A microprocessor control system and solid state interface for controlling electrophysiological studies of conditioning

This paper describes a microprocessor control system and solid state interface for controlling the apparatus in combined behavioral-electrophysiological studies of conditioning. The computer program, which is designed to control classical conditioning of the rabbit’s nictitating membrane response, provides the flexibility to control all conditioning parameters (e.g., interstimulus and intertrial intervals, trial type, and sequence of trial types) with only minor modifications. The system is free from artifacts that can distort electrophysiological recordings and can easily be modified to accommodate other behavioral paradigms in which electrophysiological responses are recorded.     

Ruler vs. the Apple II/FIRST system analysis of analog signals in classical conditioning

In our judgment, the Apple II/FIRST system (Scandrett & Gormezano, 1980) is an efficient and versatile system for experimental control and data acquisition in classical conditioning experiments. However, these attributes would be of limited value if the system did not extract measures from our analog signals with a high degree of correspondence with our ruler measurement procedures. Accordingly, we determined the system’s validity in extracting measures of CR occurrence and CR latency in three conditioning experiments. Pearson productmoment correlation coefficients indicated a very satisfactory degree of agreement on measurements made by the Apple II/FIRST system and ruler. Moreover, intraclass correlations and analysis of variance procedures applied to percent CRs and CR latency revealed several small, but divergent, differences between ruler and computer measurement of CR latency across the three experiments. However, subsequent analyses of variance revealed that the number and pattern of significant sources of variation for ruler or computer measurements were virtually identical. Accordingly, we have concluded that our system can successfully replace our traditional method of ruler measurement.     

SCORIT: A computer subroutine for scoring electrodermal responses

Given digitized electrodermal response records sampled at a rate of 20/sec and at a sensitivity level between 140 and 170 ohms, a computer subroutine for scoring skin resistance responses is described. It is designed to score multiple responses on a trial, which makes it particularly suitable for classical conditioning experiments involving long interstimulus intervals. The subroutine returns to the main program response latency, base resistance, peak resistance, and time from base to peak. Since SCORIT is written in FORTRAN IV, it can be employed in virtually any modern central computing facility at costs substantially below those involved in hand scoring.     

A minicomputer program for control and data acquisition in classical conditioning

A 4K PDP-8/E computer program package has been developed to control classical conditioning procedures, to collect response data, and to extract statistical summeries. In contrast with other existing behavioral control languages geared to digital data typical of discrete operant analyses, this program distinguishes itself by its ability to retrieve and analyze the analog data arising from phasic response systems such as the rabbit’s nictitating membrane. By means of a question-and-answer Teletype conversation with the E, the program establishes trial sequence and trial spacing parameters; CS and US duration, probability, and interstimulus interval; intertrial interval fractionation for recording intertrial response frequencies; and session length. Various versions of the program exist to compute statistical properties of the analog response data, to dump detailed trial-by-trial topographies, and to attach instrumental contingencies to subtle features of the real-time analog responding.     

KIM and the rabbit: The use of the KIM-1 microprocessor to control classical conditioning of the rabbit’s nictitating membrane response

The KIM-1 microprocessor combined with a plug-board interface provides an inexpensive and highly flexible system for controlling classical conditioning of the rabbit’s nictitating membrane response. The system is described in the context of a program for differential conditioning.     

A minicomputer program for stimulus control and analog data for discrete trial paradigms in biological preparations: Classical conditioning

The application of computer technology to classical conditioning requires: control software that will repeatedly generate stimulus events, and analog-to-digital (A/D) recording capabilities for the resolution of analog data from phasic response systems (e.g., nictitating membrane extension, leg flexion). An earlier software package implemented on a 4K PDP-8/E (Millenson, Kehoe, Tait, & Gormezano, 1973) successfully met these requirements. However, the program’s capabilities were restricted to the presentation of only two unique stimuli with a maximum of 4 sec duration, and data reduction in only uniphasic response systems. The present program, employing the same hardware, relaxed these previous constraints and extended the range of data analysis through the revamping of the interactive assembler, operating system, and on-line data processing routines.     

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.     

Machine language millisecond timers for the Z-80 microprocessor

Two Z-80 machine language millisecond timers for the Model III TRS-80 are presented and described: MSEC DELAY TIMER and MSEC LATENCY TIMER. The latency timer may be used with keyboard input (key release or key press) and may also be designed to respond to a signal at one of the computer’s I/O ports. The assembly language programs may be revised for other Z-80-based computers. Calibration procedures are described, and a sample two-field tachistoscope program is presented.     

