2.

How to Give a Seminar Contents

Opening
Introduction Body Summary / Concluding Comments

2. 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

2. How to Give a Seminar Introduction

Give some background

o You are the expertwe know nothing. o Give the basic background o 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
o Two sentences of background o Two sentences summarizing results o Two sentences summarizing conclusions

2. 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

2. How to Give a Seminar Summary / Concluding Comments

Wrap it all up / Restate the key points

Affirm the objectives Restate value
o What is the take home message?

Indicate completion
o Thank the audience

Call for questions

2. 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.

2. How to Give a Seminar Recommendations - 2

Face the audience and try not to read, but talk

Anticipate questions ahead of time
(1) (2) Expect general questions Prepare things that time forced you to omit

Maintain control of the discussion

(1) (2) (3) Stop and think Answer succinctly (or agree to discuss later) Prevent interruption

Be honest

3. Technical Writing Basics

The 3 Cs: 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

Now it is your turn...