“The Attackers” (Russian tv series) gets me hooked
/in BLOG: Art & Observations /by olleI’ve enjoyed the Russian tv-series The Attackers immensely (on Amazon Prime, Sweden).
A bit sentimental, patriotic and over-simplified, of course (and with sometimes cheesy CGI effects). But still a very good reminder about life during The Great Patriotic War and the hardships of the Eastern front. And the actors are top-notch. It illustrates things as the ruthlessness of the Commissar system, the intense and short-lived love relations in the shadow of death, the tension between civilians and combatants and – last but not least – that war chisels out the true character of people. Are you decent or are you an asshole? Life during wartime will tell.
Stockholm & Bosön, 7 August 2018
/in Feedback ENG /by olleHi guys!.
Always great to meet the IoT influencers of tomorrow at KTH and Bosön! Good luck with your projects in the intersection between business and R&D. Feel free to connect on LinkedIn, and don’t hesitate to get in touch if you want to have a discussion about practical case stories where skillful communication plays an central part.
O.
olle@bergman.com
se.linkedin.com/in/ollebergman/en
instagram.com/generalblom
My slides
Information design
- Basic graphic design: Contrast, Repetition, Alignment, Proximity
A chapter from a book by Garr Reynolds. - Remove to Improve
The video we studied during the workshop to demonstrate the data to ink ratio – great stuff!
Presentations
- Ten tricks to have your audience hang on your lips
Tips from the Belgian company The Floor is Yours - presentationskills.me
Hard-earned experience from Lale Byquist - The magic Washing Machine
My favourite presentation by Hans Rosling
Famous statue in Stockholm – perhaps a metaphor for the entrepreneur in you who want to break free? (Instagram: generalblom)
Hillerød, 8 June 2018
/in Feedback ENG /by olleThanks for a great day in Hillerød. Below, you will find my PPt slides as well as some links which may be useful.
Good luck with your research & feel free to email me for feedback on your PPt slides or any other communication questions.
O.
olle@bergman.com
se.linkedin.com/in/ollebergman/en
instagram.com/generalblom
My slides
A PPt for scientific presentations
This template is based on chapter 16 in Matt Carter’s Designing Science Presentations. Matt is an assistant professor of biology at Williams College, Massachusetts and a great guy!
Information design
- Basic graphic design: Contrast, Repetition, Alignment, Proximity
A chapter from a book by Garr Reynolds. - Remove to Improve
The video we studied during the workshop to demonstrate the data to ink ratio – great stuff!
Presentations
- Ten tricks to have your audience hang on your lips
Tips from the Belgian company The Floor is Yours - presentationskills.me
Hard-earned experience from Lale Byquist - The magic Washing Machine
My favourite presentation by Hans Rosling
![](https://www.ollebergman.se/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-16-at-15.39.18-1028x1030.png)
June evening in Råby-Rekarne socken, east of Eskilstuna. In the distance, two cranes were dancing in the marshy fields.
Rays*, Strängnäs, 3 juli, 2018
/in Feedback SWE /by olleHej allesammans!
Tack för en trevlig kväll i Strängnäs! Jag var imponerad av responsen på övningarna där grupperna gav många genomtänkta och kreativa svar. Massor av bra frågor fick jag också!
Att tänka på när ni förbereder er presentation:
- Sätt inte igång med att göra föreläsningsbilder i PowerPoint. Fundera istället över hur ni ska lägga upp alltsammans. Stå gärna gärna vid en whiteboard-tavla och spåna med pennan i hand. Post-it-lappar är också ett utmärkt hjälpmedel: skriv en sak på varje lapp och strukturera sedan innehållet så att det får
• en motiverande och intresseväckande början
• ett par delavsnitt som tar åhöraren från där de befinner sig kunskapsmässigt till en ny plats.
• en avslutning (som gärna får anknyta till inledningen).
