Though a virus is more susceptible to environmental conditions, they tend to evolve very quickly. This adaptability lends itself to evolve to strains with higher tolerances to outside variables and higher risk of infection, especially if the zombie virus has its origins as a form of bio-chemical terrorism.

The Zombie Virus, which we refer to as the MAD Flu (Motor Ascendency of Dependent), having reference to Mad Cow Disease and meaning a complete motor function authority shift, in which the virus is completely in control of, and dependent  on the human brain.

Infection would occur by direct fluidic contact. Being that zombies are driven by a primal need for the most basic of human instincts, it would be logical to assume that this fluidic contact would be the result of a bite, in most cases.

It is important to note that any open wounds or other means of transference be considered as well. When killing a zombie, be sure that all such areas are covered or closed; eyes, mouth, wounds.

Initial symptoms of a zombie virus are: Pain, discoloration of infected area (as this is the first location to effectively die), fever, chills, dementia. These symptoms are followed by a numbing of extremities, loss of muscular coordination and death is soon to follow.

Reanimation occurs anywhere from a few minutes to a matter of hours (depending on where the fluid transfer takes place; i.e. a bite closer to the heart will travel through the bloodstream at a faster rate and thus entering the brain sooner. A bite that is further from the heart creates a higher threat level, as the victim might mistake the bite for a scratch or other injury after escape from a heated situation. The victim, in this scenario, may also avoid admittance of injury, as in doing so would sooner end his or her life. This makes them even more dangerous than those bitten close to the heart, as false assumptions may be made that they are, in fact, not infected.

Given that we are already experiencing forms of what we would expect to see in a zombie virus, it is entirely possible that the zombie virus will spawn from a military application.

Example: Viral Meningitis, an infection of the fluid in the spinal cord and the fluid that surrounds the brain, crossed with the elements of Mad Cow Disease (a disease that attacks the cow’s spinal cord and brain, leaving the animal with a loss of mobility and normal brain function) would certainly result in a zombie-like virus.  When Mad Cow Disease actually enters the human body (then called Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease), the host is left with these symptoms; changes in gait, hallucinations, lack of coordination, muscle twitching/jerks, and dementia.
 

This is an article written by a scientist for Center for Disease Control and Prevention:

“As I have witnessed, there are several stages to reanimation. Immediately after reanimation occurs, the host is fully mobile. Though coordination is lacking, the host exhibits traits of any drunk you may find stumbling through the streets, with a similar speech impediment. As diagnosing the host at this early stage will be the most difficult, it is also at this time they should be considered the highest threat.
As Rigor Mortis sets in, the host loses that fluid, albeit uncoordinated, mobility. Rash, jerky movements are the result.
The first stage of decomposition begins in the stomach, as the host’s own digestive enzymes begin to eat away its tissues. This is important to note, because the more a zombie feeds in the first stage, the slower the rate of decomposition.
Rigor Mortis lasts for approximately 36 hours. It is then that the host begins losing speed. The rate of decomposition is always dependent on temperature and humidity, and the speed of the host is dependent on the stage of decomposition. It is predicted that within a year however, unless frozen, the body will be almost completely decomposed. I say almost, because all the tests we have performed do not indicate normal decomposition in the brain, especially the brain stem, where the virus is housed.
Similarities in MAD flu are found in the following; viral meningitis, rabies, and Mad Cow Disease. Though certain similarities are present, diagnosing how to best treat MAD flu has, so far, been a great challenge. It is unlike anything we have seen before.”

The Dead Rising in the Bible:

Related Zombie Survival Posts:

• Rise of the MAD Flu: Day 6
• Rise of the MAD Flu: Day 8
• Rise of the MAD Flu: Day 3
• Zombie Virus via Rabies-Flu Hybrid
• Rise of the MAD Flu: Day 9 | 3:15pm