The First Interview

This week I began to get responses from professionals I had reached out to regarding research interviews. While many of them had agreed to participate in these interviews, I had been unable to nail down times that worked for both of our schedules. You can imagine my surprise when one of these professionals responds on Thursday asking if the next day Friday would work. I found myself nervously excited as this would be my first interview and I wanted to make a good impression on this professional.

While preparing for the interview, I came up with numerous questions to ask, making sure to cover all bases, and prepared as well as I could for this unexpected yet exciting opportunity. Once I began the interview I realized that all of my nerves were for nothing. The professional was very kind and I found myself enjoying talking to him, so much that our interview went on for much longer than I had originally intended. Since this interview went so well and gave me so much information regarding my prospective career, I am extremely excited about my upcoming interviews this week. I think these interviews will give me a better understanding of chemical engineering, better than any online research would. I look forward to continuing this kind of research and building relationships with the professionals that I interview.

I also continued my research this week, still focusing on my original work. In prior weeks I have looked at articles regarding the science behind different components of the saddle pad but this week I decided to read an article specifically about the science of saddle pads. This article has given me some ideas for where to start on my original work. The material of the saddle pad is quite important but so is the structure. When I originally began to do research I had thought to myself that the material was all that mattered, but the structure is equally as important because it can provide ventilation and support, therefore decreasing the accumulation of sweat and bacteria and fungus. This article also allowed me to figure out that the best fabrics for wicking sweat away from the horse's back are made of natural fibers. This will allow me to start focusing my research and begin coming up with a design.

My plan for this week involves continuing my research interviews, continuing my research for my original work, and starting on the design for the saddle pad. Overall, I feel like I have settled into a groove for working on ISM weekly assignments and will be able to complete them much more efficiently and be more productive in the class time that I have.