Preparing and Presenting Scientific Talks: a Review

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• Preparing and Presenting Scientific Talks a
  Review

Alan Nathanand Celia Elliott (with thanks to
Lance Cooper)
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Picking an article for a Journal Club presentation

• Interesting
• Simple enough
• Fun for us and you

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The basic task is a talk by a team of two on a
tempting topic you didnt touch

• Rules of the Club
• We know you are not an expert
• But, you can become a guide
• Read the paper
• Look for additional resources to distill it
  e.g., talks given by the authors usually
  demonstrate the right emphasis
• Understand the topic, present it clearly, lead
  the discussion.
• How to choose a paper?
• We selected appropriate recent papers see
  website
• Go through these to see what strikes you as
  interesting
• Step 1 Pick 4 titles from the list that look
  okay.
• Step 2 Well look for matches of interest
  between you and others in the class

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OUTLINE

• Whats a Journal Club Talk?
• Tips for preparing a PowerPoint presentation
• See also last weeks lecture

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Whats special about journal club talks?
Journal club talks are different than other
scientific talks their primary purpose is not to
present your results, but rather to

• Learn about different fields
• Keep informed about new developments
• Foster discussion and interaction
• Help students (you!) develop presentation skills

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Preparing your journal club talks
Read article carefully and critically Take notes
while reading Read related articles or
background texts if necessary to understand
material Seek out local experts (or me!) if you
have questions about the article!
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Journal club talks should be presented in four
steps
Step 1 Summarize the article Provide details
what, when, where, why, how What are authors
main messages? Are there controversial issues
involved?
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Step 2 Compare/contrast the article
Was there earlier work? (note the
references) Are there disagreements with other
work? Are there alternative interpretations of
these results?
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Step 3 Critique and question
Objective Did the authors support their
points? Objective Was the support offered
valid? Subjective Did you find the paper
interesting or important? Subjective Do you
feel the paper will have strong impact, and if
so, why?
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Step 4 Present your conclusions

• Recap the authors main messages
• Summarize your main points about the paper
• Make suggestions for further reading

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Organizing a 20-minute scientific talk

• Background and Introduction (24 minutes)
• Title slide with authors and paper reference
• Overview slide Why is this research important?
• 12 slides to provide essential background

Body (912 minutes) Develop only two or three
main ideas (2 slides each) Journal Club Provide
critique of paper 57 slides
Summary (1 minute) 1 slide Review the main
points (Journal Club talk review both authors
and your points)
Questions (3 minutes) (Know your audience!) 34
back-up slides
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Tips for preparing your talk

• Know your audience! This dictates the level of
  the material.
• Identify the 2-3 main points (no more!) you want
  to convey in the talk

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Tips for preparing your talk (cont.)

• Have only 1 idea per slide ideally, the header
  should state that idea, and the body of the slide
  should support that idea

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Tips for preparing your talk (cont.)
Have only 1 idea per slide ideally, the header
should state that idea, and the body of the slide
should support that idea
Use well-labeled graphs and figures to illustrate
your key pointsthis makes the slide more real
and interesting to the audience

• .or too many distracting images

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Tips for preparing your talk (cont.)

• See if you can track down the web site of the
  authors
• Perhaps they have given a talk
• Feel free to borrow slides
• But make sure you acknowledge
• Remember that you are not an expert eitherit is
  not your work. Dont worry if you dont get all
  the details but try to get the essential points.

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PowerPoint Esthetics
Remember, your goal is to convey your ideas, so
avoid distracting text and effects!(see last
weeks lecture)
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The Final Step Presenting an Effective Talk
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Pointers for giving the best possible talk

• Maintain eye contact with audience
• Dont stare at screen or monitor
• Do not read your talk!
• Avoid nervous mannerisms
• Pacing, bobbing, waving arms, jingling coins
• Use laser pointer or stick directed at screen
• Dont point directly at overhead on projector
• Dont block the screen
• Train yourself to speak slowly and
  distinctlypractice!
• Avoid fillers uh, like, um, okay
• Be enthusiastic!
• If you dont act excited by your results, dont
  expect the audience to be!

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The best way to prepare for a talk is to Know
Your Material

• Practice, practice, practice
• Focus on communicating, not performing
• Humor good, but dont overdo it
• Keep it simple
• Prepare key phrases
• Okay to write out material first
• Write down the point to make for each slide
• If the slide doesnt have a point, eliminate
  slide!!!
• Stay on track
• Small digressions fine if motivated, but get back
  on track (shows you are paying attention to
  audience)

It takes three weeks to prepare a good ad-lib
speech
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Stage Fright? Be Prepared!

• Know your subject thoroughly
• Practice in a big room before real people
• Have all your materials in order
• Arrive early
• Familiarize yourself with the equipment
• Ask a friend to sit in the middle of the audience
  and speak primarily to him or her
• Tell him to look interested and nod frequently
• Ask her to smile and nod encouragingly whenever
  she catches your eye

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If English is not your native language(and even
if it is!)

• Do not use slang
• Choose the simplest word
• Have a native speaker listen to a rehearsal and
  review your slides
• Speak slowly and distinctly
• Watch for audience cues if people are looking
  confused, they dont understand you

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Handling questions is an essential part of giving
a talk

• Repeat the question
• Not everyone in the audience may have heard it
• Repeating the question allows the questioner to
  clarify it and gives you time to think about your
  answer
• If you dont know the answer?
• Say Thats an excellent question. Im not
  sure Ill have to look into it.
• If the questioner disagrees, dont argue
• Say Maybe we should talk later about this
• Never insult the questioner

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Express your thanks

• At the beginning of your talk
• Acknowledge colleagues and collaborators who
  contributed to the work
• Thank the conference organizers for allowing you
  to speak
• At the end of the talk
• Thank your audience for their attention
• Keep your thanks very brief!