Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some commonly asked questions. If you don't find an answer here then please contact us.
Here are some commonly asked questions. If you don't find an answer here then please contact us.
The study will provide valuable information about how the brain changes with age. It will also investigate which factors in mid-life affect our risk of dementia, such as exercise and diet. This knowledge will help develop better approaches to prevent and treat dementia in the future.
Participants will be invited to complete a series of assessments online which will be repeated annually over the next ten years.
Yes, once registered you can opt out of the study at any time by selecting the Withdraw from Study option from the My Account section of your dashboard. You will be able to choose whether your personal data that identifies you is deleted permanently. If you permanently delete your data and wish to continue the study after opting out, you will need to re-register and re-enter any data previously submitted.
You can find details of the PROTECT study within the participant information sheet and informant information sheet but if you still have questions, you are welcome to contact us using the details on the Contact Us page.
PROTECT works with all the latest popular browsers including Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari. If you experience difficulties with screen appearance or game behaviour we recommend you check for updates and upgrade to the latest browser version. The browser version can usually be checked using Help->About from your browser menu.
Interactive games and exercises are better played on a tablet or laptop rather than a phone.
PROTECT generally works without any problems using standard default browser settings. If you experience problems please check your browser settings, the following options must be enabled:
These can typically be enabled using the Settings or Internet Options menu options in your browser. Please refer to your browser documentation or help if you cannot find these.
Mobile devices can be used to browse the site, complete assessments and play the interactive games. Because of the limited screen width of some mobile phone devices some of the interactive assessments or exercises may not appear correctly.
Please allow up to 24 hours for the email to arrive. If it hasn’t arrived, please check the following:
If you have forgotten your password, please select the Forgot your password? link on the sign-in page and we will send you an email with a link to allow you to reset it.
Your username is the email address you used when you registered. We would have sent an email to this address to confirm your email address when you first registered. This email also included a Registration ID number. If you kept a note of your Registration ID number, contact us using the details on the Contact Us page and we will be able to use your Registration ID number to look up the email address you used to register with us.
For security reasons your account will be locked after 3 consecutive failed sign-in attempts. If this happens please wait for at least an hour when you can try again or contact our Help Desk who will be able to unlock the account for you.
To change your password please sign-in and select Reset Password from the My Account section of your dashboard.
To continue receiving our emails please sign-in using your old email address and select Change email address from the My Account section of your dashboard and provide us with the new email address. You will be sent an email to confirm your new email address. You can then sign-in using your new email address as your username.
It is important we have your up-to-date address when sending out DNA sample kits. To update your address please sign-in and select Change address from the My Account section of your dashboard and provide us with the new address.
If you cannot complete your assessments by their due date, we will record a missing data point for the current round of assessments and the assessment will become available in the next round of assessments if it is a recurring assessment.
The assessments become available when you begin the cognitive tests each year so if you are going to be away, you can wait until you return to begin.
We would prefer you to complete assessments by their due date or as soon as possible after this, but don’t worry if you can’t, many assessments will still be available for six months. In the meantime, you may receive automated email reminders.
We would prefer you to complete all repetitions within the available time window as this will give us more accurate data, but don’t worry if you can’t, any data you have submitted is still very valuable to us.
Some assessments don’t allow you to restart if already started or the time window for completing has expired. If you don’t think your time window has expired, please try again leaving at least 24 hours before retrying. If you cannot restart the assessment any data already provided will have been saved and will still be useful.
Once an assessment has been submitted it cannot be retaken. Please review your answers carefully before submitting. For certain assessments you may be given the opportunity to retake it if you have registered a low score, this will appear as a prompt immediately after submission.
We endeavour to make the games compatible with as wide a range of browsers as possible, if the game doesn’t start please check the answer to Is my browser compatible? in this FAQ. If this doesn’t solve your problem, please close all other browser windows and applications on your device and try again. Also, please check that JavaScript is not disabled in your browser settings.
This is probably a memory or performance issue with your device. Please close all other browser windows and applications on your device and try again. Also check your browser is compatible (see Is my browser compatible? in this FAQ).
If the problem continues please contact us using the details on the Contact Us page.
We have tried to provide clear written instructions for the games. There is also a short, animated clip which appears when the game is selected, usually after a short pause, which demonstrates how to play. You can view the instructions again by clicking on the button with the question mark. If you are still unsure, please contact us using the details on the Contact Us page.
An informant is someone we may ask to complete one or more simple assessments about you, for example how well you perform various tasks now compared to ten years ago. You must have known the informant well for at least ten years, for example a friend or family member, and they must be age 18 or over.
You will be asked to provide the name and email address of a person who can act as your informant during registration or you can add these details later. We will invite them to confirm they are willing to act as your informant and if so, they will register for their own study account. An informant will not be able to view or access any other information you provide as part of the study nor will you be able to view or access any information provided by the informant.
Please note that an informant may already be a participant in the study or can choose to become a participant if they meet the qualifying criteria.
