There was one study which gave the
non-instrument rated pilot 180 seconds to live if they didn't get back to
VMC conditions.

IIRC that study used pilots who had not been trained at all under the
hood - not even the three hours presently required. It may have even
led to the present requirement. It showed that just a little bit of
training was able to reverse the outcomes of a significant number of
such simulated flights.

Jose
--
"Never trust anything that can think for itself, if you can't see where
it keeps its brain." (chapter 10 of book 3 - Harry Potter).
for Email, make the obvious change in the address.