Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Effective Power Points
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Effective Power Points
Tips for Effective PowerPoint Presentations
Fonts
§ Select sans-serif fonts such as Arial or Helvetica. Avoid serif fonts such as Times New Roman or Palatino as they are sometimes more difficult to read.
§ Use no font size smaller than 24 point.
§ Clearly label each screen. Use a larger font (35-45 points) or different color for the title.
§ Use a single sans-serif font for most of the presentation. Use different colors, sizes and styles (bold, underline) for impact.
§ Avoid italicized fonts as they are difficult to read quickly.
§ No more than 6-8 words per line
§ For bullet points, use the 6 x 6 Rule. One thought per line with no more than 6 words per line and no more than 6 lines per slide
§ Use dark text on light background or light text on dark background. However, dark backgrounds sometimes make it difficult for some people to read the text.
§ Do not use all caps except for titles.
To test the font, stand back six feet from the monitor and see if you can read the slide.
Graphics and Design
§ Keep the background consistent and subtle.
§ Use only enough text when using charts or graphs to explain clearly label the graphic.
§ Keep the design clean and uncluttered. Leave empty space around the text and graphics
§ Use quality clipart and use it sparingly. The graphic should relate to and enhance the topic of the slide.
§ Try to use the same style graphics throughout the presentation (e.g. cartoon, photographs)
§ Limit the number of graphics on each slide.
§ Check all graphics on a projection screen before the actual presentation.
§ Avoid flashy graphics and noisy animation effects unless they relate directly to the slide.
§ Limit the number of transitions used. It is often better to use only one so the audience knows what to expect.
Color
§ Limit the number of colors on a single screen.
§ Bright colors make small objects and thin lines stand out. However, some vibrant colors are difficult to read when projected.
§ Use no more than four colors on one chart.
§ Check all colors on a projection screen before the actual presentation. They may project differently than what appears on the monitor.
General Presentation
§ Check the spelling and grammar.
§ Do not read the presentation. Practice the presentation so you can speak from bullet points. The text should be a cue for the presenter rather than a message for the viewer.
§ Give a brief overview at the start. Then present the information. Finally review important points.
§ It is often more effective to have bulleted points appear one at a time so the audience listens to the presenter rather than reading the screen.
§ Use a wireless mouse or pick up the wired mouse so you can move around as you speak.
§ If sound effects are used, wait until the sound has finished to speak.
§ If the content is complex, print out the slides so the audience can take notes.
§ Do not turn your back on the audience. Try to position the monitor so you can speak from it.
Adapted from:
§ Bankerd, Kathy. “How to Optimize Projection Technology: Using Fonts, Graphics, and Color to Maximize the Effectiveness of Your Presentation”. Syllabus. November/December 1997.
§ Bird, Linda. “Avoid the Mistakes of PowerPoint Rookies.” Smart Computing. January 2001.
§ Brown, David G. “PowerPoint-Induced Sleep.” Syllabus. January 2001.
Fonts
§ Select sans-serif fonts such as Arial or Helvetica. Avoid serif fonts such as Times New Roman or Palatino as they are sometimes more difficult to read.
§ Use no font size smaller than 24 point.
§ Clearly label each screen. Use a larger font (35-45 points) or different color for the title.
§ Use a single sans-serif font for most of the presentation. Use different colors, sizes and styles (bold, underline) for impact.
§ Avoid italicized fonts as they are difficult to read quickly.
§ No more than 6-8 words per line
§ For bullet points, use the 6 x 6 Rule. One thought per line with no more than 6 words per line and no more than 6 lines per slide
§ Use dark text on light background or light text on dark background. However, dark backgrounds sometimes make it difficult for some people to read the text.
§ Do not use all caps except for titles.
To test the font, stand back six feet from the monitor and see if you can read the slide.
Graphics and Design
§ Keep the background consistent and subtle.
§ Use only enough text when using charts or graphs to explain clearly label the graphic.
§ Keep the design clean and uncluttered. Leave empty space around the text and graphics
§ Use quality clipart and use it sparingly. The graphic should relate to and enhance the topic of the slide.
§ Try to use the same style graphics throughout the presentation (e.g. cartoon, photographs)
§ Limit the number of graphics on each slide.
