To learn the basics of magazine training and shaping, we used the computer program, Sniffy. First, I had to magazine train the virtual rat. The rat is magazine trained when there is an association between the sound of the magazine (where the food pellets are distributed from) and the distribution of food in the hopper. Here, the primary reinforcer is the presentation of food. During magazine training, I rewarded him each time he was near the hopper. This also introduced a 'secondary reinforcer,' the sound the hopper makes when presenting food. It took approximately 30 minutes for Sniffy to fully associate the sound with the presentation of food in the hopper.
The next step was to put Sniffy on a reinforcement schedule. I chose a VR5, or variable ratio. Here, Sniffy would need to push the bar on average 5 times in order to receive one reinforcement. At first, he got very frustrated. He would press the bar once, maybe twice, and then check the hopper for food. It was confusing for him in the beginning as he didn't quite understand why there wasn't food in the hopper even though he pushed the bar. Soon after, he learned that he had to push it multiple times to receive a reinforcement. The behavior became more concrete when he associated the sound of the food pellet dropping in the hopper with after pushing the bar x amount of times. He would push the bar until he heard the pellet drop, then eat the pellet and continue the behavior.
(Above is the graph from my magazine training of Sniffy.)
Behavior of Sniffy the Virtual Rat and teaching him to press a bar in a Skinner Box in order to receive a food reward. Please read the lab manual that is attached to these instructions, and carefully follow the directions for magazine training, shaping the bar press, and extinction. TO FIND THE SNIFFY THE RAT PROGRAM, FOLLOW THESE INSTRUCTIONS. Sniffy the Virtual Rat is an interactive program that gives students a virtual laboratory experience of a rat in a Skinner Box. Sniffy is an interactive program that gives students a virtual laboratory experience of a rat in a Skinner Box. Sniffy is now available as an app for Mac and Windows. Condicionamiento de rata virtual.
After Sniffy was magazine trained, I began shaping him to push the lever above the hopper. By pushing the lever, food was presented to Sniffy. This process took many steps as Sniffy cannot immediately learn this behavior. I gradually trained him to stay in the back corner by reinforcing him when he was in the correct area. Then, I started reinforcing him each time he reared up near the bar. Eventually, Sniffy pressed the bar, though it took about an hour for this particular behavior to be learned.Sniffy The Virtual Rat Machine
(This is a snippet of the cumulative record for shaping Sniffy.)
The next step was to put Sniffy on a reinforcement schedule. I chose a VR5, or variable ratio. Here, Sniffy would need to push the bar on average 5 times in order to receive one reinforcement. At first, he got very frustrated. He would press the bar once, maybe twice, and then check the hopper for food. It was confusing for him in the beginning as he didn't quite understand why there wasn't food in the hopper even though he pushed the bar. Soon after, he learned that he had to push it multiple times to receive a reinforcement. The behavior became more concrete when he associated the sound of the food pellet dropping in the hopper with after pushing the bar x amount of times. He would push the bar until he heard the pellet drop, then eat the pellet and continue the behavior.
Sniffy The Virtual Rat Machines
(This is a snippet of the cumulative record for the VR5 schedule.)
(This is a snippet of the cumulative record of Sniffy's extinction.)
The virtual rat was very helpful in determining how difficult it may be in shaping a live rat to perform a specific behavior.Go to Sniffy
Exploring the Psychology of Learning
![Sniffy Sniffy](/uploads/1/1/7/8/117873013/925508177.jpg)
Sniffy the Virtual Rat, is a fun, interactive software program that gives undergraduate students a virtual laboratory experience . . . without all the drawbacks of using a real laboratory rat.
Using Sniffy, students can explore operant and classical by performing experiments that demonstrate most of the major conditioning phenomena discussed in textbooks on the psychology of learning.
![Rat Rat](/uploads/1/1/7/8/117873013/845389297.jpg)
There are two versions of Sniffy, the Virtual Rat.
Sniffy Lite demonstrates the most basic phenomena of Operant and Classical conditioning but does not have the complexity and flexibility for advanced learning topics.
Sniffy Pro is a comprehensive simulation of advanced learning phenomena as described in detail in this web site. It has been field tested at several colleges and universities for use in Learning and Animal Behavior courses.
The Sniffy, the Virtual Rat, home page has eight menu options on the left-hand side of the screen. You are advised to progress through the menus in order from top to bottom, unless you know specifically what you are looking for.
Steps for using this site:
- After you have read the Main page, and the About Sniffy page, run the Tutorial (takes about 15 to 20 minutes) to see how to operate the program to run learning experiments. Run the OVERVIEW first and then proceed through each of the three Projects.
- Read the Manual Contents to see the range of exercises possible. We have chosen 3 major exercises (as detailed in the Tutor) which you can try out using the Demo software. Please note the Demo runs for a limited time and does not allow you to save files.
- Read the Exercises pages, and print a hard copy so that you can have them beside you while you run the Demo.
- Use the Download menu to select the version of Sniffy Pro that you want to use on your own computer. Do the Tutorial first so that you know how to run the Demo!!!
- Double-click the Demo installer, and follow the instructions.
- Open the Sniffy Pro Demo folder and double-click the Sniffy Pro Demo icon (or in Windows look in the Programs section of the START menu, and select Sniffy Pro Demo).
- For the next 20 days you can try out these exercises and exercises of your own design!
Created by
Tom Alloway, Greg Wilson, Jeff Graham, Lester Krames
Tom Alloway, Greg Wilson, Jeff Graham, Lester Krames