Closing Remarks

My goal for this project was to learn more about the history and health benefits of siestas and create an artifact that would inform people interested in travel and siestas about this information. I definitely achieved my goal of learning about siestas. Not only do I have a much more extensive knowledge about siestas, I learned more about how they can help and hurt your health. I also went more in depth as to why the siesta has been disappearing from countries that have had them in the past. The self-directing and managing of this process was hard at times. At first it wasn't easy keeping myself on track and having to figure everything out on my own. But as we got farther into the project, it became a lot easier to learn everything and get everything done. I've learned about how siestas were started and why different countries close down their business after lunch for this mid afternoon nap. Most of the countries that take siestas are in tropical climates so lunch time is the hottest time of the day. Closing down at this time keeps them out of the sun and gives them time to refresh to be able to open back up afterwards and be more attentive for the rest of the day. I also learned that many studies have found that siestas can be beneficial for one's cardiovascular health and coronary system but other studies show that they could have negative health benefits. This showed me that there should definitely be more research put into this topic to find out exactly how siestas affect one's health. Many countries are doing away with the mid afternoon nap though because their governments are pushing to become more productive in a time of high unemployment and debt. Some countries are also getting rid of them to try and keep up with the American work style of all work and no play. I received feedback that said that I could've gone more in depth into my research and designed my artifact to be a little more pleasing to the eye. I think that there is a lot of other information out there that I could've added but it also could've been a little overwhelming to the audience. As for the design of my artifact, I believe that less is more so I think my simpler design is easier to the eyes and draws the focus to my actual information. After receiving this feedback, I did do some more research and added some more information to my artifact. Overall, I was really pleased with how it turned out and learned a lot from the project.

It's Time for a Siesta

Snoozing Around the World

I have started to do more in depth research for my project and the first step I decided to take was to learn more about the history of siestas. This afternoon nap originated in Spain and is derived from the Latin phrase hora sexta, which means the sixth hour. It comes from this because a day starts at dawn, therefore the sixth would be at noon which is the perfect time for a nap. The tradition of taking a siesta is primarily done in Spanish speaking countries because of it's Spanish origin, but has spread to many other countries. Some of these countries include Italy, Greece, Mexico, Ecuador and even Nigeria. It's no coincidence that all of these countries are located in hotter climates. The siesta not only gives people a chance to get a nap in for a long day of work, it also gets them out of the sun at the hottest time of the day. There has been controversy of whether or not siestas are good for your health and if they should be kept around. Some sources show that taking a siesta can help one's cardiovascular system while others show that it can increase your risk of coronary disease. These are just a few of the things I have learned so far and cannot wait to continue into more in depth information.

To ensure that this information is accurate, I fact check whatever resource I use. I search other sites to see if their information matches the facts that are given in the website I am using. I make sure that I do not copy the article and use my own words to discuss what information I've collected. I am not using any materials that are not allowed for reusing. I need to learn more about the health benefits and risks that come along with siestas. I also would like to research about why a lot of these countries are no longer having siestas. 

Source for Information Above

Back to Basics

When starting off on a project there's one very important thing; research! When researching you have to make sure you're getting reliable, accurate information. For our project, we will be using the CRAAP test. This makes sure our project is reliable and informing people about the correct things. The CRAAP test will check the currency, relevancy, authority, accuracy, and purpose to ensure our sources are the best for our project. 


My first source is from SlumberWise which is an independent website about sleep and other things related to sleeping. This is a secondary source because they are pulling information together from other sources to create the article. The article is about siestas and the history of them. It is a vanity publication on a website on the topic. It was written by the authors of SlumberWise and are qualified to write about this topic because their site is about sleeping and other information related to it. It also has links that lead to their sources of information. The information could be slightly biased since their website is mainly about sleep. Overall, I think it's a decent resource. It is reliable but not to the most reliable as some other sources. 
CRAAP Test Source One

My second source is from BBC which is a British news company that reports about news and other information from all around the world. This is a secondary source because they are getting information from other places to create their article. The article is about the health benefits that studies have found from siestas. It pulls information from scholarly sources and studies that have been conducted. It is a news source and was written by a reporter who did extensive research to find the information. The information is not biased because it finds facts from studies and talks about the findings of these studies. Overall, I think it's a very good source because it comes from a reliable, well known website that has a reputation of being a trustworthy news outlet.
CRAAP Test Source Two

Siestas: After Lunch Naps

Recently, I took a trip to Italy and during a certain time of the day all of the shops and restaurants were closed for a siesta. A siesta is a short nap taken during the early part of the afternoon after lunch. Siestas are popular in many Mediterranean and European countries, particularly places with warm weather. Some say that they are necessary because the mixture of large meals and hot climate make it almost impossible to work. There is even a siesta competition that is held in Spain that in short, judges how well you sleep.

  

 This is very interesting since in America, workdays consist of non-stop working and rarely even give an hour for lunch. Siestas are becoming more researched because of the possible benefits that come from them, but are also being shortened or taken away completely because of the spread of the non-stop working attitude that countries like the United States and China have. Why do these certain countries take siestas and are they benefitting or hurting people and their businesses? Studies have shown that taking these midday naps can help with cardiovascular health, improving moods, boosting energy levels and even that people may have a biological need for them. I want to learn more about the reasoning behind these afternoon naps, if they are beneficial to people’s health, and if they hurt these businesses in the long run.