Today’s lesson…Could a fungal apocalypse like The Last of Us really happen?
My main goal with these newsletters is to provide info on Everyday Emergencies that you’re most likely to encounter…
- Natural disasters
- Car wrecks
- Kids hurt on the sports field
- Wife hit you with a frying pan
- Etc.
But a lot of you message me or DM me to ask about bigger apocalyptic events, especially those who’ve attended my zombie lecture where I lay out scientifically how a small mutation in the rabies virus could create 28 Days Later style zombies.
So, every now and then, with your permission, I’ll nerd out and talk about end of the world kind of stuff.
This one came across my radar from Tim Ferriss and involves mushrooms and the show/video game The Last of Us. I got really excited when I read it, because I am a fungus fanatic…
<cue dad joke> Matter of fact, I’m a really fun-guy!
I eat mushrooms. I grow mushrooms on my farm. I have a big mug of mushroom coffee right beside me as I type this.
In the show, the world is taken over by fungi, specifically a cordyceps type of fungi. Now in the real world (for now!), cordyceps is pretty amazing for heart health, energy, and endurance.
In The Last of Us, as you’ll see from this trailer, it’s not so friendly…
Here’s what Tim Ferriss said that picqued my curiosity…
“Could The Last of Us Happen?” byEmily Gaines Buchler. This article discusses the work and book (What If Fungi Win?) of Arturo Casadevall, a world-renowned infectious disease doctor, regarding the threats and potential of fungi, including dangerous pathogens. If The Last of Us does not ring a bell, see the trailer here.
Right HERE is a link to Emily’s article.
Just for fun, and maybe a few nightmares, click HERE to see pics of what cordyceps does to ants and how it turns them into zombie ants.
Hope you enjoyed this little jaunt down into nightmare. Now, for the full experience…
- Order some cordyceps mushroom coffee. I prefer Four Sigmatic Boost.
- Buy season one of The Last of Us.
- Chill and try to relax knowing that it hasn’t happened for real…yet.
—————————-
Click the button below to join the Prepared membership and download a one page round-up of this lesson. Don’t forget- the one pagers always include extra information not found in the email above.
If you don’t wish to join the membership but would still like to have the one pager, you can purchase individual ones from the store HERE.
This information may not be relevant to you right now, so I recommend one or all of the following…
- Saving it to an email folder titled “Prepared”
- Saving it as a PDF in a file called “Prepared” so you don’t have to worry about your email provider
- Printing it out and putting it in a binder with a word on the front in big fat letters…yes, you know it…”Prepared”.*
*No. 3 is the gold standard EMP proof recommendation.