A computer-compatible multichannel event counting and digital recording system

An inexpensive multichannel event counting digital recording system has been designed for compatibility with automated data analysis equipment. For as many as 16 channels, events are simultaneously summed over preselected repetitive time intervals and recorded. Each data entry is marked with the time of day and a code identifying each channel’s data. The data is formated to be computer compatible and is logged on inexpensive readily available digital magnetic tape cassettes.     

Monitoring and Performance: A Comparison of Computer and Supervisor Monitoring1

This research addresses how computer monitoring affects the way individual workers perform on their jobs. The study tests the effects of a supervisor's physical versus electronic presence on individual worker performance. Forty-two women were hired to perform a simple data entry task. The women worked in one of three conditions: (a) alone, (b) in the physical presence of the supervisor who monitored their work, or (c) computer-monitored (electronic presence) by the data entry system without the physical presence of the supervisor. It was hypothesized that social facilitation effects would result from either the physical or electronic presence conditions. Electronic presence does seem to result in social facilitation, though the mean differences are not statistically significant. The results for physical presence are mixed. Profile analysis indicates that there are significant differences in the patterns of performance. When subjects work alone or with electronic presence, performance follows a steady pattern. When subjects work with physical presence, performance is somewhat lower than in the alone condition, except when the supervisor is actively monitoring, then individual performance is significantly increased. There are no satisfaction differences between the three conditions. The results of this research suggest that “Big Brother” is not lurking inside every computer-monitoring system.     

Apple II assembly language routines for digital data acquisition and contingency control

Modifications and corrections to Rayfield’s (1982) assembly language routines for data acquisition and experimental control using the Apple II computer are described. The modified routines, together with an optoisolated hardware interface, provide a reliable, accurate, and easy to use microcomputer system for experimental control and data acquisition.     

Computer-administered interviews and rating scales

To evaluate the value of computer-administered interviews and rating scales, the following topics are reviewed in the present article: (a) strengths and weaknesses of structured and unstructured assessment instruments, (b) advantages and disadvantages of computer administration, and (c) the validity and utility of computer-administered interviews and rating scales. Computer-administered evaluations are more comprehensive and reliable and less biased than evaluations routinely conducted in clinical practice. Also, the use of continuous monitoring systems, which increasingly entail the use of computer administration, has been related to improved treatment outcome. However, the use of computer-administered interviews and rating scales will sometimes lead to false positive diagnoses, and for this reason, it is recommended that computer assessment be combined with clinical judgment.     

Voice recognition technology as a tool for behavioral research

Behavioral research often requires the acquisition and processing of large volumes of data. Most current techniques for recording behavior constrain the amount and type of data that can be measured. We developed and tested a system that uses voice recognition technology to collect data on the social interactions and singing patterns of cowbirds (Molothrus ater) living outdoors in a semi-natural environment. We spoke observation data into a wireless microphone that transmitted the data to a computer in the laboratory. After collection, the data were automatically checked for errors and then were entered into a database. Overall, the system performed at extremely high levels of accuracy Furthermore, owing to the removal of constraints on observers such as breaking visual contact with subjects and manual data entry into a database, we were able to increase the amount of data collected and to collect new measures of social interactions that have not been available to us in the past. We tested the system under the challenging circumstances of field observation, and it performed above our expectations. In a laboratory setting, if transmission difficulties are removed, voice recognition could be even more accurate. We recommend voice recognition as a powerful new tool for the variety of research fields in which measuring behavior is involved.     

Digital LED Pixels: Instructions for use and a characterization of their properties

This article details how to control light emitting diodes (LEDs) using an ordinary desktop computer. By combining digitally addressable LEDs with an off-the-shelf microcontroller (Arduino), multiple LEDs can be controlled independently and with a high degree of temporal, chromatic, and luminance precision. The proposed solution is safe (can be powered by a 5-V battery), tested (has been used in published research), inexpensive (～ $60 + $2 per LED), highly interoperable (can be controlled by any type of computer/operating system via a USB or Bluetooth connection), requires no prior knowledge of electrical engineering (components simply require plugging together), and uses widely available components for which established help forums already exist. Matlab code is provided, including a ‘minimal working example’ of use suitable for use by beginners. Properties of the recommended LEDs are also characterized, including their response time, luminance profile, and color gamut. Based on these, it is shown that the LEDs are highly stable in terms of both luminance and chromaticity, and do not suffer from issues of warm-up, chromatic shift, and slow response times associated with traditional CRT and LCD monitor technology.     

Use of the abikoff classroom observation coding system on a children's inpatient psychiatric unit

The Abikoff systematic observation coding system (Abikoff, Gittelman-Klein, & Klein, 1977) has received considerable attention in the literature for assessing disruptive and off-task classroom behavior. However, its use has been restricted to regular classrooms with clinic outpatients. The present study investigated the reliability and validity of this code when used in a classroom setting with children hospitalized on an inpatient psychiatric unit. Results demonstrated excellent reliability and acceptable concurrent and discriminant validity of the code when used in an inpatient setting, although data were equivocal regarding the ability of the code to discriminate medication status within subjects.We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Nicholas lalongo and an anonymous reviewer for their helpful comments on a draft of this article.     

