A "grounded theory"

[d r]

Hi I tried posting this but lost it, I'll try again.

I have been lurking here since the show started, but this is my first post. I've never really been a fan of the "purgatory" types of theories, so I may have missed discussion of this idea, and if so, I'm sorry to bring it back up. Also, I know there are theories about regeneration that have been on here, and this is consistent with it. I don't really like this theory, and I think it is probably wrong, but i wonder if they left "clues" in the show to point towards this sort of speculation as an innacurate theory?

Anyway, here goes. What if there is something in the ground - the sand or dirt - of the island that regenerates people (or I guess any living thing) and even brings them back to life? Perhaps Danielle and the scientists were working on some sort of experiment that went wrong. It is consistent with several things, and not consistent with a couple.

Consistent-
1. I've noticed talk on here questionning how the people could have survived the crash. It has also been pointed out that all the survivors were outside the plane, and the dead were inside. Maybe, for example, when Jack woke up in the jungle he wasn't just "waking up" he was coming back to life after "really" being killed in the crash.

2. Locke being able to walk.

3. The mystery of Jack's dad. I'm a little loose on this one, because I think i was distracted from the TV, but when they found his coffin, wasn't it empty? I may have that wrong. But maybe his body was dropped and he really did come back to life and is walking around instead of Jack imagining it. Maybe someone can clear this up for me.

4. The pilot in the cockpit was placed up in a tree, not on the ground. Maybe whatever put him up there did that on purpose? I wonder what happened to his body - is it still up there?

5. I thought it was sort of odd that they made such a big deal about burning the bodies that were still on the plane. Was this to explain away any questions we viewers might have had about why they didn't come back to life had they been buried?

6. The marshall didn't really ever die from his injuries, he had to be killed. And the gunshot wasn't enough. Maybe he remained injured because the metal was lodged in him, so there was no way to regenerate. Is it true that Jack decided to not take the metal out? Wouldn't it be rough for Jack if he someday learns that he would have came back to life if he hadn't killed him. I wonder what they did to his body, was it burned with the others?

This might also account for Walt's dog being alive, and even the possibility that Rose is right about her husband. Joanne died because she was in the ocean and couldn't touch the land of the island. Maybe this also even explains the "ease" of Charlie's withdrawal. Or the voices whispering in the woods. Or somehow the rash on that guy. I haven't been able to watch closely enough to see how Jack heals from his back wounds, which seemed pretty severe, or Sawyer from the stab wound, or even the beatings that some survivors took.

There are a couple of inconsistents-

1. The mummies at the cave. Maybe the white and black "stones" have something to do with them staying dead, but it seems too "magical." Maybe it is because they were on the rock of the cave and not the ground? To me, this really hurts this "theory."

2. Danielle talks about the others with her being dead. I wonder if the black rock could account for that somehow. On the flip side, maybe she knows about this, maybe this is why she expects Alex to be alive.

If this theory was true, I guess you would basically be "immortal" on the island, and maybe that is why Danielle is still around, or why she had no sense of being there 16 years, or maybe she has been there longer, and that is why the equipment she has looks older.

Anyway, I enjoy the show,

DR

[MangaKhan]

Veeery Interesting theory.

How do you explain that Adam and Eve were not regenerated in the cave. Did the "rock" they were on insulate them from the "ground"?

[drabauer]

Well you might pull out the George Romero Zombie defense: a blow to the head. That is, some injuries are sufficient to kill, others will allow the body to regenerate damaged tissue.

What if Jack's father were pronounced dead but were really in a coma or deep trance? Not likely, but Gilligan did it.

[yung23]

Intresting idea, now back it up with this from lostmedia..

Inside the secrets of ''Lost'': Here's a behind-the-scenes look at ABC's island thriller, the biggest cult hit on TV since ''The X-Files'' by Dan Snierson

Here on the Hawaii set of ABC's hit drama Lost — that twisty mystery series about plane crash survivors fending for themselves on a South Pacific island inhabited by polar bears, a sadistic Frenchwoman, and unseen monsters — the cameras roll as Kate (Evangeline Lilly) and Jack (Matthew Fox) stare at a mound of dirt marked with a wooden cross.

''Why didn't you just put him with the others when you burned the fuselage?'' asks Kate.

''Because I needed to bury him,'' explains Dr. Jack solemnly.

The two pull out some makeshift shovels and begin exhuming the dead guy, a U.S. marshal who was bringing fugitive Kate to justice before disaster struck. See, this marshal carried a wallet. And that wallet contained a key. And that key opens an impenetrable briefcase. And the contents of that case are important enough for them to endure this hellish process, which involves gagging, maggots, and a startling betrayal that the island gods want to keep hush-hush for now.

this may be from entertaiment magazine.

