Scientific presentations often fall into the trap of being boring and ineffective, focusing too much on technical details and data. This approach can make it hard for the audience to grasp the main point of the research, especially for those who aren’t experts in the specific field.
To create a compelling scientific presentation, it’s important to communicate your research in a way that resonates with a broader audience. Planning the narrative of your talk before diving into making PowerPoint slides helps you tell a clear and engaging story that highlights the significance of your work. By doing so, you can make sure your science is understood, leave a lasting impression, and build your reputation as a scientist.
This blog will explore how to make a science presentation that delivers, and more.
Key Takeaways
- Create a Clear Outline: Start by outlining your presentation to organize key sections and details. This helps create a coherent story and saves time rearranging slides.
- Use Simple and Clear Slides: Ensure each slide focuses on one main idea with a clear title and minimal text. Use visuals like graphs and images to illustrate your points, and keep text concise.
- Engage with a Strong Introduction: Begin with a compelling hook to capture interest, clearly explain the relevance of your study, and summarize key points to guide the audience through your research.
- Practice and Refine Your Delivery: Practice your presentation several times, focusing on smooth transitions and clear delivery. Prepare for potential questions and ensure your presentation fits within the time limit.
Best Practices to Design PowerPoint Slides for a Scientific Presentation
Create a Presentation Outline
Creating an outline helps you think about the key parts of your presentation and how they fit together from the start so you don’t leave out important details. It also saves you time by reducing the need to rearrange your slides multiple times.
Plan your talk in distinct sections. The following tips are for outlining a talk focused on a single study, but you can adjust them if you’re discussing multiple studies.
Introduction: The introduction is often the hardest part to write and deliver, especially since you might be most nervous at this point. However, a clear, concise introduction can help calm your nerves.
Your introduction should describe why you chose your scientific topic for presentation and provide context. A good introduction does four things, in this order:
1. Gives a broad view of the problem or topic, making it understandable for people outside your field.
2. Explain why you conducted the study and why it matters.
3. Briefly describe how your study addressed the problem, including background information needed to understand your work.
4. Prepares the audience for what they will learn in your talk.
The end of your introduction should naturally transition into the methods section.
Start with a Broad Perspective: Capture the audience’s attention with a hook—an opening that draws them into your story. In science, a hook could be a “why” or “how” question, a statement about a major issue in your field, a quote, a short story, or an interesting statistic.
Why Should the Audience Care? Connect your hook to the needs of the audience by setting the context. Explain why your study matters, using an observation, a pattern in data, or a theory you want to test.
Provide Supporting Details: After setting the stage, add details to back up your introduction, like your hypothesis, previous work, or current knowledge in the field. This is also where you might introduce any advanced jargon or technical details.
Conclude Your Introduction: Summarize the purpose of your study, your hypotheses, or predictions. Let the audience know what they will learn.
Methods: Describe your methods clearly and in the order they were performed. Use visuals to help explain complex methods, and make sure any equations are easy to follow. Include enough detail for the audience to understand your approach, but avoid unnecessary information.
Results: Share the key results that support your main idea. Focus on the most important and interesting findings, and break complex results into smaller parts for clarity. You don’t have to present every result—only the ones that matter most.
Summary: Recap your main findings and highlight what’s new about your contribution to scientific knowledge. Use visuals to make your points clearer.
Conclusion: Connect your findings back to the main topic and your initial hook. Mention any alternative explanations for your findings and suggest future research directions. Your conclusion slides don’t need to be labeled “conclusion”; instead, use a title that clearly links back to the main idea.
End your science presentation ideas with a strong closing statement that reinforces your thesis. To avoid an awkward finish, memorize your final sentence, ensuring it is impactful and memorable. Then, thank the audience.
Plan Your Slide Deck
Your templates should support and highlight what you’ll be saying during your presentation. Follow these steps to create effective slides.
Start by writing slide titles that match the structure of your talk. Make sure they are clear, direct sentences that convey the main idea of each slide. Avoid vague titles like “Methods.” Aim for one key idea per slide. Researcher Michael Alley’s YouTube talk on crafting effective slides offers good scientific presentation examples of this.
