Anaesth. Intcns. Care (19i6), 4, 312

FORMAL PRESENTATION AT A SCIENTIFIC MEETING \\'ILLLUI BUR)iETT*

University of Queensland, Brisbane SU:\DIAI{Y

The giving of a ten minute scientific commllllication is an art form peculiar to researchers who freqltently fail to research the technology required for the performance. Careful selection of the scientific material to be included, the alldio-\L AIDS

The blackboard. This is a simple, flexible, and nearly always available visual aid. However it is better avoided unless the speaker has artistic capabilities. Nevertheless, the blackboard is there when audio-visual media fail, and the speaker should be prepared to use it if necessary. Tlze Oiwlzcad projector. This is not always available at a scientific meeting, and there are problems related to setting-up and focusing. Slides. The;ji) mm slide has largely replaced the blackboard and (werhead projector for the standard scientific meeting. Slides should be used to support the spoken word but should not be oyerused so that the message to be given become~ lost in a bewildering and rapid succession of slides. A common mistake is to include material with to much detail, and too small to be seen clearly by all the audience. Such material may well be both appropriate Anaesthesia and Intensive Care, Vol. IV, So. 4, November, 1976

315

FORMAL PRESENTATIOK

and clear in a journal, but not necessarily legible in a lecture theatre (Figure 1). However, if the words on a slide can be read easily without magnification when the slide is held in the hand at arm's length, it will probably be all right when projected. Slides should be kept as simple as possible, and it is best to have only one idea per slide. The number of words on each slide should 70

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The legibility Dj slides is vital to the presentation, and depends not only on the size and brightness of the projected image, but also on the background illumination in the lecture hall and its method of control. The distance from the rear of the room to the screen is also important. Although it has been said that the minimum size for a square screen is onesixth of the distance between the furthest back seats and the screen, the speaker will rarely be in a position to influence this, and so should make every endeavour that in preparation of his slides they are clearly legible in the average lecture theatre. The negative slide may be a white image on a black ground giving good contrast. The diazo slide is one form of negative image and has the merit of being restful to the eye and suitable for the projection of words, graphs and tables. Positive slides are usually black images on a white background. Here there is good visual contrast, and usually enough illumination from the screen for taking notes. However, if there are large areas ot bright illumination from the background of the screened slides, and if this is repeated over a longish period of time, the effect tends to

SLIDE VERBIAGE AVOIDANCE DON'T

1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 4500 5000

LIFE TIME

(p sec)

FIGURE 2.-The data from Figure 1 are presented as a simple histogram-a form which can be readily used for a 35 mm slide. In this way the speaker can reduce the data to a manageable size which the audience can follow easily. This histogram could be improved by a redesign to fit more exactly the 35 mm format.

be limited to a total of approximately twenty, and if it is a data slide, no more than about twenty-five should be included. In general the slide should supplement and reinforce what is being said. It should interest the audience and should help in an understanding of the material being spoken. Although the slide should not obviously be designed to act as a prompt cue for the speaker, nevertheless the series of slides can be so arranged that they do help in the general flow of the material. Complicated tables should be avoided and no more than two columns or rows should be included. Illegible rows of dull figures are much better presented with a simple block histogram, or graph (Figure 2).

USE MORE THAN

SIX WORDS PER LINE FIVE LINES OF PRINT TWENTY WORDS TOTAL FIGURE 3.-Here an electric typewriter has been used. The setting out, the use of two sizes of letter and the measurements of the template used should be regarded as the minimum acceptable standard for a 35 mm slide. The heading has not been underlined, and the viewer is directed to the important word" don't" by the use of larger upper case and underlining.

dazzle and tire the audience. Care should be taken in the overall make-up of the presentation, not to mix positive and negative slides; thus, if some of the written material is presented on diazo slides, all of it should be, as the contrast in switching from one to another does not impress an audience and may indicate hasty or careless preparation.

Anaesthesia and Intensive Care, Vol. IV, No. 4, November, 1976

316

VVILLIAM BURNETT

Art work for the preparation of slides should be done on opaque white paper, A wide variety of material is commercially available for the production of graphs and histograms. The production of words for slides should be carefully studied (Figures 3, 4, and 5). A manual typewriter is inadequate for the production of good slides. An electric typewriter is undoubtedly preferable, and it is of help to use carbon paper with the black surface in contact with the back of the paper

SLIDE VERBIAGE AVOIDANCE Don't use more than

Six words per line Five lines of print Twenty words total FIGURE 4.-A manual typewriter has been used. The figures are grey rather than black and the typeface has not been cleaned before use. The lower case has been selected for the message but lacks conviction. The setting out is poor--in particular, the rows are not centred. Cndcrlining has been done with the manual typewriter which projects in an uneven manner. The words in the title are also wrongly interconnected by the underlining. The emphasis on the slide is not directed as in slides 3 and 5.

on which the words are being typed to increase contrast. 1'\0 more than seven words should be used in one line, there should be no more than five lines of print, and the slide should be designed using template of size approximately 11·5 cm by 7·5 cm, i.e. a ratio of 3::2 which is the form of the 35 mm slide. A vari-typer or electronic composer should be used if possible as it produces slides of much greater clarity since the letters are totally opaque and therefore appear black and not grey-black as does material from a manual typewriter (Figures 5 and 6). Underlining of words should not be done on the typewriter but rather with Indian ink and pen. Slides should be mounted in a metal or a plastic holder and marked according to the international convention with a spot on the lower left-hand corner of the slide when looked at in the upright position. When placed in the projector, this spot will then occupy the top right hand corner. Slides should be carefully numbered, cleaned and placed in

order in a container so that when handed to the projectionist, the speaker is totally confident that all should be well. If there are to be spaces during the talk when no slide is required, it is advisable to include a blank slide with a blue or a black background at the appropriate points. If the same slide is required again at some time later in the course of the presentation, a second copy of the slide should be slotted in at the correct point in the series to avoid possible confusion of the projectionist by a recall of an earlier slide. Film strip and

Formal presentation at a scientific meeting.

Anaesth. Intcns. Care (19i6), 4, 312 FORMAL PRESENTATION AT A SCIENTIFIC MEETING \\'ILLLUI BUR)iETT* University of Queensland, Brisbane SU:\DIAI{Y...
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