Module 9

How to give a good research talk

What’s inside

• How to give a good research talk

• How to present a paper, a speaker’s guide

Good Research Talk?

Research Talk

1. What this paper is about

By a research talk we mean a presentation of minutes

given to a group of people who are motivated and

intelligent but who may not know much about your

particular area

We make no claim to have all the answers rather we have simply tried to write down suggestions which have worked for us in the hope that they may be useful to you

Research Talk

2. What to say

a. Who is my primary audience?b. If someone remembers only one thing from my talk

what would I like it to be

Using examplesPruning saying enough without saying too much Telling it how it is

Research Talk

3. Visual Aids

What to put on a slide

Preparing slides

Presenting the slides

4. Giving the talk

NervesTiming

A Speaker’s Guide

1. What to Say and How to Say It

Communicate the Key Ideas

2. Don’t get Bogged Down with Details

3. Structure your talk

4. Use a top-down approach

The Introduction

• Define the Problem

• Motivate the Audience

• Introduce the terminology

• Discuss earlier work

• Emphasize the contributions of your paper

• Provide a road map

The Body

• Abstract the Major Results

• Explain the significance of the results

• Sketch a proof of the Crucial results

The Conclusion

• Give open problem

• Indicate that your talk is over

Getting through the Audience

• Use Repetition• Remind, don’t assume• Don’t over-run• Maintain eye-contact• Control your voice• Control your motion• Take care with your appearance• Minimize language difficulties• Try not to get anxious