Consequently, the novices had completed all tasks a total of seven times by the end of the study (one baseline test, five training sessions, one final test).
This meant that at the end of the study the training group had completed all tasks a total of seven times (one baseline test, five training sessions, one final test), which will be referred to in this manuscript as seven trials.
For both tasks, a total of 12 target trials appeared (for further details, see Reif et al., 2011).
All control participants received the same training for the three tasks, a total of ∼15 min. The Wernicke's aphasia participants received individualized packages of training based on their level of impairment.
Each design consisted of 12 random tasks and 2 holdout tasks (5th and 10th tasks), for a total of 14 tasks.
Participants underwent 2 blocks of 144 trials for each task, for a total of 576 trials, and the order of tasks was pseudorandomized.
Each subject was instructed to walk the walkway three times, in randomised order, at I) self-selected comfortable speed, II) a self-selected higher speed, III) a self-selected comfortable speed with a working memory task, and IV) a self-selected higher speed with a working memory task, making a total of 12 walks per individual.
Mice were tested in one task at a time with the next starting 1 day after the completion of the previous task for a total of 38 days of testing.
Malcolm Gladwell, in his book "Outliers," explains the "10,000-hour rule," claiming that the key to success in any field is a matter of practicing a specific task for a total of around 10,000 hours.
