The Walking Lack of Science

The Boy is watching The Walking Dead. I have one really good question: Why are walkers still a problem?

I’ve seen season 1 of the show. No more. I know the show takes place over several months, possibly even a few years. Based on my limited knowledge of death and decay, walkers shouldn’t be too big of a problem.

The majority of humanity perished early during the zombie apocalypse. Most of the dead became walkers but walkers are just a functioning brain stem and decaying flesh. I recall no mention of any tissue lasting longer. Flesh decays beyond usability at a good rate. In a hot, humid southern climate, all corpses would be rendered immobile by decay inside of a week. They’d also be very bloated eventually bursting and rendering them pretty damn dead.

Even in colder northern climates desiccation would remove the usability of the soft bits that hold joints like knees and elbows together. They’d become brittle mummies. the first time any temperatures fell below freezing they'd become brittle and possibly snap.

Hole up for long enough and most walkers should be rolling torsos that can either be stepped over or easily handled. I understand the newly dead can turn but that would only render walkers a sporadic problem worthy of sturdy fencing and barbed wire.  

I understand that the virus mutated to take live victims but if that worked on everyone the show would end pretty quickly so there must be a limited immunity rate. This increases the walker problem but those trends can be spotting in people you know. The infected can be quarantined and summarily executed upon conversion.

As for roving walkers, your base of operations can add a few rows of barbed wire and beef up the fence. Maybe add a few strands of bells or something else noisy. And take out the stairs in any stronghold. (Any building during a zombie problem requires a second story and a ladder. Walkers might be able to pull off stairs but ladders would probably require too much dexterity and brain power.)

I know the show hangs on the premise of interpersonal politics and characters who feel the need to destroy what’s left of their fellow man but walkers are supposed to be a constant problem. I think some of the interpersonal troubles would calm down if walkers actually followed some basic biology.

Music: Paradise feat. Tarja by Within Temptation