Aylin AKÇA OKAN METU, Ankara 2003-2004 Fall C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar Aylin AKÇA OKAN METU, Ankara 2003-2004 Fall

Outline Details of the Course / Grading / Schedule How to Give a Seminar Technical Writing 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

Details of the Course Course Content An individual instruction course on giving technical presentations To have experience in research and preparation for oral presentations on scientific research To learn how to use multimedia in seminars To learn to describe the scope and relevance of the thesis, the reviewed literature and its relevance to the research 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

Details of the Course Schedule 24.09.2003 Session 1 ---------- 01.10.2003 Session 2 · Introduction · Seminar & Research Essentials 08.10.2003 Session 3 · Arrangement of seminars (offline) 15.10.2003 No session ---------- 22.10.2003 Session 4 Group 1 29.10.2003 National Holiday ---------- 05.11.2003 Session 5 Group 2 12.11.2003 Session 6 Group 3 19.11.2003 Session 7 Group 4 26.11.2003 Religious Holiday ---------- 03.12.2003 Session 8 Group 5 10.12.2003 Session 9 Group 6 17.12.2003 Session 10 Group 7 24.12.2003 Session 11 Group 8 31.12.2003 Session 12 Group 9 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

Details of the Course Things to do Send an empty mail to “mail591@ceng.metu.edu.tr” with the subject “first” just after the class. Till next week, send an abstract of your subject (~ 1 page). FILO If your abstract approved, send your report one week before your presentation. Give your presentation on the specified date. 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

Details of the Course Important Dates Proposal submission deadline : 07.10.2003 Approval of proposals : Proposal submission + 1 week Presentation dates : 22.10.2003 – 31.12.2003 Report submission deadline : Presentation date – 1 week   Late submissions cancel –5 points / day. Submissions later than 3 days will not be accepted. 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

Details of the Course Proposal Title of your subject Your name & your supervisor’s name Abstract Provide information that will help the reader decide whether to continue to read the report or to put it aside. Try to limit the Abstract to one page (no diagrams) and should have a length of 150-300 words depending on the report. Three foci of the abstract: (a) what was done (b) how it was done (c) what are the key results 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

Details of the Course Grading (tentative) Report 30% Presentation 50% Questions & Answers + Attendance 20%   01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

How to Give a Seminar Contents Opening Introduction Body Summary / Concluding Comments 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

How to Give a Seminar Opening Introduce yourself (and your supervisor) Say what you are here to talk about, ie give a brief summary without giving the whole talk Tell them what you hope they get out of this talk   01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

How to Give a Seminar Introduction Give some background You are the expert…we know nothing. Give the basic background Set yourself up for the main topic State the objectives and tell the importance / value Keep it brief Good rule of thumb is the 2-2-2 Two sentences of background Two sentences summarizing results Two sentences summarizing conclusions   01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

How to Give a Seminar Body Prefer top-down design Avoid too much detail Remember who the audience is and tell the specific problem being addressed Use figures and diagrams – make sure they are large enough and visible enough to see 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

How to Give a Seminar Summary / Concluding Comments Wrap it all up / Restate the key points Affirm the objectives Restate value What is the take home message? Indicate completion Thank the audience Call for questions 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

How to Give a Seminar Recommendations - 1 Any effective talk must : (1) communicate your arguments and ideas, (2) persuade your audience that they are true, and (3) be interesting and entertaining Your Presentation must : (1) Give an opening statement to familiarize the audience with your subject matter. What is your key message? Can you write it down as a single sentence? (2) Speak slowly, clearly, and loud enough to be heard by all. (3) Remember the 5WH's: who, what, why, when, where, and how. (4) Summarize your talk at the end in a few sentences. 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

How to Give a Seminar Recommendations - 2 Face the audience and try not to read, but talk Anticipate questions ahead of time Expect general questions Prepare things that time forced you to omit Maintain control of the discussion Stop and think Answer succinctly (or agree to discuss later) Prevent interruption Be honest 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

Technical Writing Basics The 3 C’s: Correct, Clear, and Concise The No. 1 problem : the logical structure & the logical link The structural principles Active vs. passive The strong verb vs. the weak verb + the abstract noun Write the way you talk: write (and read) with your ears Parallelism Conciseness The English grammar: the tenses The English grammar: the dangling modifiers/participles The ambiguity The generic vs. the specific What scientists said vs. what they meant The general components of a typical technical paper References 01.10.2003 C.Eng. 591 Graduate Seminar

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