Graphic bar display of on-line physiological data using a minicomputer,DAC, and conventional servo recorder

A method is described for providing an on-line bar graph display of physiological data. A conventional servo recorder is coupled with an 8-bit digital-to-analog converter, and provides a low-cost, hard-copy graphic display peripheral that can be added to any laboratory type minicomputer system with buffered output data lines. The graphic display technique requires minimal memory allocations and a simple software algorithm to provide a flexible graphic system that can accommodate various types of biological data.     

The experimenter module of the DSMAC (Dynamic Sequential MultiAttribute Choice) interface

The DSMAC (Dynamic Sequential MultiAttribute Choice) interface is a process-tracing methodology that permits a researcher to investigate subjects’ behaviors in an optional-stopping task. In such an environment, an individual decides after each piece of acquired information whether to make a choice between a pair of competing alternatives or to acquire additional information. DSMAC consists of two modules-an experimenter and a subject interface. The former allows the researcher to specify all of the relevant experimental parameters for a particular study, which is subsequently used as input by the latter. The bimodular nature of DSMAC significantly reduces the set-up time required for constructing novel stimuli for new experiments. DSMAC runs on a Macintosh computer. It is compatible with most Mactintosh models that use a system 7.0 (or higher) operating system. The source code was written in ThinkPascal 4.0.1.     

Communication, symbolic communication, and language: reply to Seidenberg and Petitto

Seidenberg and Petitto's (1987) assertion that Kanzi and Mulika's lexigram usage is not representational is evaluated by contrasting their abilities with Nim's. Kanzi and Mulika's data indicate that they (a) comprehend spoken English words; (b) can identify lexigram symbols when they hear these words; (c) can comprehend lexigram usage; (d) can use lexigrams when referents are absent and can, if asked, lead someone to the referent; and (e) that all these skills were acquired through observation, not conditioning. Nim evidenced no comprehension of signs and could not use signs when referents were absent. He was forced to sign and encouraged to imitate his teachers. Seidenberg and Petitto's negative experiences with Nim apparently led them to overgeneralize to all other apes, regardless of species, modality, or training history. Consequently, they unjustifiably disregard important components of Kanzi and Mulika's comprehension data which demonstrate that their lexical knowledge could not have been acquired in an instrumental fashion.     

ALICE: A system for manipulating and analyzing multidimensional data

The computer program ALICE solves the two major problems of data manipulation and analysis. First, ALICE allows the user to treat data from an experiment in the form they are generated. Second, mathematical calculations and statistical analyses are included as an intrinsic part of the multidimensional approach to data handling. ALICE accepts raw data in the form and order they were collected; reorganizes, partitions, or selects any subset of them (including a single entry), and arithmetically combines, transforms, or evaluates any formula involving them. Furthermore, learning to use ALICE is simple, even for those who are naive to both computers and data analysis.     

The Duty to Rescue and the Limits of Confidentiality

Surveys and routine clinical procedures applied in research protocols are typically considered only minimally risky to participants. The apparent benign nature of "minimal risk" tasks increases the chance that investigators and Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) will overlook the probability that clinical tools will identify signs, symptoms, or definitive test results that are clinically-relevant to subjects' welfare. "Minimal risk" procedures may also pose a particular hazard to participants in clinical research by increasing the therapeutic misconception because the tasks mimic clinical care and are often conducted in clinical settings. Investigators should anticipate which measures could yield clinically-important findings and should describe explicit plans for data monitoring, disclosure, and follow-up. Protocols that include reliable and valid clinical measures should prompt a more detailed risk assessment by the IRB, even when the tasks meet the regulatory criteria for minimal physical, psychological, or emotional risk.     

Physical symbol systems

On the occasion of a first conference on Cognitive Science, it seems appropriate to review the basis of common understanding between the various disciplines. In my estimate, the most fundamental contribution so far of artificial intelligence and computer science to the joint enterprise of cognitive science has been the notion of a physical symbol system, i.e., the concept of a broad class of systems capable of having and manipulating symbols, yet realizable in the physical universe. The notion of symbol so defined is internal to this concept, so it becomes a hypothesis that this notion of symbols includes the symbols that we humans use every day of our lives. In this paper we attempt systematically, but plainly, to lay out the nature of physical symbol systems. Such a review is in ways familiar, but not thereby useless. Restatement of fundamentals is an important exercise.     

