[meteorite-list] Meteorite presentations (sorry if it's long!)

From: Walter Branch <branchw_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:07:00 2004
Message-ID: <003c01c270f9$f45b7fc0$14bc5341_at_cc516468a>

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Hi Edward,

You probably did better than you think. It would be fallicious thinking =
to conclude that (a) everyone in the audience shares your enthusiasm =
about meteorites and (b) that you can persuade those who initially don't =
share your enthusiasm to be as enthusiastic as you by the time you leave =
the room.=20

I enjoy giving presentations to schools and I can tell you, with kids =
you have to lay off the details, bring plenty of samples, and be a very =
visual and animated presenter.

Remember, as a presenter, you know more about your topic than anyone =
else in the room, therefore it helps to place yourself in the position =
of your target audience, before your talk begins, to get a feel for how =
much visual vs. verbal information your audience can process.

I remember I was a nervous wreck when it came time to defend my doctoral =
dissertation before my five member dissertation committee. I was sure =
they were going to trip me up of some obscure thing I had not thought of =
and planned for. A few days before the defense, my major professor gave =
me sound advice. He reminded me that since I chose MY dissertation =
topic and I did the literature review and ran the subjects and collected =
and analyzed the data and wrote every word of the dissertation, I KNEW =
the subject better than anyone else in the room (including my major =
professor) and that I would be able to handle the defense "just fine."

He was right.

After the defense, we went out for lunch (I believe I had Shrimp Gumbo). =
 No big deal.

Bob's advice about humor and simplification are points well taken. A =
few years ago someone on the list posted a picture of an iron meteorite =
(a gibeon or a campo, I believe) lying on top of a Barney doll and he =
stated that he had conclusive proof that a large meteorite killed off =
the dinosaurs. I really liked that I and think that would make a great =
"icebreaker."

Who did that and where is the image?!

I do a lot to presentations to kids and they sometimes have trouble with =
abstract concepts. Depending on the developmental level of the class, I =
like to have kids represent planets by positioning them at relevent =
positions across the room (with a gap for the asteroid belt, later =
filled in by myself) then "set them in motion." It helps to exlpain, =
through simplification and visual aids, basic orbital mechanics and how =
meteorites could travel from the outer to inner solar system and from =
the moon and Mars to the Earth. This procedure or technique might not =
be suitable for all audiences but the point I, and Bob, am making is to =
adapt your presentation using humor and simplification.

I also bring along my magnet-on-a-stick (homemade, of course) and I =
point out that the only thing I have found with it are nails, barbed =
wire and rusty farm implements. It is another simple way to break the =
ice and get the point across (that being that one usually just does not =
walk into you back yard, stoop down, and pick up a meteorite.

Unless your back yard happens to be called "Alan Hills"!

Anway, thanks for sharing your experiences.

I would really like to hear the techniques which others list members =
have found to be useful in presenting meteorites.
 =20
Best wishes,

-Walter
-----------------------------------------------
Walter Branch, Ph.D.
Branch Meteorites
322 Stephenson Ave., Suite B
Savannah, GA 31405 USA
www.branchmeteorites.com
  ----- Original Message -----=20
  From: Edward R. Hodges=20
  To: meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com ; =
meteoritecollectorsassociation_at_yahoogroups.com=20
  Sent: Thursday, October 10, 2002 11:29 PM
  Subject: [meteorite-list] Meteorite presentations (sorry if it's =
long!)