Auditory evoked response in chinchilla: Application to animal audiometry

In chinchilla a neural response to tone pips or the onset of pure tones can be recorded from scalp electrodes. If 64 responses are averaged by a computer the response can be recognized reliably at sound pressure levels at or near chinchilla’s usual behavioral thresholds of hearing. Detection is possible at slightly lower levels if the number of responses is increased to 500 to 1000. The response is an initiallypositive diphasic wave with latency to foot between 1.6 and 4.0 msec. It apparently arises from several structures in the brainstem but chiefly from the inferior colliculus. The technique may be useful in assessing quickly the sensitivity of the peripheral auditory mechanism in small laboratory animals.     

The 3RT Test: Three reaction time tasks for IBM PC computers

The 3RT Test consists of a simple, a choice, and a conditional reaction time (RT) task. The three tasks involve comparable visual stimuli and require identical manual responses, but they differ in the complexity of cognitive processing required. The nonverbal stimuli convey commonly known meanings. Responses can be made either on the keyboard or on response keys connected to the computer’s serial port. The computer’s internal timer/counter is used for millisecond timing. The test administration program allows flexible setting of the test conditions. The data analysis program provides summary data not only for each RT task as a whole, but also for separate trial types within each task. Summary statistics include measures of variation and central value that are not affected by extreme scores. In addition to laboratory studies with normal adults, the 3RT Test is suitable for life-span developmental studies, cross-cultural comparisons, and other uses in various clinical settings.     

Human-computer interaction: A preliminary social psychological analysis

Considering an interactive computer as a social stimulus suggests that contemporary social psychological theories can contribute to the prediction of user attitude and performance. In order to assist in the systematic exploration of this possibility, we developed DIALOGUE, an on-line system to investigate the effects of varying the computer’s responses to the user. This system involves a presentation program that displays the computer’s responses, performs the pacing of video information, and collects a variety of measurements, including the user’s response time and the number of correct/incorrect user responses. DIALOGUE also includes a data manager that allows the experimenter to examine or modify the information collected by the presentation program. Utilizing DIALOGUE, we conducted a preliminary investigation of one aspect of human-computer interaction, the effects of varying the degree of human-like responses exhibited by the computer. Results suggest that (1) there are underlying dimensions of judgment involving perception of interactive computers, (2) a manipulation of human-like computer responses is reflected primarily in certain of these dimensions, and (3) such a manipulation influences user performance and feelings of responsibility. Factors related to the implementation of DIALOGUE are considered, and its potential for investigations of a variety of human-computer interactions is discussed.     

Biasing the development of response topography with nonspecific positive and negative evocative verbal stimuli

Conditioned response (CR) rate and development of CR latency, rise time, and airpuff attenuation were examined for V- and C-form responders using two nonspecific command words, do and don't, as conditioned stimuli (CSs) in single-cue, double-cue, and differential eyelid conditioning. In both single-cue and differential conditioning, regardless of the command word used to signal the unconditioned stimulus (UCS), the Vs produced a higher response rate and learned a better UCS-attenuating response topography than the Cs. However, in a double-cue conditioning paradigm in which both command words were presented alone on different trials and reinforced, response latency was longer and puff attenuation poorer among Vs than when the UCS was signaled by a unique cue. In contrast, adding a second reinforced cue actually enhanced the development of puff-avoidant CR topographies among Cs compared to single-cue conditioning. These results and others indicate that response topography development is to some extent a labile process that can be biased toward either good or poor puff-avoidant properties and that the factors responsible for influencing CR topography differ for Vs and Cs.     

A comparative analysis of the conditional reflex discoveries of pavlov and Twitmyer,and the birth of a paradigm

Research on conditional reflex (CR) in Pavlov’s Physiological Laboratory has preceded Twitmyer’s work on conditioning at the University of Pennsylvania by 3 or 4 years. The events in Pavlov’s laboratory lead toward the postulation of a new paradigm that rejected the Cartesians conceptualization of the reflex as a mechanistic response to stimuli by replacing it with the Darwinian notion of the organism’s adaptation to the environmental conditions. The Pavlovian paradigm rejected the Wundtian method in favor of the objective, conditional reflex method.     

Changing CS features alters evaluative responses in evaluative conditioning

Evaluative conditioning (EC) refers to changes in people's evaluative responses toward initially neutral stimuli (CSs) by mere spatial and temporal contiguity with other positive or negative stimuli (USs). We investigate whether changing CS features from conditioning to evaluation also changes people's evaluative response toward these CSs. We used computer-generated male faces as CSs and paired them with other positively or negatively evaluated faces. When participants evaluated the CS faces, they either appeared unchanged, with glasses, with beards, or glasses and beards. Unchanged faces showed a clear conditioning effect, while all other face versions showed no significant conditioning effects. The conditioning effect also depended on participants’ awareness of a CS's respective US. These results mirror configural explanations of stimulus generalization in classical conditioning, with implications for EC as explanation for attitude acquisition and learning of likes and dislikes in everyday life.     

