1st entry -- matching to sample

Matching to sample is an experimental paradigm in psychology that is used to test both memory and perception. The basic procedure is as follows:

A: Show a sample stimulus (colored dot, pattern, whatever) for a brief period

B: Wait

C: Show two or more alternative choices, one of which matches the sample

D: Subject is supposed to choose the alternative that matches the sample.


There are lots of variations -- you can probably think up some of your own.

Pigeons are especially good at this. So are humans, and primates, and I'm sure lots of other species too.


Why did I pick this name for my blog?
- It was available whereas some other names were not
- If you think about it, a lot of success in life is about matching to sample.


So...there ya go. I hope to update this blog hourly with brilliantly witty prose that will earn me an international following and vast sums of money.

I will probably abandon it grumbling that blogging is such a waste of my precious time while ignoring the fact that nobody ever read it.