Well, it’s probably a bit of a knee-jerk reaction because that genre used to be religious iconography–and sometimes still is. (The Tribulation.) It really comes from a Paranormal bend, for a lot of that.
But this kind of divorce from older traditions often leaves the story without any real fear. Just left with desolation and rebuilding like we are always going to survive–resiliance of mankind type thing.
Really, it strikes me as imbalanced, at times.
Those people can kiss my booty. 
Not everything in real life can be explained. There are still things in life that we don’t have concrete answers for, especially if some monster/zombie whatever thing ever did happen, and it happened so fast, unless you happen to be buddies with a scientist in the government who was “in the know” and you both survived to pass on the info, most civilians aren’t going to understand what happened. They’ll have their theories sure, but no concrete evidence. That’s my opinion anyway.
Even scientists argue certain theories, where we come from, whether there are aliens, religion etc. I mean, some things you can’t argue like gravity, or how clouds create rain, but us humans are still discovering things even today. If people are too close minded to accept this and they “must” have an answer from me, then they can read something else. IMO, as a fan, coming up with theories is part of the fun.
My story actually leans a little more towards the philosolphical/fantasy. I want people to think. Is the story a metaphor for other concepts, or is it really just this big mystery? Is it a curse? Divine intervention? A plague? Evolution? My story will have groups that have different beliefs of how the world fell. I feel like that’s more realistic than everyone having/knowing all the answers.
Yes! This. 
People these days have no imagination that’s why. That’s the saddest part of our society today. 
Yes! What creates fear is not knowing. That goes for horror, for sci-fi, and even regular ole’ story telling. People fear what they don’t understand whether it’s monsters, viruses, or even other people.
Writing to trope is a study–not automatically great storytelling. I’ve written that way before, and it’s often not as enjoyable–forget for the reader, for me to write it.
Besides, for zombie apocalypse, all I have to go with is psychedelics (how the original still living zombies in voodoo were likely made) or for fungal infection (as is happening to ants right now) or even go with cat poop parasites (as we know that changes how the mind deals with depression): all sound starting points for people and things no longer being like their former self. It does not take that much scientific depth to make near-human monsters. You just zap that with “new mutation” and “deeper study into the behaviors”. Hard science with proper papers you can cite for this isn’t difficult as long as you choose what is already working, partially.
I mean hell, you want to scare the snot out of people, start pulling up the information on women still retaining their son’s DNA throughout their body long after birth. Women are technically chimeras. Make people scared of having kids by making the next step in evolution zombie mommies.
But if you go the route of mutation or infection or the dead coming back to life without these types of touchstones, all of the sudden you’re not scientifically sound? The ants freaking move without their heads due to the fungus. The science is there for possible, (plausible is a different threshold). No one should have to cite all of it. Fans of the genre should know it before stepping in.
If the writer must have a threshold of knowledge, well then so does the reader.
For real?! 
That is… weird. Is it just their son’s or daughter’s DNA too?
It’s easier to find their son’s because the X chromosome is their own and the father’s X looks a lot like the mom’s, but no birthing mom has a Y. You can sift a ton of samples and pick up a Y because it’s a huge anomaly in a born XX makeup.
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