Comparison of the Correction and the Rerun Noncorrection Methods in Maze Learning

The relative efficiency of learning under the correction and rerun noncorrection methods was studied in 2 experiments. In both experiments, rats first acquired, and then reversed, a position response in a parallel alley maze. The results of Exp. I and II showed no difference between training methods during acquisition. However, the rerun noncorrection method was superior to the correction method in a series of six position reversals in Exp. II. In view of the results of previous research on this problem, it was tentatively concluded that the superiority of one method over the other during acquisition depends on the nature of the task.

Visual discrimination learning with an iPad-equipped apparatus

Visual discrimination tasks are commonly used to assess visual learning and memory in non-human animals. The current experiments explored the suitability of an iPad (Apple, Cupertino, California), as a low-cost alternative touchscreen for visual discrimination tasks. In Experiment 1, rats were trained with patterned black-and-white stimuli in a successive non-match to sample procedure. Rats successfully interacted with the iPad but failed to learn to withhold responding on trials in which the sample matched the comparison. Experiment 2 used the same patterned stimuli, but the procedure was simplified to a successive discrimination procedure and we explored the use of procedures known to facilitate discrimination learning. Rats that received training with differential outcomes and a differential reinforcement of other behavior schedule successfully acquired the task. In Experiment 3, the same rats were tested in a simultaneous discrimination task and we explored the use of a correction and non-correction method during acquisition. Rats that failed to learn the discrimination in the previous experiment, improved while trained with the correction method. These experiments support the use of the iPad in visual discrimination tasks and inform future studies investigating learning and memory within a touchscreen-equipped (iPad or other) apparatus.