The topic of transforming part of the world's population into bloodthirsty zombies that pace the streets of cities and prey on those who are still alive has been exciting for decades. Interest in zombies has recently gained tremendous strength, while the United States continues to be the main supplier of stories about the dead. It is here that people constantly wonder about when the zombie apocalypse will be and are diligently preparing for this day. The Pentagon has even developed a plan of action in case of such a phenomenon. Why does this question concern people, we will try to figure it out today.
Apocalypse problem
The zombie apocalypse is a fantastic scenario of many horror films, where some viral infection turns healthy people into living cannibal dead who are aggressive, and this leads to the extinction of the world's population.
In 1968, real zombies in the form of bloodthirsty dead were introduced into the culture thanks to the film “Night of the Living Dead”. After this, the idea of ​​the apocalypse began to act as standard samples that were applied to many areas of mass culture. Scenarios of the invented apocalypse suggest an invasion of a zombie with an infectious virus like an epidemic of a real disease. The bite of the walking dead contributes to the death of a person and his subsequent transformation into a monster, which is burning with the desire to attack living people. The military and the police cannot cope with such a massive threat, so those who survived must fight.
The script also describes how to defend yourself against zombies. To do this, you need to find weapons and cars in which to go to a deserted place and settle there. First you need to stock up on food, clothing, water, medications and various equipment.
Reality and zombies
Many scientists have developed a model of the zombie apocalypse as a viral epidemic of unknown origin, where they indicated that the existence of this problem will lead to the collapse of civilization. In 2011, a humorous instruction on what to do during the zombie apocalypse was published. This joke aroused interest in society. Three years later, the Pentagon developed a plan to evacuate people from cities, if such a catastrophe happens.
In Britain, scientists calculated how long it would take before the complete destruction of humanity in the event of an apocalypse. According to their assumptions, over a hundred days the number of people on earth will be two hundred people, and zombies - one hundred million individuals. They also found that when the zombie apocalypse occurs , it will become global in twenty days. The chances of getting infected will be 90%, while the dead themselves would have lived twenty days, after which they would be eliminated due to hunger and dehydration.
Preparing for the Apocalypse
Today, almost everyone knows what zombies look like . They embraced popular culture quickly enough, appearing in movies, books, video games and so on. The Americans deeply imprinted in their brains fear of the crowds of the dead, who want to feast on living flesh. Therefore, in many weapons stores, so-called anti-zombie kits began to appear, which included real knives, shotguns and more.
Comedian Mel Brooks has released a Survival Guide in the event of an apocalypse that formed the basis of the famous movie “War of the Worlds Z”. The Pentagon developed the CONOP 888 plan, which describes actions to attack a zombie. Exercises are held regularly in Kansas, so everyone is ready for the moment when the zombie apocalypse is around . Also, this topic is highlighted by the media, periodically giving out news, which, of course, are ducks.
But most people tend to believe the fake, so they are seriously preparing for a massive epidemic. For example, several years ago it was reported that on the coast of. St. Thomas was thrown out of a male body with ragged skin. Upon arrival of the police, the drowned man got up and attacked them. Law enforcement officers began to shoot at the man, but this had no effect, so they began to retreat. One of the observers grabbed a gun and shot the dead man in the head, from which he died. The body was taken by the military, who later claimed that zombies exist in real life . A few years later, the Minister of Australia before the date of the expected end of the world (12.12.2012) made a statement that she was ready to protect her people from the walking dead.
Solanum virus
Zombies are neither the result of black magic, nor any other power. They come from a virus called Solanum. And whether there will be a zombie apocalypse depends on how quickly this virus spreads on the planet. This virus spreads through the bloodstream from the site of entry to the brain. He uses the frontal cells to copy data, which he then destroys. When this happens, all the functions of the body stop, the brain does not die, but goes into a sleeping state, and Solanum turns the body's cells into new organs. The formed new organism is not dependent on oxygen. Upon completion of the mutation, the body comes to life, but it resembles a corpse. Some functions of an organism remain, others - function limitedly, and still others completely stop. This new species is called zombies - a representative of the living dead. Thus, the Solanum virus creates real zombies, it enters the bloodstream to a healthy person, causing certain mutations.
Survive at any cost!
