Pre-directed Research

This week was dedicated to directed research (DR) prep work. It was long, difficult, and consisted of reading articles about Airbnb host perceptions, motivations, and sustainable development impacts. A proposal was completed, and this was followed by reaching out to potential contacts that play a host role in the home sharing economy in the Archipelago of Bocas del Toro. My team and I have an average of two interviews per day set up for next week. We plan on splitting into two groups and switching interviewer roles every other day. For example, while two team members are out in the field, two team members will spend time scrubbing data from the Airbnb platform with regards to our location in the Archipelago. There were times this week where it was difficult to be a part of a team. I think is important to understand that every individual is different. People have their own ideas, mental capacities, and times of day when doing homework is most productive for them. In addition to a proposal, a schedule, budget, consent statement, and an IRB needed to be completed. This is my first experience in research setting and I am not used to the amount of autonomy our primary investigator is giving us. I am grateful for this opportunity because this experience is going to help me determine if I see research in the academic sector fitting into my future career. On Saturday, our resident head chef Jugo conducted a coffee tasting session. We had two different types of beans that are popular in Panama: Catuai and Pacamara. These bags of beans were obtained during Week 7 when we had mid semester break. Boquete is a mountain town that is known for its coffee [production. I learned that grounding coffee beans yourself is the healthiest option when it comes to coffee. Coffee beans that are already pre-grounded have the potential to have additives, like…, that cause the grounds to be inorganic. I also learned that water type, temperature, filter condition, and pouring method effects the outcome of the coffee, in regards of flavor.