title: A new precise microcomputer based rotometer.
abstract: The rotometer described here consists of a data acquisition system made of several reed relays which are activated by a small moving magnet when the animal performs rotations. The apparatus has an angular discrimination which is dependent on the number of reed relays used. A simple interface is used to normalize the pulses produced when the reed relay contacts are closed. This normalized output closes key contacts in the keyboard of a microcomputer resulting in ASCII strings. A simple BASIC program is used for computation of various turn fractions. The program also calculates the total number of movements over time, allowing the assessment of activity vs. time.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of the Balearic Islands, Palma de Mallorca, Spain.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pons
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: López
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ramis
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Planas
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rial
mesh_terms: D000662:Amphetamines / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D004581:Electronics; D008838:Microcomputers; D051381:Rats; D012399:Rotation; D013239:Stereotyped Behavior / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D000662:Amphetamines