Challenging Our Minds Weblog

Task 3 - Two Choice Visual Reaction - The decision for Task 3 calls for even more thought. It is going to take a little longer to make this choice. Therefore, the overall reaction time average should be about 50 milliseconds longer than on Task 1, where there was just a reaction response, and perhaps an additional 10 to 15 milliseconds longer than on Task 2, where there was just a simple choice decision to be made. Because of this, one should intentionally take a bit more time to make sure that you see the colors and think about your response before you make it.

Getting prepared can improve speed and accuracy. Prepare yourself by saying aloud what the target color is going to be. Many people avoid talking aloud to themselves as they think other people will think there is something silly about doing it. Talking aloud, so you can actually “hear yourself think,” can be a crucial step to thinking better.

Task 2 - Simple Choice Visual Reaction - Things are a little more complicated here on Task 2. On Task 1 you clicked every time the center disk appeared. They were all yellow. Now some disks are yellow and some are blue. You are supposed to click on the yellow disks but do nothing when a blue disk appears, but, at the same time you have to try to click as fast as you did before on Task 1. This makes it hard not to accidentally click on the blue disk! This hint should help! First of all you must stay relaxed, do not let your finger or arm be tensed. Then, make sure that you actually do see the color of the disk before you begin to move your finger to click. It may help if you keep talking to yourself each time and say to yourself, “I am not going to click this time!”. By doing that you will be ready if it is blue. If it does happen to be yellow then go ahead and tell yourself to click.

Task 1 - Simple Visual Reaction - This task can be completed in 10 clicks if you are fast enough! Stay relaxed and use only your finger to make the response. By that I mean don’t tense up your arm or body and let them get involved in responding, just use your finger. Keep your finger touching the mouse button at all times. Even though it is possible to finish in 10 clicks, you are allowed up to 50 clicks. On the score screen you will see your reaction time reported in milliseconds. It takes 1000 milliseconds to equal 1 second. A score below 500 milliseconds is okay, below 400 milliseconds is good, below 300 milliseconds is awesome! But, if for some reason you cannot click that fast, you can still pass as long as you are continuously clicking faster on each click than your overall average.