Write on target. We can even answer rhetorical questions.

1. Write on target. We can even answer rhetorical questions. 458-1455 writingcenter.tamu.edu

2. Research Posters http://nia.ecsu.edu/ur/0708/07summerinterns/tetwalker-poster.jpg

3. Posters = Text + Visuals http://www.ot.utoronto.ca/iatsl/projects/images/autism_poster_aug2006_large.jpg

4. How Is a Poster Used? Usually displayed at meeting or conferences in a large exhibit area with many other posters and presenters. Attendees read them at will. Your poster needs to attract and keep attention. During scheduled poster session times, presenters stand with the posters and explain them to interested attendees. They also answer questions.

5. Audience Considerations Know who your most likely audience will be before you write. Keep in mind that the expert will want to know facts, figures, and explanations. The non-expert will want to know results or applications. Target the audience with your content, style, word choice, and visuals.

6. What To Include Follow the IMRAD format: Introduction Methods Results and Discussion From: http://luyenkim.net/home9/images/fbfiles/ images/imrad_format.jpg

7. Tips • Use bullets, white space, italics, bold, underlining, and headings to guide the eye. Use them consistently. • Don’t crowd text and visuals together. • Maintain ample margins.

8. Original The ideal anesthetic should quickly make the patient unconscious but allow a quick return to consciousness, have few side effects, and be safe to handle. Revised Ideal anesthetics • Quick sedation • Quick recovery • Few side effects • Safe to handle Short and Sweet

9. Title(96) Headings (36) Body Text (32) Font type and size Headings of the same level of importance should be the same size and font type. Sans-serif fonts like Calibri are preferred for headings, and serif fonts like Times New Roman are preferred for body text. Avoid fancy fonts like Bauhaus 93 or Brush Script MT.

10. Style • Make your paragraphs short and your sentences concise while conveying all necessary information. • Make lists parallel. • Proofread. • Use color and visuals to add interest and catch attention, but make sure they’re related to your purpose and message.

11. Visuals Are Key Visual elements should be: Legible from a distance Designed to convey the gist of your message Properly cited and labeled Use color purposefully to: Show connections Guide the audience through the poster Highlight Create a mood or suggest a theme

12. You critique the following posters.

13. From: http://www.writing.engr.psu.edu/samples/couch.pdf

14. Splitting of the cotyledon Splitting of the cotyledon Splitting of the seed coat Evaluation of Legume Cooking CharacteristicsUsing a Rapid Screening Method. H.S.Yeung1, R.W.Waniska2, J.Ehlers3 • 1. Hway-Seen Yeung, Masters Degree Candidate, Cereal Quality Lab, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843-2474. Telephone (979) 845-2925 • 2. Ralph Waniska, PhD, Cereal Quality Lab, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843-2474. Telephone (979) 845-2925 • 3. Jeff Ehlers, Department of Botany and Plant Sciences, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, California 92521-0124 Table 5. Cooking Qualities of Cowpeas • Introduction: 7.Sensory evaluation 2. Samples of 5 g from each variety; placed into plastic bags containing 3 punched holes • Improvement of legume varieties is necessary to overcome challenges of new diseases and achieve higher yields. Most legumes are consumed as cooked seeds; consumer preferences for legume products should be incorporated earlier in the breeding process. Methods to rapidly determine these attributes are needed in order to quantify consumer preferences. • The Mattson cooker, which uses weighted plungers, is used to measure one cooking quality attribute, cooking time. • The goal of the proposed research was to develop an effective, low-cost method to analyze the cooking quality attributes of legumes. About 25 samples were evaluated during an 8 hr period. Samples were rated for aroma intensity, the number of split seed coats and cotyledons, turbidity of the broth, cooked doneness, and hardness. 3. Plastic bags were filled with 60 mL of water and soaked overnight for 16 hr Results: Table 1: Undercooked Cowpeas Cooked 5 Additional Minutes 4. Bags were held by rods in a large cooking container and boiled until the majority of the seeds were fully cooked Table 2: Overcooked Cowpeas Cooked 5 Minutes Less Table 3:Fall Coachella Valley 5. Broth was drained from plastic bags through a punched hole • Objectives: • Note: • Dark blue indicates values from the top 20% of samples • Light blue indicates values from the lower 20% of samples • Upper values are significantly different than lower values • Use a rapid screening method to evaluate the cooking quality attributes of cowpeas (Vigna unguiculata). • Determine the effect location and cooking time hsve on cowpea cooking qualities. Table 4: UC Riverside • Conclusions: • The rapid, low-cost method allows a trained person to evaluate multiple cooking properties of 25 samples within 8 hours • The method differentiated varieties according to cooking properties • Seeds grown in different locations yielded different cooking qualities • It was worthwhile to add 5 min cooking time to undercooked seeds • But not worthwhile to cook overcooked seeds 5 min less Methods: 6. Seeds and their broth were placed in individual bowls • Observations: • Increasing cook time to achieve doneness improved cooking qualities (Table 1, 2) • Two locations yielded different cooking qualities of the same variety (Table 3, 4) • Varieties differed in their cooking attributes (Table 5) • The texture of cooked cowpeas showed a negative correlation with the amount of water absorbed during soaking (Sefa-Dedeh et al 1978) • Splitting negatively correlated with broth opacity • Doneness and texture negatively correlate with brix 1. Intact seeds were selected from 25 cowpea varieties and a reference cowpea sample Acknowledgements: Bean and Cowpea CRSP for partial financial support; Dr. Agnes Mwangwela and Dr. Amanda Minnaar for their assistance in method development; Texture Technologies Corp., Scarsdale, NY/Stable Micro Systems, Godalming, Surrey, UK).

15. From: http://www.owlnet.rice.edu/%7Ecainproj/images/gallery/fallen_women_md.gif

16. Award Winning Poster http://www.bar.gov.ph/images/Poster%20PSSN%20May%2008%20final.jpg

17. Easy to Follow Layouts left-to-right flow in vertical columns

18. left-to-right flow • in horizontal rows

19. two fields • in contrast http://rainelaw.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/research-poster.jpg

20. centered image • with explanations

21. Poster Presentation Tips Practice short (2 minute) and long (10 minute) versions of your explanation. Anticipate questions you might get and how you will answer them.

22. Poster Presentation Tips Do not block or read from the poster, but do point out figures and use them in your explanation Make sure you can sum up your poster’s key points and conclusion in 2-3 sentences

23. Resources http://www.kumc.edu/SAH/OTEd/jradel/Poster_Presentations/110.html Maintained by Kansas University Medical Center Focuses on how to design a poster for an oral presentation with helpful tips grouped under appropriate menus http://www.ncsu.edu/project/posters/examples/ Includes examples with detailed commentary about their strengths and weaknesses

24. Don’t Forget We are here to help with any of your writing concerns. Check us out on… 214 Evans Library | 205 West Campus Library writingcenter.tamu.edu | 979-458-1455