Institute of Solid State Physics


SS22WS22SS23WS23SS24WS24      Guidelines for Master Students

How (not) to give a talk
Oliver Hofmann
https://tugraz.webex.com/tugraz/j.php?MTID=m0e9edf6219fdb613ef773c7469631445
11:15 - 12:15 Wednesday 04 October 2023 

„Powerpoint poisoning“ is an effect described in the academic literature (Visterin et al., 2012) and refers to the tendency urge to create presentations that overburden the audience with information. This leads to an absent-minded and inattentive audience, and, consequently, makes it more difficult to transport important information. Ultimately, if this happens in a longer series, it may give the audience the feeling that they are wasting their time, and the presenters the impression that their work is not appreciated.


In this contribution, I will present some strategies to avoid powerpoint poisoning. Some general guidelines are given that help tailoring both talks and posters to audience. We will discuss how slides can be made more easy to read, why that helps in getting the main points across, and how overall the audience is kept more involved in the presentation. Furthermore, I will present some examples taken from actual talks about things that should be absolutely involved.


https://tugraz.webex.com/tugraz/j.php?MTID=m0e9edf6219fdb613ef773c7469631445