Nominating an informant is an optional part of the study; if you’re not able to nominate an informant, we would still like you to take part as all other assessment data you provide is still very valuable to us.
Yes, please Contact Us and we will withdraw your current informant. You will then be able to nominate another informant on the My Studies section of your dashboard if you want a different informant.
If your informant’s details have changed, they need to login to their account and update their information in the Manage Account section of their dashboard.
We use a set of eight cognitive tests called FLAME that test your memory, attention and reaction times. These tests have been proven to have more sensitivity and produce better data than previous test batteries we have used. By completing these tests, you will be helping us gather the best possible data to understand how the brain ages.
You can find out more about cognitive assessments by watching our video
Not all devices are compatible with the PROTECT Cognitive Assessment due to the way the tests have been designed. For example, if you are using a tablet, the screen may be too small, or it may not allow two parts of the screen to be touched at the same time. Before you begin the tests, you will be asked to identify the type of device you are using to check compatibility. Additionally, the browser you are using may be the reason the device is determined to be incompatible. Chrome is the best browser to use regardless of the device.
Previously, we asked you to complete three sessions of cognitive tests per year but we have decided that by adding a short practice test and one full-length session we will collect enough data without adding the extra burden of completing these long sessions three times per year. This will also reduce learning effects from year to year.
You can watch a video demonstration of the cognitive tests. Flame Cognitive Test System Showcase (youtube.com)
The PROTECT Cognitive Assessment works on many devices, including some mobile phones. We are working on making it available more widely and you can check again next year if you only have an incompatible mobile phone.
To download a different web browser, you need to go to the browser manufacturer’s website or use your Tablet’s "App Store" and get the latest version of it.
NEVER download a web browser from anywhere other than the official website or store - you risk getting viruses, malware or spyware otherwise. The following link provides a list of all the places you can download the latest versions of some of the most popular browsers available today: Try a different web browser
We can use the data from the FLAME cognitive tests to determine whether, and how, your cognition is changing over time. All the tests in FLAME have previously been part of your PROTECT cognitive tests offered in the study. It doesn’t matter if you have previously completed all, or just some, of these tests. We will use the data we have and analyse it with the new FLAME tests to assess change over time.
The cognitive tests are designed to be challenging to help us see how participants are performing. Most participants perform better than they think, so please do not worry.
If you have a concern about your memory or your brain health, please contact your GP. In addition, there is excellent support from the Alzheimer’s Society, please click the following link for more information: Alzheimer’s Society
We prefer that you complete the tests in one sitting. We understand this is not always possible so you can take a quick break if you need to. Click the 'Exit' button at the bottom of the screen and select the option to take a break. You only have 50 minutes to complete the tests from when you start the session so the tests may expire if you don’t resume them in time. If you do need to take a break, you should try to finish the test you are on before exiting because the partially completed test will be repeated when you resume.
The tests take 25-45 minutes to complete. For each sitting, you will have up to 50 minutes to complete the tasks from the time you click 'CONTINUE' so please ensure you have enough time and are comfortable before starting.
For best results, you should use the same device type each year.
However, if you have technical difficulty or another problem and can no longer use your chosen device to complete the tests, please contact the team at support.protect@exeter.ac.uk as soon as possible to allow us to resolve the issue.
The previous version of the Cognitive Tests is no longer being used by PROTECT. We are working on making FLAME available more widely, therefore, if you are not able to complete the tests this year because your device is not compatible, you can check again next year.
The Banking Task, Hearing Test and BrainCheck Cognitive Tests are provided through online applications by PREDICTOM study partners outside of the University of Exeter (who develop and host the PREDICTOM website). To complete these tasks, you are connected to their web applications where your data is collected and processed. The results of your tests are encrypted and sent back to the PREDICTOM database where they are stored with the rest of the PREDICTOM data you provide directly through this website.
We do not share any personal information such as your name or email address with any of the third-party websites for PREDICTOM. A limited amount of demographic data (month and year of birth, education level) is shared with BrainCheck and Altoida to enable your results to be calculated by their systems. We use a unique session identifier to store your results collected through their systems together with other results you provide. Please see our privacy policy
eye-tracking test is not available as a web application. This is an optional assessment so if you are unable to install the application or do not want to install it on your computer you can opt out of this activity.
The most likely reason the eye-tracking app won’t download is that your computer or tablet has an incompatible operating system. This software only works on Windows 10 or 11 operating systems. If you do not have access to a compatible computer, you can opt out of this activity.
You can check your operating system by following these steps:
After you download the installer, open the application (installer.exe) from your downloads folder > click Install and then close the installer window when it has finished > type MIRA into the search box (lower left of your screen) and open the JOANNEUM RESEARCH – MIRA app.
Please watch this video for step-by-step instructions to install the app.
The eye-tracking app requires 1GB of available space. Please contact our team for support if you are having problems.
Follow these steps to uninstall the application when you are finished: