scientific presentation skills - cns - center for nanoscale systems
TRANSCRIPT
Scientific Presentation SkillsMelissa A. Hines, Dept. of Chemistry
You need a job (and maybe tenure)• Academic hiring (and postdoctoral, national labs, …)
• The tenure tour
Most science is transmitted orally• 55% of scientific papers receive no citations
within 5 years of publication
Why is Public Speaking Important?
Planning a Scientific Presentation
Know your audience• Why should they care about your work?
• Never overestimate your audience(or their attention span)
• Aim your presentation at the median person,not the expert
Tell a story, don’t present a report• Plan your take-home message first
The Structure of the Talk
• Title slide
Memorize the first 3 sentences of your talk!
• Introduction (and title)Most important slide (everyone is paying attention)
Should introduce the take-home message
Must pass the “parent test”
Give “the big picture”
Silicon Etching: Atomic-scale NanofabricationMelissa A. Hines, Dept. of Chemistry, Cornell University
Can we use chemistry to control surface morphology?
Potential application: Integrated frequency standards & filters (e.g., cell phones)
Requirement: f ~ few GHz & Q ~ 105
Problem: Quality (Q) plummets with increasing f
The Structure of the Talk
• Introduction (and title)• Outline of talk
The Odyssey (starring Odysseus)Homer, Poet in Transit
• Finish Trojan war
• Travel for 10 years– Visit Lotus Eaters– Blind the Cyclops– Shack up with Circe– Pass between Scylla and Charibdis– Listen to Sirens
• Return to Ithaca– Kill wife’s suitors– Live happily ever after
The Structure of the Talk
Keep it simple!
No gratuitous photos
• Introduction (and title)• Outline of talk
• Experimental/Computational
The Chemistry of Etching: An Atomic Scale View
Silicon
The Structure of the Talk
• Introduction (and title)
• Body• Experimental/Computational
Tell a story, don’t give a report
Logical, not chronological, order
A series of questions and answers is effective
Typical Structure of the Body
Results of #1Conclusion from #1
Experiment #1(e.g. Synthesis) Question raised by #1
Results of #2Conclusion from #2
Experiment #2(e.g. Characterization) Question raised by #2
Results of #3Conclusion from #3
Experiment #3(e.g. Testing) To Conclusions
The Structure of the Talk
Keep it simple! Reiterate take-home message
Out of time: Let the audience read
• Introduction (and title)
• Body• Experimental/Computational
• Conclusions & Acknowledgments
Handling Questions
• Make sure you understand the questionIf necessary, repeat or rephrase the question
• Watch out for ringers
• Keep your answer short and to the pointDon’t be arrogant or hostile
• Useful answers for awkward situations“That’s an interesting point. I’ll have to thinkabout it.”
“Maybe we should discuss this off-line.”
The Intangibles
Presentation style is important• Speak firmly, slowly and confidently• Look at the audience• Learn to use pointer & microphone
Practice! Practice! Practice!
Expect the unexpected• Use your own laptop if possible
• Bring back-up media and pointer• Check equipment right before the talk
Planning your slides
Only one concept (or experiment) per slide
• Conclusions & acknowledgments somewhat lessRule of Thumb: 2 minutes per slide
• Going faster will annoy the audience
• Going overtime is rudeTiming is critical!
• A seriously undertime talk is embarrassing
The Nuts and Bolts
Structure of a slide• Remember the lost and confused!• Informative title and self-contained content
• Do not use garish or gratuitous colors• Conclusion and/or segue at bottom
• Use short phrases, not complete sentences
A good slide speaks for itself
Images of Twist-Bonded WafersWhat kind of images?
What do the numbers mean?
The images show that the dislocation spacing dependssensitively on the angle. Note that the 0.4° sample isnot as periodic as the 0.9° sample.
Too much text!
Small Angle Buried Dislocations imaged by TEM
Buried dislocations
Too busy!Improve with
animation.
Increasing twist angle leads to decreasing spacing
Small Angle Buried Dislocations imaged by TEM
Buried dislocations1st
2nd
3rd
AnimationSteps:
Increasing twist angle leads to decreasing spacing4th
The Nuts and Bolts
• Big type is important (This is Helvetica 24)• Everything on slide must be legible
• Size matters!
• Use the 8' test
Legible at 8 feet?
The Nuts and Bolts
• Size is important
Use a font designed for headlines/labels
• Font is important
Fonts are Serious Business
There are two general classes of fonts
Use a sans serif font!
Legibility: Ease of character recognition
Readability: Ease of reading large blocks of text (i.e. paragraphs)
Font Color is also Important
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
Lorem ipsum dolor,Sit amet eiusmod
The Nuts and Bolts
• Large, bold san serif font
• Choose colors to maximize contrast
Best: Black text on white
White text on black OKAvoid colored text on colored background
Dark color on white OK
• Use contrast and size to prioritize information
Presenting Graphical Data
0.00E+00
2.00E+06
4.00E+06
6.00E+06
8.00E+06
1.00E+07
1.20E+07
1.40E+07
0 2 4 6 8 10
Etch Time
Fre
quency Series1
Series2
Series3
Series4
What is wrong with this graph?
Presenting Graphical Data
0.00E+00
2.00E+06
4.00E+06
6.00E+06
8.00E+06
1.00E+07
1.20E+07
1.40E+07
0 2 4 6 8 10
Etch Time
Fre
quency Series1
Series2
Series3
Series4
What is wrong with this graph?
Improved Presentation of Data
Presenting Equations
Rule #1: Don’t do it!
Rule #2: There is no rule #2.
Alternatives: Show a graph of the equation
Sketch the physical concept
Some Closing Thoughts
• Practice your talk out loud
Solicit (and give!) honest, constructive criticismTough criticism from a friend is better than
not getting the job
• Practice your talk on friends
Recruit outside your groupAsk to speak at an outside group meeting
Catch typos, missing labels, & inconsistencies