  Hello list. It's very active today, I like that. Last night I gave a =
meteorite presentation at the San Diego Lapidary Society. It most =
certainly was not the first presentation I've ever given in front of =
people, but it was the first one about meteorites. Their general =
meeting was called to order at 7pm, and they went about their business. =
You know, Robert Rules of order kind of stuff, and a raffle. It was =
quite pleasant actually. Most of the membership is quite a bit older =
than myself and my girlfriend. One kind older gentleman came over and =
told me great stories about the meteorites he's found. Other members =
came up to me with three different rocks and asked if they were =
meteorites, unfortunately they were not and I had to be the one to break =
the bad news. I finally got to speak around 8:15pm and was quite =
nervous. I made up a packet of text that I wrote with graphics, images, =
and other statistics and passed them out. I also brought about 50 =
specimens to show around and some moldavites and tektites. I really was =
geared up to give a really great talk, I had already visualized it in my =
head. So I introduced myself, and quickly warned them that:" I have a =
tendency to go off on tangents and never come back. Oh, and I'm =
longwinded at times, so I'll be sticking to the script" So I was very =
nervous all of a sudden and started to stammer and forget the words and =
had to begin reading. I told them about the beginnings of the solar =
system, accretion, asteroids, oxygen isotopes, fall statistics, =
identifying meteorites, classification with actual samples of each =
class, chemical make -up, Prospects for life elsewhere (alh84001, =
murchison, Allende,etc.), then I told them about the new large object =
that was just announced on Monday. Wow was I imparting the goods on =
these people. Then I looked up and people were nodding off, the people =
in the back had already snuck out. I had been talking for about 45 =
minutes. I could feel that hollow pit in my stomach becoming an abysmal =
void and I was getting sucked down. I could feel the beads of sweat =
forming on my bald head, my girlfriend was staring right at me. I =
wrapped in up quickly, and asked if there were questions. The few people =
who hadn't snuck out already had plenty of questions, and some were =
quite tricky. One woman right up front told me about her grandfather =
getting his haystack burnt down by a meteor. I didn't know what to say. =
I blurted out "Really, how interesting!" It doesn't quite seem possible =
to me, but I couldn't tell her that. I think it was well past there bed =
time, because after I ended the talk they politely clapped and got the =
hell out of there. I knew as soon as I sat down in the car what had gone =
wrong. I'm very hard on myself, very critical. My girlfriend told me =
what a great job I did, which is nice and I think she was trying to be =
nice. If you are this far down into this diatribe you've probably =
already got me pegged. I'm a nervous talker, and I'm longwinded. Strike =
one. I hadn't pictured the right audience in my pre-visualization. =
Strike two. I had mistaken a meteorite talk with a meteorite lecture. =
Strike three. When I was falling asleep last night I couldn't help =
thinking that I could know so much more on the topic. I now realize that =
all that information is not the important thing. The important thing is =
that you are entertaining the audience and creating an experience that =
they will remember. If your lucky they will learn something. I'm going =
to try and keep those things in mind next time. I'll try to be more show =
and less tell. Hopefully others of you have had these types of =
experiences and would share them. Maybe some of you can offer some tips, =
or criticisms. Perhaps some of you will tell me to please not write long =
emails and send them to this list. Anyway, I hope sharing was a good =
idea.- Edward

