You may think you have encyclopedic knowledge of The Walking Dead, and maybe some pretty good theories about what's going down in Season 4 next month... hell, you might even have your own post-apocalypse game plan, thanks to your dog-eared copy of The Zombie Survival Guide and regular trips to the local army surplus. But are you a fully certified zombie expert? You can be, thanks to a new course being offered at University of California at Irvine entitled Society, Science, Survival: Lessons from AMC’s The Walking Dead.
According to their website, the eight-week course will examine themes of survival, science and social structure as illustrated in the TV series, and will explore the following topics in detail:
- Maslow’s hierarchy of needs: is survival just about being alive?
- Social order and structures: from the farm and the prison to Woodbury
- Social identity, roles, and stereotyping: as shown through leaders like Rick and the Governor
- The role of public health in society: from the CDC to local community organizations
- The spread of infectious disease and population modeling: swarm!
- The role of energy and momentum in damage control: how can you best protect yourself?
- Nutrition in a post-apocalyptic world: are squirrels really good for you?
- Managing stress in disaster situations: what’s the long-term effect of always sleeping with one eye open?
In addition to lectures, articles and excerpts from the show, the course will also include exclusive interviews with the series cast and crew, as well as experts from many fields of study. Students will learn about how infectious diseases are spread and contained, social and behavioral responses to crisis situations, the role of public health organizations, and more. Of course, there will be tests, so pay attention and do your homework... which of course means watching The Walking Dead, so it's all good.
The course runs from October 14th to December 20th (open to ages 18 and up). Enroll here for free!