All-Consuming: Zombie Science Recap

So that zombie fic had a lot of scientific content. And a lot of unscientific content. This post is a pretty casual overview of the science and sci-fi relating specifically to the zombie infection.

Use this as you see fit. I've marked out three different sections which only have spoilers through the end of a given chapter, so, if you like, you can check in after chapters 6, 8, and 10 to keep up with the new stuff that's been revealed (just be careful with your scrolling). There are no spoilers for chapter 11 and beyond in the post, but there may be some in the comments.

Questions and thoughts are welcome even if you haven't read the whole fic or the whole post. I can't promise I'll have answers, but I'll try! There's some sci-fi stuff in the fic that I haven't touched on here; feel free to ask/comment about any of it. Much of it is science-shaped magic, but I'm happy to explain my magical logic.

This stuff is well outside my field of study, and this post is intended as a one-stop reference to accompany All-Consuming, not as an academic resource. (I've been too lazy to even cite any sources, so.) Please, please double-check anything I've said here before repeating it in any serious context. This post is also subject to editing. If you notice anything I've gotten wrong, or anything that's super confusing, please let me know.

( science and spoilers )

Okay, that's what I've got! I have given myself a headache.