Presenting Your Research

Dilum Bandara, PhDComp u te r Sc ie n ce & En g in e e r in g , Un ive rs i ty o f Moratu wa

di lumb@cs e .mrt .ac . lkhttp ://D i lu m. B an d ara . lk

Presentation Process

Plan

PreparePractice

Present

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Plan• Context

• Objectives

• Audience

• Depth

• Time

• Location

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Outline

Source: www.govloop.com

Context & Objectives

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Context Objective

Problem statement, Preliminary exam

Demonstrate that you have skills to do research

Progress review, Qualifying exam

Demonstrate your research progress

Defense, Viva Defend your thesis/dissertation

Conference, Workshop Sell your paper

Seminars, Invited talks Knowledge dissemination

Audience

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• Who?

• Background?

• Why they want to listen?

• What they need to remember?

Source: www.audienceavenue.com

Depth• Deep vs. Shallow

• Pick based on objectives & audience

◦ Depth - Conference & defense

◦ Shallow – Seminar, invited talk

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Source: www.prprescriptions.com

Time & Location• There’s no good time to present!

◦ Early morning – not fully awake

◦ Mid morning – want tea, coffee

◦ After lunch – sleepy

◦ Afternoon – want tea, coffee, tired

◦ Night – want to go home, tired

• Fit content & mode of delivery to time & location

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Source: www.corexcellence.com

Your Plan Should Address• Address following 3 questions in a suitable order

◦What you did or planning to do?

◦Why is it important?

◦How you did it or planning to do it?

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Typical Outline• (Planned) Contribution

◦ What?, Why?, & How? in simple words

• Outline

• Motivation

• Problem Statement

• Solution

• Experimental/Simulation setup

• Results

• Conclusions/Summary

• Future Work

• References9

Prepare

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Source: www.electrolux.com

Before You Begin• Research / literature survey need to be solid

• There are things you◦ must know◦ should know◦ better to know

• Good flow◦ General specific◦ Known unknown◦ Accepted controversial◦ Cause effect◦ Problem solution

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Slide Template• Simple

• Fit to audience

• Big enough

• Be consistent

• Use space appropriately

• Be careful with custom templates

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Source: www.m62.net

Source: www.m62.net

Content• Less is More

• Balance & connected◦ 1 idea per slide

• Figures, illustrations, & graphs whenever possible

• No more than◦ 6 bullets per slide◦ 6 words per bullet

• Use your word knife◦ Cut words that aren’t essential for correct meaning

• Number slides

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Figures, Graphs, & Tables• A picture worth more than

1000 words

• Big enough

• Clear & simple

• Clear labels & axis

• Align to left

• Animate only when essential/useful

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Prepare – More Tips• Proper grammar unessential, if it makes sense

• Proper spellings essential◦ Spell check, proof read – even print & check

• Backup slides

• Test on multiple systems◦ Different versions of power point, pdf

◦ Keep a copy in pen drive

• 1 slide for ~2 minutes◦ 15 min – 10 core slides max

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Practice

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Source: www.keepcalm-o-matic.co.uk

Practice, Practice, Practice• Self practice

• Write a script◦ Specially first few slides

• Practice with audience◦ Colleagues in lab, spouse, parents, friends, supervisor◦ Ask for feedback◦ Ready to face hash criticism

• Time presentation

• Twice a day◦ But don’t over practice

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Present

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Source: http://alwaysinfo.co.uk

Prepare for Battle• Light exercises

◦ Prepare your body for battle◦ Stretch your arms, rotate neck, take stairs, breathing excercises

◦ Prepare your mouth/voice◦ Repeat “brrrrrr….”, “Unique New York”, “Tapeka Topeka”

• Arrive early

• Observe how it worked so far

• Test your slides, mike, laser pointer

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Delivery• Greet audience

• Start in a friendly way

• Don’t apologies

• Tell about◦ Who you are, why are you here◦ Title◦ What’s in it◦ Approximate time◦ Which topic is being covered

• If you had to start late, fit content to remaining time◦ Don’t over run

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Delivery (Cont.)• Vary voice

• Suitable speed◦ 120 words per min – for 2-5 min presentation

◦ Less for longer presentations

• Read audience◦ Observe body language

• Focus, not scan◦ Eye contact

◦ Don't turn your back to them

◦ Don’t talk to laptop

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Delivery (Cont.)• If something is there, make sure to explain it

• May skip depending on available time◦ Tell them you are skipping◦ But don’t design slides with a plan to skip

• Use gestures to explain & emphasize

• Use laser pointers when suitable◦ But don’t shake like a …

• Get audience to talk◦ When appropriate encourage questions

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Questions• Understand question

◦ If not clear, ask again

◦ Answer based on what you already told

◦ Then introduce new content

◦ If you don’t know the answer, tell that

• Ready to answer questions beyond presentation

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Summary• Tell them again what you told them briefly

◦ Based on what you want them to remember

• Learn from good presenters◦ Observe & learn

• Practice, practice, & practice

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http://Dilum.Bandara.lk