§ Check all graphics on a projection screen before the actual presentation.
§ Avoid flashy graphics and noisy animation effects unless they relate directly to the slide.
§ Limit the number of transitions used. It is often better to use only one so the audience knows what to expect.
Color
§ Limit the number of colors on a single screen.
§ Bright colors make small objects and thin lines stand out. However, some vibrant colors are difficult to read when projected.
§ Use no more than four colors on one chart.
§ Check all colors on a projection screen before the actual presentation. They may project differently than what appears on the monitor.
General Presentation
§ Check the spelling and grammar.
§ Do not read the presentation. Practice the presentation so you can speak from bullet points. The text should be a cue for the presenter rather than a message for the viewer.
§ Give a brief overview at the start. Then present the information. Finally review important points.
§ It is often more effective to have bulleted points appear one at a time so the audience listens to the presenter rather than reading the screen.
§ Use a wireless mouse or pick up the wired mouse so you can move around as you speak.
§ If sound effects are used, wait until the sound has finished to speak.
§ If the content is complex, print out the slides so the audience can take notes.
§ Do not turn your back on the audience. Try to position the monitor so you can speak from it.
Adapted from:
§ Bankerd, Kathy. “How to Optimize Projection Technology: Using Fonts, Graphics, and Color to Maximize the Effectiveness of Your Presentation”. Syllabus. November/December 1997.
§ Bird, Linda. “Avoid the Mistakes of PowerPoint Rookies.” Smart Computing. January 2001.
§ Brown, David G. “PowerPoint-Induced Sleep.” Syllabus. January 2001.
Informative Speech Outline
SAMPLE INFORMATIVE SPEECH OUTLINE
WARNING: BY THE VERY NATURE OF THE WEB, I GUARANTEE THAT THE MARGINS OF THIS OUTLINE WILL BECOME TWISTED, SKEWED, RE-ARRANGED, ETC..
I HAVE TRIED EVERYTHING TO ENSURE THE MARGINS' PLACEMENT BE ALIGNED...BUT ALAS, THE WEB-BEAST WINS! SO -- IF IT IS OUT OF WACK WITH MARGINS, THERE'S NOTHING I KNOW OF THAT I CAN DO...OH WELL!
PRINTED WITH EXPRESS PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR:
Erin Solomon
Title: Candlemaking
Specific purpose: To inform my audience on how to make candles.
I. Introduction
A. Attention Material: What comes to mind when you see candles? We associate candles with celebrations (like Christmas or birthdays) or special occasions. Candles date back to the Ancient Egyptians who are credited with making the first candles. They used torches made by soaking the spongy core of reeds in melted tallow (National Candle Association: History of Candlemaking, p. 1).
B. Tie to the audience: I’m sure that all of us at some point have used candles for celebrations, romantic experiences, or for just plain decoration. The great part about making your own candles is that they are inexpensive to make and you shape the wax into something special. What could be more special than to make someone you love a homemade gift?
C. Credibility material: Two years ago, I made candles for decoration and also for people to purchase during a medieval Madrigal dinner production that our A Cappella choir put on. I have also made candles since then as a part of my church youth group around the Christmas season.
D. Preview: I will explain three basic things which include how to go about finding the right materials, how to melt the wax, and how to make a molded ice-cube candle.
[Transition: Let’s start by doing the most important thing, which is to find all of the materials, and tools needed to make candles.]
II. Body
A. The first step is to gather the equipment you will need (The Basics and Cool Candlemaking Ideas, p. 1).
1. You will need wax; you can either use old, worn out candles which are obviously free or you can purchase paraffin wax from a craft store.
2. You will need wicks; you can make wicks from heavy, braided cotton string or can purchase wicks from a craft store. I read in Ray Shaw’s book entitled Candle Art that heavy braided cotton string works just as good (Shaw 25-26). I’ve never tried the cotton string but it’s worth a try.
3. You need to set up a double boiler.
a. You can use an actual double boiler
b. You can make your own using a pan and a jar or coffee can.
4. You will need a mold if you are planning on making a molded candle. This can be anything; a milk carton, Dixie cups, tin can, paper towel tube, etc.
5. There are two optional ingredients.
a. You can use crayons of the desired color to color the wa or buy wax dye.
b.You can purchase scented oil to make your candles smell wonderful.
[Transition: Once you have all the material that you need, you can move on to melting the wax.]
B. Your second step is to melt the wax (Pioneer Clubs: Trailblazer Handbook, p. 165).
1. Start by placing wax in the double boiler or in a coffee can put in a pan of water.
2. Heat until the water boils.
3. Make sure to turn down the heat, and let the wax melt. Don’t let it boil.
4. Add wax dye, crayons, or scent (if desired) and stir.
[Transition: Now that the wax is melted, you can let your creativity run wild and have fun making candles. You can make just about anything but I’m going to show you how to make a molded ice-cube candle. ]
C. This is how you go about making a molded ice-cube candle (Pioneer Clubs: Trailblazer Handbook, p.166).
1. Cut off the top of a milk carton.
2. Place a candle the height of the carton in the center of the carton. This makes an excellent wick.
3. Break ice-cubes into chunks
a. Finely crushed ice creates small holes.Large cubes create large openings.
b.Fill the mold with crushed ice.
c. Quickly pour hot wax into the carton while someone holds the candle straight.
d. Pour off the excess water when the wax is completely hardened.
[Transition to conclusion: Now that you know how to make an ice-cube candle, let’s go over what I showed you today.]
III. Conclusion
A. Final Review: So today I showed you how to do three basic things.
1. I showed you how to find the right materials.
2. I showed you how to correctly melt the wax.
3. I showed you how to make an ice-cube candle. The tricky part is keeping the wick in the center of the mold.
B. Tie back to the audience: Today we use candles for almost any kind of occasion or celebration. Candles continue to grow in popularity and we see them just about everywhere. They are really inexpensive to make and a lot of fun!
C. Concluding remarks: So when you try making candles on your own, use your imagination and be very creative. Your candle can be anything you like. Have a great time experimenting and having fun making your own candles to enjoy.
Works Cited:
The Basics and Cool Candlemaking Ideas. [Online] Available
http://homepage.interaccess.com/~bmolo/basics.html.
National Candle Association: History of Candlemaking. [Online] Available
http://www.candles.org/history.htm
Pioneer Clubs (1994). Pioneer Clubs: Trailblazer Handbook. Wheaton, IL: Published by
Pioneer Clubs
Shaw, R. (1973). Candle Art. New York: William Morrow & Company, Inc.
Erin Solomon
RESULTS OF MY AUDIENCE SURVEY:
(NOTE THAT THIS MAY BE DIFFERENT THAN THE QUESTIONS I ASKED THIS SEMESTER...BUT HERE SAMPLE YOU GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF HOW TO RESPOND...CHECK YOUR ASSIGNMENT FOR THE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS.)
1. My audience survey included one fixed-response question, one ranked question, and one open question. The fixed-response question was: Have you ever made your own candles? Yes or no. Twelve out of the seventeen students in the class responded no. So the average response was that they had not made their own candles before.
2. The ranked question was: On a scale of 1 to 10, how much do you know about the history of candlemaking and how it came about? (1 being very little knowledge and 10 being a great amount of knowledge). The entire class responded to this question with a 4 or below. The average was a 1 being that they had very little knowledge of the history of candlemaking.
3. The open question was: What do you think is the hardest part of making candles? I got a wide variety of responses. The most common response was dealing with the wick, such as "making wick stay in the middle." Other responses were patience and creativity.
4. I took this information and wrote my speech accordingly. Since the majority of the class had not made candles before, I included how to go about finding the right materials and how to melt the wax. Since there were a few students that had made candles before, I decided to show the class how to make a molded ice-cube candle which something many people probably haven’t made before. I found out through my survey that the class doesn’t know much about the history of candlemaking so I decided to include a quick fact about the first candles in my introduction. I also took into account that people thought that keeping the wick in the center is the hardest part about candlemaking. So I chose to show them how to make a molded ice-cube candle so I could show them how to keep the wick in the center. So I did take into consideration the responses that I received from the other students when I wrote my informative speech.
