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Cause of the Petrification
Place your bets, people! Place your bets! Let's guess on why every human was turned to stone.
It was a medical experiment gone wrong.
The petrification effect was intended as a miracle cure-all. The world-wide blast was due to some kind of tragic error.- Not likely, if the existence of the Whyman proves anything.
- Not necessarily. We don't know "Why" he's saying why after all. For all we know, he could be ask "Why did this happen?" but broken by the guilt, is reduced to just saying why over again.
The inventor of the Petrification was a crazed environmentalist
Only humans and birds were petrified, but not the rest of the animal kingdom. His reason for doing it was out of fear that humanity would destroy the world with pollution and technology, and he left a select few alive so that humanity would start over. As for the birds, he used them as test subjects.- Given that the device is clearly shown to differentiate between species, this is likely.
The Petrification was caused by an AI releasing a large amount of nanomachines
- Jossed. The petrification weapon is shown to be an intricate device in the shape of a trefoil knot.
The petrification device is alien technology
Aliens invented the petrification, presumably for medical or military purposes. A spacecraft crashed into the Earth, causing an accidental discharge powerful enough to petrify all of humanity. Later, inhabitants of the island found the crash site, and managed to salvage one of the devices for themselves.- Jossed. The Whyman proves that the petrification was on purpose. In addition, the petrification device is voice-activated, and apparently understands Japanese.
- Confirmed. The Whyman is indeed thousands of Medusas in the moon, when Senku and company reach it, they talk about the reasons of the petrification.
The Petrification device on Treasure island was a prototype or some other version of the original.
- According to Chrome, when activated, the petrification field expands at a constant rate. However, going by various observations from the Manga, the device used on the island notably moves at a rate that allows it to be seen easily. However, the one used on the entire planet is quick enough to cover the entire surface of the Earth in a matter of seconds. Due to the disparity in speed, it is safe to assume that the one on Treasure Island is a different device to the one used on the Earth.
The Petrification is magic.
But Senku will approach this in the exact same way he's approached science: Through experimentation, observation, and calculation. The Medusa clearly works according to a set of rules, and Senku will figure out exactly what those rules are, turning magic into another form of science. Magma is Ruri and Kohaku's first cousin
There are only 40 people in the village and they don't take in outsiders, so all of the villagers must necessarily be related to each other to some degree. Despite Ruri's beauty, Magma only wants to marry her for the chief position, and even wants her to die. It must be because they were raised closely together and the Westermarck Effect means he can't see her as a real love interest. Senku is going to win the village games with SCIENCE
There's no way Chrome can win against Magma, and Ginrou managed to render himself unfit for fight. This means the only one with a chance of victory... Is Senku. Of course, his fighting ability is 3 to Kohaku's 1000, but that's only without his SCIENCE. Jasper has already okayed the use of science in battle - the glasses - so there's a precedence for allowing it. So Senku's gonna pull out all his cheat items and blow Magma away.- Partially Jossed. Chrome beat Magma with a combination of SCIENCE, Gen Asigiri's psychological tricks, and a good old-fashioned Groin Attack.
- Confirmed! While the specifics were wrong, Senku did end up winning.
The nameless villager is brain damaged
Even the dog Chalk has a name when he doesn't, probably because unlike Chalk, he doesn't react to his name. He has a large X-shaped scar on his head, so he clearly suffered a serious head injury. He's also the only one who doesn't wear a shirt - because he can't dress himself.- Jossed. It turns out that he was actually found and raised by a couple in the village as a baby, and that he deliberately suppressed his real name to conceal the fact that he was a former inhabitant of the very island where the astronauts, including Senku’s father, landed.
The mainland is populated
If you do the math, there should be a lot more descendants from the six astronauts than the 40 villagers in Ishigami village. Almost 4000 years have passed, in optimal conditions, the entire world could've been populated in that timeframe. Japan has clearly been populated - why else the rule against outsiders? - and though they might not have the technology to build boats that can cross the ocean anymore, that's not true for the beginning. Hell, they could've just taken some of the old metal boats while they hadn't rusted away yet. In fact, who says the astronauts even landed in Japan? They could've landed in China, and some of the descendants decided to cross the ocean in an attempt to find the legendary Japan. The story is going to partially shift into a Monster of the Week formula.
Tsukasa is obviously going to be reviving a lot more people, and according to Gen, they're all after the Kingdom of Science. Seems like the opportunity to have multiple individual challenges for Senku and company to take care of.- Jossed
Senku is eventually going to have to utilize something that he doesn't know everything about.
Maybe a new invention entirely/something that didn't exist yet in the modern era. Byakuya will have an Adaptation Dye-Job if an anime ever gets made
To make the reveal of him being Senku's stepfather less of an Ass Pull.
When Senku crosses the sea and reaches the land, he’ll see...
A society roughly on the same technological level as medieval times.- Jossed. There's civilization there, but it's roughly the same as Ishigami village in terms of technology.
- Semiconfirmed, there is some revived people, with Senku counterpart in terms of science,and they have the same, if not above the level of science of the Kingdom of Science
The Anime will air June 3rd 2019, the same day as the Petrification.
Senku was petrified for 117,354,893,870 seconds or 1,358,274.2346 days. Doing the math, including 3 extra days for every 400 years, The date of the Petrification would be June 3rd 2019. Considering that is a Monday, it could be likely that it would air then.- Jossed; it aired about a month later, on July 5th.
Suika has stowed away onboard the Perseus.
Ever since the Perseus was launched, Suika has been noticeably absent from the crowd shots of the people who have stayed behind in Japan. On top of that, Suika has a pretty substantial history of such reckless actions.- Confirmed! In addition, she's one of only two people on the ship to avoid being petrified, due to Ryusui kicking her away at the last second.
The grand finale will take place in space
Senku wanted to be an astronaut like his father, and going into space was mankind's greatest scientific achievement, so Senku building a rocket (possibly as a way to spread the cure worldwide) would make for a fitting conclusion.- Confirmed!!
Suika's real name is...
Tourmaline. Coinside with her nickname which means watermelon, it is a gemstone that can be colored like one. The leadership of the Treasure Island were Well-Intentioned Extremists in suppressing technological progress and preventing people from leaving the island.
Firstly, Senku's father Byakuya instructed his descendants (through one of The 100 Stories) to someday make their way to mainland Japan, with the intention of establishing a base of manpower and resources for Senku to utilize once he eventually reawakens from his petrification.Secondly, as the crew of the Perseus prepares to depart on their expedition to South America, Senku points out that a significant number of Kingdom of Science citizens must remain behind to continue maintaining and developing Ishigami Village, to ensure the continued survival of human civilization in case the expedition is lost with all hands.
Finally, once the shared ancestry between Ishigami Village and Treasure Island is revealed, Senku theorizes that the founders of Ishigami Village were those who followed the instruction to journey to Japan, while the current inhabitants of Treasure Island were those who remained behind.
Therefore, it is entirely possible that Byakuya's early descendants similarly only sent some of their brethren out to sea, while keeping the rest at home to ensure the survival of their civilization, a position reinforced by the perilous nature of the sea voyage (at least, with the primitive vessels they possessed at the time). This otherwise sensible reasoning could have been badly distorted after hundreds or thousands of years, eventually becoming a more draconian decree prohibiting attempts to leave the island altogether.
As for the suppression on technological progress, this would be instituted either in a short-sighted attempt to prevent the remaining inhabitants from developing safer seafaring methods allowing them to travel safely to Japan, or to simply consolidate power and prevent the overthrow of the current leadership.
The Yellowstone Volcano erupted at some point between Senkuu being petrified and waking up.
Early on in the series, Senku finds out that the Earth's axis has tilted in the last 3000-odd years since petrification. While the tilt of the Earth does change normally, it takes 40,000 years to do so.
