A Great Scientific Presentation
Matthew W. Liberatore
Department of Chemical Engineering
October 2019
Thank you to Colin Wolden,
John Persichetti, and NSF
REU grant 2011-2014
Outline
Introduction
Why you should care about me talking to you?
I’m going to save some global grand challenge
Methods
Plots / Tables / Animation
The Good, the Bad, the Ugly
Results
Project 1
Project 2
Conclusions
Acknowledgments
35 words
Outline
Preparation
Who is the audience? What is the purpose?
Organization / Templates
Graphics
Plots / Tables / Animation
Good, Bad, Ugly
Delivery
Voice / Hands / Eyes
Lighting / Lasers / Timing
25 words
Preparation
Keys to a great presentation
7
Visuals
Delivery
8 words
Boss
Specialists
General Scientific
General Public
Know your audience
8
Do I need a microphone?
Know the room
Conference room, auditorium
10, 100, 1000 people
9
Sell, Educate, Impress?
Establish your goal
10
# slides x (0.5 - 1) = Total Minutes
How long is the talk?
Highlights: 2 – 3 slides
Class presentation: 10 – 15 minutes
Conference Talk: 15 – 25 minutes
Invited Lecture/Seminar: 45 – 60 minutes
11
Rubric criteria included 14 to 18 minutes in length
Timing is everything
12
Should conclusion go at the beginning?
Points of emphasis
Take home message(s)
Details for the time and audience
Tell them what you told them
13
14
Reboiler
16%
Condense r
80%
Trays
1%
Vessel
3%
Conde nser
75%
Re boiler
19%
Trays
3%
Vessel
3%
Distillation Column D1
Total Installed Cost = $566,400
Total Utilities: CW 252,600
($ per year) Steam 253,800
Distillation Column D2
Total Installed Cost = $230,700
Total Utilities: CW 54,436
($ per year) Steam 77,634
Disclaimer: More subjective than most topics
Slide construction big picture
15
My preferences:
White background + pop of color
Font/color/symbols: simplicity & consistency
1 graphic element = focus the eyes
Support ‘bullet’ points
Formatting = Branding
Industry standard
Header/Footer
Logos
Slide construction basics
16
Good = clean, sans serif
Arial, Calibri, Droid sans
Bad = serif
Times New Roman, Cambria
Simple fonts
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Easiest way to limit wordiness
Bullets are for…
Avoid bullet symbols
But if you insist
● Better
Ø Worse
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Consistency is Key
Do NOT mix fonts/sizes/colors
Spell check!
Slide structure
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Try not to make
bulleted statements
go longer than 1
line becsuse it looks
dumb
Optional take home point - callout
Title is THE main point
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Necessary details
Appropriate
Not distracting
Not part of slide
background
Graphics
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1. Figures
Critical for communicating data
2. Tables
NEVER USE TABLES
3. Animations & Movies
Great tool…but can also be disastrous
Use judiciously
Picking the right visual
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I have so much great data in this table
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A
B
C
Low T (
°C)
High T (
°C)
T range
Toluene
7.13620
1457.29
231.827
-
94.97
318.64
413.61
Toluene
Water
7.13620
1457.29
231.827
-
94.97
318.64
413.61
Water
8.05573
1723.64
233.076
0.01
373.98
373.97
m
-
Xylene
8.05573
1723.64
233.076
0.01
373.98
373.97
m
-
Xylene
7.18115
1573.02
226.671
-
47.85
343.9
391.75
o
-
Xylene
7.18115
1573.02
226.671
-
47.85
343.9
391.75
o
-
Xylene
7.14914
1566.59
222.596
-
25.17
357.22
382.39
p
-
Xylene
7.14914
1566.59
222.596
-
25.17
357.22
382.39
p
-
Xylene
7.15471
1553.95
225.230
13.26
343.11
329.85
Somewhat better table
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Compon
ent
A B C
Low T
(°C)
High T
(°C)
Toluene
7.13620
1457.29
231.827
-94.97
318.64
Water
8.05573
1723.64
233.076
0.01
373.98
m
-
Xylene
7.18115
1573.02
226.671
-47.85
343.9
o
-
Xylene
7.14914
1566.59
222.596
-25.17
357.22
p
-
Xylene
7.15471
1553.95
225.230
13.26
343.11
Avoid tables if at all possible
Still better, but …
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Component
A B C
Low T
(°C)
High T
(°C)
Toluene
7.14 1457 232 -95 319
Water
8.06 1724 233 0 374
m
-Xylene
7.18 1573 227 -48 344
o
-Xylene
7.15 1567 223 -25 357
p
-Xylene
7.15 1554 225 13 343
Charts using default settings = lazy
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0.0000
20000.0000
40000.0000
60000.0000
80000.0000
100000.0000
120000.0000
140000.0000
160000.0000
180000.0000
-200 -100 0 100 200 300 400
Toluene/Psat (mmHg)
T (C)
Toluene/Psat (mmHg) vs. T (C)
Series1
m-Xylene
Water
Graphs >>> Tables
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0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
100 150 200 250 300
Psat (mmHg)
T (
o
C)
m-Xylene
Toluene
Water
Rheologists loved log scale
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100
1,000
10,000
100 150 200 250 300
Psat (mmHg)
T (
o
C)
m-Xylene
Toluene
Water
Liu, Y., et al., Solid State Ionics, 2018. 316: p. 135-142.
One figure, one format
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Figures in journals rarely translate to presentations
Do
Close plot box
Inside tick marks
Use color for contrast
Do not
Use gridlines
Too many ticks, sets of data, numbers
Figures basics
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Axes, Labeling
Use largest fonts possible, can be bold
Direct Labeling > Legend Box
Points vs. Lines
Data: Use unconnected points
Exception: spectra
Include error bars when possible
Lines: Indicate Model or Fit
Color is usually good to distinguish
Avoid yellow
Figures details
31
Be yourself, humor can work great
Delivery Skills
Practice!!!
Know your slides
Timing + Pauses + Transitions
Do NOT block/blind audience
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Demonstrates a strong, positive feeling
Project a clear voice with correct pronunciation
Let all audience members hear you
Minimize stall words (um, uh)
Verbalize your story
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Look ”at” your audience
Minimize reading notes
Do NOT face or read slides
Relax and be confident
Movements can help the audience visualize
Present your story
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Preparation
Keys to a great presentation
35
Visuals
Delivery
Establish goals
Know the room
Organize your story
Preparing a great presentation
36
Slide quality & consistency
Great slide is self-explanatory
Simple mix of graphics & words
Seeing a great presentation
37
Practice
Practice
Practice
Giving a great presentation
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Thank supporters (people + funding)
Thank collaborators, co-workers (but not co-authors)
Thank the audience for paying attention
Invite Questions
Acknowledgments
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Aspect ratio - Old (4:3) vs HD (16:9)
VGA adapters vs HDMI
Laser vs. pointer
Copyright/royalty free images – Pixabay.com
Other things
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http://designtaxi.com/news/370150/Tips-On-How-To-Create-Great-Visual-Presentations/
http://www.briantracy.com/blog/business-success/16-powerpoint-presentation-tips-examples/
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/16-tips-awesome-powerpoint-presentation-brian-tracy
http://www.slideshare.net/deckworks/8-tips-to-create-epic-visual-presentations
https://www.slideshare.net/Amanda627/examples-of-good-and-bad-slides
http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/34274/7-Lessons-From-the-World-s-Most-Captivating-Presenters-
SlideShare.aspx#sm.000e7od9s19krdp8zln2et64eumym
https://www.powtoon.com/presentation/5-best-presentations/
http://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.0030077
http://sholl.chbe.gatech.edu/david_sholl.html
http://physicstoday.org/jobs/webinar-outstanding-oral-presentations
Other sources
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