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Originally Posted by Solitaire1
One possibility is that zombies don't see the same way that humans do. Rather, they use their eyes to "see" the heat from living bodies and then head in that general direction.
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This theory is indeed interesting and there are various ways to test it. Normally, Zombies won't chase another Zombie, but what if we soak a Zombie in gasoline, place it in a known infested area, light it up with a match and watch to see if the now much hotter Zombie attracts others? We could also try the opposite approach by covering a non-infected, living human with insulated material sufficient to block heat signatures to thermal optics. If we place the insulated subject in a Zombie's visual path and the Zombie shows no interest, we might have a new tool in Zombie avoidance techniques.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr. Drib
However, the reference to eyes presupposes that all zombies have eyes (which I believe to be an erroneous assumption); when, in fact, based upon injury - whether initiated in "pre-zombie" state or not - the fact remains that it is entirely conceivable that some zombies do NOT have eyes and thus would be incapable of sight.
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Good point. There are many well documented reports of Zombies with hollow eye sockets moving unerringly toward their intended victims. This would tend to diminish the importance of visual stimulus, even vision based on thermal variations. Still, clearly all Zombies have gone through significant alteration. We are no where near understanding all the chemical modifications in Zombie physiology. We are also somewhat in the dark in understanding the electronic impulses of the Zombie brain. Perhaps it's no longer necessary for a Zombie to have eyes in order to receive heat based signals of its surrounding environment. I wonder if a dangling optic nerve might be sufficient for a Zombie's brain to gain thermal related stimulus. Or maybe every cell of the Zombie gains some kind of capability to receive certain signals. A Zombie might walk around utilizing a sort of radar that is specifically tuned to a living human's normal body temperature.