Virtual reality (VR) technology has been argued to be useful in a number of domains of psychological research. This article reports three studies applying this technology for the first time to the field of emergency evacuation behavior, in order to test a new model of such behavior based on the social identity approach.Early research on mass evacuation behavior relied on anecdotal evidence and data from the military (e.g., Strauss, 1944). In the 1950s and 1960s, however, the introduction of new laboratory experimental techniques helped in the development of important theoretical advances. Thus, for example, Mintz's (1951) classic simulation study used a bottle containing several corks on strings held by participants, representing the potential for exit jamming that would take place if every individual tried to evacuate simultaneously. Mintz suggested that ineffectual escape in an evacuating crowd is due to individual calculation of costs and benefits, rather than to a contagious outburst of mass irrationality, as assumed by the early mass panic models (e.g., McDougall, 1920; ANDREW HARDWICK University of Sussex, Brighton, England DANIELLE GRAHAM St. Andrews University, Fife, Scotland AND PAUL LANGSTON University of Nottingham, Nottingham, EnglandVirtual reality technology is argued to be suitable to the simulation study of mass evacuation behavior, because of the practical and ethical constraints in researching this field. This article describes three studies in which a new virtual reality paradigm was used, in which participants had to escape from a burning underground rail station. Study 1 was carried out in an immersion laboratory and demonstrated that collective identification in the crowd was enhanced by the (shared) threat embodied in emergency itself. In Study 2, high-identification participants were more helpful and pushed less than did low-identification participants. In Study 3, identification and group size were experimentally manipulated, and similar results were obtained. These results support a hypothesis according to which (emergent) collective identity motivates solidarity with strangers. It is concluded that the virtual reality technology developed here represents a promising start, although more can be done to embed it in a traditional psychology laboratory setting.

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This paper shows the existence of a three-dimensional solution of the boundary-layer equations of viscous incompressible flow in the immediate neighbourhood of a two-dimensional stagnation point of attachment. The numerical solution has been obtained.

Research has shown that exercise among college aged persons has dropped over recent years (Lindahl, 2015; Sheppard, 2016). Many factors could be contributing to this reduction in exercise including: large workloads, the need to work during school, or perhaps technology use. A number of recent studies are showing the benefits of using virtual reality systems in exercise and are demonstrating that the use of such technology can lead to an increase in the number of young adults engaging in exercise. This study focuses on the effects that virtual reality has on heart rate and other bodily sensations during a typical work out. This study also analyses the participants ability to pay less attention to their bodily sensations during exercise when using a virtual reality system. During this experiment, participants were exposed to two different conditions. Condition one being a traditional work out, riding an exercise bike at a middle tension level. Condition two was the same but the participant was wearing a virtual reality headset. The data collected led to the conclusion that working out while wearing a virtual reality headset will lead to a higher heart rate, and in turn can lead to burning more calories during a workout. The study also found participants who wore the virtual reality headset were able to remove themselves from their bodily sensations allowing them to workout longer.