Science News

By studying how pedestrians behave in crowds, European scientists are learning surprising things about human behavior. Westerners, for example, will usually step to the right to avoid an oncoming pedestrian. Individuals in Asia, however, tend to step to the left. Another tendency scientists have noticed is that clusters of three and four people naturally organize themselves into concave 'V' and 'U' shapes, with middle members falling back slightly. The formation makes it easier for individuals to talk with each other.

(Medical Xpress) -- Computer models that provide accurate simulations of how crowds behave can be used to identify health and safety issues at MGs, and could be adapted to simulate the spread of infections and to test the potential of public health...