About us
Mission
statement
'To improve the research methods used by those involved in computer-based experimentation and investigation who report timing accuracy in units of a millisecond within the behavioral and brain sciences.'
Company profile
The Black Box Toolkit Ltd is dedicated to improving the millisecond timing accuracy and experimental rigor of researchers in the behavioral and brain sciences. We provide hardware, software and consultancy solutions across a wide range of fields that make use of computerized investigation in order to make this a reality.
Company history
The Black Box Toolkit Ltd was founded in 2003 by Dr Richard R. Plant and a team of psychologists, software experts and electronic engineers when it became evident that researchers were frequently having problems obtaining stable results in computer-based psychology experiments.
We quickly realized that benchmarking hardware and software in
our lab did not reflect what researchers were doing with their
own equipment and paradigms. In fact, it is now a well
documented fact that millisecond timing varies depending on the
hardware used. This makes it hard to single out one experiment
generator, or platform, over another. What was needed was an
inexpensive kit that enabled researchers to quickly and easily
check their own experiments millisecond timing accuracy, in situ
and without modification. As a result we have spent two decades
developing and refining the Black Box
ToolKit v3™.
The BBTK v3 enables researchers like you improve their ability
to replicate and correct any millisecond presentation,
synchronisation and reaction time errors prior to publication. A
range of companion products help you achieve greater
presentation, synchronization and reaction
time accuracy and TTL
event mark/TTL trigger with ease. Compare
Our hope is that members of the academic community will begin to
take presentation and response timing issues more seriously and
will endeavor to correct any errors in their own work prior to
publication. Furthermore, figures for timing reliability should
be stated within published journal articles as a matter of
course. We also hope that awareness of the issues involved
should be incorporated into degree teaching.
- Are you always carrying out the experiments you assume you are?
- Are you aware of millisecond timing error in your own experiments?
- Are you confident you can replicate experiments using different hardware and software in another lab?
The key question you should be asking yourself is, "Am I
confident in my findings and would I be happy for a researcher
in the same field to independently check my experiments?"
Are you putting your reputation at risk?
Read some of our academic publications on millisecond timing in psychology experiments and your ability to replicate.
The Black Box Toolkit is a Limited Company registered in England
since 2003.
