title: NUANCE: Naturalistic University of Alberta Nonlinear Correlation Explorer.
abstract: In this article, we describe the Naturalistic University of Alberta Nonlinear Correlation Explorer (NUANCE), a computer program for data exploration and analysis. NUANCE is specialized for finding nonlinear relations between any number of predictors and a dependent value to be predicted. It searches the space of possible relations between the predictors and the dependent value by using natural selection to evolve equations that maximize the correlation between their output and the dependent value. In this article, we introduce the program, describe how to use it, and provide illustrative examples. NUANCE is written in Java, which runs on most computer platforms. We have contributed NUANCE to the archival Web site of the Psychonomic Society (www.psychonomic.org/archive), from which it may be freely downloaded.
authors.affiliation: University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
authors.forename: Geoff
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Hollis
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Westbury
mesh_terms: D035841:Behavioral Research / Q000379:methods; D003198:Computer Simulation; D006801:Humans; D017711:Nonlinear Dynamics; D012984:Software; D014584:User-Computer Interface