  Edward R. Hodges
  www.meteoriteonline.com
  IMCA # 4173

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<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>Hi Edward,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>You probably did better than you =
think.&nbsp; It=20
would be fallicious thinking to conclude that (a) everyone in the =
audience=20
shares your enthusiasm about meteorites and (b) that you can persuade =
those who=20
initially don't share your enthusiasm to be as enthusiastic as you by =
the time=20
you leave the room. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>I enjoy giving presentations to schools =
and I can=20
tell you, with kids you have to lay off the details, bring plenty of =
samples,=20
and be a very visual&nbsp;and animated presenter.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>Remember, as a presenter, you know more =
about your=20
topic than anyone else in the room, therefore it helps to place yourself =
in the=20
position of your target audience, before your talk begins, to get a feel =
for how=20
much visual vs. verbal information your audience can =
process.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>I remember I was a nervous wreck when =
it came time=20
to defend my doctoral dissertation before my five member dissertation=20
committee.&nbsp; I was sure they were going to trip me up of some =
obscure thing=20
I had not thought of and planned for. A few days before the defense, my =
major=20
professor gave me&nbsp;sound advice.&nbsp; He reminded me that since I=20
chose&nbsp;MY dissertation topic and I did the literature review and=20
ran&nbsp;the subjects and collected and analyzed&nbsp;the data and wrote =
every=20
word of the dissertation, I KNEW the subject better than anyone else in =
the room=20
(including my major professor) and that I would be able to handle the =
defense=20
"just fine."</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>He was right.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>After the defense, we went out for =
lunch (I believe=20
I had Shrimp Gumbo).&nbsp; No big deal.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>Bob's advice about humor and =
simplification=20
are&nbsp;points well taken.&nbsp; A few years ago someone on the=20
list&nbsp;posted a picture of an iron meteorite (a gibeon or a campo, I =
believe)=20
lying on top of a Barney doll and he stated that he had conclusive proof =
that a=20
large meteorite killed off the dinosaurs. I really liked that I and =
think that=20
would make a great "icebreaker."</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>Who did that and where is the =
image?!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>I do a lot to presentations to kids and =
they=20
sometimes have trouble with abstract concepts.&nbsp; Depending on the=20
developmental level of the class, I like to have kids represent planets =
by=20
positioning them at relevent positions&nbsp;across the room (with a gap =
for the=20
asteroid belt, later filled in by myself) then "set them in =
motion."&nbsp; It=20
helps to exlpain, through simplification and visual aids, basic orbital=20
mechanics and how meteorites could travel from the outer to inner solar=20
system&nbsp;and from the moon and Mars to the Earth.&nbsp; =
This&nbsp;procedure=20
or technique might not be suitable for all audiences but the point I, =
and=20
Bob,&nbsp;am making&nbsp;is to adapt your presentation using humor and=20
simplification.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>I also bring along my magnet-on-a-stick =
(homemade,=20
of course) and I point out that the only thing I have found with&nbsp;it =
are=20
nails, barbed wire and rusty farm implements.&nbsp; It is another simple =
way to=20
break the ice and get the point across (that being =
that&nbsp;one&nbsp;usually=20
just does not walk into you back yard, stoop down, and pick up a=20
meteorite.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>Unless&nbsp;your back yard happens to =
be called=20
"Alan Hills"!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>Anway, thanks for sharing your=20
experiences.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>I would really like to hear the =
techniques which=20
others list members have found to be useful in presenting=20
meteorites.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>&nbsp; </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>Best wishes,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial=20
size=3D2>-Walter</FONT><BR>----------------------------------------------=
-<BR>Walter=20
Branch, Ph.D.<BR>Branch Meteorites<BR>322 Stephenson Ave., Suite =
B<BR>Savannah,=20
GA&nbsp; 31405 USA<BR><A=20
href=3D"http://www.branchmeteorites.com">www.branchmeteorites.com</A></DI=
V>
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=3Dltr=20
style=3D"PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; =
BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
  <DIV=20
  style=3D"BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: =
black"><B>From:</B>=20
  <A title=3Dedwardrhodges1_at_san.rr.com=20
  href=3D"mailto:edwardrhodges1_at_san.rr.com">Edward R. Hodges</A> </DIV>
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A=20
  title=3Dmeteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com=20
  =
href=3D"mailto:meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com">meteorite-list@meteor=
itecentral.com</A>=20
  ; <A title=3Dmeteoritecollectorsassociation_at_yahoogroups.com=20
  =
href=3D"mailto:meteoritecollectorsassociation_at_yahoogroups.com">meteoritec=
ollectorsassociation_at_yahoogroups.com</A>=20
  </DIV>
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Thursday, October 10, =
2002 11:29=20
  PM</DIV>
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> [meteorite-list] =
Meteorite=20
  presentations (sorry if it's long!)</DIV>
  <DIV><BR></DIV>
  <DIV><FONT face=3D"Arial Black">Hello list. It's very active today, I =
like that.=20
  Last night I gave a meteorite presentation at the San Diego Lapidary =
Society.=20
  It most certainly was not the first presentation I've ever given in =
front of=20
  people, but it was the first one about meteorites.&nbsp; Their general =
meeting=20
  was called to order at 7pm, and they went about their business. You =
know,=20
  Robert Rules of order kind of stuff, and a raffle. It was quite =
pleasant=20
  actually. Most of the membership is quite a bit older than myself and =
my=20
  girlfriend. One kind older gentleman came over and told me great =
stories about=20
  the meteorites he's found. Other members came up to me with three =
different=20
  rocks and asked if they were meteorites, unfortunately they were not =
and I had=20
  to be the one to break the bad news. I finally got to speak around =
8:15pm and=20
  was quite nervous. I made up a packet of text that I wrote with =
graphics,=20
  images, and other statistics and passed them out. I also brought about =
50=20
  specimens to show around&nbsp;and some&nbsp;moldavites and tektites. I =
really=20
  was geared up to give a really great talk, I had already visualized it =
in my=20
  head. So I introduced myself, and quickly warned them that:" I have a =
tendency=20
  to go off on tangents and never come back. Oh, and I'm longwinded at =
times, so=20
  I'll be sticking to the script" So I was very nervous all of a sudden =
and=20
  started to stammer and forget the words and had to begin reading. I =
told them=20
  about the beginnings of the solar system, accretion, asteroids, oxygen =

