Program Control

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What To Do

In this demonstration you can test the effect of rate of presentation on your ability to control a sequence and program perception. When you press one of the buttons ("Fast", "Medium”, "Slow") below the display you will see a sequence of shapes appearing in different positions along the horizontal axis of the display; the speed of movement will depend on the button you press. The sequence to be controlled is the order of the sizes of the shapes; the reference sequence is :

"small", "medium", "large".

The program to be controlled is a sequential contingency between the shape and color of the shapes; the reference program is :

"if the shape is circle, the next color is blue; else, the next color is red"

You can keep the sequence or program in the reference state by pressing the space bar when there is a change in either one. The sequence and program will change every so often; when there is a change from the reference sequence or program, pressing the space bar will correct this. However, pressing the space bar when there is no change from the reference will result in a change to a "non-reference" sequence and program. If this happens, pressing the space bar again will bring you back to the reference sequence or program. In other words, pressing the space bar toggles the display from the current sequence and program to the alternative sequence and program.

The aim of the demo is to show that the speed at which the shapes are displayed must be much slower in order to control the program than to control the sequence. I have set the speeds so that neither the sequence nor program can be controlled at the "Fast" speed (5 Hz); the sequence only can be controlled at the "Medium" speed (2.5 Hz) and the program (and sequence) can be controlled at the "Slow" speed (.7 Hz).

After pressing a button, each trial lasts 1.5 minutes. At the end of a trial, your results are displayed as the proportion of time that you kept either the sequence or program in the reference state. A perfect score -- meaning perfect control -- would be 1.0. But you are definitely controlling the sequence or program if you can get the proportion time you kept either the sequence or program in the reference state above .8.

I set these speeds to be consistent with my ability to control these perceptions. The speeds may be a bit fast for beginners; it will take some practice to be able to control these at the speeds I've set. If you want to restart at some point during a trial just press the desired speed button and the trial starts all over again.


Last Modified: February 6, 2018
MindReadings
Richard S. Marken