Research is much more than just discovering new and cutting edge ideas to change the field. Researchers in every field must embrace the performative aspect of research. The part where we share our findings with the world and try to grab their attention to convince them that what we found is pertinent.
I believe in simplifying the problem enough for it to be relevant to the audience. As academics, it’s easy for us to go into great depth about our research methods and techniques without actually touching on the big picture idea. I try to start off my sharing by prefacing the general trends and statistics that are seen in my field that apply to most people. I then go into the problem at hand, and then ease my way into explaining what I’m doing uniquely to solve it. I think the most important part is the ending of the presentation. This is the part where we get to leave something in our audience’s mind for them to think about. This is usually where I deliver a simple one-liner for them to take away the crux of my presentation.
When I presented my genomics research at a conference to a professor of anthropology, I made sure to tweak the jargon and the angle of my presentation in a way that the professor would be interested and eager to know more. I brought up the idea of ancestry and ethnicity as a factor in complex diseases from a genetics point of view and our thoughts overlapped a lot in this realm. We discussed opinions about the validity of the hypothesis that ancestry has a role to play in genetics and a consequential impact on disease, we discussed how societal factors unique to certain ethnicities may also play a role in disease proliferation and we were even able to discuss the impact such research would have on the community that I study.
I thought the interaction was enriching as it set me on a path of thought that I usually do not wander upon. Science and research is never done in a vacuum, I find that speaking with people outside the field and learning their thoughts can make a great impact on what direction I want to take my project and I enjoy presenting to such groups!
One final tip for presenting: think fast but speak slow! Here is a picture of my presentation at the American Heart Association’s ATVB Conference in Boston!
