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Results

Overview​

The Virtual Rodent recording system captures information generated during an experiment so that the results can be inspected and analysed after the simulation has completed.

Recorded Data​

The recorder captures information including:

  • Simulation step
  • Simulation time
  • Rat position
  • Current region
  • Active stimuli
  • Treatment events
  • User interventions

Recording these values provides a chronological representation of the experiment.

Treatment Events​

Treatment events record information about treatment administration during an experiment.

The experiment can distinguish between:

  • No treatment
  • Placebo
  • Medicine

Treatment information includes the configured dose and administration timing where applicable.

Export Formats​

Results can be exported in two formats.

JSON​

JSON provides structured experiment data.

It is suitable for:

  • Programmatic processing
  • Reproducing experiment configurations
  • Further software integration
  • Python-based analysis

CSV​

CSV provides tabular experiment data.

It is suitable for:

  • Spreadsheet applications
  • Statistical analysis
  • Data visualisation
  • Import into Python and other analysis tools

Result Workflow​

Experiment
    ↓
Simulation
    ↓
Recording
    ↓
State / Event Data
    ↓
JSON or CSV
    ↓
Analysis

Determinism Testing​

The project includes automated tests for reproducibility.

A deterministic test runs the simulation using a defined configuration and random seed and verifies that the resulting behaviour is consistent.

This helps ensure that experimental results are not unintentionally affected by display speed or other non-deterministic factors.

Using Results for Further Analysis​

Exported results can be used by external tools for additional analysis.

A planned analysis workflow is:

Virtual Rodent
      ↓
JSON / CSV
      ↓
Python
      ↓
Statistical Analysis
      ↓
Machine Learning / PyTorch

This provides a pathway for future behavioural analysis and machine learning experiments.

Result Verification​

Before using exported results, users should verify:

  • The correct experiment configuration was used.
  • The intended random seed was used.
  • The expected stimuli were activated.
  • Treatment events occurred at the expected times.
  • Recording completed successfully.
  • The exported file contains the expected data.

AI Attribution: The preceding document was generated and edited with assistance from ChatGPT Web (GPT-5.6 Luna).