# Examples of Nesting over a Free interval

Example 1: Analyze the first 20 cm of swim path in a water maze

Aim

Suppose you want to analyze the movement of the subject in the initial swim path, say in the first 20 cm. A Data profile with Free interval “From track start to Total distance moved 20 cm” is defined.

The double arrow indicates the duration of the resulting interval. In the Analysis profile you can then for example define the heading angle of the subject, which will be calculated for that interval.

Solution

In the Data profile, under Nesting choose Free interval, with:

▪Start criterion: Track start.

▪Stop criterion: Dependent variable Distance moved, Statistic Total, is >= 20 cm.

Note that the Total Distance moved is unlikely to be exactly 20 cm at a given sample time; for this reason, the end criterion says “>= 20 cm”.

Next, in the Analysis profile choose the variable you want to calculate, for example Heading to point, or Turn angle. Then choose Analysis > Results > Statistics and Charts.

See also

▪Analysis advisor: Analysis in relation to the path

Example 2: Analyze the time up to when the subject has explored an object for 30 seconds

Aim

In a novel object experiment, the trial lasts for example 5 minutes. Subjects often differ in the amount of time spent exploring the objects. The researcher wants to analyze the same exploration time across subjects, for the object labeled as zone “Familiar object”.

Solution

In the Data profile, under Nesting choose Free interval, with:

▪Start criterion: Track start.

▪Stop criterion: Dependent variable In zone, Statistic Cumulative duration, is >=30 s. In zone is a dependent variable defined for the zone “Familiar object” and the body point “nose-point”.

Next, in the Analysis profile choose the variable you want to calculate, for example In zone, to calculate the number of exploration events in the 30 s of exploration time. Then choose Analysis > Results > Statistics and Charts.

See also

▪Zone visits (entries and time spent)

▪Other analyses with zones

Example 3: Compare two intervals, 5-s before vs 5-s after a stimulus

Aim

In a DanioVision experiment, a white light stimulus is presented to zebrafish larvae. The researcher wants to compare the movement parameters of the animals in the 5 s before the onset of the stimulus, with those in the 5 s thereafter.

Solution

In the Data profile, create two Free intervals based on Trial Control.

The first free interval goes from 5 seconds before “Action: Light on” to 0 s after start event (which is “Action: Light on”).

The second free interval goes from 0 s before “Action: Light on” to 5 s after start event (which is “Action: Light on”).

Connect the two Nest boxes to different Result boxes. To create an additional Result box, under Common elements click the button next to Result. See Multiple selections in a data profile

Next, in the Analysis profile choose the variable you want to calculate, for example Movement, to quantify movement in the selected periods of time. Then choose Analysis > Results > Statistics and Charts.