Running the pecking test checklist timeline - theunissenlab/lab-documentation GitHub Wiki

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

This is a short checklist for running an experiment with the pecking test operant conditioning task. It describes the steps you need to take at a high level - follow the links for more detail.

1. Prepare stimuli

Filter the stimuli based on the call type

First, run the MATLAB script apply_songfilt.m function (TODO upload this somewhere or convert to python). Edit the input and output paths, the sampling rate of the output path. The call type is read from the filename; edit that portion of the code if it is not being parsed correctly.

Combine individual renditions into stimulus files

Next run the script stim_creator_FET.m script found in the theunissenlab/operant repository. The lines to change are the input and output directory paths, the number of stims to generate, the duration of the stimuli and number of renditions per stimulus, and the format of the output filenames in line 45.

2. Configure the software for your experiment (pyoperant)

Download the stimulus files for each subject and place them in the correct folder. These must be referenced by the pyoperant configuration file.

3. Testing the operant chambers

Test to make sure that stimuli are playing, data is being saved and uploaded/synced to google drive.