Modeling Reality with Virtual Worlds

Virtual reality maybe limited right now, but it has some use for today's society that ranges from video games to simulations of real life situations. For instance, there is a virtual reality program that prepares nurses for future situations that would occur in the hospital and the emergency room, according to the Wall Street Journal. Virtual Reality helps with creativity, by allowing participants to take more risks to actually do what they believe they are capable of. It helps to prepare someone for real life situations, and also to connect with each other in ways that we didn't think was capable. It also has its cons as well. A prime example of this is that it could influence someone's behavior, especially if that person is an impressionable kid. For example, "The researchers recruited 194 undergraduates to participate in two supposedly unrelated studies.The participants were randomly assigned to play as Superman (a heroic avatar), Voldemort (a villainous avatar)...Participants who
played as Superman poured, on average, nearly twice as much chocolate as chilli sauce..Participants who played as Voldemort, on the other hand, poured out nearly twice as much of the spicy chilli sauce than they did chocolate."(Virtual). Virtual Reality may have its hiccups but I believe it can grow exponentially, and take over social media space, even to the way that business hold meetings.







"Avatar II: The Hospital" by Stephanie Simon, The Wall Street Journal, April 13, 2010

http://www.health24.com/Mental-Health/News/Virtual-world-may-impact-real-world-behaviour-20140210 or below.