Melissa Marshall: Talk nerdy to me
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0:16 - 0:21Five years ago, I experienced a bit of what it must have been like to Alice in Wonderland
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0:21 - 0:28Penn State asked me, a communications teacher, to teach a communications class to engineering students.
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0:28 - 0:31And I was scared.
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0:31 - 0:32Really scared!
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0:32 - 0:36Scared of these students with their big brains, and their big books, and their big, unfamiliar words.
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0:36 - 0:43But as these conversations unfolded,
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0:43 - 0:45I experienced what Alice must have, when she went down that rabbit hole
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0:45 - 0:47and saw that door to a whole new world.
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0:47 - 0:51That was how I felt as I had those conversations with those students -
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0:51 - 0:55I was amazed at the ideas that they had,
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0:55 - 0:58And I wanted others to experience this Wonderland as well
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0:58 - 1:01And I believe the key to opening that door, is great communication.
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1:01 - 1:08We desperately need great communication from our scientists and engineers in order to change the world.
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1:08 - 1:14Our scientists and engineers are the ones that are tackling our grandest challenges,
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1:14 - 1:17from energy to environment to healthcare among others
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1:17 - 1:22And if we don't know about it and don't understand it, then the work isn't done
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1:22 - 1:26And I believe it's our responsibility as non-scientists to have these interactions
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1:26 - 1:32But these great conversations can't occur, if our scientists and engineers don't invite us in.
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1:32 - 1:36So scientists and engineers - please!
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1:36 - 1:38Talk nerdy to us!
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1:38 - 1:42I want to share a few keys on how you can do that
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1:42 - 1:45to make sure that we see that your science is sexy
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1:45 - 1:48and that your engineering is engaging
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1:48 - 1:51First question to answer for us: So what?
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1:51 - 1:55Tell us why your science is relevant to us.
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1:55 - 1:58Don't just tell me that you study trabeculae
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1:58 - 2:02But tell me that you study trabeculae, which is the mesh-like structure of our bones
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2:02 - 2:06because it's important to understanding and treating osteoporosis
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2:06 - 2:09And when you're describing your science,
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2:09 - 2:11be aware of jargon.
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2:11 - 2:16Jargon is a barrier to our understanding of your ideas
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2:16 - 2:17Sure - you can say "spacial" and "temporal"
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2:17 - 2:21But why not say "space" and "time", which is so much more accessible to us
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2:21 - 2:26And making your ideas accessible, is not the same as dumbing it down
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2:26 - 2:29Instead, as Einstein said -
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2:29 - 2:32"Make everything as simple as possible, but no simpler."
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2:32 - 2:35You can clearly communicate your science
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2:35 - 2:38without compromising the ideas.
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2:38 - 2:42A few things to consider are having examples, stories
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2:42 - 2:45and analogies - those are ways to excite us about your content
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2:45 - 2:49And when presenting your work
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2:49 - 2:53Drop the bullet points!
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2:53 - 2:55Have you ever wondered why they're called bullet points?
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2:55 - 2:58What do bullets do? Bullets kill!
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2:58 - 3:00And they will kill your presentation.
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3:00 - 3:03A slide like this, is not only boring,
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3:03 - 3:07but it relies too much on the language-area of our brain
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3:07 - 3:08and causes us to become overwhelmed.
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3:08 - 3:13Instead, this example slide by Genevive Brown, is much more effective
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3:13 - 3:17It's showing that the special structure of trabeculae
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3:17 - 3:21is so strong, that they actually inspired the unique design of the Eiffel tower
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3:21 - 3:25And the trick here, is to use a single, readable sentence
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3:25 - 3:28that the audience can key into if they get a bit lost
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3:28 - 3:32And can provide visuals which appeal to our other senses
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3:32 - 3:34and create a deeper sense of understanding of what's being described
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3:34 - 3:38So I think these are just a few keys,
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3:38 - 3:41that can help the rest of us
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3:41 - 3:44to open that door, and see the Wonderland that is science and engineering
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3:44 - 3:47And because the engineers that I have worked with
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3:47 - 3:51have taught me to become really in touch with my inner nerd,
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3:51 - 3:53I want to summarize with an equation
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3:53 - 3:55Take your science
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3:55 - 3:59Subtract your bullet points and your jargon
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3:59 - 4:03Divide by relevance - meaning share what's relevant to the audience
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4:03 - 4:08And multiply by the passion that you have for this incredible work that you're doing
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4:08 - 4:13And that is going to equal incredible interactions that are full of understanding
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4:13 - 4:16And so scientists and engineers -
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4:16 - 4:18when you've solved this equation,
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4:18 - 4:23by all means: Talk nerdy to me!
- Title:
- Melissa Marshall: Talk nerdy to me
- Description:
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Melissa Marshall brings a message to all scientists (from non-scientists): We're fascinated by what you're doing. So tell us about it -- in a way we can understand. In just 4 minutes, she shares powerful tips on presenting complex scientific ideas to a general audience.
TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes (or less). Look for talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design -- plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more.
Find closed captions and translated subtitles in many languages at http://www.ted.com/translateFollow TED news on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/tednews
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- Video Language:
- English
- Duration:
- 04:35
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