Seanan McGuire (seanan_mcguire) wrote,
Seanan McGuire
seanan_mcguire
  • Mood: geeky
  • Music: SJ Tucker, "Cheshire Kitten."

FEED spoiler party!

Okay, folks, I've been asked for it, and here it is: the spoiler party for Feed. Anything goes in the comments on this post only. If you haven't read the book, I ask that you not click. If you have, feel free to jump in, ask questions, discuss, or just yell at me. I'm cool either way.

Game on!
Tags: feed, mira grant, zombies
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  • 268 comments
...go 5 levels up... Expand

cupcakery

May 11 2010, 18:38:39 UTC 7 years ago Edited:  May 11 2010, 18:41:25 UTC

Once there are zombie caribou, it's all over. And that's not even considering zombie wolves. Or zombie polar bears.

(And, even though they're on the opposite end of the globe, the idea of zombie penguins nearly makes me cackle.)

fionn320

May 12 2010, 02:53:58 UTC 7 years ago

Obligate carnivores, or any animal that subsists mainly on mammal meat, that reach breeding size after 40 pounds would die off as a species in one generation, as they would all convert prior to reaching breeding size.

hasufin

May 16 2010, 01:09:29 UTC 7 years ago

I wonder about this. I'm curious as the the mechanism by which viral amplification occurs in a recently-killed organism. It can't be happening on the cellular level, or everyone would be undergoing viral amplification. So it's at the system level, which might imply that there are ways to kill an organism without triggering amplification.

Which would probably - if they're not corrupt and power-mad as all hell - be a good direction for research by the CDC. Bad enough that people have to destroy the roving zombies; Gramps dying in his rocking chair is equally dangerous right now.

seanan_mcguire

May 21 2010, 16:50:16 UTC 7 years ago

Basically, everything gets "kick-started" for a few seconds, as the virus switches to its live state. It's an actual viral transformation. Anything below threshold it can't get sufficient mass, and the transition cuts off.

hasufin

May 21 2010, 17:25:20 UTC 7 years ago

I'm curious as to how that kick-starting occurs, and why it needs a certain mass. Viral transformation occurs on the cellular level. If any dead cell went to active KA, everyone would have undergone spontaneous amplification a long time ago. So, how do the cells "know" that their host has died? And could that pathway be disrupted?

(Naturally, if there is an answer I may not be able to understand it. And it's probably not pertinent to the story. And, as the author, you have every right to say "Nyah, nyah, nyah! I'm not going to tell you!")

seanan_mcguire

May 21 2010, 17:28:13 UTC 7 years ago

1. The virus activates when the electrical field of the host is disrupted around it.
2. The virus requires a certain volume to "reactivate" the host.
3. Under the amplification threshold, it cannot achieve sufficient volume.
4. The disruption of the viral connection to the host disrupts the electrical field. Amplification ho!

hasufin

May 21 2010, 17:57:24 UTC 7 years ago

Okay, now you've got me wondering how zombies are affected by high-voltage lines. And electromagnets. Which has the potential to be absolutely hilarious. As Shaun has demonstrated, tasers have some effect, but I didn't note the significance of it at the time.


On a more serious note, would it then be possible to establish a field around a person which inhibited viral amplification?
I can imagine really high-end level 10 zones having something in place which would keep recently-dead from rising. Not nearly as handy as, say, a working vaccine, but it does have potential. Side effects might be a bit of an issue, though.

seanan_mcguire

May 21 2010, 18:44:54 UTC 7 years ago

No, it wouldn't be, for reasons that require like, nine pages of my virology notes to explain (and they're not sharable, for a lot of reasons, including I don't want to be busted for bio-terrorism).

hasufin

May 21 2010, 19:11:18 UTC 7 years ago

Ah well. It was an idea. I really need to get back into studying this stuff. I've been on an archaeology kick for years.