ORAL PRESENTATIONSFOR SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL AUDIENCES

NNNL X68

Fall 2003

At the Course Download Site: <oralpres-f2003.ppt>

Disclaimer

• Some slides in this presentation show deliberate violations of good style. Pay close attention to which slide show and which violations are demonstrated.

PURPOSE

• to convey results and conclusions deriving from a study or other project to a listening audience, allowing for both audience understanding and inquiry

STYLE• What do you think?

ULTRA-CONCISEULTRA-CONCISE

FORMAT• Speech, often time-limited, with associated

visual display (“visuals,” “graphics”), often projected

SPEECH & VISUALS• Understandable• Logical• Informational• Educational• Typically concise• Well rehearsed• Not recited

• Attractive• Clean, logical

drawings• Navigational• Minimal texts• Outlines of essential

points• Not to be continuously

read by presenter

Visuals• Typically slides (photo or electronic*),

overheads, or posters

*a.k.a. “presentation graphics” or “Power Point” slides

Visuals: General• condense and distill information

– to words and phrases– NO PUNCTUATION!

– avoid subordinate clauses, like this one– sentences only in special cases (and punctuated)

– summary, conclusion

– Don’t cram information!– think lists not texts

– 3-4 points per visual ( busy-ness)

• all listed points components of speech• each visual titled and navigational• learn to distrust defaults in slides software

– fill & center slide space ( defaults)– make logical line breaks (defaults)

About Defaults I

Centering & Filling Slide Space

About Defaults I

Centering & Filling Slide Space

ABOUT DEFAULTS I

• Fill slide space AMAP• center text & figures LRTB• but remember uniformity

PRESENTATION ORDER

T 28 NO• Barrileaux

• Burlet

• Chauvin

• Duke

• Graham

• Gwin

• Lafont

• Legendre

H 30 NO• Lord• Matherne• Pennington• Perero• Richard Dan• Richard Daw• Self• Tabor• Toups

PRESENTATION ORDERT 28 NO

• Barrileaux

• Burlet

• Chauvin

• Duke

• Graham

• Gwin

• Lafont

• Legendre

H 30 NO• Lord• Matherne• Pennington• Perero• Richard Dan• Richard Daw• Self• Tabor• Toups

PRESENTATION ORDERT 28 NO

• Barrileaux

• Burlet

• Chauvin

• Duke

• Graham

• Gwin

• Lafont

• Legendre

H 30 NO• Lord• Matherne• Pennington• Perero• Richard Dan• Richard Daw• Self• Tabor• Toups

About Defaults II

Make Logical Line Breaks

The Effects of Sunlight on theActivity of Melanocytes in

Human SkinDr. Sun-So Burn

Melanophysiological Institute of

Technology

The Effects of Sunlighton the Activity of Melanocytes

in Human SkinDr. Sun-So Burn

Melanophysiological Institute of Technology

Slides/Presentation Graphics

• Readable at arm’s length

• 2 x 3 format

• lines 40 characters

• fill space

• center text

Slides/Presentation Graphics

• Readable at arm’s length

• 2 x 3 format

• lines 40 characters

• fill space

• center text

Slides/Presentation Graphics

• Readable at arm’s length

• 2 x 3 format

• lines 40 characters

• fill space

• center text

Transparencies

• do not project sheets of manuscript or notes

• do not project typewriter-written texts

• use only top 7” of space

• use 24 pt type

• fine detail of diagrams sometimes lost

• try colorizing

When developing visuals,think...

• ultimate summarization of topic• words and phrases• bullet lists• unspoken questions• about “the story”• about the ending at the beginning• about the audience

– grab attention at first word!

• TPS (time per slide) rules of thumb:– Long presentations, 2 min/slide avg (60 min = 30 slides)– Short presentations, 1 min/slide avg (10 min = 10 slides)

Present (v) as the Great Ones do:• rehearse• first words set tone• no apologies• don’t read text (except objectives, summary points, complete sentences, not necessarily title)

• good relationship between speech and slides• Speak in sentences (unlike Paul Prudhomme)

• rehearse• avoid reading notes; use bullets as cues• slow down (We all know you’re excited or anxious or both, but we need to understand!)

• have an effective start• embed prompts• seed questions• rehearse• have an ending action• exhibit intellectual enthusiasm• avoid distracting mannerisms• explain all aspects of visuals• 1-2 sophisticated, applicable icebreakers, no more

Whaddaya mean, “distracting mannerisms”?

• “uhh”• General nervousness• Making noises (clicking, tapping, smacking)• Not speaking into the microphone (when using one)• Talking too fast or not clearly• Talking to some other thing than the audience• Reading slides• Typographical errors• Moving the pointer too quickly or too erratically• Monotony• Anger or dismay for having to give an oral presentation• Not accepting responsibility for expertise• Not being able to answer questions• Answering questions other than those asked• Speaking longer than allotted time

Q & A Session

• listen closely• repeat question aloud• pause and think• answer completely but

briefly

• “I don’t know.”(But always know what you should!!)

• reply courteously• maintain dignity• don’t speak beyond time

limit! Practice!

You are the expert.Be it.

The Good, the Bad,The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: and the Ugly:

A Brief Gallery of SlidesA Brief Gallery of Slides

Human Genome Project

Begun in 1990, the U.S. Human Genome Project is a 13-year effort coordinated by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health. The project originally was planned to last 15 years, but effective resource and technological advances have accelerated the expected completion date to 2003. Project goals are to  ■ identify all the approximate 30,000 genes in human DNA, ■ determine the sequences of the 3 billion chemical base pairs that make up human DNA, ■ store this information in databases, ■ improve tools for data analysis, ■ transfer related technologies to the private sector, and ■ address the ethical, legal, and social issues (ELSI) that may arise from the project.  Recent Milestones:■ June 2000 completion of a working draft of the entire human genome ■ February 2001 analyses of the working draft are published

Human Genome Program, U.S. Department of Energy, Genomics and Its Impact on Medicine and Society: A 2001 Primer, 2001

What does the draft human genome sequence tell us?

By the Numbers

• The human genome contains 3164.7 million chemical nucleotide bases (A, C, T, and G). 

• The average gene consists of 3000 bases, but sizes vary greatly, with the largest known human gene being dystrophin at 2.4 million bases.

 • The total number of genes is estimated at 30,000 to 35,000 much lower than previous estimates of 80,000 to 140,000 that had been based on extrapolations from gene-rich areas as opposed to a composite of gene-rich and gene-poor areas.

 • Almost all (99.9%) nucleotide bases are exactly the same in all people.

 • The functions are unknown for over 50% of discovered genes.

Human Genome Program, U.S. Department of Energy, Genomics and Its Impact on Medicine and Society: A 2001 Primer, 2001

What does the draft human genome sequence tell us?

How It's Arranged• The human genome's gene-dense "urban centers" are predominantly composed of the DNA building blocks G and C. • In contrast, the gene-poor "deserts" are rich in the DNA building blocks A and T. GC- and AT-rich regions usually can be seen through a microscope as light and dark bands on chromosomes. • Genes appear to be concentrated in random areas along the genome, with vast expanses of noncoding DNA between. • Stretches of up to 30,000 C and G bases repeating over and over often occur adjacent to gene-rich areas, forming a barrier between the genes and the "junk DNA." These CpG islands are believed to help regulate gene activity. • Chromosome 1 has the most genes (2968), and the Y chromosome has the fewest (231).

Human Genome Program, U.S. Department of Energy, Genomics and Its Impact on Medicine and Society: A 2001 Primer, 2001

What does the draft human genome sequence tell us?

The Wheat from the Chaff

• Less than 2% of the genome codes for proteins. • Repeated sequences that do not code for proteins ("junk DNA") make up at least 50% of the human genome. • Repetitive sequences are thought to have no direct functions, but they shed light on chromosome structure and dynamics. Over time, these repeats reshape the genome by rearranging it, creating entirely new genes, and modifying and reshuffling existing genes. • During the past 50 million years, a dramatic decrease seems to have occurred in the rate of accumulation of repeats in the human genome.

Human Genome Program, U.S. Department of Energy, Genomics and Its Impact on Medicine and Society: A 2001 Primer, 2001

What does the draft human genome sequence tell us?

How the Human Compares with Other Organisms

• Unlike the human's seemingly random distribution of gene-rich areas, many other organisms' genomes are more uniform, with genes evenly spaced throughout.

 • Humans have on average three times as many kinds of proteins as the fly or worm because of mRNA transcript "alternative splicing" and chemical modifications to the proteins. This process can yield different protein products from the same gene.

 • Humans share most of the same protein families with worms, flies, and plants, but the number of gene family members has expanded in humans, especially in proteins involved in development and immunity.

 • The human genome has a much greater portion (50%) of repeat sequences than the mustard weed (11%), the worm (7%), and the fly (3%).

 • Although humans appear to have stopped accumulating repeated DNA over 50 million years ago, there seems to be no such decline in rodents. This may account for some of the fundamental differences between hominids and rodents, although gene estimates are similar in these species. Scientists have proposed many theories to explain evolutionary contrasts between humans and other organisms, including those of life span, litter sizes, inbreeding, and genetic drift.

Human Genome Program, U.S. Department of Energy, Genomics and Its Impact on Medicine and Society: A 2001 Primer, 2001

What the HGP Tells Us

• !! Only 35,000 genes• most genes in euchromatin• GC/AT patchiness• !! Gene density higher & intron

size smaller in GC-rich patches• !! 1.4% translated, 28%

transcribed• !! Origins of genes

mitomito

ProteinDomains

ProteinDomains

A Word About Graphicsand Copyright

• Cite all graphics imported (unless your own)

• In general, “clip art” is free to import (unless otherwise specified)

• Never use other’s texts (unless, like HGP, available for general use).

© JDoucet, 1998

Good Slides from a 20-min Presentation

The Good, the Bad,The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: and the Ugly:

Your Upcoming ExperienceYour Upcoming Experiencewith Oral Presentations, with Oral Presentations, Your New Assignment,Your New Assignment,

and Its Deadlineand Its Deadline

ASSIGNMENT• Design a 7-8 minute oral presentation with Power Point slides

on the topic of your literature review or your graduate thesis.• Use principles for good presentations learned today and in your

follow-up studies. Graphics encouraged.• Include title slide and summary/conclusion slide.• Deliver presentation to class on 18, 20, or 25 November.

Schedule of speakers and location of presentations can be found on the course download site as <oralpresnews.doc>.

• Be able to answer audience questions following presentation.• Presentation graphics must be delivered by you to class on

appropriate media. See <oralpresnews.doc> for drives available.

• Submit printed copy of slides (b&w is fine) to instructors at beginning of class on 18 November.

Criteria for Grading

• Overall Informativeness10%

• Clarity and Effectiveness of Speech20%

• Clarity and Effectiveness of Slides20%

• Attention to Proper Style20%

• Absence of Distracting Mannerisms 10%

• Ability to answer questions20%