Craft of Scientific Presentations

THE CRAFT OF SCIENTIFIC PRESENTATIONS provides a score of examples from contemporary and historical scientific presentations to show clearly what makes an oral presentation effective. It considers presentations made to persuade an audience to adopt some course of action (such as funding a proposal) as well as presentations made to communicate information, and it considers these from four perspectives: speech, structure, visual aids, and delivery. In keeping with technological innovations, it discusses computer-based projections and slide shows as well as overhead projections. In particular, it discusses ways of organizing graphics and text in projected images and of using layout and design to present the information efficiently and effectively. Unlike other books that discuss technical presentations, this book anchors its advice in the experiences of scientists and engineers, including such successful presenters as Robert Oppenheimer, Richard Feynman, Niels Bohr, and Rita Levi-Montalcini, as well as currently active laboratory directors, scientists, and engineers. In addition to examining successful presentations, Alley also discusses the errors that cause many scientific presentations to flounder, providing a list of ten critical errors to avoid. The insights and tools in this book will guide readers to deliver outstanding presentations. Praise for Michael Alley's THE CRAFT OF SCIENTIFIC PRESENTATIONS: "Alley has revamped the way our research center makes presentationsĂĹźparticularly the way we design our presentation slides." DANIEL J. INMAN, DIRECTOR CENTER FOR INTELLIGENT MATERIAL SYSTEMS "This book fills a void by illustrating key issues and difficulties in oral presentations with the experiences of others." CHRISTENE MOORE, COMMUNICATION INSTRUCTOR UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN