Toxin In The Film The Happening

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An illness, a disease, a neurotoxin that is fatal. Beginning in crowded areas with massive populations and an abundance of homes, businesses and infrastructure. Targeting everyone despite age, gender and race. A toxin so powerful that an epidemic was declared in the state of New York within hours. Beginning in New York at Central Park, men and women went on with their daily lives and routines before being hit with a gust of wind accompanied by an altered mental state with profound confusion and short term memory. Victims lost memory of where they were, who they were and what they were doing. After confusion hit, a scream is heard by all and the most severe symptom occurred; suicide. A sensation to murder oneself that was so deep and overpowering, …show more content…

What links them all together is their identity as a toxin. More specifically, a neurotoxin is a substance that attacks or damages nerve cells (Donald Venes). This can affect a human’s brain, specifically the limbic system, including the brain stem and emotional centers. As stated earlier, the limbic system controls higher mental functions and cognitive thinking. It is made up of several structures including the, “hippocampus, amygdala, fornicate gyrus” (Julie K. Stegman). When these centers are damaged, consequences are severe and can result in confusion, depression, amnesia and many other neurological disorders. Many of which are similar to the symptoms shown in The …show more content…

Furthermore, symptoms can progress and worsen and cause an altered mental state of confusion (Thigpen). This mental confusion could cause other mental problems such as loss of memory, physical disorientation and emotional responses. Although meningitis is not identical to the movie organism, it shares a common symptom of mental confusion and disorientation. With that in mind, bacterial meningitis can be treated with antibiotics while the movie organism has no cure. Slightly different than Toxoplasmic gondii and bacterial meningitis is Pfiesteria. Pfiesteria is a heterotrophic dinoflagellate that produces a toxin when environmental conditions are ideal. It is most commonly associated with the phenomenon known as “Red Tide”. The red tide is an “algal bloom that appears red or brownish in colour” and is caused by “agricultural run-off or other nutrient-rich material produced mainly from human activities” (Christine

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