WARNING: BY THE VERY NATURE OF THE WEB, I GUARANTEE THAT THE MARGINS OF THIS OUTLINE WILL BECOME TWISTED, SKEWED, RE-ARRANGED, ETC..
I HAVE TRIED EVERYTHING TO ENSURE THE MARGINS' PLACEMENT BE ALIGNED...BUT ALAS, THE WEB-BEAST WINS! SO -- IF IT IS OUT OF WACK WITH MARGINS, THERE'S NOTHING I KNOW OF THAT I CAN DO...OH WELL!
PRINTED WITH EXPRESS PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR:
Erin Solomon
Title: Candlemaking
Specific purpose: To inform my audience on how to make candles.
I. Introduction
A. Attention Material: What comes to mind when you see candles? We associate candles with celebrations (like Christmas or birthdays) or special occasions. Candles date back to the Ancient Egyptians who are credited with making the first candles. They used torches made by soaking the spongy core of reeds in melted tallow (National Candle Association: History of Candlemaking, p. 1).
B. Tie to the audience: I’m sure that all of us at some point have used candles for celebrations, romantic experiences, or for just plain decoration. The great part about making your own candles is that they are inexpensive to make and you shape the wax into something special. What could be more special than to make someone you love a homemade gift?
C. Credibility material: Two years ago, I made candles for decoration and also for people to purchase during a medieval Madrigal dinner production that our A Cappella choir put on. I have also made candles since then as a part of my church youth group around the Christmas season.
D. Preview: I will explain three basic things which include how to go about finding the right materials, how to melt the wax, and how to make a molded ice-cube candle.
[Transition: Let’s start by doing the most important thing, which is to find all of the materials, and tools needed to make candles.]
II. Body
A. The first step is to gather the equipment you will need (The Basics and Cool Candlemaking Ideas, p. 1).
1. You will need wax; you can either use old, worn out candles which are obviously free or you can purchase paraffin wax from a craft store.
2. You will need wicks; you can make wicks from heavy, braided cotton string or can purchase wicks from a craft store. I read in Ray Shaw’s book entitled Candle Art that heavy braided cotton string works just as good (Shaw 25-26). I’ve never tried the cotton string but it’s worth a try.
3. You need to set up a double boiler.
a. You can use an actual double boiler
b. You can make your own using a pan and a jar or coffee can.
4. You will need a mold if you are planning on making a molded candle. This can be anything; a milk carton, Dixie cups, tin can, paper towel tube, etc.
5. There are two optional ingredients.
a. You can use crayons of the desired color to color the wa or buy wax dye.
b.You can purchase scented oil to make your candles smell wonderful.
[Transition: Once you have all the material that you need, you can move on to melting the wax.]
B. Your second step is to melt the wax (Pioneer Clubs: Trailblazer Handbook, p. 165).
1. Start by placing wax in the double boiler or in a coffee can put in a pan of water.
2. Heat until the water boils.
3. Make sure to turn down the heat, and let the wax melt. Don’t let it boil.
4. Add wax dye, crayons, or scent (if desired) and stir.
[Transition: Now that the wax is melted, you can let your creativity run wild and have fun making candles. You can make just about anything but I’m going to show you how to make a molded ice-cube candle. ]
C. This is how you go about making a molded ice-cube candle (Pioneer Clubs: Trailblazer Handbook, p.166).
1. Cut off the top of a milk carton.
2. Place a candle the height of the carton in the center of the carton. This makes an excellent wick.
3. Break ice-cubes into chunks
a. Finely crushed ice creates small holes.Large cubes create large openings.
b.Fill the mold with crushed ice.
c. Quickly pour hot wax into the carton while someone holds the candle straight.
d. Pour off the excess water when the wax is completely hardened.
[Transition to conclusion: Now that you know how to make an ice-cube candle, let’s go over what I showed you today.]
III. Conclusion
A. Final Review: So today I showed you how to do three basic things.
1. I showed you how to find the right materials.
2. I showed you how to correctly melt the wax.
3. I showed you how to make an ice-cube candle. The tricky part is keeping the wick in the center of the mold.
B. Tie back to the audience: Today we use candles for almost any kind of occasion or celebration. Candles continue to grow in popularity and we see them just about everywhere. They are really inexpensive to make and a lot of fun!
C. Concluding remarks: So when you try making candles on your own, use your imagination and be very creative. Your candle can be anything you like. Have a great time experimenting and having fun making your own candles to enjoy.
Works Cited:
The Basics and Cool Candlemaking Ideas. [Online] Available
http://homepage.interaccess.com/~bmolo/basics.html.
National Candle Association: History of Candlemaking. [Online] Available
http://www.candles.org/history.htm
Pioneer Clubs (1994). Pioneer Clubs: Trailblazer Handbook. Wheaton, IL: Published by
Pioneer Clubs
Shaw, R. (1973). Candle Art. New York: William Morrow & Company, Inc.
Erin Solomon
RESULTS OF MY AUDIENCE SURVEY:
(NOTE THAT THIS MAY BE DIFFERENT THAN THE QUESTIONS I ASKED THIS SEMESTER...BUT HERE SAMPLE YOU GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF HOW TO RESPOND...CHECK YOUR ASSIGNMENT FOR THE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS.)
1. My audience survey included one fixed-response question, one ranked question, and one open question. The fixed-response question was: Have you ever made your own candles? Yes or no. Twelve out of the seventeen students in the class responded no. So the average response was that they had not made their own candles before.
2. The ranked question was: On a scale of 1 to 10, how much do you know about the history of candlemaking and how it came about? (1 being very little knowledge and 10 being a great amount of knowledge). The entire class responded to this question with a 4 or below. The average was a 1 being that they had very little knowledge of the history of candlemaking.
3. The open question was: What do you think is the hardest part of making candles? I got a wide variety of responses. The most common response was dealing with the wick, such as "making wick stay in the middle." Other responses were patience and creativity.
4. I took this information and wrote my speech accordingly. Since the majority of the class had not made candles before, I included how to go about finding the right materials and how to melt the wax. Since there were a few students that had made candles before, I decided to show the class how to make a molded ice-cube candle which something many people probably haven’t made before. I found out through my survey that the class doesn’t know much about the history of candlemaking so I decided to include a quick fact about the first candles in my introduction. I also took into account that people thought that keeping the wick in the center is the hardest part about candlemaking. So I chose to show them how to make a molded ice-cube candle so I could show them how to keep the wick in the center. So I did take into consideration the responses that I received from the other students when I wrote my informative speech.
Friday, November 18, 2011
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Blog #11: Is anything really private?
Public Anomie
Jul 07, 2010
No Comments by Oliver Benjamin
How The Internet Has Destroyed Privacy
Everyone knows the old adage ‘there’s no such thing as a free lunch.’ That is, if someone offers you something for free, you can be pretty sure there are strings attached.
The Internet seems to have turned this timeworn chestnut on its head — these days there seem to be no end to the free services available to the average netizen of the World Wide Web. From free email like Hotmail to free online photo storage like Flickr to full-blown software suites like Google Docs, everyday things you once had to pay for (snail mail, photo albums, software) now increasingly come at no charge. That’s what you’re meant to think, anyway.
A humorous (and scary for some) bumper sticker is making the rounds in the United States that says ‘You can’t hide your browsing history from God.’ Yet it may not be some omniscient deity one has to worry about. The fact is that all these free services are storing everything you do in huge data banks for marketing and research purposes. In The Cost of Free, an episode of a recent BBC series called The Virtual Revolution, the narrator shows that someone with access to that data could find out things about you you’d never want them to know. In fact, as an experiment, a hacker did just that — using deductive reasoning to trace down a single US woman by the things she searched for via her AOL (America Online) browser, triangulating her identity by the data trails she left behind.
It’s enough to make your skin crawl. Most of us don’t realise it, but everything we have ever searched for has been recorded. And it is not likely to just sit there. At some point in the future, it’s probable that computers far more advanced than the ones we have today will easily be able to mine though decades of data and piece together a picture of our lives, much the same way historians do about famous figures through their letters and correspondence. Only the amount of information we expose about ourselves, just in the ordinary acts of browsing Google or Yahoo, is in order of magnitude, more rich with detail than a few letters, not to mention far less censored.
This all would be bad enough if we weren’t such willing participants in the sabotage of our own secrets. Certainly the most astonishing revolution in our attitudes about privacy has come as a result of the incredible rise of the social networking site Facebook. Lured by the thrill of sharing information with friends, untold millions of people are at this very moment laying themselves bare to the world, so to speak. Yet only recently have the implications of our Facebook behaviour come to light.
One thing people were shocked to find out was that you can never actually delete your data. Sure, you can remove it from your ‘wall’ or your messaging inbox, but it’s still there on Facebook’s servers. Forever. That photo your college pal posted of you drunk and passed out on the floor? Immortalised. Your brief membership in the Miss Piggy fan club? Not as brief as you think. That insulting comment about Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg? Let’s just hope he’s the more forgiving type of power-mad CEO. Facebook continues and will continue to use any and all your data for marketing purposes, even stuff you wish you’d never let out of the bag. And it’s unclear just what they consider themselves legally able to do with those factoids of your life.
As many pundits have pointed out, however, we have only ourselves to blame. Fans of reality shows regularly bear witness to the shamelessness people display when confronted with an opportunity to be the centre of attention. Facebook capitalises on this bizarre human compulsion by offering everyone a sounding board, making them feel important, and helping them to connect with people — even people they don’t particularly care for. But appealing to our most base and unflattering drives is what marketers do, and Facebook has merely fulfilled a need that has gone unchanged since cavemen jockeyed to tell stories and gossip around the campfire.
Recently a ‘Quit Facebook Day’ was organised. It was a total flop. A tiny percentage of people cancelled their accounts — many of whom didn’t realise that their data wasn’t going anywhere anyway. For better or for worse, it seems that social networking is here to stay and we will all have to get used to the idea that our lives are no longer wholly our own. Even those who are circumspect about keeping privacy controls locked down and posting only what is necessary can’t keep their friends from tagging them in embarrassing pictures taken late one night down at the pub. And this is true even if they don’t have a Facebook account at all, or even any ‘friends’ — thanks to Facebook, that word has all-but lost its meaning.
Andy Warhol famously said that in the future, everyone would be famous for fifteen minutes. The implication of that statement was unclear at the time — it seems that we will be famous for fifteen minutes whether we like it or not.
Religious people have always felt that they had to be on their best behaviour because ‘God sees everything’ — even your browsing history, as the bumper sticker says. Yet perhaps humankind no longer needs religion (or Father Christmas) to feel that worrying sense of being watched and held to account. Technology may be rapidly and irreversibly taking over the responsibility.
Thoughts???? Why do we so freely give up our privacy?
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Blog #9: "That Sex Thing"
Yeserday all of the dignitas students and their instructors watched our first common experience event called, "That Sex Thing". Sex is never an easy topic especially in an auditorium with hundreds of people. However, sex is something that we need to talk about. Open communication about sex is very important. Effective communication is even more important. After reading below what consensual sex means. I would like you to comment on what role communication plays in safe, healthy, and consensual sex. I would like you to discuss something that you took from this event. Which dialogue impacted you the most. Do you think your peers took this event seriously? Finally, what more can be done to create an event that will be educational and informative to all.
Consensual sex is when both partners are freely and willingly agreeing, or consenting, to whatever sexual activity is occurring.
The issue of consent is very clear. Consent is an active process and a responsibility shared by both partners in any relationship. Consent cannot be given when an individual is intoxicated. Sex without consent is sexual assault/rape. You cannot assume that you have consent – you need to ask.
Make sure the sex you are having is consensual:
•Do not make assumptions about consent; lack of a “no” is not a “yes”
•Ask for consent – it communicates respect and generally sex is better if both partners can talk about what they like/don’t like
•Communicate clearly – talk about your sexual desires and limits
•Know that if someone is intoxicated they cannot legally consent to sex. Having sex with someone who is intoxicated is rape.
•Approach relationships as equal partners, openly communicating in an atmosphere of mutual respect and shared decision-making.
This applies to both males and females (straight, gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender). It is important that everyone be held accountable for unconsensual sex. Recongizing that anyone can be taken advantage of is very important. By doing this, the survivor will feel more able to seek help.
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