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When the Scientist Presents: An Audio and Video Guide to Science Talks

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It's usually not hard to remember a situation presenting that made me say "If' only I'd thought of that before presenting!" Now, we can, with this thorough but straightforward guide that is both timeless and timely. In an age where information is expanding exponentially, the challenge of the scientist is not expanding, but narrowing information. It may be to a group that knows too much about the subject, or too little! Add to that, most situations in the present involve highy international audiences. 'Does the world really need another guide to PowerPoint and public speaking?', you might ask. Yes! The premise of Lebrun's fresh look at the subject is that science which was written to a specific formal set of criteria need not succumb to a dry presentation. Quite conversely, to overcome the monumental challenges of communication, presentations must be both engaging and free of disruption. The author brings a helpful analogy to the lectern, "Presenter as Host." It's probably no secret that good content is only half of success, but the crucial shift in emphasis from guest to host means that the presenter cannot assume that the conference organizer is going to do everything right. There is a need to maintain control of the situation in every way, from the opening slide to the highly unpredictable question-and-answer time at the end. Lebrun starts each chapter with a humorous, often disasterous anecdote of a scientist named Vladimir whose primary role is to have those moments we all dread, so we can avoid them ourselves. We can laugh at poor Vladimir's expense, but I appreciated the fact that the author sometimes put the technical aspect aside for some needed personal advice to those who are more at home in the lab and may be insecure of speaking in public. I am not one of those, but these passages drew me in, and made me actually eager to present. The accompanying CD contains podcasts with experienced scientists and tutorials that put special attention on the latest software, handling our own accents and non-native speakers in the audience, and pacing to allow for a rich time of discussion. In other words, the audio format can model things that print just would not do justice to. Indeed, the up-to-date software information and accessibility to non-native speakers are two of the most promising features of this volume. I am a graphic designer, not a scientist, so naturally, I would have liked to see the book go deeper into the potential for complex graphs and illustrations, but nevertheless, I gladly recommend this book to anyone in the professional world who is as puzzled as I am with the question: "What do we do with all this data?"