  isotopes, fall statistics, identifying meteorites, classification with =
actual=20
  samples of each class, chemical make -up, Prospects for life elsewhere =

  (alh84001, murchison, Allende,etc.), then I told them about the new =
large=20
  object that was just announced on Monday. Wow was I imparting the =
goods on=20
  these people. Then I looked up and people were nodding off, the people =
in the=20
  back had already snuck out. I had been talking for about 45 minutes. I =
could=20
  feel that hollow pit in my stomach becoming an abysmal void and I was =
getting=20
  sucked down. I could feel the beads of sweat forming on my bald head, =
my=20
  girlfriend was staring right at me. I wrapped in up quickly, and asked =
if=20
  there were questions. The few people who hadn't snuck out already had =
plenty=20
  of questions, and some were quite tricky. One woman right up front =
told me=20
  about her grandfather getting his haystack burnt down by a meteor. I =
didn't=20
  know what to say. I blurted out "Really, how interesting!" It doesn't =
quite=20
  seem possible to me, but I couldn't tell her that. I think it was well =
past=20
  there bed time, because after I ended the talk they politely clapped =
and got=20
  the hell out of there. I knew as soon as I sat down in the car what =
had gone=20
  wrong. I'm very hard on myself, very critical. My girlfriend told me =
what a=20
  great job I did, which is nice and I think she was trying to be nice. =
If you=20
  are this far down into this diatribe you've probably already got me =
pegged.=20
  I'm a nervous talker, and I'm longwinded. Strike one. I hadn't =
pictured the=20
  right audience in my pre-visualization. Strike two. I had mistaken a =
meteorite=20
  talk with a meteorite lecture. Strike three. When I was falling asleep =
last=20
  night I couldn't help thinking that I could know so much more on the =
topic. I=20
  now realize that all that information is not&nbsp;the important thing. =
The=20
  important thing is that&nbsp;you are entertaining the audience and =
creating an=20
  experience that they will remember. If your lucky they will learn =
something.=20
  I'm going to try and keep those things in mind next time. I'll try to =
be=20
  more&nbsp;show and less tell. Hopefully others of you have had these =
types of=20
  experiences and would share them. Maybe some of you can offer some =
tips, or=20
  criticisms. Perhaps some of you will tell me to please not write long =
emails=20
  and send them to this list. Anyway, I hope sharing was a good idea.-=20
  Edward</FONT></DIV>
  <DIV><FONT face=3D"Arial Black"></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
  <DIV><FONT face=3D"Arial Black">Edward R. Hodges</FONT></DIV>
  <DIV><FONT face=3D"Arial Black"><A=20
  =
href=3D"http://www.meteoriteonline.com">www.meteoriteonline.com</A></FONT=
></DIV>
  <DIV><FONT face=3D"Arial Black">IMCA # 4173</FONT></DIV>
  <DIV><FONT face=3D"Arial =
Black"></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>

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Received on Fri 11 Oct 2002 03:43:56 AM PDT


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