ANY-maze Help > The ANY-maze reference > The Protocol page > The elements of a protocol > Testing > Stages

Stages

Stages are used to define the sequence of tests you will perform in an experiment. For example, in a water-maze, you might want to perform four training tests followed by a probe test. In ANY-maze, such a sequence would consist of two stages; 'Training' and 'Probe', with the Training stage consisting of four trials and the Probe stage consisting of one.

Clearly, all protocols will have to include at least one stage, otherwise your experiment won't contain any tests - and in fact ANY-maze ensures this is the case by automatically including one stage in all new protocols.

Beyond just defining the number of tests, stages also define the order in which tests will be performed, the duration of tests, rules which can end stages (such as achieving some goal), and the positions of movable zones.

For more information about stages, refer to the topics below.

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An introduction to stages

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Options that affect all stages

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Setting up a stage

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Creating stage end rules

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Including an accustomisation period in a stage

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