Observational Study: Presenters

A post by Mr. Opinion, contributing blogger

Today I was subjected to a new kind of miscellaneour. The presenter miscellaneour. Specifically the researcher/academic who tries to present but is entirely lacking in presentation skills. Why didn't you prepare for your presentation? Why do you insist on messing up and then reminding us: "I'd like to keep this an informal presentation"? Why do you assume the audience knows what you're even saying? Did you ask if we were familiar with the topic? Why do you keep telling me: "This is a bad slide, I'll explain it"? These questions were running through my mind as I sat in a grey room, under fluorescent lights, listening to some presenter miscellaneours.

I honestly have no idea what they presented, they lost me right from the start. However their horrible presentation skills did allow me time to a) draft this post and b) observe the people around me.

Here's what I observed:

The Sleeping Guy was there. He doesn't snore, but he does sleep a lot. Too bad he was right in the presenters line of sight, that must have been discouraging for them (not that I care).

Who is the girl with the pink panties?

The guy with Zebra and Tiger striped frames for his glasses is here. But why would a man buy such frames? And does he expect to be taken seriously?

There's the guy who looks like he still plays Dungeons and Dragon's in his mom's basement on Friday nights. Must eat a lot of Burger King, too. Oh man, did he just scratch himself with his pen? Yep, and he's still doing it.

Turns out the third presenter was a woman. Fooled me.

Those are the highlights; suffice it to say I was trapped in a room full of freaks and geeks. I can only hope that none of it rubbed off - I have an image to maintain you know.