ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions. ***************************************************************************** Personally, I am convinced that the real problem is with over-use of bullet-points. Used well, Powerpoint is a beautiful and important communication tool. The issue of bad Powerpoint presentations often arises at the ECSITE Conference in Europe (see you in Budapest next month?), where everything is in English although this is not the first languange of the majority of delegates. Native English-speakers clutter up each slide with bullet-pointed text and find it easy to chatter away far too quickly. Non-native English-speakers make heroic efforts to rehearse their presentations, but many still fill the screen with text which they read aloud as quickly as they can manage, often with an accent making it even more difficult for other nationalities to follow. I'm sure Pecha Kucha speed-rules are great on the right occasion, but would be highly intimidating, and quite unfair, for someone struggling to present in a language other than their own. My preference is to show lots and lots of pictures, with no more than a couple of words underneath, and wherever possible with no words at all. I find 'talking about the pictures' in a very informal way makes me (and the audience) feel so much more relaxed and comfortable. I can speak slowly where necessary, occasionally varying the pace by flicking through a short sequence of images or cartoons very quickly to make the audience laugh. Powerpoint 'slides' can just as easily include moving pictures. I find WMV video files work best. They can be great if ruthlessly trimmed to no more than 5 or 10 seconds, with or without sound, then freezing as a still image. Don't ban Powerpoint. Ban the bullets! 'Talk about the pictures'. [log in to unmask] * http://www.interactives.co.uk * Give people facts and you feed their minds for an hour. Awaken curiosity and they feed their own minds for a lifetime. * Ian Russell *********************************************************************** For information about the Association of Science-Technology Centers and the Informal Science Education Network please visit www.astc.org. Check out the latest case studies and reviews on ExhibitFiles at www.exhibitfiles.org. The ISEN-ASTC-L email list is powered by LISTSERVR software from L-Soft. To learn more, visit http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html. To remove your e-mail address from the ISEN-ASTC-L list, send the message SIGNOFF ISEN-ASTC-L in the BODY of a message to [log in to unmask]