Michigan State University Offers Zombie Survival Course

By Samantha Abernethy in Arts & Entertainment on Mar 9, 2012 7:10PM

"In a time of catastrophe, some people find their humanity; other lose theirs." That's what Michigan State University Professor Glenn Stutzky said in his promotional video for the online summer course "SW290: Surviving the Coming Zombie Apocalypse: Catastrophes & Human Behavior." By using pop culture's current favorite monster, Stutzky will have students examine human behavior for this social work class.

The course will look at the Great Plague and earthquakes and other catastrophic disasters in history, while students will be placed on zombie-fighting teams to see how they'll react.

The question at the center of this course is, “How do humans behave in catastrophic times?” Does their behavior change in the midst of trying to survive and the decisions they face? We will examine major catastrophic events from the past, look to potential future events, and consider a concept for increasing our chances of survival.

Yeah, we're sick of hearing about zombies, too. They're as played out as vampires at this point, but this is an interesting way for the professor to approach the subject. We, too, have always wondered how we would fare in a zombie apocalypse. We listed our hideouts and hypothesized on which restaurants will remain open. Around Halloween Mayor Rahm Emanuel created a portrait of what it may look like, and he's pretty sure he can just keep calm and ride the CTA.

Oh, and the good news is you don't have to be a MSU student to sign up, and it's an online course. Enrollment for non-MSU students starts March 24, through the Lifelong Education program.

Stutzky created a trailer to promote the course. There's a short and a long version, both posted below.