Do Zombies Dream of Undead Sheep?: A Neuroscientific View of the Zombie Brain

273 Pages·2014·2.482 MB·English

by  Timothy Verstynen, Bradley Voytek

DO ZOMBIES DREAM OF UNDEAD SHEEP?

D O
Z O M B I E S
D R E A M O F
U N D E A D
S H E E P ?
A NEUROSCIENTIFIC VIEW OF
THE ZOMBIE BRAIN
TIMOTHY VERSTYNEN & BRADLEY VOYTEK
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS
PRINCETON AND OXFORD
Copyright © 2014 by Princeton University Press
Published by Princeton University Press, 41 William Street,
Princeton, New Jersey 08540
In the United Kingdom: Princeton University Press, 6 Oxford Street,
Woodstock, Oxfordshire OX20 1TW
press.princeton.edu
Jacket design and interior by Jessica Massabrook
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Verstynen, Timothy, 1978–
Do zombies dream of undead sheep? : a neuroscientific view of the
zombie brain / Timothy Verstynen & Bradley Voytek.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978–0-691–15728–3 (hardback)
1. Neurosciences. 2. Zombies. 3. Brain. I. Voytek, Bradley,
1981– II. Title.
QP355.2.V47 2014
001.944—dc23 2014011128
British Library Cataloging-i n- Publication Data is available
This book has been composed in Avenir LT Std & Adobe Caslon Pro
Printed on acid-f ree paper. ∞
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
CONTENTS
LIST OF FIGURES vii
PRELUDE
SACRIFICES NOT MADE IN VAIN ix
INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER 1
GRAY’S (UNDEAD) ANATOMY 7
CHAPTER 2
DO ZOMBIES DREAM OF UNDEAD SHEEP? 27
CHAPTER 3
THE NEURAL CORRELATES OF LUMBERING 49
CHAPTER 4
HUNGRY, ANGRY, AND STUPID IS NO WAY TO
GO THROUGH UNLIFE 66
CHAPTER 5
THERE’S NO CRYING IN THE
ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE! 90
CHAPTER 6
TONGUE-T IED AND TWISTED 104
CHAPTER 7
DISENGAGEMENT DEFICIT OF THE DEAD 131
CHAPTER 8
WHOSE UNDEAD FACE IS THIS, ANYWAY? 149
CHAPTER 9
HOW AM I NOT MYSELF? 166
CHAPTER 10
ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE UNDEAD MIND 179
CHAPTER 11
FIGHTING THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE . . .
WITH SCIENCE! 202
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 231
GLOSSARY 233
INDEX 251

FIGURES
The illustrations for this book have been created by
ANNE KARETNIKOV
FIGURE 1.1. WHAT ARE BRAIN CELLS? 12
FIGURE 1.2. SEGMENTING THE BRAIN 18
FIGURE 2.1. ACTION POTENTIALS 31
FIGURE 2.2. SLEEPING AND WAKING 40
FIGURE 3.1. COORDINATING MOVEMENTS 52
FIGURE 4.1. FIGHT-O R- FLIGHT 70
FIGURE 4.2. MIKE THE CHICKEN 84
FIGURE 5.1. ZOMBIE SOCIAL GROUPS 91
FIGURE 6.1. BRRAAAINSSS AND LANGUAGE 124
FIGURE 7.1. MAPPING VISION 138
FIGURE 7.2. THE DORSAL VISUAL STREAM 142
FIGURE 8.1. THE VENTRAL VISUAL STREAM 158
FIGURE 9.1. CAJAL’S CONTRALATERAL HYPOTHESIS 175
FIGURE 10.1. ZOMBIE BOUNCERS OF THE BRAIN 183
FIGURE 10.2. THE PAPEZ CIRCUIT 197
FIGURE 11.1. TIME- TO-R ESURRECTION HYPOTHESIS 211

PRELUDE
SACRIFICES NOT MADE IN VAIN
This book is about science. It is about exploring the essence of
what it means to be a thinking human being. Unfortunately
neuroscience is a science built partly on tragedy.
Much of our understanding of the human brain comes from
studying instances where an injury or malady has afflicted the
brain of a living person. These individuals are not just anony-
mous people hidden behind initials in the medical literature,
they are our loved ones. They are our parents, our spouses, our
siblings, our children, and our best friends. Yet as a result of
some misfortune their lives are permanently altered because
damage to their central nervous system has caused them to be-
have, think, or perceive differently.
By studying the relationship between these injuries and sub-
sequent changes in behavior, we can gain invaluable insights into
how our brains actually work. Our evolving understanding of the
human brain not only furthers basic science, but also lays the
necessary foundation for the development of new therapies and
(hopefully) cures. As a field we are constantly striving to squeeze
every ounce of knowledge that we can from these very personal
tragedies, in order to improve the world, one patient at a time.
While much of this book appears to be about zombies, it is in
fact an ode to the lessons that are learned from such personal
tragedies. It is an ode to the scientists who took the time to get
to know their patients well enough to understand the complex
ailments that impacted their everyday lives. It is an ode to those
who, often by no fault of their own, suffered from a malady and
yet endured to allow a stranger in a white coat to ask “why” and
“how.”