Why is this important? Senkuu acts like this is a surprise, as if he didn't think it was a possibility that it could happen in the 3000 year period he was asleep, and it even throws off his calculations with the sextant he makes early in the series. At the same time, the tilt doesn't seem to be extreme enough to alter the climate too much— more severe tilts (towards either 21 or 24 degrees) can lead to different seasonal patterns due to altering the dates of the perihelion and aphelion.
The eruption of the Yellowstone volcano might account for some change in the Earth's tilt— the explosion may have been enough to temporarily knock the axis out of whack without doing major damage to it. In the process, this probably would have wiped out a good part of the petrified humans in the western US, but it also would have come with a few side effects— the most relevant of which is that volcanic eruption produce pure nitric acid. An eruption of Yellowstone's magnitude may have resulted in at least some of the western hemisphere de-petrifying by themselves. If Senku ever visits the continental US, who knows what he might encounter?
- It might be that, but Chapter 8 of the Byakuya reveals that a meteor struck Italy, eradicating it off the map and killing all life in Europe. If the meteor did that then it's likely what was responsible for the change in the Earth's tilt.
The voice screaming "Why" in morse code.
Considering poor Rei, the robot built by Byakuya and shown in the spin-off manga before taking off from the ISS, was left behind to "go down with the ship" after Byakuya promised to come back, it might be possible that it survived, and has been stranded ever since, constantly screaming the last message to anyone that might hear, wondering why Byakuya broke his promise, and why he never came back.- Given that the ISS is still in orbit, plus the fact that REI awoke in her new body the same day Senku was depetrified, likely jossed.
- Whyman is thousands of Medusas in the moon.
The "Whyman" was actually reacting out of fear/sadness.
The transmission was made by someone who was involved with or had knowledge of the petrification event, but now regrets it and thinks scientific knowledge should die out for the safety of humanity. When they picked up the signals from Senku's crew, they had a Freak Out over the possibility that someone might be looking for the weapon/planning to use it.- JOSSED
The Whyman is actually an AI who believes all humans should be petrified whatever
The petrification device seems to target humans. So, it would make sense for a computer to remain unaffected. Whyman seems to have found out some remnants of humanity were still unpetrified because technology started advancing again to the point radio equipment was recreated. It must have just found radio chatter and freaked the fuck out. It could only speak in morse code so it kept asking "why? why? why? why?" because it wanted to know how humans were still left unpetrified and started becoming undone. Senku's taunting didn't just let it know that it's plan didn't work. He gave the Whyman a voice. That's why Senku's voice was heard in an attempt to restart the global petrification event.- Confirmed/Jossed. The Whyman is thousands of Medusas in the moon, and petrified humankind in an attempt to find some being smart enough to be able to give it mainteinance by making diamond batteries, in exchange, they use the petrification beam as a way to achieve immortality.
The healing properties of depetrification are caused by loss compression
The stone form has to somehow store data about the living body to make depetrification possible... but it stores just the general data and not every little piece of information about wear and tear or about injuries. Thus, when petrification is reversed, the body is reset into "default" condition. There are humans on the American continent!
That's the only explanation for why there's a modern-day corn cob in that crocs stomach in Chapter 148. Domestic corn like that mainly relies on humans, otherwise, they go extinct within a few weeks, like those cherry blossom trees Senku mentioned back at the beginning of the story. This also might be why the Whyman wanted the petrification device to cover the whole planet. He's aware that the people of Ishigami Village and Treasure Island aren't the only humans in the world.- Confirmed in Chapter 149, when the Perseus crew was under gunfire by an English-speaking stranger.
The Americans are against Senku because they think he's the Whyman
We already know that the Americans are even more-so technologically advanced than Senku, at the very least in weaponry. It's possible they discovered the Whyman's message before the Perseus arrived and due to Senku's voice, believe that he and his crew are behind the petrification, which is why their first action upon seeing them is to attack. Despite Dr. Xeno’s technology being more advanced then Senku’s, Senku will prove himself to be the better scientist.
