3

A image posted by 8fact:

Due to the discovery of many brain parasites, scientists say that a zombie apocalypse is actually possible. #8fact

This pictured grabbed 11,085 shares and 34,942 likes so far on Facebook. I find it hard to believe.

Mr. Bultitude
  • 922
  • 8
  • 27
George Chalhoub
  • 30,246
  • 14
  • 129
  • 136
  • I think this would be better is you rephrased it as "have scientist warned of a coming zombie apocalypse?", as that seems to be the actual claim. – ike Aug 24 '14 at 21:36
  • Why is this downvoted? Although few if any would believe this claim to be true, the post *does* cite a notable claim. – gerrit Aug 25 '14 at 18:40
  • 2
    Should Facebook posts really be considered notable claims? – Reinstate Monica -- notmaynard Aug 28 '14 at 20:45
  • I seem to recall reading about scientists using a zombie apocalypse scenario as a stand-in for more mundane disease pandemics as a relatively light-hearted thought experiment (though with a serious message about the importance of quarantine) but I can't locate a link. That's a far cry from claiming an actual zombie apocalypse could happen though. – GordonM May 29 '15 at 09:30

1 Answers1

12

This is impossible to answer conclusively, since there's no definition provided for either "Zombie", "Apocalypse", or even "possible" (which includes things with miniscule probability, as long as they don't violate laws of nature). Nor of how many scientists said so and if it was in peer reviewed publication.

As such, yes, "some" scientists said that - for some definitions - "zombie" "apocalypse" is "possible".

One example (src - and also covered on National Geographic in great depth):

  • “I think that the Zombie Virus already exists (almost): Rabies. Infection is nearly 100 percent lethal, i.e. it turns you into the walking dead (for a while at least), and it causes you to change your behavior by reprogramming you to bite other people to spread the infection. Now if only it kept the corpse walking around,” Jonathan D. Dinman, PhD, Professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics at the University of Maryland, told redOrbit.

    Essentially, the rabies virus would need to be slightly altered, or would have to evolve, in a way to keep people kicking and screaming for their next victim rather than killing them off just a few days after symptoms occur.

Cracked.com has 5 other "possible" scenarios, most with nods to scientists discussing the possibility:

  • toxoplasmosa gondii

  • datura stramonium/alcaloids.

  • Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease

  • growing brain stem from stem cells.

  • nanobots

Community
  • 1
user5341
  • 31,075
  • 8
  • 130
  • 178