Just finished reading the book "The Unthinkble" by Amanda Ripley. In the book the author explores the various aspects of why some people survive and others don't during a disaster. She looks at both the physics and the psychology of survival. She cites scientific studies and presents first hand accounts in her attempt to find reasons for what makes humans act in the various ways we do when facing life or death situations.

Some interesting tidbits. On 9/11 the toll in NYC would likely have been higher but for the fact that it was both election day and the first day of school in the city and a number of workers were late getting to the towers.

Older people are less likely to evacuate their homes in the face of a hurricane if they have survived previous storms because that survival, has, in effect, immunized them from the threat.

Panic has more of a physical component than an emotional one. In most cases people are initially calm during a crisis and with strong leadership can survive life threatening situations. A concept the author believes is discounted by the authorities who don't trust the public to behave in a crisis.

Although the author doesn't definitively answer all the questions she raises this is still and interesting and informative read. She does make the case that an individual's fate in a crisis is not hardwired by nature but can be molded by thought, study and practice.

Highly recommended.

Andy

THANKS for the review

Thanks for the review, I am looking forward to read this!



My own feeble attempts to read up on the subject tells me the exact same thing. People will typically NOT run around in circles screaming. Unfortunately, this mass panic idea seems hard wired into the brains of media and decision makers.