The kicker is the fact that Senku has the revival formula. Dr. Xeno’s dialogue indicates that he woke up under similar circumstances to Senku, and drew many of the same conclusions that Senku did, figuring out that nitric acid is the catalyst for revival, and even realizing that remaining conscious for 3000+ years was key to making it so that a person could be revived with nitric acid alone. However, Dr. Xeno never went any further with that, instead seeking out the few other people who remained conscious throughout their petrification. In contrast, after determining that nitric acid alone didn’t work for almost anyone else, Senku immediately knuckled down and began working on finding a more reliable method of revival, performing hundreds of experiments to figure out just the right formula to trigger the effect. Senku’s victory will be attributed to his ability to keep plugging away until he finds a solution to a problem, as opposed to Xeno, who apparently decided to just stick with what he already knew.- Not exactly. Senku and Dr. Xeno both broke free at the same time, but Xeno had the advantage of already having some platinum on hand (a platinum ring one of Luna's followers kept in his mouth) meaning he can make all the nitric acid he needed. That and he specifically ordered everyone near him to keep thinking when the Petrification event occurred. He didn't need to look for followers like Senku did, hence why he doesn't have the revival formula.
Dr Xeno is Senku's biological father and we will find out how Byakuya took Senku under his wing.
Their facial design and expressions are similar, and they both stayed conscious for more than 3700 years. Plus, we know Byakuya is not his biological father, so this must have been mentioned for a reason. By the end of the series, Senku will become known as 'Dr. Stone'
The title 'Dr. Stone' has been used as a reference to soap, the petrification process and the petrification device itself. Near the series' end, people may start to refer to Senku as that name. Senku may get taken out of the picture and the others will have to get him back through their own knowledge
Senku has cured Ruri's illness, brought technology to the Stone World, created the depetrification fluid and saved many, as well as several other accomplishments that the others wouldn't have been able to achieve on their own. It's possible that he may be kidnapped, become sick or injured, petrified with no revival fluid or way to make it, etc. and his friends will have to rescue him on their own using science by putting to use all he has thought them and even going further beyond. It would make a good arc focusing on the story's theme about how everyone has a part to play in furthering progress and Senku would no doubt be proud.- Confirmed. In chapters 159 and 160 Senku gets shot and is bedridden, leaving the others, Chrome especially, to solve how to get to Dr. Xeno.
The first Whyman message is from Rei.
Asking the gang why don't they respond to it.- Jossed. The Whyman is thousands of Medusas in the moon.
Why-man is an artificial intelligence that was created to save humanity.
Its most recent line of dialogue, "Do you want to die?", could be either a threat or a warning. Maybe there's something else coming - or it thinks there's something else coming - and the petrification was meant to preserve humanity. But now humans are rebelling against it, and it can't comprehend why. It could even be that the threat has already passed, but something went wrong with Why-man, and it thinks it still has to keep humanity frozen in stone.- Semiconfirmed. The Whyman is thousands of Medusas in the moon, and they think of the petrification event as a way to save smart beings from death in exchange of mainteinance
Why-Man is a Von Neumann probe/ The petrification was benevolent
Related to the above WMG's idea. Why-Man is an AI specifically a type of Von Neumann probe created by an alien civilization. Upon finding humanity it sent out a message to it's home civilization so first contact could happen. The medusa/petrification device, is a form of suspended animation technology used by the aliens and was originally sent down to earth as a sort of gift for the human race (Hence why it responds to human languages) but since it could take thousands of years for the aliens to arrive and Why-man didn't want humanity to die off before then it activated the medusas to perserve them. It's constant question of "Why?" isn't directed specifically at humanity reviving but means "why have (my creators) not come in all this time?"- Semiconfirmed. The Medusa devices are sentient mechanic parasytes, and they think of the petrification event as a way to save smart beings from death in exchange for maintenance