[jmungus]

wow. im truly impressed with your approach.
me=board member for 1 week/not finished with every single thread yet/read some maaaad stuff from u chosen few lost madmen (u know who u are ;) )......
as they are all (well, for the most part) built on solid ground, meaning immensely indepths research paired w/ covering a theory from most angles imaginable, THIS ONE HERE had me right away.
its not remote ideas, the basic idea behind it would make sense, be interesting, to a degree "fantastic" without being too far out. man. LOL.
the observations were all well made, even i could remember all that and put the fragments back together from my memory.

im not really lost-freakzoid material (not the fault of lost, btw. so far i love the show more and more) as im not really likely to go nuts over any show (i was 10, it was star wars, it will never happen again), so even with all the intel from facts, speculations and discussions i read so far, this one FEELS just PERFECT to me. too perfect to be true ?
there we have a handful of post count collectors, doing a great job making and keeping this page sweet infotainment , then we have u.... D R.... lurking around as u said, just giving it a "virginal" shot, et voila- im the biggest fan of your theory.
like it a lot, couldnt agree more in everything u lay down.
will check back what the overlords and grandmistresses will have to say to your move.

[Chance Gardener]

The Marshall, the pilot, the other dead passengers kinda put a crimp in that thought.

I agree it is something about the island; I don't think it is regenerative. I'm still leaning towards the island reading their psychological/emotional selves and somehow manifesting their desires/needs/thoughts.

Part of the conflict happens when these manifestations overlap and you get some monster thingy turning pilots into chew toys.

I suppose I am thinking this is a variation of one of Bradbury's stories in the Martian Chronicles about one of the last Martians in a town of humans trying to fit each person's desire for a lost loved one. With the island being the Martian in this case.

[JacksGirlfriend]

What if there is something in the ground - the sand or dirt - of the island that regenerates people (or I guess any living thing) and even brings them back to life?

d r: So what do you think it is?

JacksGirl

[d r]

Thanks for the feedback, everyone, I think it is probably a wrong theory - Adam and Eve hurt it (I was thinking that maybe the rocks of the cave they were on kept them from the ground), and the Marshall hurts it (I was thinking that the metal stuck in him kept him from healing, but if he was buried and not burned, that wouldn't fit.

Jacksgirl - I've seen threads on here about a possible virus that the french scientists were working on, or about nanotechnology (super tiny little robots). Either one could fit I guess, I was thinking that it had to be something in the ground.

But I don't think this is right, to be honest.

[Elrond]

The mystery of Jack's dad. I'm a little loose on this one, because I think i was distracted from the TV, but when they found his coffin, wasn't it empty
I don't think it's 100% certain that that's jack's dad's coffin, sure we see the flashback at the airport and Jack has a viloent reaction when it see's. But could some one else have put a coffin on the plane? We never hear in the flashback if the airlines allowed Jack to put his dad/coffin on the plane. I thought it was sort of odd that they made such a big deal about burning the bodies that were still on the plane. Was this to explain away any questions we viewers might have had about why they didn't come back to life had they been buried?
According to Jack, the wild boars would continue to raid the beach camp to feed on the bodies, and dig them up if they weren't burned.
Maybe he remained injured because the metal was lodged in him, so there was no way to regenerate. Is it true that Jack decided to not take the metal out?
NO. jack did remove the metal, which caused the marshall to wake up and loose alot of blood causing hurley to pass out.

[drabauer]

Chance I really liked your reference to the Martian Chronicles. In general, it reminded me that Mars changed the inhabitants until they themselves became Martians. A similar transformative effect could be happening on the island.

[JacksGirlfriend]

I don't think this is right, to be honest.

d r: Just keep working on it. Never give up until you have to (I still think we might find some Vikings).

JacksGirl

[drabauer]

d r: Just keep working on it. Never give up until you have to (I still think we might find some Vikings).

I am coming to raid and pillage your bra öde ö!!!!!

http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~abauer/viking.gif

[d r]

Thanks for the info filling in my gaps, Elrond, and for the encouragement, Jacksgirl.

[RememberMe]

This would explain why Charlie was hung and how he came back after he was cut down.

[lauradelenn]

Re: A "grounded theory"
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This would explain why Charlie was hung and how he came back after he was cut down.
__________________________________________________ _
RememberMe:

One thing else it could be: Jack's fierce and sincere desire to not let Charlie go. If the island is indeed manifesting emotions/desires, etc, then this may be an alternative explanation.

But I like yours too! : )

Laura

[AlwaysLost]

i think that its peoples thoughts that bring things back... for example... jack of course w/ his patient that he lost, locke with his legs, jack w/ his dad... etc...