Next, decide how to best present the main idea of each slide. Think about what visuals you’ll need—figures, photos, equations, statistics, or references. These elements should back up the slide’s main point.
Under each title, outline the key points you want to cover using bullet points.
In short, for each slide, prepare a title that summarizes its main idea, list the visual elements you’ll use, and outline the points you’ll make. Make sure every slide ties back to your main thesis. If it doesn’t, it’s probably not needed.
Make Your Slide Deck
A scientific presentation ppt has three main parts: text (including labels and legends), equations, and graphics. Here are some tips for each component:
Design
Start with a strong title that includes the names and affiliations of all coauthors. Use an engaging image related to your study.
To make your content stand out, choose the right background. White backgrounds with black text work well in small rooms, while black backgrounds with white text are better for large rooms. Keep the slide layout simple, with lots of white space around the edges. Avoid putting too much information onto a single slide.
Text Content
Use a sans serif font size of minimum 20 for text and up to 40 for titles. Citations can be smaller, at around 14 points, placed at the bottom of the slide. Highlight important words with bold or italics, but use these sparingly. Keep text concise; you don’t need full sentences. Aim for text blocks of no more than two lines. Include key technical terms, especially if they are unfamiliar to some audience members, and always proofread for typos and errors. Don’t forget to cite any external hypotheses or observations.
Visuals
Graphics keep the audience engaged. Use images and figures to illustrate your study and explain new ideas. Avoid using figures directly from your paper, as they may be too detailed or hard to read. Create simplified versions if needed, and make sure they are big enough to be seen from the back of the room. Opt for graphs over tables, as tables are harder to follow. Label graph axes, units, and important elements, and provide captions and sources.
Explain all graph elements, including axes, colors, markers, and data patterns. Use colors thoughtfully to highlight comparisons or differences, avoiding neon shades and color combinations that may be hard for color-blind audience members to distinguish. Draw attention to key details with arrows, circles, or text annotations. Use graphics in your summary and conclusion slides instead of bullet points to reinforce your main message.
Equations
If you include equations, take time to explain them. Use text boxes under each variable or term to clarify their meaning, and pair equations with graphics or diagrams that show the underlying concept.
Animations
Use animations carefully to break down complex ideas or build an argument step-by-step. For lists, reveal bullet points one at a time to help guide your audience. Keep slide transitions simple to avoid distractions. Plan your transitions between sections thoughtfully. For longer talks, provide summaries or use a “home slide” that you return to throughout the presentation to reinforce your main message, as suggested by Stanford biologist Susan McConnell in her YouTube talk on scientific presentations.
Get Straight to the Point with the Title
The best titles are clear and direct. They tell the audience what your findings are and what your presentation is about. Titles from Nature articles are great examples, as these papers aim to make specific research accessible to a broader scientific audience. For instance: “Supply chain diversity buffers cities against food shocks.”
This title clearly states the new finding and highlights the main result. A more typical title like “Effect of supply chain diversity on food shocks” lacks the direction of the impact, attracting only those specifically interested in that area. Others might think it’s not worth their time, assuming there could be no effect at all.
Another strong example is: “Organic management promotes natural pest control through altered plant resistance to insects.” This title ensures the audience knows upfront that the talk will discuss the positive effects of organic crop management and how it enhances plant resistance to insects. A title like “Effects of organic pest management on plant insect resistance” is less effective because it doesn’t communicate the key result.
Even for descriptive work, a good title tells the audience what you discovered, as specifically as possible. A more typical title, such as “Use of the Zwicky Transient Facility to search for short-period objects below the main white dwarf cooling sequence,” may interest only astronomers focused on that tool, not a wider audience.
Leverage Contradictions
Using contradictions in a scientific conference presentation can be a powerful tool. The word “but” introduces a problem, adds tension, and gives the audience a reason to keep listening. Without this, your presentation might just sound like a long, boring list of results: “We did this and that, ran this test, found this result, and so on.”
