Chapter 19: Presenting a paper Introduction 19.1 The experts 19.2 The non-experts 19.3 The community 19.4 You 19.5 Conclusion

Introduction Presentation at a conference may be scary Experts may ask penetrating questions Non-experts might not understand what you are saying You may bore the audience with too much background

19.1 The experts State the scope of your talk clearly right at the beginning Define your concepts clearly Avoid contentious remarks Use examples from areas that you are familiar with Foresee questions. Be aware of buzzwords in your study field and be prepared to answer questions Be honest. If you are not satisfied with some part of your results or proposed solution, don’t hide it. Present it as challenge for future research Emphasise the contribution that your work makes.

19.2 The non-experts Don’t expect that everybody in the audience will understand everything that you are saying. Dwell some time on the non-technical aspects of your study before going into the technical stuff Try to keep even the technical part as simple as possible. The interested person can read the full paper in the proceedings Don’t try to impress the audience with your technical ability. Expect unexpected and uninformed questions

19.3 The community Slides must be clear and uncluttered Letter size, contrast, sparing use of colour Don’t use technology that will take long to set up Prepare transparencies as a back-up Verify beforehand that the technology that you will require will be available. Make sure that you dress correctly

19.4 You Be yourself Practise your presentation Make sure your presentation fits into the allotted time slot Plan how you will make up the time if you fall short Plan what slides can be left out in case you run out of time. Business cards

19.5 Conclusion Presenting at a conference is worthwhile You get an opportunity to discuss your ideas with others working in the same field Forge relationships with other researchers