ties back to cognitive dissonance.
The concept dates back to 1956, when a psychologist first coined the term while studying the beliefs of end-of-the-world theorists and how they reconciled the persistence of life as we know it. Cognitive dissonance occurs when someone is confronted with two conflicting beliefs or truths. In the case of the zombie apocalypse, these opposing ideas are that killing is wrong, but it’s exactly what one might have to do if you want to survive.
This sets up a fascinating dilemma for psychologists, who study how people reconcile two contradictory beliefs. Typically, people resolve this by changing their version of the truth until the conflict is resolved. In the zombie scenario, one might justify their actions by adjusting their belief system. While they may think it’s wrong to defile a body, the fact that the zombie is already ‘lost’ means no further harm is being done by putting it to rest.
There’s also the dilemma of when it is ethically acceptable to end a zombie’s life. Should you eliminate a person before they inevitably transform, knowing full well what they will become? Or does it become morally justifiable only once they’ve already turned? What if a cure exists—does that change the ethics of leaving them in their zombified state? The fact that zombies were once human raises profound ethical and psychological questions, making the act of killing them a thought-provoking exploration of our own humanity and the lengths we're willing to go to for survival.
3. Architecture and Renewable Zombie Energy
The zombie apocalypse has unfolded, decimating most of humanity, and a small group of survivors is left to rebuild society among the ruins of the old world. Fortunately, science is already preparing for this scenario.
Architects Southwest, a design firm, sponsored a global competition inviting architects to submit their ideas for the ultimate post-apocalyptic homes. The results were extraordinary, with designs ranging from compact, foldable shelters that fit into a backpack to repurposed oil silos providing a fortress against the outside zombie threat.
Some submissions detailed ideas for transforming ships and boats into mobile, self-sufficient homes, while others imagined a mountain getaway. And, in the spirit of not letting anything go to waste while reconstructing civilization, one proposal explored using zombies as an energy source. This design featured a vertically constructed home with turbines at its base. Zombies, drawn by the scent of tantalizing bunnies, wander into the turbines, and once inside, they keep walking endlessly in pursuit of their prey. Their constant movement powers the turbines, supplying the home's energy.
A bit far-fetched, perhaps, but undeniably inventive. Zombie science teaches us that even in the midst of an apocalypse, surrounded by relentless, brain-hungry monsters, our creativity will still shine through.
2. Zombie Modeling and HPV
Creating a mathematical model to track the spread of a zombie infection might seem like the whimsical pastime of bored mathematicians, but one such mathematician is putting these models to practical use. Robert Smith? (yes, the “?” is actually part of his name) has worked extensively on what would unfold in a zombie apocalypse. His models are grounded in solid mathematical reasoning, taking into account birth rates, latent infections, quarantine efforts, and the outcomes when quarantine fails. The conclusion? Unless there’s a highly successful campaign to eradicate zombies, humanity is doomed.
However, Smith?'s model, and the math behind it, isn’t just the stuff of late-night horror flicks. He’s a mathematician at the University of Ottawa, and his actual paid work involves modeling scenarios related to the spread of infectious diseases. Given the myriad of variables when predicting the spread of a zombie outbreak, his work has been adapted to model the spread of diseases like human papillomavirus (HPV).
Because HPV can spread through various means, this introduced a new set of challenges when modeling its transmission, as opposed to diseases that only spread through one method. Smith? used his previous work on zombie infections to create more accurate models of HPV transmission. He also notes that his unconventional approach has been a great way to engage people who might have otherwise been disinterested in mathematics, which he considers an added bonus to his non-traditional work.
1. How Much of Your Brain Do You Need?
We’ve examined the brain activity of a zombie based on their limited functionality and their insatiable hunger. But this raises a broader question: What happens to living humans when parts of their brain are damaged, fail, or are completely removed? How much of your brain is actually essential for survival?
There’s a lot about the brain that remains a mystery, and we don’t yet know the definitive answer to this question, although potential responses seem to lean toward, “Less than you’d think,” and “About half.” The insular cortex is the part of the brain responsible for processing emotions and helping us become aware of our conscious existence. However, in the case of a man named Roger, also known as “Patient R,” he is missing not only most of his insular cortex but also his medial prefrontal cortex and his anterior cingulate cortex.
What this means is that, theoretically, he should be a zombie. The regions of his brain responsible for some of the basic elements of humanity, like emotions, are absent. The damage to his brain was caused by a battle with herpes, and even after decades of brain damage that should have rendered him completely non-functional, he remains largely a normal person who is capable of emotions, rational thought, and (one of the traits that separates us from zombies) the ability to empathize by seeing things from another person's perspective.
There are other instances of people being born without certain brain structures. For example, a woman was unaware that she was born without a cerebellum until she reached the age of 24. The only noticeable sign that something might be amiss was that she was occasionally quite clumsy. Scientists believe that other parts of her brain adapt to compensate for the missing structures, but this doesn’t fully explain at what point someone could be classified as a zombie.
In 2014, there was the deeply unsettling case of a man in the UK diagnosed with a tapeworm in his brain. It resided there for at least four years, during which it tunneled around inside his head. Although he reported symptoms like strange smells and memory lapses, he remained a functional human. If zombification spreads like a disease, but the human brain can survive the presence of a tapeworm tunneling through it, it raises intriguing questions about where the boundary lies between being human and experiencing irreversible zombie damage.