Instead, start with a few key facts linked by “and,” then introduce a problem to solve. After that, use “therefore” to present your findings or next steps. For example: “X is the current state of knowledge, and we know Y. But Z problem remains. Therefore, we conducted ABC research.” This structure, with even one contradiction, captures attention and keeps the audience engaged.
An example from a recent paper on SARS-CoV-2 shows how this works. It explains: “Coronaviruses have developed ways to block host mRNA translation and allow viral mRNA translation. But a full picture of how SARS-CoV-2 affects cellular gene expression is missing. Therefore, we used RNA sequencing, ribosome profiling, and metabolic labeling to explore how SARS-CoV-2 shuts down cellular protein production.”
This example uses a contradiction to make the problem clear and then presents a solution. This structure not only makes your text more interesting but can also elevate your scientific presentations.
Prove That Your Solutions Work with Demonstrable Results
Keep your audience engaged by using a pattern of problems and solutions throughout your presentation. Build a story around your main finding by connecting each problem to a solution that leads to your key result. Focus on displaying how each step in your scientific process PPT leads to the final outcome you want to highlight.
Here’s a simple approach to follow:
1. Start by sharing the first part of your results.
2. Point out a problem that still exists.
3. Offer a solution to this problem by presenting additional results.
4. Introduce another problem that comes up next.
5. Present the results that solve this new problem.
6. Continue this pattern of “problem and solution” throughout your presentation.
7. Conclude by restating your main finding and summarizing how each step contributed to reaching it.
Rehearse Your Presentation
To deliver a strong presentation, you need to practice. Here are some helpful steps.
Start by practicing alone. Focus on your narrative. Does your story flow naturally? Do you know your opening and closing lines? Are there any awkward transitions? Are your animations adding value? Do your slides support your message, or are they missing key elements?
Next, practice in front of your advisor or peers, such as your lab group. Ask someone to time your talk and note any feedback or questions they ask. You may hear similar questions during your actual presentation.
Revise your ppt based on the feedback you receive. Remove any slides that don’t add to your main message.
Practice until you are familiar with the flow of your slides and the main transition points in your talk. But don’t try to memorize your speech word for word. Instead, focus on remembering your opening and closing lines and key sentences throughout the oral presentation. Aim for a serious yet natural conversation with your audience.
Rehearsing multiple times will help you refine your delivery. Pay attention to your voice tone and speed. Remember to pause and make eye contact with your imaginary audience.
Make sure your science slideshow ends within the time limit and leaves room for questions. Conferences are usually strict about time.
Think about possible questions and challenges from the audience. Clarify any uncertainties in your slides or speech to address these.
If you expect questions that need more detail than you can include, prepare additional slides to answer these and place them after your final slide.
Wrap-up: Scientific Presentations
Creating an effective scientific presentation requires more than just sharing data. It involves crafting a narrative that captures and keeps the audience’s attention. Start with a clear and engaging introduction that explains the significance of your research, then use visuals and concise text to support your points. Make sure each slide focuses on one key idea, and avoid overwhelming the audience with too much information.
Use simple and readable style elements, like sans serif fonts and clear graphics, to make your slides visually appealing. Contradictions and a problem-solution approach can help maintain interest throughout the presentation. Practice your delivery multiple times to ensure smooth transitions and a confident close. Following these best practices will help you communicate your findings effectively, leave a memorable impression, and engage your audience in your scientific story.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. How can I create an engaging scientific presentation?
Start by planning a clear narrative that highlights the significance of your research. Begin with a broad perspective, connect the study to a real-world problem, and use visuals to support your main points.
2. What should I include in my slide deck?
Your deck should have a strong title slide, concise text, and clear visuals. Use graphics to illustrate complex ideas, and ensure each slide focuses on one main point. Avoid putting too much information onto one slide.
3. How do I effectively present methods and results?
Describe your scientific method slides clearly and use visuals to make them easy to understand. For results, focus on the most important findings and break complex data into simpler parts to make them more digestible.
4. What’s the best way to practice my presentation?
Practice alone to refine your narrative and flow. Then, present in front of peers to get feedback. Revise based on their input, and practice until you are comfortable with your slides and key transitions.
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