This document provides guidance on effectively communicating data and research results. It discusses planning communication by knowing the subject, purpose, audience and setting. It also covers structuring communications through outlining and using a logical flow. Visuals should be used strategically to reinforce key points. Both oral presentations and written reports require clarity, with oral presentations focusing on a few key messages and using visual aids to support points, while writing emphasizes precise word choice and coherent paragraphs and sentences.

1. How to Effectively Communicate
Data & Research Results
Donna L. Vogel, MD, PhD
Director, Professional Development Office, JHMI
dvogel@jhmi.edu
Society of Women Engineers
October 24, 2013

2. Learning Objectives:
• Understand how communicating research is
important in achieving a successful STEM career
• Understand how to present research findings clearly
and convincingly
• Perceive the differences between visual and printed
reports and how each is best used to to convey
information

3. Planning
Structure and Content
Visuals
Speaking vs. Writing

4. One model: Jerold Apps
•Sequential – follow the outline
•Practical – remember what it’s for
•Intuitive – interactions, Q&A
Another scheme: VARK (N. Fleming)
http://www.vark-learn.com
•Visual
•Aural
•Read/Write
•Kinesthetic
•Multimodal
Adult Learning Styles

5. Planning: Before You Begin
Know your subject
Know your purpose
Know your audience
Know your setting

6. Know Your Subject
Everything flows from your message
- the Answer to your Question
Yes, you’re the expert, but -
Organize your material

7. Know Your Subject
Organize your knowledge
Think – Telling a story
Gather all information
Choose a few key points
Find evidence for each
Think sequence: Known to new
Evaluate the need to include
Outline

8. One outline strategy for a talk
(or poster):
I. Introduction (~10% of time)
II. Body (~80%)
A. Key Point
1. Supporting data or example
2. Supporting data or example
3. Significance
B. as A.
C. as A.
III. Conclusion (~10%)

9. Know Your Purpose
Subject vs. Purpose
-Subject: a concise statement of the content
-Purpose: what is gained, accomplished
Understand why you are speaking or publishing

10. Know Your Audience
• How many people?
• What is their purpose?
• What is their level of background?
• What physical materials do I want to give?
• What questions can I expect?

11. Know Your Setting
• What size is the room?
• How will seating be arranged, fixed?
• Where are the doors?
• What is the lighting, controls?
• How do I control the slides?
• What distractions?
Come early if possible
acclimate; some recommend greeting attendees

12. From Outline to Talk
• Keep a single theme
• Check outline for logical order
• Insert transitions
• Mark where visuals needed
• If it doesn’t all fit – Limit, don’t squeeze!
• Keep some for Q and A
• May make extra slides

13. Title
Abstract
Introduction
Materials & Methods
Results
Discussion
References
Structure and Content
Papers

14. Title
• How they choose to read or attend
• The first impression
• Clear, accurate statement of content
– Concise
– Interesting
– Appropriately limited

15. Abstract
• Often all that is read – indexed on Pubmed
• Must make sense alone or with the paper
• Be specific and selective
• Must contain: Question, experiments, results,
and the Answer.
• Optional: Background; implications,
speculation, recommendation if part of the
importance

16. Abstract: Writing
• Answer question as it was asked
– same verb, key terms
• Verb tense
– Present tense: question and answer
– Past tense: experiments done and results
found
• Sentence structure: short
• Word choice: simple

17. A word about Grant Abstracts
Include a background statement to orient reader
Clearly state overall hypothesis or question
Note unique or novel features
- why should they fund you?
Articulate the relevance to the agency’s mission
Give the significance of your work for the field.
Get all the reviewers on your side
Write for the generalist as well as the specialist
Use clear language
No jargon, minimal abbreviations

18. 1…,2…,3…,4…,5…
Abstract
Specific Aims Page
1
2
3
4
5

19. Introduction
The funnel
Overview – comfort zone
Known, Unknown, Question
State as Question or Hypothesis
But must contain independent and dependent
variables
As short as possible while informing the reader
May end with approach but not the Answer

20. Materials and Methods
Shows data - but also validity
Overall design – relate to your Question
Subjects, patients, animals, cells, structures
New or unusual equipment or process
Photo, drawing, diagram
Detailed experimental methods
Actual measurements and assays
Data analysis
Use past tense
Use ‘we’ (first person) if permitted

21. Results
Your Answer to the Question
Data and the text that describes them
• Start with the Answer to your Question
• Don’t start with a figure or a method.
• Don’t let the reader miss an important result
• State it, don’t make the reader figure it out
• Usually chronological, can be in order of most
to least important
• Verb tense: results are in the past

22. Discussion
Why should the reader believe your Answer?
• State the Answer to the Question and support it
• Organize as dictated by the science or
importance
• Assumptions – explain why they are reasonable
• Experimental weaknesses
• Honestly present the past evidence pro and con
• When citing support, indicate why relevant to
your work
• For contradictions, explain why they don’t
undermine your work

23. Title
Introduction
Methods
Results and Discussion
Conclusions
Structure and Content
Talks

24. Introduction
Purpose – why you did the work
Background – why your research is needed
Hook – generates interest

25. Common Intro Mistakes
• Beginning with an apology
• Asking if they can hear you
• Reading the title slide
• Omitting the Intro to save time
• Telling a joke
– unless you are truly funny and the humor is
appropriate to your talk

26. Results and Discussion
• Use the “Key Points” of your outline
• For each point
– What is the simplest way to state it?
– What examples do I have to support it?
– What is the significance
– What do I want them to do with the information?

