PowerPoint

“Nearly all engineering presentations at NASA are made in PowerPoint.” This adds a new dimension to my conception of PowerPoint as a useful presentation tool. However, as Tufte argues, PowerPoint is still not a very serious tool. It is basically a dumbed-down, idiot-proof presentation software for those with little technical skills. PowerPoint is not appropriate for engineering and scientific communication.

Power Point still has potential to be a useful tool, but it is so often misused. A presentation aid, such as PowerPoint, is not meant to provide the entire presentation. It is meant to guide the presenter through a complex discussion with multiple dimensions of critical thinking, and to highlight key points and ideas.

I was always taught the 3-7 rule. This requires that on any one PowerPoint slide, there are either 3 lines of text with 7 words each, or 7 lines with 3 words each. This keeps things simple and does not bog the viewer down with too much reading. Viewers of a presentation are supposed to be engaged in a topic, not reading it off of a screen.

Hurricanes

Global warming, regardless of its causes, will certainly have an effect on the intensity and frequency of hurricanes. As others argue that global warming prduces dangers beyond number, the effect on hurricanes is unknown. Scientists debate this today, whether global warming will add to the disastrous nature of hurricanes, or even eliminate their existence. Very few knowledgeable thinkers claim that global warming has no effect on hurricanes, but their views are easily refuted by simple observation of recent weather happenings. This topic is important to many scientists as they seek to gain further understanding about global warming in general, and to the people who have been or will be affected by hurricanes. Certainly no one located near the University of Miami can ignore the possibility of a change in hurricanes.