Some Questions and Answers on Oral and Poster Presentations

Greetings again. I hope you’re doing well.

In a recent post, I mentioned sending future workshop participants a PowerPoint presentation on poster and oral presentations. I also mentioned asking the recipients to send me questions after reading the presentation.

The participants sent many fine questions. These questions formed the basis of a presentation that I gave at the workshop. Here are summaries of three of the questions and answers:

1. If you submitted an abstract for a presentation and then obtained more data, can you include the additional data in your presentation? Yes, updated findings normally are acceptable to include.

2. What colors should be used in presentations? Although no rule exists in this regard, here are principles to follow:

• Provide enough contrast between text and background. Generally, dark letters on a light background work best.
• If you include an image behind the text, keep it faint, so it won’t interfere with reading.
• Remember that some people are colorblind and have trouble distinguishing red and green.
• Beware of using many colors, as doing so can be distracting.
• Consider using a color that represents your subject (for example, green for an environmental topic).

3. Can animations and videos be used? Yes, but use animations and videos only if they help convey the subject matter. Don’t use them just for decoration. And because animations and videos sometimes don’t work correctly during a presentation, be ready to present the information in another way if needed.

To see the other questions and answers, please access the presentation. And if you have additional questions, please ask them by submitting a comment.

Until the next post—

Barbara