Home / Conferences & List Server / On the art of attending conferences

Warren Abrahamson, Abrahamson Lab, Department of Biology, Bucknell University: Biology/Animal Behavior 356/656, Suggestions for Effective Oral Presentations (PDF file), and Suggestions for Effective Writing (Powerpoint file).

The American Society for Cell Biology (supported by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute): Cell Biology Education. A Journal of Life Science Education. Go to: Points of View: Lectures: Can't Learn With Them, Can't Learn Without Them. A Combination of Lectures, Problem Sets, and Recitation Sections Is an Excellent Way To Teach Undergraduate Cell Biology at a High Level (by Harvey F. Lodish and Roberto K. Rodriguez), and Talking Biology: Learning Outside the Book—and the Lecture (by Daniel J. Klionsky).

J. Barnes and B. Patterson (2011): A Necessary Evil: Edward Tufte and Making the Best of PowerPoint. In PDF, Jury Expert. See likewise here.

R.A. Bartsch and K.M. Cobern (2003): Effectiveness of PowerPoint presentations in lectures. PDF file, Computers and Education, 41: 77-86.
See also here.

Gordon Beakes (2002): A picture is worth a thousand words. A personal view of using images in the teaching of the biological sciences. PDF file. Provided by the Internet Archive´s Wayback Machine.

Mark A. Garland, Tallahassee, Florida: Scientific Names of Plants. A pronunciation guide for scientific Latin.

A. Gürdal (2024): Designing Visual Abstracts Used in Scientific Publications. Free access, Türk Akademik Yayinlar Dergisi (TAY Journal), 8: 562-586.

ISTA OnLine: Some web-links which may provide tips and information for your next presentation.

Derek Keats & Alan Millar, Botany Department, University of the Western Cape, South Africa: Giving a scientific talk: A guide for botanists.

Richard A. Laws, Center for Marine Sciences, and Department of Earth Sciences, University of North Carolina, Wilmington: Technical Communication (PDF files). The purpose of this lectures is to improve the level of proficiency in written and oral communication techniques and skills.

M.C. Miller, Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland: The Ten Commandments of Presentations and Further hints on giving talks. In PDF.

Bruce T. Milne, Biology, University of New Mexico: Tips for a Good Scientific Talk.

National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.C.: On Being A Scientist: Responsible Conduct in Research. This report guides readers to several issues of scientific integrity and ethics including values in science.

Peter Norvig: PowerPoint: shot with its own bullets. The Lancet, 362: 9381. See also here (PDF file).

Bernt Schnettler et al. (2007): Die Powerpoint-Präsentation. Zur Performanz technisierter mündlicher Gattungen in der Wissensgesellschaft. PDF file, in German. See here as well.

! Stanford University: Postdoctoral Education at Stanford. See especially: Scientific Management Series. Go to: Sue McConnell, Powerpoint basics. In PDF.

! Kurt Tucholsky (website by textlog.de): "Ratschläge für einen schlechten Redner", including "Ratschläge für einen guten Redner" (in German).

! E.R. Tufte (2006): The cognitive style of PowerPoint: Pitching Out Corrupts Within. In PDF. A critical statement on this:
! A Review of Tufte's The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint In PDF, by Brian D. Kangas, International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 24: 421-423.

! E. Tufte (2003): PowerPoint is evil. Wired Magazine. See also here (in PDF).
Websites outdated. Links lead to versions archived by the Internet Archive´s Wayback Machine.

J.A. Yates and W. Orlikowski (2007): The PowerPoint Presentation and Its Corollaries: How Genres Shape Communicative Action in Organizations. In PDF, in: Mark Zachry and Charlotte Thralls (eds.) The Cultural Turn: Communicative Practices in Workplaces and the Professions. Amityville, NY: Baywood Publishing.
See also here.