Survival is the main goal in the apocalypse. When confronted with the living dead, many abilities are needed: first aid, survival in the wild, possession of weapons, leadership and more. Currently, many films are dedicated to this topic, having reviewed which you can get knowledge on how to survive and fight zombies. To eliminate such an individual, it is necessary to disconnect its brain; other ways of dealing with these creatures have not been found.
the walking Dead
Today, almost everyone knows what zombies look like. These are the walking dead who embody evil. They are endowed with unmotivated rage, aggression against living, severe hunger, go in packs. Their brain is affected, the body functions do not work, the tissues decompose. But there is no logic in everything, such creatures are observed only in pop culture and have nothing to do with reality.
This image of a zombie was created for the plots of films for the purpose of box office. After all, it is the dead who are most afraid of people who believe in the zombie apocalypse. Science disproves the possibility of the existence of such walking dead. So, it is proved that metabolic processes do not occur in a dead body, there is no tissue regeneration, there is no biochemistry in it that can provide thinking, movement, reflexes and aggression itself. It follows that zombies in real life will not be able to walk, because they have no internal energy for this. Since the bonds between the tissues are very weak, they would simply fall apart. In addition, the dead do not have digestion, so they cannot eat their victims.
Zombie man
This version is more realistic and to some extent approaches modern time. According to some interpretations, a modern zombie obeys someone’s orders; he is a person with a damaged mental health and memory. He is a kind of slave without consciousness and will, devoid of independence, and follows orders from the outside.
We know what a zombie apocalypse is from movies and books, but what if it has already arrived? In this case, sectarians act as zombies who blindly give the sect their property, and in some cases commit murders and suicides. By manipulating the human consciousness, their leaders commit various illegal acts at the hands of other people. Also, those who blindly believe in political rhetoric can become zombies. Such a zombie apocalypse was already in our history and claimed a huge number of lives - it was called fascism.
Infected people
Pop culture has created a kind of zombie that corresponds to a healthy person infected with a dangerous virus, it makes him aggressive and hungry, who have lost common sense. Such a virus, according to some sources, is created in a military laboratory that develops biological weapons. Therefore, the question of when the zombie apocalypse begins is very relevant. In fact, such viruses already exist in nature and are familiar to many people.
Real viruses
In the modern world there are several diseases. People who are sick with them, to some extent resemble zombies:
- Toxoplasmosis is a disease that is transmitted from cats. Many studies conducted on rats showed that infected with this virus, they begin to eat themselves. This disease actually affects half the globe. People with a strong immune system do not notice any symptoms, but those whose immunity is weakened notice flashes of anger and auto-aggression. Although toxoplasmosis today has not turned anyone into a zombie.
- Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease is a disease of the cerebral cortex and neural nodes, which is dystrophic in nature. The human brain is damaged, hallucinations begin, dementia, loss of skills, inadequate thinking, rage appear. There is no cure for this disease, it can be hereditary and acquired. But this disease is unlikely to lead to a zombie apocalypse, since a person with such an ailment dies within two years.
- African trypanosomiasis occurs when a tsetse fly bites. The disease affects the central nervous system, there are attacks of hunger, accompanied by fatigue and lethargy. Perhaps this disease created the image of zombies among African peoples. But this disease is completely treatable and will not lead to the apocalypse.
Zombies in modern culture
So when will the zombie apocalypse be ? Most likely never. Zombies are just a promoted brand that was created to make money. This image symbolizes the phobia of a person, something terrible that can be encountered in life. And many earn on these phobias. Today, almost everyone knows who zombies are, how they look, what they eat and how to kill them. And all this thanks to modern culture: cinema and literature. In communication, the words “zombies”, “apocalypse”, “walking dead” and so on began to be used more and more often. Some universities in the world study zombies as a cultural phenomenon. Students are studying the question of why recently they have made a huge number of films about these monsters, and what interests a simple person in them. Every year in various countries of the world, a procession of a large number of people who are made up for the dead passes. Sociologists and psychologists are still studying this phenomenon.
Summary
Thus, zombies in the modern world express human fears from which it is impossible to escape. It is films that generate these phobias, which in many cases require medical treatment. And the apocalypse, most likely, will not come the next hundred years.