Zombie

Researchers have made a shocking discovery. According to a new study published in Ecology, scientists have discovered a “zombie fern” in Panama that reanimates its dead leaf fronds and turns them into roots, so that the mother plant can continue feeding.It’s an interesting discovery that showcases just how unique and intriguing plant life on our planet can be. The researchers say that this phenomenon only happens when the dead leaves droop to the ground. After making contact with the soil, the plant seems to…

Perhaps the most intriguing thing about the news that Danny Boyle, Alex Garland and Cillian Murphy are to reunite on a long awaited threequel to the classic new wave zombie horror 28 Days Later, is that none of the above really need a career hike. When film-makers and movie stars return to the source for a belated follow-up, there is often a distinct whiff of greatest hits tour about it. Let’s get the old band back together for one last dip into the coffers before retirement. Who doesn’t need a second beach house in…

Call of Duty's big Season 2 update arrives February 7 for Modern Warfare III and Warzone, and one of the most notable additions is the next BlackCell DLC bundle.This newest BlackCell offering includes operator skins with an eerie gold and glowing purple hue. They don't just look snazzy, though, as some of the skins have "reactive decay." This means your soldier will morph from human to zombie and eventually to a skeleton as you rack up kills. You need a javascript enabled…

Other plants, including some ferns, send out leaves or shoots that touch the ground and sprout roots to sustain a new plant. But the Panamanian tree fern, Cyathea rojasiana, reconfigures its “zombie leaves,” reversing the flow of water to draw nutrients back into the plant. Credit: Graphic by Camila Pizano, color by Michael VincentPlant biologists have discovered that a unique species of tree fern, exclusive to Panama, has the ability to regenerate its deceased leaf fronds into root-like structures. This fern, known as…

Ordinarily, once a fern's leaf fronds have died, the plant has no further use for them. Such is not the case with the Cyathea rojasiana fern, though – a scientist has discovered that its dead fronds become "zombie leaves" which suck nutrients from the soil.While studying another type of plant in a Panamanian forest reserve, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign's Prof. James Dalling and colleagues noticed something interesting about the Cyathea rojasiana tree ferns, which are only found in Panama.When fronds of the…

Earlier in io9's 2024 Sundance Film Festival coverage, we reviewed In a Violent Nature, one of the most unconventional slasher movies ever made. That theme continues with Handling the Undead—a most unusual zombie movie, and one that offers proof (yet again) that the genre still has the ability to innovate.Does Mali Elfman Believe in Ghosts? | Next ExitA lot of that is down to the source-material novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist, probably Sweden’s most famous horror author thanks to the global success of Let the Right One In…

The dead are returning in the chilly Norwegian drama Handling the Undead, a sad, somber attempt to guide the zombie genre from midnight movie to arthouse. It works in parts, as a study of the ache and irrationality of grief, asking its characters how much they’re willing to accept and deny in order to see their loved ones again. But the first-time director Thea Hvistendahl’s patience-insisting slow burn can be testing, like watching a block of ice slowly melt, a story told in the smallest of drips, some of which sink in…

Research led by Dr. Manuel Serrano at IRB Barcelona has unveiled how senescent cancer cells, post-chemotherapy, employ the PD-L2 protein to evade immune detection and foster a suppressive environment, hindering lymphocyte function. Deactivating PD-L2 in these cells allows the immune system to efficiently eliminate them, enhancing the effectiveness of chemotherapy. This finding, demonstrated in cell and animal models of various cancers, suggests the potential of PD-L2 inhibitors in improving cancer treatments. Credit:…

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Melting Arctic ice in Siberia may release ancient “zombie” viruses, posing a potential global health crisis, leading scientists have recently warned. Geneticist Jean-Michel Claverie, professor emeritus of medicine and genomics at Aix-Marseille University, told The Guardian: “We now face a tangible threat, and we need to be prepared to deal with it. It is as simple as that.”The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has already reported that the Arctic’s average temperature has risen at a rate three times higher than the…