Florida or bust February 18, 2013
Posted by mareserinitatis in engineering, research.Tags: conference, Florida, harry potter, presentations
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After my lamentation that I had nothing to write about, I realized I was actually wrong. This week, I have to write up an abstract for a talk I was invited to give at one of the primary conferences in my field. Amazingly, I’ve never been to the conference. This is because the conference is always held in Orlando, and on top of the fact that I don’t tend to go to a lot of conferences, this one is particularly expensive. I consider it every year and decide against it despite the fact that I’ve never been to that part of the country before.
However, I was invited this time. Or I should say, both Mike and I were invited. The project was mine, however, so I get to be the unlucky one to give the talk. I’m not one that relishes giving talks. Teaching is fine, but it’s a whole different ball of wax to give talks in front of peers. I know I can’t be the only one that feels this way.
The up side is that the Minion will hopefully be there, and there are apparently plans afoot to hit Harry Potter World. I may get to accompany him so that he doesn’t look like a creeper around all the kids. Is it horrible to admit that might be more fun than a conference?
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I remember my first conference presentation as a young pup in grad school. My legs were shaking but my gf at the time (now wife) said she didn’t notice it. I spoke too fast and zipped through the transparencies (yes, good old fashioned transparencies on an overhead projector), which was a big mistake. It just left that much more time for the audience to ask questions.
Have fun in Florida. Orlando is one big giant gaudy tourist trap, but I had nevertheless. A side trip to Kennedy Space Center is a worthy experience for any engineer.
Yeah, the tourist trap thing doesn’t appeal, but I was thinking about KSC.
I really don’t like giving presentations. I do a reasonable job (I’ve been told) and the rehearsed parts are fine. I just hate the questions afterwards. I’m not one to think quickly on my feet, prefer to ponder things, and that never looks good.