Bottled water has become a staple of our fast paced lives. Between 2000 to 2008, the sales of bottled water in the United States doubled from 6.1to12.6 billion (“Bottled Water,” 2008). One of the major reasons that bottled water drinkers give for their preference is convenience. Alternatively, critics assert that bottled water hurts the environment, is overpriced, and is no safer than tap water. This raises the question: does taste or other less physiological factors such as cost and availability affect what water people choose to drink? A study conducted at University of Applied Sciences Hamburg sampled females on whether type of water affecd sensitivity to taste (Hoehl, Schoenburger, & Busch- Stockfishch, 2010). Researchers found most subjects tasted a sourness when sampling water containing minerals. Nordin, Razani, Markison, & Murphy (2003) reported older subjects to have a poorer ability to discriminate between taste intensities. These researchers also observed some gender differences. Therefore, the objective of our study was to determine whether taste, age, gender, cost and/or availability have an effect on what water that people at Southwestern Oklahoma State University (SWOSU) actually prefer
