FERMENTATION INTERIM

Interim Report Instructions

You will report to the technical management group of your company. Depending on your results, there are two possible titles for your report:
1. Good data. Title: Analysis of yeast fermentation to produce ethanol.
2. Poor data or no data. Title: Evaluation of a teaching exercise based on yeast fermentation.
We will simulate the reporting session by meeting in the professor's office and using his computer to show your slides.
Please assume the following:

• The highest ranking executive in this meeting is not a chemical or environmental engineer. This means that you should avoid jargon and should define terms not easily understood by typical managers.
• Some members of the audience are top-notch chemical and environmental engineers. Please provide some meat to your discussions while accommodating the less technical top management people.

Grammar

Here are some do's, dont's, and suggestions:

Data. This word is plural. You will lose points with an incorrect sentence such as, "The data is in Table 3".

Utilize. A classic book by Strunk and White deplores using long words that mean the same as short words. Use means the same as utilize and is preferred. You may utilize the word utilize once or twice, but if you have a rotten sentence like this that utilizes utilize too often, expect to lose points.

Laboratory. We have clumsy jargon. A laboratory is a place. Your are reporting on a fermentation experiment or a fermentation project, not on a fermentation laboratory.

Split infinities. Years of misusage have changed the rules. It is no longer incorrect to split infinitives. Example: 1. To carelessly split an infinitive is clumsy grammar. 2. To split many infinitives carelessly will cost points. The infinitive is split in 1. Please split some infinitives when you are convinced that your sentences resonate well, but know what you are doing.

Due to. Subordinate elements of a sentence are started with due to. Example: Vigorous evolution of carbon dioxide due to metabolism of glucose resulted in a reduction of the rate of feeding fresh medium. It is better to use because or as a result of instead of due to. Bad example: Gas evolution was due to metabolism. Instead: Gas evolution resulted from metabolism. The very bad construction due to the fact that will cost you points.

Style

Pay attention to the type of sentences. Vary the types with some short, declarative sentences mixed with longer sentences. Invert word order now and then.

Select either present or past tense and do not jump back and forth.

Presentation

Most teams have used Microsoft PowerPoint. Several excellent presentations have been with HTML. An overhead projector with transparencies is discouraged.

Try to speak slowly in a deep voice. Roughly 90% of our students speak too rapidly. Try to enunciate clearly.

Always sprinkle names and dates throughout your report. Someone may find it years later and wonder what was going on.

Consider whether a handout would be valuable to the audience. An abstract and a few of the main slides might help people recall your talk.

Grading

Mastery of the medium 20%. You do not score points for fancy fades and dissolves if they detract from your train of thought. If they guide the audience and relieve tension, you will be rewarded. The same goes for animation. Moving text can sometimes be very effective, but do not use it just for the sake of showing off.

Legibility 30%. Pay strict attention to whether your slides on the computer monitor can be read from 10 feet away. Avoid lettering that it vertical.

Data quality 10%. If it is not your fault, bad data will not be penalized. However, there must be some award for good data.

Presentation skills 10%. This includes voice pitch, number of fluffs (ums and ahs), poise, gestures, eye contact, rapport with your audience. This is of great importance but is not weighted heavily because this is a learning experience. Students who have practice in public speaking have a big advantage but should not get an disproportionate reward.

Technical analysis 30%. Good engineering counts. There are several ways to organize and to develop the technical aspects of your report. Instead of providing detailed instructions, you are asked to demonstrate an effecive approach.

Tips

Smile at the start of your talk.

Try to loosen up your audience. Example: This is my first trip to Peoria, and I find your city fascinating.

Practice.

If you must read to get some parts of your talk exactly right, keep reading to an absolute minimum.

Always have an upbeat ending. Example: I will always remember this experiment, and the odor of yeast will help me to recall my happy days in the Ricketts Building.