Product Description

• NEW! Reorganized to match the sequence of most learning textbooks, Sniffy Pro now allows teachers to teach classical before operant conditioning. This makes it easier for teachers to assign laboratory exercises.

• Sniffy is a highly realistic, animated rat in a Skinner Box that manifests most of the major phenomena of both classical and operant conditioning. Sniffy can be trained to press a bar or perform a variety of other behaviors to obtain food reinforcement.

• Students perform "classic" experiments that closely resemble those discussed in standard textbooks on the psychology of learning. Using Sniffy, students can perform exercises that demonstrate most the major phenomena of operant and classical conditioning. Detailed documentation and step-by-step instructions make the program accessible even to unsophisticated computer users.

• Some classical conditioning phenomena simulated include: acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, the effects of manipulating the intensity of the CS and US, compound conditioning, blocking, overshadowing, over-expectation, inhibitory conditioning, sensory preconditioning, higher-order/background conditioning, the nature of the classical-conditioning association (S-S or S-R), and CS and US pre-exposure effects.

• Some operant conditioning phenomena simulated include: magazine training; shaping; extinction; spontaneous recovery; primary and secondary reinforcement; variable-interval, variable-ratio, fixed-interval, and fixed-ratio schedule effects; the partial-reinforcement effect; simple and complex stimulus-discrimination learning; stimulus generalization; and the effects of punishment on extinction.

• The program outputs the response measures employed by research psychologists in a data form that can be printed and turned in for class assignments. A one-step process enables the user to copy the image of a Sniffy Pro data window and paste it into any word-processor document (such as MS Word). This feature makes it easy for students to incorporate Sniffy data in lab reports and term papers.

• Sniffy Pro data can also be exported in a form that most spreadsheet and statistical-analysis programs can read. This feature enables advanced students to perform sophisticated data analyses and draw elaborate graphs. Sniffy Pro data files are cross-platform (may be used on either Windows or Macintosh systems).

• The program's "Isolation" option allows users either to display Sniffy in his operant chamber where they can observe all his movements in real time, or to "isolate" Sniffy's Skinner Box inside a soundproof air-conditioned chamber where Sniffy is invisible. Isolating Sniffy greatly accelerates the speed in which the user's computer can execute experiments.

• All exercises in the manual are illustrated with dialogue boxes and windows from the most recent versions of the Macintosh and Windows operating systems available at the time of Sniffy's publication.

• Minimum System Requirements: PC--Windows 98 SE, ME, 2000, or XP (not NT); Pentium II 233 MHz; 128 MB RAM; 16-bit sound card, 800x600, 16-bit High Color display; speakers or headphones; 8x CD-ROM. Macintosh--MAC OS 8.6 or later; PowerPC Processor or later; 128 MB RAM; 16-bit sound card; 800x600, 16-bit High Color display; speakers or headphones; 8x CD-ROM.

• NEW! Students can now teach Sniffy to perform tricks, such as grooming his face or sitting up and begging. Students can teach Sniffy to perform the desired behavior more frequently in the presence a light or a tone, so that Sniffy performs the trick on cue.

• NEW! A new "auto reinforcement" feature aids trick training. Students select the behavior they want reinforced, and a virtual "Lab Assistant" ensures that all occurrences of the target behavior are reinforced.

• NEW! The program now incorporates a "Movement Monitor" that measures Sniffy's general activity and a "Movement Ratio" that indicates inhibition of movement (freezing) as a measure of classical conditioning. As in previous editions, once a user has trained Sniffy to press the bar, they can employ a "Suppression Ratio" as a measure of classical conditioning.

• NEW! A simulation of the effects of punishment on extinction in operant conditioning is now included. This feature simulates several classic studies described in many learning books.

• NEW! The Sniffy software generates a digital cumulative record, which will improve students' and professors' ability to export numeric data.

• NEW! The manual includes clear, user-friendly printing instructions to enable users to print data and graphs.

• NEW! Sniffy now includes a "pause" feature so the student can take a break and pick it up when they come back, rather than having to start over.

• NEW! References and suggestions on how to use Sniffy Pro are included in the Instructor's Manuals that accompany many of our learning texts--Domjan's THE PRINCIPLES OF LEARNING AND BEHAVIOR, Fifth Edition; Lieberman's LEARNING AND MEMORY: AN INTEGRATIVE APPROACH; Chance's LEARNING AND BEHAVIOR, Fifth Edition; Powell, et. al.'s , LEARNING AND BEHAVIOR, Second Edition?as well as our introductory psychology texts. Many of these texts also include in-text references to Sniffy experiments to make it easy for students and professors to integrate Sniffy into their course.

