Virtual Reality Today Virtual reality allows people to study artificial worlds through simulation and computer graphics. Computers have changed the way we conduct flight training, scientific research, and conduct business. Flight simulators have dramatically reduced the time and money it takes to learn to fly large jets. One of the coolest features of virtual reality is the ability to practice certain medical practices. Computers help many doctors to perform complicated operations very easily. Computers have changed the way we look at health problems. They have made incurable health problems very easy to solve in today's society. We have only just begun to realize the extreme waste of burning expensive fuel in airplanes to learn in an hour something that could be taught in ten minutes in a simulator. Simulators have come a long way since 1929, when Ed Link first built what would soon be known as the manufacturer's pilot, or more affectionately, the blue box. Students often find themselves sitting at the end of a runway waiting for takeoff clearance on a busy day, their engines revving and burning expensive gasoline. This is not a very effective way for students to spend money. Most students don't have access to expensive flight simulators. Most have to travel hundreds of miles to take advantage of these great simulators. Flight simulators are much better than an airplane for the simple reason that in a simulator the learning environment is much safer. Students are able to avoid the overriding need to keep the plane airborne and out of harm's way. In a simulator a student is constantly engaged, practicing what they are supposed to learn, and once they have performed a certain maneuver, they are able to go back and do it again, without wasting time or fuel. Years ago doctors used X-rays to see the insides of human beings. The x-rays were very helpful in finding broken bones. These machines were an incredible breakthrough years ago. Today, X-ray machines are almost never used. Today we use computerized volumetric images of internal organs, often called cross-sectional images of the inside of the body. In the past, scars were often left after major surgeries. We avoided leaving these ugly scars through fiber optics. If a patient needed surgery on an injured mole, the doctor would cut two small holes in the side of the patient's knee and slide the small light, camera and operating instruments inside. The doctor would be able to monitor what he is doing from a colored monitor screen. Virtual reality also allows some leeway for doctor errors. With virtual reality a student can try different operations more than once.