Automated Measurement of Mouse Freezing Behavior and its Use for Quantitative Trait Locus Analysis of Contextual Fear Conditioning in (BALB/cJ × C57BL/6J)F2 Mice

The most commonly measured mouse behavior in fear conditioning tests is freezing. A technical limitation, particularly for genetic studies, is the method of direct observation used for quantifying this response, with the potential for bias or inconsistencies. We report the use of a computerized method based on latency between photobeam interruption measures as a reliable scoring criterion in mice. The different computer measures obtained during contextual fear conditioning tests showed high correlations with hand-scored freezing; r values ranged from 0.87 to 0.94. Previously reported strain differences between C57BL/6J and DBA/2J in context-dependent fear conditioning were also detected by the computer-based system. In addition, the use of computer-scored freezing of 199 (BALB/cJ×C57BL/6J)F₂ mice enabled us to detect a suggestive gender-dependent chromosomal locus for contextual fear conditioning on distal chromosome 8 by QTL analysis. Automation of freeze scoring would significantly increase efficiency and reliability of this learning and memory test.     

Nitric oxide is involved in appetitive but not aversive olfactory learning in the land mollusk Limax valentianus

The land slug Limax performs both aversive and appetitive olfactory learning, and we investigated neurotransmitters involved in each type of learning. Slugs were conditioned by presenting a vegetable juice (appetitive conditioning) or a mixture of vegetable juice and quinidine (aversive conditioning), and the latency to reach the juice became shorter (appetitive conditioning) or longer (aversive conditioning) after conditioning. L-NAME injected either before conditioning or testing blocked the reduction in latency in appetitive conditioning but had no significant effects in aversive conditioning. 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine had no significant effects in appetitive conditioning. These results suggest different mechanisms for appetitive and aversive learning.     

A multistimulus,portable, and programmable conditioning panel for pigeons

A portable two-response-key conditioning panel for pigeons is described. It can be attached to the subjects’ home cages and allows around-the-clock experimentation. Visual stimuli are presented with light-diode display matrices. Food rewards are dispensed directly onto the stimulus/response keys with separate solenoid dispensers. Several platforms can be simultaneously controlled by a single personal computer with programs written in a simple language adapted for on-line operation. Two experiments exploring the effects of prolonged conditioning sessions upon responding and learning demonstrated the effectiveness of the system. The apparatus is an efficient and inexpensive alternative to a conventional conditioning chamber.     

Inspection time and the mental age deviation hypothesis

The ‘g’-loading of the inspection time (IT) measure was tested by applying Spitz's mental age (MA) deviation model to a sample of non-retarded adolescents and children. An MA 8 and MA 11 group, each composed of below-average, average and above-average intelligence Ss, were compared on an IT task in which latency of responses was also recorded. Results showed that IT related to MA but not to IQ. By contrast, the latency of responding in the IT differentiated Ss by IQ, but not MA, with above-average IQ Ss exhibiting longer response latencies. It was concluded that response latency exhibited a higher ‘g’-loading than did IT.     

Reinforcement from the sucking environment and subsequent modification of sucking behavior in the human neonate

The reinforcing aspects of sucking behavior in 36 human newborns was examined in a limited instrumental conditioning paradigm where sucking was both operant and reinforcer. During training, response density (rate based on sucking opportunity time) and latency were measures of two components of nonnutritive sucking, contingent negative pressure suction, and incidental jaw movement. The strategy for determining the reinforcing aspects of sucking involved comparisons of three types of sucking stimuli as reinforcers. The nature of modified operant sucking was investigated during extinction by examining number of sucks per burst, number of bursts emitted, and interburst interval time. The feedback from sucking which acted as reinforcement was concluded to be response density. Sucking was modified by changes in pausing behavior, including response latency and pauses between bursts of sucks. The number of sucks per burst also showed a significant change under certain conditioning arrangements.     

Personality and the topography of the conditioned eyelid response

One-hundred and four women were tested on an eyelid conditioning paradigm in a 2 x 2 x 2 factorial design where two levels of US intensity (1 vs 3 p.s.i.) were balanced against two rest pause interpolations (after 25 and after 50 trials), and the presence or absence of a warning stimulus prior to CS-US presentation. Subjects were later classified as high, low or intermediate extraverts on the basis of a personality questionnaire. A very detailed analysis of conditioned responses was carried out, using both simple and composite measures including work-ratio, utility-ratio, CR frequency, peak latency, peak amplitude, response area and effective response area, degree of avoidance amplitude and latency, etc. Major findings related to similar effects of high intensity US vs low intensity US, and introversion vs extraversion; introverts react as if they were responding to more intense stimuli than extraverts. This finding cuts across other parameter variables, and supports Eysenck's formulation of personality-conditioning relationships in terms of higher cortical arousal in introverts as compared with extraverts.