27. Results - Do
• Use the best evidence to support your points
• Relate results to your objectives
• Results are connected
– Use transitions and titles to show how
• Use graphics to display data

28. Results – Don’t
Don’t put every datum on a slide
Don’t clutter slides
Don’t show information you know will be illegible

29. Conclusion- Do
• Give Take-Home message
• Summarize main argument, key ideas
• Discuss how findings met objective
– Did they support hypothesis, answer question
• Discuss how findings may be used
• Give something to think about

30. Conclusion- Don’t
• Don’t simply restate the results
• Don’t give more than 2-3
• Don’t “conclude” what you don’t support
• Don’t introduce new information

31. Visuals
What are visuals for?
• Slides, figures, tables are evidence for your points
• Use visuals where the information demands
– It is better understood visually
– It is important enough to reinforce visually

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33. Hours of nightly sleep according to personality type
sensing

36. Slide Do’s
• Decide: graphs, tables, photos…
• Flow charts often good for methods
• Label or title data slides using words
• For text slides: Outline only, except conclusion
– 7 x 7 rule
• Bulleted list vs. numbers
• Consistent format

37. Slide Don’ts
• Don’t be seduced by PowerPoint
• Minimize animation unless part of data
• Limit number of slides and data per slide
– No more than 1 per minute
– Show only what you need for your argument
• Words should never fly
• Don’t use too many colors or low contrast

38. Color
•
• Never use red on a dark background
–It projects poorly
–Many people are color-blind
White works in any room lighting

39. Audience
• What would make another scientist
interested/excited about my talk?
• What information (in my talk) would
another scientist be able to use?
• If we don’t ask these two questions, we
include slides like this . . .
Total ERK
PhosphoERKY202/4
PhosphoAktS473
Total Akt
Figure 5.
(a) Representative protein
microarrays stained
with antibodies for
targets indicated at
the right of each
image.
(b) A map of the case
placement on the
microarrays. A mini
dilution curve
comprised of 6 spots
was printed for each
case.
ReferenceNormalNormalReference
BRCA1ReferenceNormalBRCA1
NormalReferenceBRCA1BRCA1
NormalBRCA1ReferenceNormal
Array Map
ReferenceNormalNormalReference
BRCA1ReferenceNormalBRCA1
NormalReferenceBRCA1BRCA1
NormalBRCA1ReferenceNormal
Array Map
a.
b.

40. “Ideal” Slides
• Limit content to main point, data or text
• Background black or blue
• Sans serif font
• Centered title (30+ pt, yellow)
• Bulleted text 20/30 pt, white, Upper/lower
• Limit caps, italics, odd characters

41. Speaking vs. Writing
Good Scientific Writing= Good Writing
• Your Aim is clarity
• Get the reader with you, not against you
• See it from the reader’s viewpoint
– What kind of papers do you like to read?

42. Strategy for Writing
• Assemble your data
• Outline a first draft
• Write the first draft – get something saved
Methods
Results
Introduction
Discussion
References
Title
Abstract
• Revise for content
• Revise for style – starting with paragraphs, then
sentences, then words

43. Word choice
• Precise not vague
• Simple, not fancy or trendy
• Use necessary words
• Use abbreviations when the word is BOTH long or
awkward AND appears often
• (2-3 times in a paragraph)
• If a term is VERY long, it doesn’t have to be frequent
• Can use category words to describe a phrase or group
• Beware of commonly misused words
• Use a general prose style book such as
Strunk and White

44. Sentence Structure
• What’s the sentence about? Make the topic the subject.
• The action is in the verb. Don’t use a noun to show action.
• Other weak starts: Action given in “There is…” noun or
adjective
• Break up noun clusters
• Write short sentences
• Pronouns (they, this, that…) must clearly refer to nouns 1:1
• Use parallelism and comparisons correctly
• Subject and verb must agree and make sense

45. Paragraphs
• Topic Sentence
• What is the paragraph about?
• Without topic sentence, no sense of what paragraph
is trying to say
• Rest of sentences in paragraph support topic
sentence
• Then support or list details,
• Followed by the exceptions or “con’s”
• Beware of missing steps in the logic especially if you
are very familiar with the subject

46. The Science of Writing
(Gopen GD, Swan JA, American Scientist 78:550-558 (1990)
• Readers look for information in predictable places
• Readers have difficulty when
– The verb is far from the subject
– There is no clear topic sentence
• There is no linkage to ‘old information’
• There is no context for new information
– Important information is not in the “stress position”
– There is a gap in the logic
– The verb doesn’t state the action (…is, has…)

47. Strategy for Presenting
• The listener only retains short pieces
• The listener cannot go back and review
• Talks must be less complex
– Short sentences, familiar words, active voice
– Contractions are OK but not slang
– Avoid words that are obscure or hard to pronounce
• You must repeat for emphasis and logic
– Assume their attention will wander
• Posters – A special case – must limit words!

48. Delivery Matters
• Delivery should not make the listener work
• Good delivery can enhance understanding
• Poor delivery can undermine your credibility

49. Delivery Tips - Speech
• KEY – vary inflection
• Slow, simple, strong; pause for emphasis
• One idea per sentence
• Speak conversationally
• Eliminate um, er
• Write out and memorize beginning and end

50. Delivery Tips - Appearance
• Give someone your beeper, phone etc.
• Wear neat, comfortable, conservative clothing
• Stand naturally, do not pace
• Face the audience
• Eye contact - forehead OK
• Pick 3 friendlies; block out those asleep or rude
• Limit use of the laser pointer
• Gesture, don’t fidget

51. Speaking is stage acting
• Overdoing it? Yes!
• Show enthusiasm
• Prepare and practice
• Stay easily within your time

52. Take Home Message
You communicate research for a purpose
Skilled communication strengthens your argument