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What can I do with the MomentumTM software?
MomentumTM is designed to run all aspects of your human subjects
pool. We create a customized web site for you that we host on our
servers. Experimenters post experiments on your web site by using any web
browser (such as Internet Explorer or Netscape). Students view the posted experiments
via any web browser and can sign-up for available appointments. The
schedule is immediately updated to reflect any changes, and an email message can
be sent to the student to confirm their appointment. Reminder messages are
also sent the day prior to an experiment.
The experimenters assign credit (or penalties) to the students by visiting
the web site. No software is required other than a web browser because the
entire site is maintained on our computers. The web site takes care of
ensuring that students do not sign up for an experiment more than once (only if
such a restriction is desired!). Students can check their
"accounts" at any time to examine their current credit balance, and to
see the dates and times of upcoming appointments.
An administrator in your department will also have access to a number of
powerful features that can tailor the software to your particular needs.
For example, banner announcements on the opening page of the web site can alert
students (and experimenters) to special changes or events. The administrator
can control the assignment of experiment numbers (and their associated passwords) to experimenters,
and the allocation of subject-hours, thus controlling access to the subject
pool. Extensive reporting capabilities are provided in order to track the
students' participation, and to ease the burden of tabulating the information at
the end of the semester for use in assigning final grades.
The system is capable of handling "batch" assignment of credit as
is sometimes useful after mass testing sessions. Pre-screening can also
easily be used to determine eligibility to serve in particular experiments.
What security features are in place?
All of our signup websites use 128-bit Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)
technology--the industry-standard method of encrypting and protecting web
communications. (This is the same level of security used to protect
credit card transactions.) Furthermore, student identification information such as name, ID number, and email address
are always password-protected and visible only to the individual student (and
participant-pool administrator). Credit reports, which might also contain student names and ID numbers,
are also protected by passwords that your administrator controls. Email validation can be used to guarantee that a
potential participant owns an email address at your institution. A batch
entry method is also available to permit registration of participants so that
you can have complete control over the participant population.
Additional hardware and software features protect the integrity of your
data: The database files are stored on a computer that is not directly
accessible from a web browser. The web and data servers
operate under a
security-hardened version of the Windows 2000 operating system, and all security
patches and upgrades are installed promptly.
How does Experimetrix® comply with HIPAA?
The Privacy Rule of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
establishes standards to protect and guard against the misuse of
individually identifiable health information. Many
departments simply do not obtain such private health information in the
normal course of conducting Psychology experiments. If this is the
case for your department then the HIPAA regulations may not apply to your
research activities or to the activities that the Momentum Experiment
Scheduling System helps you monitor. Of course, only officials in
your Department or University would be able to determine whether your
unique situation is to be covered by the HIPAA regulations. If it is determined
that your use of the Momentum scheduling system is to be covered by the
HIPAA rules, we are completely compliant with the guidelines.
You
can read more about HIPAA details here.
Our department is very large--can Experimetrix® handle it?
Our web servers have been receiving more than one million hits per week. On a typical evening
we send several thousand email reminders for the next day's appointments. We can handle your department's load!
What can go wrong?
Don't worry! Our web servers are enterprise-class computers
with dual processors, large amounts of memory, and multiple hard disks.
They are maintained in a facility with redundant connections to the internet, backup power sources, and 24 hour staffing. We have
triple redundancy on web servers in the event of a failure. The database with your experiment information is
maintained on a server with multiple discs. Failures are
extremely unlikely. We also make regular backups to tape "just in
case".
When can we use the web site?
The site is available 24 hours per day, 7 days a week. Many people find
that viewing listings of experiments can sometimes mitigate effects of
insomnia. We can have your site up and running in a matter of days.
What kind of support is provided?
Free and fast support is always included. We are available by phone or email for immediate consultation in the event
that you have any questions. We also provide concise web-based
documentation to help guide students, experimenters and the departmental administrator
as they first learn to use the system.
What about our subject-pool coordinator?
Sorry, but the person in your department who is responsible for coordinating
the subject pool is going to have MUCH less work to do after you begin using
the MomentumTM software! Much less.
How can I find out more?
If you have any more questions, such as how to tailor MomentumTM to suit your
particular needs, please contact us. We'd be
happy to answer any questions.
Who offers Experimetrix®?
Experimetrix® is offered by Sona Systems, Ltd., a company dedicated
to offering software for human subject pool management.
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