Nu, när ni har en tydlig plan, kan ni sätta igång PowerPoint och börja producera bilder. - Tänk visuellt! Bilder och rekvisita är mycket intressantare än punktlistor.
- Ha hela tiden målgruppen i tankarna. Ta gärna kontakt med någon som kan vara testpublik via Skype och återkoppla. (Förslagsvis någon som inte har tid att gå på avslutningen på Tekniska Museet!)
- Balansera det seriösa och det underhållande. Humor och effekter är bra, men kom ihåg att de roliga och spektakulära inslagen ska vara verktyg för att få fram det vetenskapliga innehållet, inte tvärt om.
Lycka till & så ses vi på fredag nästa vecka då jag kommer och hejar på er!
O.
olle@bergman.com
se.linkedin.com/in/ollebergman/en
@OlleBergmanSE
Mina föreläsningsbilder
****************************************
Här följer lite av varje som kan vara värdefullt om ni är intresserade av kommunikation av vetenskap.
Beta versions (i.e. work in progress) of some online documents
Please feel free to distribute and send feedback!
Useful stuff
- How to succeed in interviews
- Better Posters
- My favorite presentation by Hans Rosling
- About topic sentences
- The inverted pyramid
- Short BBC tutorial on how to write a newspaper report
- A great piece on mentoring
- Your Linkedin headline – some tips
- The Diana YK Chan headline method – 3+1
- Tips for your academic LinkedIn profile (a bit old but still useful)
Rhetoric
- I recommend this audiobook which you can download for free from Audible (if you’re a new customer): A Way with Words.
- Another good book in English: You Talkin’ to me?
Books on scientific peer-to-peer communication
Some recent pieces by yours truly
- Communication of Science: Out with the old and in with the new!
- Three percent of the budget set aside for professional communication services
- Chapters about digitalization in research and healthcare in Cancerfondsrapporten
TEDx talk, Poland 2017
Crastina
I currently put a lot of effort into Crastina—a networking platform for the exchange of knowledge, skills, experience, and opinion regarding scientific communication and science dissemination. The primary target group is early career scientists, but here you can find stuff which is useful for everybody with an interest in communication. (The name comes from Scientia Crastina, Latin for ‘The Science of Tomorrow’)
There are several ways to engage in the Crastina network activities – please get in touch if you’re interested.
A cultural heritage of Sweden: the wooden houses painted in Falu rödfärg, based on a unique pigment of finely divided hematite.
[https://www.instagram.com/generalblom/]
Solna, 7 Juni 2018
/in Feedback ENG /by olleIt was great to meet you, this warm June day in Stockholm! Below, you will find my PPt slides as well as some links which may be useful.
Good luck with your summer projects. As I said: feel free to email me for feedback on your PPt slides or poster design.
O.
olle@bergman.com
se.linkedin.com/in/ollebergman/en
instagram.com/generalblom
My slides
A PPt for scientific presentations
This template is based on chapter 16 in Matt Carter’s Designing Science Presentations. Matt is an assistant professor of biology at Williams College, Massachusetts and a great guy!
Presentations
- Ten tricks to have your audience hang on your lips
Tips from the Belgian company The Floor is Yours - presentationskills.me
Hard-earned experience from Lale Byquist - The magic Washing Machine
My favourite presentation by Hans Rosling
Posters
- Tips for a readable poster
A Swedish classic – a bit old, but still very useful. - How to win a scientific poster contest
More advice from The Floor is Yours - How to create a beautiful scientific poster?
Advice from Pieter Torrez, marine biologist & graphic artist - Better Posters
Tons of advice from Zen Faulkes, University of Texas Rio Grande.
![](https://www.ollebergman.se/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-16-at-15.39.18-1028x1030.png)
June evening in Råby-Rekarne socken, east of Eskilstuna. In the distance, two cranes were dancing in the marshy fields.
Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, 14 May, 2018
/in Feedback ENG /by olleHi everybody,
Thanks for a great morning in Huddinge. I’m looking forward to your presentations.
O.
olle@bergman.com
se.linkedin.com/in/ollebergman/en
@OlleBergmanSE
My slides
Beta versions (i.e. work in progress) of some online documents
Please feel free to distribute and send feedback!
Useful stuff
- How to succeed in interviews
- Better Posters
- My favorite presentation by Hans Rosling
- About topic sentences
- The inverted pyramid
- Short BBC tutorial on how to write a newspaper report
- A great piece on mentoring
Rhetoric
- (EN) I recommend this audiobook which you can download for free from Audible (if you’re a new customer): A Way with Words.
- (EN) Another good book in English: You Talkin’ to me?
- (SE) UR har sänt intressanta program om retorik, bland annat Tala ut (pdf-handledning).
Books on scientific peer-to-peer communication
Some recent pieces by yours truly
- Communication of Science: Out with the old and in with the new!
- Three percent of the budget set aside for professional communication services
- Chapters about digitalization in research and healthcare in Cancerfondsrapporten
TEDx talk, Poland 2017
Crastina
I currently put a lot of effort in Crastina—a networking platform for the exchange of knowledge, skills, experience, and opinion regarding scientific communication and science dissemination. The primary target group is early career scientists, but here you can find stuff which is useful for everybody with an interest in communication. (The name comes from Scientia Crastina, Latin for ‘The Science of Tomorrow’)
There are several ways to engage in the Crastina network activities – please get in touch if you’re interested.
Kvällssol i Mesta skog, Eskilstuna.
[https://www.instagram.com/generalblom/]
Kræftens Bekæmpelse, Copenhagen, 10 April, 2018
/in Feedback ENG /by olleHi everybody,
Thanks for a challenging, but extraordinarily interesting day with two workshops and one lecture, addressing some very qualified people. As I always need ”news from the front”, please feel free to get in touch if you’re preparing a poster or talk, or have questions about your communication strategy.
Thanks for having me & på gensyn!
O.
olle@bergman.com
se.linkedin.com/in/ollebergman/en
@OlleBergmanSE
From the workshops & lectures
Beta versions (i.e. work in progress) of some online documents
Please feel free to distribute and send feedback!
Useful stuff
- How to succeed in interviews
- Better Posters
- My favorite presentation by Hans Rosling
- About topic sentences
- The inverted pyramid
- Short BBC tutorial on how to write a newspaper report
- A great piece on mentoring
- Your Linkedin headline – some tips
- The Diana YK Chan headline method – 3+1
- Tips for your academic LinkedIn profile (a bit old but still useful)
Rhetoric
- I recommend this audiobook which you can download for free from Audible (if you’re a new customer): A Way with Words.
- Another good book in English: You Talkin’ to me?
Books on scientific peer-to-peer communication
Some recent pieces by yours truly
- Communication of Science: Out with the old and in with the new!
- Three percent of the budget set aside for professional communication services
- Chapters about digitalization in research and healthcare in Cancerfondsrapporten
TEDx talk, Poland 2017
Crastina
I currently put a lot of effort in Crastina—a networking platform for the exchange of knowledge, skills, experience, and opinion regarding scientific communication and science dissemination. The primary target group is early career scientists, but here you can find stuff which is useful for everybody with an interest in communication. (The name comes from Scientia Crastina, Latin for ‘The Science of Tomorrow’)
There are several ways to engage in the Crastina network activities – please get in touch if you’re interested.
A cultural heritage of Sweden: the wooden houses painted in Falu rödfärg, based on a unique pigment of finely divided hematite.
[https://www.instagram.com/generalblom/]
KTH, Stockholm 20 mars 2018
/1 Comment/in Feedback ENG /by olleTack för en trevlig förmiddag i Stockholm! Thanks for a great morning in Stockholm!
Below, you’ll find the slides from our workshop together with some useful links.
