A Cue Due
Posted on March 31, 2009 by freshwater
It's time to teach Jor Jor the concept of a cue.
She is an accomplished bellringer now, ably playing two tuned handbells mounted side by side above her tank. Now I need to communicate which bell I'd like her to ring.
A month or so ago I tried flashing a symbol on an ipod to serve as a cue meaning "ring the red bell." Jor Jor was suspicious of the ipod. Instead of associating the ipod screen with bell ringing, she was just distracted.
The concept of a cue is always a little tough for fish to learn, but they are capable of it. And I do believe that a symbol on an ipod is an excellent cueing device. I just need to teach Jor Jor that 1) she shouldn't fear the ipod, and 2) showing her the ipod means something.
Today I will begin those lessons again, but with a much easier behavior — basic targeting. Touching a red target suction-cupped to the wall of her tank is an extremely easy task for Jor Jor; she has a 100% success rate with this simple behavior. Targeting should thus be a great starting point for lessons in cueing. Here's the protocol. We will advance through the steps as she achieves an 80% success rate.
1) One second before Jor Jor touches her red target, show her the ipod with a red cue symbol.
2) Show the ipod cue 2 or more seconds before she touches the target.
3) Only reward a target touch if the ipod cue was shown.
4) Repeat steps 1-3 with a green target and a green ipod cue.
5) Put the red and green targets up simultaneously. Ipod-cue one or the other and only reward correct choices.
We will probably alternate ipod cueing with regular bell-playing sessions, so that Jor Jor's muscial talent continues to flourish.
She is an accomplished bellringer now, ably playing two tuned handbells mounted side by side above her tank. Now I need to communicate which bell I'd like her to ring.
A month or so ago I tried flashing a symbol on an ipod to serve as a cue meaning "ring the red bell." Jor Jor was suspicious of the ipod. Instead of associating the ipod screen with bell ringing, she was just distracted.
The concept of a cue is always a little tough for fish to learn, but they are capable of it. And I do believe that a symbol on an ipod is an excellent cueing device. I just need to teach Jor Jor that 1) she shouldn't fear the ipod, and 2) showing her the ipod means something.
Today I will begin those lessons again, but with a much easier behavior — basic targeting. Touching a red target suction-cupped to the wall of her tank is an extremely easy task for Jor Jor; she has a 100% success rate with this simple behavior. Targeting should thus be a great starting point for lessons in cueing. Here's the protocol. We will advance through the steps as she achieves an 80% success rate.
1) One second before Jor Jor touches her red target, show her the ipod with a red cue symbol.
2) Show the ipod cue 2 or more seconds before she touches the target.
3) Only reward a target touch if the ipod cue was shown.
4) Repeat steps 1-3 with a green target and a green ipod cue.
5) Put the red and green targets up simultaneously. Ipod-cue one or the other and only reward correct choices.
We will probably alternate ipod cueing with regular bell-playing sessions, so that Jor Jor's muscial talent continues to flourish.
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