Tag Archives: Outbreak

Simulate a zombie outbreak

I’m a big fan of zombie movies, and have been for decades. They are an interesting and varied examination of how humans would behave in extraordinary circumstances. However they are also a practical yet fun method for evaluating the propagation of disease and epidemics, something we have seen with issues like bird flu and measles.

Of course, a zombie outbreak has novel aspects that have to be considered, separately from other outbreaks. For example, according to canon, being bitten by a zombie means you will turn into one yourself. It might take a while, but it will happen. There are other issues; zombies are easy to see and will actively seek out other humans, yet they are subject to ailments of their own such as rigor mortis and the impact of vectors that would seek to feed on them as well, such as flies and what have you.