2017 International Conference on
Ecology & Transportation
Beyond Boundaries:
Building on Common Ground
May 14-18, 2017
Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
GUIDELINES FOR
PODIUM AND
LIGHTNING TALK
PRESENTATIONS
Updated March 8, 2017
Organized by the
Institute for Transportation Research and Education
(ITRE) at North Carolina State University
www.icoet.net
ICOET 2017 Guidelines for Podium and Lightning Talk Presentations
Contents
OVERVIEW ............................................................................................................................................... 3
PODIUM PRESENTATIONS ...................................................................................................................... 3
LIGHTNING TALKS ................................................................................................................................ 3
PRE-CONFERENCE REQUIREMENTS ............................................................................................................ 3
SESSION DETAILS ...................................................................................................................................... 4
PREPARING YOUR COMPUTER FILES ...................................................................................................... 4
AUDIOVISUAL AND INTERNET FACILITIES ................................................................................................ 5
HANDOUTS .......................................................................................................................................... 5
SHIPPING YOUR MATERIALS ................................................................................................................. 5
DESIGNING YOUR PRESENTATION SLIDES ................................................................................................. 5
UNITS OF MEASURE .............................................................................................................................. 6
ABBREVIATIONS, ACRONYMS, SYMBOLS, AND STANDARDIZED TERMINOLOGY ...................................... 6
STYLE GUIDES ...................................................................................................................................... 6
RECOMMENDED TERMINOLOGY ............................................................................................................ 6
CLEARANCES, COPYRIGHT PERMISSION, AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................... 8
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ICOET 2017 Guidelines for Podium and Lightning Talk Presentations
Overview
This document provides guidelines to help you prepare a Podium (20-minute) or Lightning Talk (5minute) oral presentation for the ICOET 2017 conference. For information on preparing and
submitting your final abstract, optional technical paper and related materials prior to conference,
please refer to the document “Preparing Your Program Materials Packet” available in the
Resources section of the ICOET website www.icoet.net.
Podium Presentations
Scientific research papers, case studies, and similar topics are presented in 90-120 minute
podium sessions. Up to four topics are grouped per session, with 20 minutes allotted for each
presenter to address the topic and answer questions from the audience. Presenters use PowerPoint
slides and other audiovisual media to support their remarks. Abstracts or technical papers of
podium presentations are published in the ICOET online proceedings.
Lightning Talks
Lightning talks (LT) are intended to spark discussion on new ideas, emerging issues, or developing
research. Talks are allotted 5 minutes each within a 90-120 minute session, and are organized in
two or more groups. Each group of talks is followed by a brief audience discussion period; no
time is allotted between individual presentations for questions and answers. LT presenters may use
PowerPoint slides and other audiovisual media to support their remarks. Abstracts or technical
papers of lightning talks are published in the ICOET online proceedings.
Pre-Conference Requirements
Presenters must complete the following requirements by the specified dates prior to conference to
ensure that (a) your attendance and presentation at ICOET 2017 are confirmed for the program;
(b) your presentation summary, presenter name(s) and affiliation(s) are correctly listed in the
printed program booklet and on the conference website; and (c) your abstract or paper will be
published electronically in the online conference proceedings.
Where noted below, please visit the ICOET website www.icoet.net for additional information.
1. Within two (2) weeks following receipt of your invitation email to present, reply by email
to confirm or decline the invitation. If you need additional time to confirm your attendance
and travel arrangements, you must request an extension within the initial two week reply
period. ICOET will do its best to hold your place in program; however, if a reply is not
received within two weeks, your place may be re-assigned to another presenter.
2. Register as a Presenter via the ICOET website by March 15, 2017 and make your hotel
and travel arrangements to attend. When registering, you may choose the discounted
Presenter fee. Qualifying Student presenters may register at the Student fee. Registration
and hotel information are available on the ICOET website.
3. Submit a Summary paragraph (up to 75 words) of your presentation by April 15, 2017.
Submit the remaining items of your Program Materials Packet, including your final
abstract, optional technical paper, and other required documents, by April 30, 2017.
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4. Review the Program Agenda on the ICOET website to confirm the scheduled date and
time of your presentation.
5. Review these Presenter Guidelines for instructions on preparing for your presentation.
Your session moderator (once s/he is confirmed) should contact you by email prior to
conference. The moderator can help answer questions you may have about the session,
and will prepare brief introductory remarks for your presentation.
6. Contact ICOET organizing staff Andrea Jarus ([email protected]) and Eugene Murray
([email protected]) prior to conference for additional information, including special
audiovisual arrangements, to help prepare for your presentation.
Session Details
Podium and lightning talk sessions feature multiple presenting authors. Your moderator will briefly
introduce each presenter and facilitate questions and discussion with participants.


Podium presenters are allotted 20 minutes per presentation including time immediately
following your remarks for brief questions from the audience.
Lightning talk presenters are allotted 5 minutes per presentation. Following a group of
talks, there is a brief audience discussion period before the next group begins.
Please stay within your allotted time limit to respect your fellow presenters’ time in the program.
Moderators will interrupt speakers who run over time to ensure that all presentations are
completed within the session period. If there is time remaining in the session after all presentations
are completed, the moderator will invite additional audience questions and discussion on any of
the presentations.
ICOET 2017 sessions are moderated by staff from the Utah and Wyoming Departments of
Transportation, and by staff from their regional partner resource agencies. Moderator names and
organizations will be listed in the program agenda posted on the ICOET website. Moderators are
asked to contact presenters prior to conference to discuss session logistics, order of presenters,
and help answer questions you may have. If you have not communicated with your session
moderator prior to conference and have questions about your session, contact ICOET organizing
staff Andrea Jarus ([email protected]) and Eugene Murray ([email protected]) for assistance.
Preparing Your Computer Files
Presenters must bring PowerPoint presentation slides and other audiovisual files on a USB Flash
drive in Windows PC format (Microsoft Office 2013 or compatible version). PDF files also may
be used for presentation. