Yep! So at first humans don’t think the zombies have any higher brain function, since the zombies cannot have any higher brain function when they smell a human.
Eventually humans figure out that hiding their scent can provide them some protection. Then they realize they’ve been killing sentient people when defending themselves against the zombies.
There’s a whole plotline in between where humans think it’s just a few zombies that are sentient, including the title character - “the Girl with All the Gifts”.
You may want to check out “The Girl With All the Gifts” - book or movie.
Spoiler for the big twist in The Girl With All the Gifts
The Zombies turn out to be able to reason (whenever they don’t smell prey) and are able to reproduce to sustain their own numbers.
This turns the story into a humans vs neanderthals, or homo-sapiens vs homo-superior, kind of situation.
Quoting spoiler
So it smelling prey for zombies like being horny for humans?
more spoiler talk for The Girl With All the Gifts
Yep! So at first humans don’t think the zombies have any higher brain function, since the zombies cannot have any higher brain function when they smell a human.
Eventually humans figure out that hiding their scent can provide them some protection. Then they realize they’ve been killing sentient people when defending themselves against the zombies.
There’s a whole plotline in between where humans think it’s just a few zombies that are sentient, including the title character - “the Girl with All the Gifts”.
Oof, that’s pretty creepy.