Sniffy the Virtual Rat Pro, Version 2.0 (with CD-ROM) 2nd Edition Tom Alloway University of Toronto, Mississauga Greg Wilson DIDSoftware, Inc. Jeff Graham University of Toronto, Mississauga Published by Wadsworth Publishing PB 2005 ISBN/ISSN: 0-534-63360-9 ISBN - 13: 978-0-534-63360-8 List Price: 46.95, Your Price: 42.26 Status: Available # Pages: 256 Dimensions: 7 3/8 x 9 1/4

Description: Meet SNIFFY, THE VIRTUAL RAT! Using this CD-ROM and lab manual, you'll get a hands-on experience in setting up and conducting experiments that demonstrate the phenomena of classical and operant conditioning using Sniffy the digital rat. Sniffy includes 40 exercises that cover every major phenomena typically covered in a Psychology of Learning course. The CD-ROM comes with a Lab Manual that walks you through the steps necessary to set up classical and operant conditioning experiments that closely resemble the experiments discussed in learning texts. Throughout each, a series of "Mind Windows" allows you to visualize how Sniffy's experiences in the chamber produce psychological changes.
Benefits: • NEW! Reorganized to match the sequence of most learning textbooks, Sniffy Pro now allows teachers to teach classical before operant conditioning. This makes it easier for teachers to assign laboratory exercises. • Sniffy is a highly realistic, animated rat in a Skinner Box that manifests most of the major phenomena of both classical and operant conditioning. Sniffy can be trained to press a bar or perform a variety of other behaviors to obtain food reinforcement. • Students perform "classic" experiments that closely resemble those discussed in standard textbooks on the psychology of learning. Using Sniffy, students can perform exercises that demonstrate most the major phenomena of operant and classical conditioning. Detailed documentation and step-by-step instructions make the program accessible even to unsophisticated computer users. • Some classical conditioning phenomena simulated include: acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, the effects of manipulating the intensity of the CS and US, compound conditioning, blocking, overshadowing, over-expectation, inhibitory conditioning, sensory preconditioning, higher-order/background conditioning, the nature of the classical-conditioning association (S-S or S-R), and CS and US pre-exposure effects. • Some operant conditioning phenomena simulated include: magazine training; shaping; extinction; spontaneous recovery; primary and secondary reinforcement; variable-interval, variable-ratio, fixed-interval, and fixed-ratio schedule effects; the partial-reinforcement effect; simple and complex stimulus-discrimination learning; stimulus generalization; and the effects of punishment on extinction. • The program outputs the response measures employed by research psychologists in a data form that can be printed and turned in for class assignments. A one-step process enables the user to copy the image of a Sniffy Pro data window and paste it into any word-processor document (such as MS Word). This feature makes it easy for students to incorporate Sniffy data in lab reports and term papers. • Sniffy Pro data can also be exported in a form that most spreadsheet and statistical-analysis programs can read. This feature enables advanced students to perform sophisticated data analyses and draw elaborate graphs. Sniffy Pro data files are cross-platform (may be used on either Windows or Macintosh systems). • The program's "Isolation" option allows users either to display Sniffy in his operant chamber where they can observe all his movements in real time, or to "isolate" Sniffy's Skinner Box inside a soundproof air-conditioned chamber where Sniffy is invisible. Isolating Sniffy greatly accelerates the speed in which the user's computer can execute experiments. • All exercises in the manual are illustrated with dialogue boxes and windows from the most recent versions of the Macintosh and Windows operating systems available at the time of Sniffy's publication. • Minimum System Requirements: PC--Windows 98 SE, ME, 2000, or XP (not NT); Pentium II 233 MHz; 128 MB RAM; 16-bit sound card, 800x600, 16-bit High Color display; speakers or headphones; 8x CD-ROM. Macintosh--MAC OS 8.6 or later; PowerPC Processor or later; 128 MB RAM; 16-bit sound card; 800x600, 16-bit High Color display; speakers or headphones; 8x CD-ROM. • NEW! Students can now teach Sniffy to perform tricks, such as grooming his face or sitting up and begging. Students can teach Sniffy to perform the desired behavior more frequently in the presence a light or a tone, so that Sniffy performs the trick on cue. • NEW! A new "auto reinforcement" feature aids trick training. Students select the behavior they want reinforced, and a virtual "Lab Assistant" ensures that all occurrences of the target behavior are reinforced. • NEW! The program now incorporates a "Movement Monitor" that measures Sniffy's general activity and a "Movement Ratio" that indicates inhibition of movement (freezing) as a measure of classical conditioning. As in previous editions, once a user has trained Sniffy to press the bar, they can employ a "Suppression Ratio" as a measure of classical conditioning. • NEW! A simulation of the effects of punishment on extinction in operant conditioning is now included. This feature simulates several classic studies described in many learning books. • NEW! The Sniffy software generates a digital cumulative record, which will improve students' and professors' ability to export numeric data. • NEW! The manual includes clear, user-friendly printing instructions to enable users to print data and graphs. • NEW! Sniffy now includes a "pause" feature so the student can take a break and pick it up when they come back, rather than having to start over. • NEW! References and suggestions on how to use Sniffy Pro are included in the Instructor's Manuals that accompany many of our learning texts--Domjan's THE PRINCIPLES OF LEARNING AND BEHAVIOR, Fifth Edition; Lieberman's LEARNING AND MEMORY: AN INTEGRATIVE APPROACH; Chance's LEARNING AND BEHAVIOR, Fifth Edition; Powell, et. al.'s , LEARNING AND BEHAVIOR, Second Edition?as well as our introductory psychology texts. Many of these texts also include in-text references to Sniffy experiments to make it easy for students and professors to integrate Sniffy into their course.