So this may be how the zombie apocalypse begins. From the Huffington Post UK:
Biological researchers have created dead 'zombie' cells in the lab which outperform living cells.
Seriously.
A team at Sandia National Laboratories and the University of New Mexico have innovated a technique whereby mammalian cells are coated with silica to form a near-perfect replicas.
The silica replicants can survive greater pressures and temperatures than flesh, and perform many functions better than the original cells did when alive.
Read more here: Biologists Create 'Zombie Cells' In The Lab Which Outperform Living Counterparts
