Observing a tribe

For this assignment, you will observe a public space–not just the space, but the activities in that space as well. I would like you to focus on a building of your choice (I suggest a space with a distinct purpose or occupants). You must confine yourself to the public spaces within that building, i.e. hallways, any open lounges or other places where people would not reasonably expect privacy (i.e. not offices, bathrooms, etc.). In this space, I want you to adopt the persona of an ethnographer or anthropologist, a naturalistic observer of the human activity taking place in that building. What is it that this strange tribe seems to be doing? What sorts of activities do you note, what artifacts or tools do they use, and what is your interpretation of these objects/actions? What questions do these observations leave you pondering? What needs more research? The point of this essay is more than simply to provide the reader with an overview of activity, but also to filter your observations into a question or set of questions that a “scientist” could develop into a research project. So remember, you are not merely making a claim about what people are doing, but are trying to limit that claim/question—according to your research, what appears to be the purpose of the activity of the carefully confined space you have chosen? What one aspect of the activity might one focus on for future research?
The main criteria I am looking for with this paper are a narrowly defined research question and how well you base that question on your observations. Base your claim clearly on the evidence you are able to gather, and incorporate that evidence in some way into your essay. Other, lesser but still important elements will be structure and grammar.

In 3-4 pages, double spaced with 12 point font (Times New Roman or similar), you must produce a focused observation, suggest reasons for those activities, and filter into potential research questions. Follow APA guidelines (without the cover sheet), available at the OWL Purdue site, to format the paper.