The Power Line
Many scientific presentations fail because the presenter lacks the energy and enthusiasm to connect with the audience. In this post I offer some advice on what to do whether you want to present or not to fix your key point in the audience's mind. The method is called Power Line Power Button. One of the reasons why so many scientific presentations suck is that the presenter fails to connect with the audience. Geology professor Jay H. Lehr knows this. In 1985 he wrote a 4 page article called Let There Be Stoning (click here to download it as a pdf file) describing the landscape of scientific presentations. This article ought to be a compulsory reading for all college students (and professors). Yes, your guest is right; I strongly encourage you to read it. Some scientific talks will be inherently bad because the presenter has no passion for that topic he or she must present. In an ideal world these people shouldn't be allowed to present that topic. If you find yourself in t...