[theghostofwalt]

i think this is a fascinating theory.

and unlike most here, it cant really be refuted just yet.

interesting stuff, thanks.

[kimjoy85]

I think its possible that it regenerates, but not to the point of bringing someone fully back to life. Like it can bring back your ability to walk, but it can only bring you back to life for a very brief moment.

[LostInWilderness]

In a bit of serendipity, JG just happened to highlight this thread, and I knew SHBL would get a kick out of it, so JG generously opened it for me.

But it also provides a place to discuss my idea that the hatch is designed to keep something in the earth, not above ground, out. Maybe it's sound waves, low frequency radio waves, bacteria, or something we've never heard of. Maybe it's the security system. Or zombie juice.

Given the diameter of the hatch and the width of the shaft, I'd say the walls of the hatch are several feet thick. The door of the hatch was only inches thick at least. Whatever the hatch was meant to keep out appears to be far more threatening in the ground than above ground.

We know the security system has an underground component, so maybe the hatch was designed to keep it out. The shaft was deep, probably into the bedrock of the island. Maybe the security system can travel through dirt, but not rock, so the hatch has to have very thick walls through the dirt. This fits with the hatch as we see it in Exodus. Same with low frequency radio waves which would only shallowly penetrate the earth.

Sound waves would travel better through rock than soil, so if it's sound, the entire underground facility must have protection like he hatch. That would be very expensive and difficult to build, but possible.

I don't really think bacteria fit this idea. It seems one would design the hatch to defeat a specific bacteria instead of just using really thick walls to stop it.

Or maybe voodoo in the ground slowly turns people into zombies.

[artemisia14]

Interesting...
but Ethan is now in the ground and he's still dead.

Boone fell to the ground and he is still dead.

[clayseason1]

Given the diameter of the hatch and the width of the shaft, I'd say the walls of the hatch are several feet thick. The door of the hatch was only inches thick. Whatever the hatch was meant to keep out appears to be far more threatening in the ground than above ground.

If its more threatening in the ground that above ground, why build something in the ground at all?

[LostInWilderness]

I don't claim to know the original poster's intent, it's possible the ground makes people tougher but not totally invulnerable. I don't know the power of the ground, but the hatch seems designed to thwart it, whatever it is.

The reason you would build the hatch is to try to harness or control the power. Or maybe the people who built the hatch did it to protect against an experimental power they intended to unleash.

[clayseason1]

Or maybe the people who built the hatch did it to protect against an experimental power they intended to unleash.
Then the hatch would lead to a structure where the people would be safe from the experimental power once it was unleashed. But why build it underground? It would be easier and more cost effective to build it above ground, if the "shielding" does indeed protect it from the unleashed power.
Which would lead me to believe either - a. the ground provides additional protection or b. the people wanted their safe haven to be "secret".

[thereaintnostinkingmonster]

there is something about the island that, when you are connected to it, you are given what you want ... probably within reason. locke is the best example. first he is walking. moreover, he has become the hunter. i do not believe that he was a tracker, hunter, carpenter, etc. before this trip. he desired to be those things (before the trip and now). other examples:

jack (extreme desire/emotion) - charlie lives! & dad appears (i believe that he was in the coffin).

boone - i think that he wanted to die. he did not know how to live with his desire for shannon. i believe that, at the end, he accepted not only the fact that he was dying, but also his desire to die.

charlie - goes cold turkey on the herion addiction. i think that locke's talk with him about quitting (you have to decide) is a clue. charlie decided and it was done.

sawyer - wants to be the a-hole and he is.

kate - wants to be loved and she is .. by two guys. wanted to be useful and she is.

walt - wants to beat hurley at backgammon and he does. (hurley may have wanted to win, but he was more angry about losing. this is akin to the belief that focusing on the positive (remember the keys) is better than focusing on the negative (don't forget the keys).)

michael & jin - wanted to build the raft and they did. of course, it appears that the island is jealous ... you can never leave.

[sawyerhasbestlines]

In a bit of serendipity, JG just happened to highlight this thread, and I knew SHBL would get a kick out of it, so JG generously opened it for me.

Thank you, LIW.:D

Happy to see the regenerative discussion from way back in the day, and Drabauer throwing in some Romero zombie references. Sorry I missed this one on the first go-around. There are so many theories that fit under the "regeneration" heading. I get a kick out of all of them: the serious scientific, the B movie horror genre, the biblical, etc.

[LostInWilderness]

As I've said many times, the hatch itself was designed to keep something in the ground, not the air, not the water, out. Maybe smokey is still much more powerful underground, so that still may be the answer, but I think it's something else.

But the ground didn't heal the marshal or Shannon. It didn't heal Sawyer while he was walking across the island, or the guy with the broken leg.