PC operating system for measuring discrete biological responses during classical conditioning

A software package, written in C source code for MS-DOS 5.0 or higher IBM-compatible computers, was developed for the classical conditioning of discrete biological responses. The program’s primary functions include collecting and storing conditioning parameters, controlling presentation of stimuli, transforming discrete analog responses into dependent measures (e.g., CR frequencies and various measures of response topography), and generating data sets for use with commercial PC statistical packages. These functions were implemented in a windows-based user interface to increase the experimenter’s ease of use and to maximize efficiency in performing experimental procedures. Scrollable windows provide detailed visual displays that permit monitoring responses during conditioning and a review of each trial after the session is over. Additional software tools aid the visual inspection of response topographies, data manipulation, and calibration of the experimental apparatus. An overview of the system, its design objectives, and the user interface is presented.     

Measuring reaction time without measuring movement time: A modification of the Hormann and Allen millisecond timer for the Commodore 64 or 128

It is frequently desirable to measure reaction time independently of movement time. The Hormann and Allen (1987) millisecond timer for the Commodore 64 or 128 can be modified to allow the measurement of reaction time with minimal movement time. A BASIC loader is provided for a keyboard version and an external switch version of the modified timer. Machine language code is provided for use with MONITOR, the machine language utility built into the Commodore 128.     

A novel rotometer based on a RISC microcontroller

A new, low-cost rotometer, based on a reduced instruction set computer (RISC) microcontroller, is presented. Like earlier devices, it counts the number and direction of full turns for predetermined time periods during the evaluation of turning behavior induced by drug administration in rats. The present stand-alone system includes a nonvolatile memory for long-term data storage and a serial port for data transmission. It also contains a display for monitoring the experiments and has battery backup to avoid interruptions owing to power failures. A high correlation was found (r > .988,p < 2 × 10⁻¹⁴) between the counts of the rotometer and those of two trained observers. The system reflects quantitative differences in turning behavior owing to pharmacological manipulations. It provides the most common counting parameters and is inexpensive, flexible, highly reliable, and completely portable (weight including batteries, 159 g).     

The communication of musical metre in piano performance

Six pianists of varying levels of experience were required to give repeated performances of a note sequence presented for sight-performance under two conditions. The two conditions differed only in the location of metrical stresses signified by the notation. In condition (b) the bar-lines and beams were shifted one note to the right in comparison to condition (a). Details of note duration and intensity were recorded by computer. This allowed the discovery of significant differences in expressive treatment between the two conditions. There were significant agreements between subjects concerning the position, nature and direction of expressive variation. The more experienced players, however, made greater use of expressive variation than did the less experienced players. In a second experiment listeners were asked to identify the metre of each performance from the first experiment. They achieved greatest success at this with the most experienced player, least success with the least experienced player. A detailed examination of between-performer agreements and disagreements, and their effects on listeners, allowed the isolation of a proposed set of generally effective procedures for signalling stress. These procedures imply the existence of an internal representation guiding performance which identifies the major metrical subdivisions of a bar in the absence of notational symbols specifically marking these subdivisions.     

Computer programming for generating visual stimuli

Critical to vision research is the generation of visual displays with precise control over stimulus metrics. Generating stimuli often requires adapting commercial software or developing specialized software for specific research applications. In order to facilitate this process, we give here an overview that allows nonexpert users to generate and customize stimuli for vision research. We first give a review of relevant hardware and software considerations, to allow the selection of display hardware, operating system, programming language, and graphics packages most appropriate for specific research applications. We then describe the framework of a generic computer program that can be adapted for use with a broad range of experimental applications. Stimuli are generated in the context of trial events, allowing the display of text messages, the monitoring of subject responses and reaction times, and the inclusion of contingency algorithms. This approach allows direct control and management of computer-generated visual stimuli while utilizing the full capabilities of modern hardware and software systems. The flowchart and source code for the stimulus-generating program may be downloaded from www.psychonomic.org/archive.     

When "minimal risk" research yields clinically-significant data, maybe the risks aren't so minimal

Surveys and routine clinical procedures applied in research protocols are typically considered only minimally risky to participants. The apparent benign nature of "minimal risk" tasks increases the chance that investigators and Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) will overlook the probability that clinical tools will identify signs, symptoms, or definitive test results that are clinically-relevant to subjects' welfare. "Minimal risk" procedures may also pose a particular hazard to participants in clinical research by increasing the therapeutic misconception because the tasks mimic clinical care and are often conducted in clinical settings. Investigators should anticipate which measures could yield clinically-important findings and should describe explicit plans for data monitoring, disclosure, and follow-up. Protocols that include reliable and valid clinical measures should prompt a more detailed risk assessment by the IRB, even when the tasks meet the regulatory criteria for minimal physical, psychological, or emotional risk.     

An inexpensive,portable, printing event recorder for behavior studies

An inexpensive, field-portable event recorder for monitoring insect or other animal behavior is described. The recorder consists of a 16-key event code keyboard and a 99.99-min timer interfaced to a low-cost printing calculator. The event code number and the elapsed time (.01-min resolution) from the start of an observation period are printed whenever an event key is pressed. The recorder is operable over a temperature range of 0°C to 50°C, with a timing error of less than ±.05% of the 99.99-min full-scale timing range. Periods longer than 99.99 min can be monitored, provided the return to zero of the timer is noted and taken into consideration.