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Courtesy of the Archives, Cal-Tech

Making ScientificPresentations

Yesterday I gave a colloquium.... [I] spoke loudly and looked at the audience and not the blackboard, although under the circumstances the blackboard seemed far more appealing than some of the people.

Lise MeitnerPhysicist

Linus Pauling

Presentations have several advantages over documents

Work can come alive for audience Work

Presenter can read audience and react

AB

C

C

D

Presenter receives instant reaction

! ? ! ?

Presentations also have several disadvantages

Speaker has limited chance to catch errors

? ? ?

Audience cannot reread text

has oneaudience

chanceto hear

Audience cannot look up background material

You begin preparing a scientific presentationby analyzing your constraints

audience

purpose occasion

In a scientific presentation, you have to juggle four aspects of style

StructureS upply plenum s for each liner panel allowfor independent flow controlVisual Aids

Archives, Fermi Lab

Delivery

Speech

As with documents, the structure of presentations should have clear beginnings, middles, and ends

Beginning

Ending

Middle

Beginnings prepare the audiencefor the work to be presented

Shows importanceShows importanceDefines workDefines work

Work = A + B

Maps presentationMaps presentation

A

B

CD

Gives backgroundGives background

The middle presents the workin a logical order

post-combustionmethods

combustionmethods

pre-combustion methods

In the middle, you make smooth transitions between major points

pre-combustionmethods

combustionmethods

post-combustionmethods

combustionmethods

The ending summarizes main pointsand places them in the big picture

point 1point 2point 3point 4

point 5point 6point 7point 8

big picture

point 1point 7

summary

In a formal presentation, the slidesreflect the structure

overall perspectivesummary

logical ordertransitions

ending

middle

beginningscopeimportancebackgroundmapping

In a scientific presentation, you have to juggle four aspects of style

StructureS upply plenum s for each liner panel allowfor independent flow controlVisual Aids

Archives, Fermi Lab

Delivery

Speech

Scenery and props serve as your supporting cast

slides Films

HandoutsDemonstrations

I could somehow see nothing all around me but the paper, and I felt as if my body was gone, and only my head was left.

Charles Darwin

DesigningPresentationSlides

Downstream of the combustor simulator is asection to test turbine vanes

Turbine VanesCombustor Simulator

Audiences remember more when youuse well-designed slides

Hear

See

Hear& See

6010 20 30 40 50

Recall (%)

No matter what type of projection you use,you must make certain decisions

What format to choose?

Excluded

IncludedWhat information to include?

Choose a format that is professional

Arial

BOOK ANTIQUA

Choose legible type

Avoid clutterwordswordswordswords

wordswordswords

words

Headline/body formats orient the audience

Body supportswith words

Body supportswith images

wordswords

words

Use a headline that succinctly statesthe idea of the slideHeadline

Body

No matter what type of projection you use,you must make certain decisions

What information to include?

Excluded

Included

What format to choose?

Include slides that accent important details

Neptune has three moons

Images

Six warmestyears ofcentury

198819871983198119801986

The world is warming

Results

Include slides that show organization

1. Topic A2. Topic BTopic A

Topic B

IntroductionTitleBeginning

Topic A

ATopic B

BMiddle

Conclusion

Summaryof A and BEnding

Methods to ReduceSulfur Dioxide EmissionsFrom Coal-Fueled Utilities

Cynthia SchmidtMechanical Engineering DepartmentUniversity of Texas

Three classes of methods exist forreducing emissions of sulfur dioxide

post-combustionmethods

combustionmethods

pre-combustion methods

The most effective combustion methodis an atmospheric fluidized bed

• 90% removal capability

• low capital cost—able to use in existing equipment

• high operating cost

• ability to use different grades of coal

separator

airinlet

cleanedexhaust

grid

By using these methods, coal utilitiescan greatly reduce SO2 emissions

40%40%

80%

90%

95%

80%

coal cleaning

coal switching

fluidized bed

absorption

adsorption

25 50 75

Percentage Reduction of SO2

Exclude details that the audiencedoes not need or cannot remember

Avoid filler information

Roentgen discovered x-raysin 1895. He found that a cathode-ray tube producedfluorescence in a distant plati-num-barium-cyanide screen.

Avoid complex math

(x +2) ln x

(x + 1) (x-1)2 2

2

Avoid complex images

DEAR-ATOR

HOTWELL

RGFAB

Avoid long lists• Corrosion• Acid rain• Toxic materials• Pulsed combustion• Energetic materials• Pyrogenic materials• Smog

In a scientific presentation, you have to juggle four aspects of style

StructureS upply plenum s for each liner panel allowfor independent flow controlVisual Aids

Archives, Fermi Lab

Delivery

Speech

Audience, purpose, and occasion determine the appropriate speech to give

Technicalspecialists

General technicalaudience

Non-technicalaudience

You have several choices for how you deliver your speech

Memorizing the Speech+ allows eye contact- difficult for long speeches- room for precision errors- no room for improvising

Reading From a Text+ ensures precision- does not sound natural- no room for improvising- hinders eye contact

Speaking From slides

+ insures organization+ allows eye contact+ allows improvising- some room for error

Winging It+ sounds natural- has much room for error

In a scientific presentation, you have to juggle four aspects of style

StructureS upply plenum s for each liner panel allowfor independent flow controlVisual Aids

Archives, Fermi Lab

Delivery

Speech

Delivery is the speaker’s interaction with the audience

Voice Stage PresenceMovements

Courtesy of the Archives, Cal-Tech

Making ScientificPresentations

Yesterday I gave a colloquium.... [I] spoke loudly and looked at the audience and not the blackboard, although under the circumstances the blackboard seemed far more appealing than some of the people.

Lise MeitnerPhysicist

Linus Pauling