Tell me a story! A plea for more compelling conference presentations

The condor

Kathryn M. Langin¹ 

[1] U.S. Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA 80526 [e-mail] Effective communication with other scientists is an essential component of the scientific process, underlying success in publishing papers, building collaborations, securing grants and jobs, and stimulating further research. Oral presentations at professional meetings provide an opportunity to share research findings with a relatively broad scientific audience. However, many scientists give talks that are crowded with methods and data, accompanied by poor visuals, and, most unfortunately, lacking in narrative arc. Here, I provide strategies for distilling research findings into a short-format talk, capturing the audience's attention, and delivering a compelling and visually engaging story. I argue that the material should be designed to interest a wide range of meeting attendees, not just experts in a narrow field. I also advocate principles of good storytelling, with the aim of leading the audience through a compelling journey of discovery that concludes with a memorable takeaway message.RESUMEN La comunicación efectiva con otros científicos es un componente esencial del proceso científico, que subyace al éxito en la publicación de artículos, en construir colaboraciones científicas, en asegurar becas y trabajos y en estimular futuras investigaciones. Las presentaciones orales en congresos profesionales brindan una oportunidad para compartir los resultados de investigaciones con una audiencia científica relativamente amplia. Sin embargo, muchos investigadores dan charlas atestadas de métodos y datos, acompañadas por ayudas visuales pobres, e infortunadamente sin un hilo narrativo. En este trabajo presento estrategias para destilar los resultados de una investigación en una charla de formato corto, que capture la atención de la audiencia y entregue una historia convincente y visualmente atractiva. Sostengo que el material debería ser diseñado para captar el interés de un amplio espectro de asistentes al congreso y no solamente la de los expertos en un campo específico de investigación. También abogo por los principios de contar buenas historias con el fin de llevar a la audiencia por un viaje convincente de descubrimiento que concluye con un mensaje memorable. Palabras clave: audiencia, comunicación científica, conferencia, narración de historias, ornitología, presentaciones de diapositivas Keywords: audience, conferences, ornithology, slides, science communication, story-tellingReceived: November 8, 2016; Accepted: February 24, 2017; Published: May 3, 2017© 2017 Cooper Ornithological Society. Volume 119, Issue 2 ;

关键词: audience;    conferences;    ornithology;    slides;    science communication;    story-telling;   

DOI  :  10.1650/CONDOR-16-209.1

学科分类：动物科学

来源: Central Ornithology Publication Office

【 摘 要 】

Effective communication with other scientists is an essential component of the scientific process, underlying success in publishing papers, building collaborations, securing grants and jobs, and stimulating further research. Oral presentations at professional meetings provide an opportunity to share research findings with a relatively broad scientific audience. However, many scientists give talks that are crowded with methods and data, accompanied by poor visuals, and, most unfortunately, lacking in narrative arc. Here, I provide strategies for distilling research findings into a short-format talk, capturing the audience's attention, and delivering a compelling and visually engaging story. I argue that the material should be designed to interest a wide range of meeting attendees, not just experts in a narrow field. I also advocate principles of good storytelling, with the aim of leading the audience through a compelling journey of discovery that concludes with a memorable takeaway message.

【 授权许可】

CC BY