Pirate's Cove

Of course, Gizmodo has to give a disclaimer, but, the very fact that they’re even going down this road shows how deranged this whole cult is

The Last of Us Is Right: Climate Change Is Making Fungi More Dangerous
Zombie-creating fungi are an unlikely possibility, but a warmer world will make fungi more of a threat.

“Unlikely”. Look, I love reading zombie book, and read a bunch each year. Working through a series right now. But, it’s not going to happen (well, unless scientists screw with something, and it would be more like 28 Days Later).

HBO has another bonafide hit on its hand with the recent release of The Last of Us, the post-apocalyptic TV show based on the hit video game series produced by Naughty Dog. Both the game and show (at least through the first three episodes) weave together a blend of pulse-pounding action and gut-wrenching drama, as protagonists Joel and Ellie journey across the ruins of the United States.

The central cause of said apocalypse is a fungal infection that turns its victims into zombie-like creatures. While the fictional disease has its fantastical aspects, it’s based on the very real Cordyceps and Ophiocordyceps—two related families of parasitic fungal species that spread by manipulating the behavior of their insect or arachnid hosts. Real and creepy as those fungi are, it’s unlikely that any existing Cordyceps species will pose that sort of danger to humans, at least in the near future. Among other things, it’s taken millions of years for the fungi to evolve their unique way of life with any one specific bug, and our human biology has little in common with these hosts.

Fungi tend to require a certain range of temperatures to sustain life. Our typical body temperature, roughly 97 degrees Fahrenheit, is too high to be comfortable for most fungi to regularly infect us. But as climate change raises the average temperature in many regions, the argument goes, some fungi will adapt and learn to thrive under the heat. And if people are routinely exposed to these heat-adapted fungi, some may then successfully make the jump into becoming a human pathogen.

Doom! Skipping through all the missives of climate cult apocalypse to the end

“We need more research into tracking the spread of fungal diseases and increasing our arsenal of antifungal drug treatments,” Gusa said. “This means we need better diagnostic tools, increased surveillance, new antifungal drugs and clinical trials for vaccine candidates.”

The Last of Us might be fiction, but the fungal threat is real.