Good luck with your communication and don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have reflections or questions.
Olle B.
olle@bergman.com
070-888 55 41
My slides
Writing
- (EN) Nielsen Norman Group: Inverted Pyramid
- (EN) Karolinska: About topic sentences
- (EN) Karolinska: Academic Writing
- (EN) KTH: References for Academic Writing
- (EN) KTH: A loong list of links about communication
- (EN) Five rules of effective writing from George Orwell
- (SE) 5 TIPS om skiljetecken från (min hustru) Lotten Bergman
- (EN) A piece by yours truly: Lamenting the Wordiness of Learned People
Rhetoric
- (EN) I recommend this audiobook which you can download for free from Audible (if you’re a new customer): A Way with Words.
- (EN) Another good book in English: You Talkin’ to me?
- (SE) UR har sänt intressanta program om retorik, bland annat Tala ut (pdf-handledning).
Communication of Science: Out with the old and in with the new!
/in BLOG: The Craft of Communication /by olleThis post was originally published in Swedish at the Vetenskap & Allmänhet website. “VA is an independent Swedish non-profit membership organization that works to promote dialogue and openness between researchers and the public.”
I harp on about it all the time, so I may as well carry on here too: The research community today is weighed down by a communication culture that is not only unnecessarily restrained but in many ways outdated.
In part, I’m talking about the forums where researchers get together to present data and discuss results (peer-to-peer scientific communication). Here are some examples: text-heavy layout in scientific journals, overloaded research posters, and general lack of boldness and imagination when it comes to how to deliver a powerful presentation.
And secondly, I’m talking about the dialogue between researchers and the world (science dissemination). Here, a devoted vanguard of educators are doing an amazing job, but at the same time too many researchers still undervalue and neglect EPO (Education and Public Outreach).
Now I’m not saying that things are as bad in Sweden as they are elsewhere. In fact, when you raise your gaze and peer out over the world, a clear pattern emerges: the more hierarchical, tradition-bound and prestige-oriented the academy is, the duller and more austere is its culture. To illustrate this, here’s a little story that reached me from a former communist country. The old professor, who was very influential in his country’s scientific community, was not interested in learning about presentation techniques; He believed that data and results should speak for themselves. He even implied that communication training is a way of obtaining illicit advantages.
Unfortunately, it’s not just former Eastern bloc professors in gray gabardine who oppose progressive ideas. The American researcher and communicator Adria Le Boeuf – who has tirelessly engaged in outreach activities such as improvisational theater in Lausanne – wrote the following in an article (link below): “In research, we are accustomed to the driest possible presentation of results: the scientific paper. When findings are presented clearly, in simple language, with a hint of storytelling or charisma, many scientists feel practically manipulated.”
Despite all this, I’m not particularly worried about the future. Students and younger researchers have grown up in a completely different world. They find it natural for explanatory graphics to replace text (visual abstracts, for example) and for research posters to consist of headlines for interesting projects rather than complete information. They have studied TED/TEDx presentations on YouTube and understand the value of a passionate and individual lecturing style. Many of them see their bachelors, masters or Ph.D. as a platform for career roles where communication is at the center – from entrepreneurship right through to science journalism.
In fact, I would like to say that it is a privilege for all of us to find ourselves in this period of upheaval – out with the old and in with the new!
Olle Bergman, freelance writer and lecturer; project leader of Crastina – “the new wave of communicators of science”. (Translation from Swedish by Michael Hinton)
Recent Posts
- Amgen Scholars, Karolinska, June–August 2023 19 July, 2023
- Summer Research School for high school students, Karolinska Institutet, Solna, 22 June 2023 29 June, 2023
- Karolinska 14 June 2023 15 June, 2023
- DTU Biosustain 5 December 2022, Poster Improvement Workshop 7 December, 2022
- SciLifeLab Facility Forum, Djurönäset, 17 October 2022 21 October, 2022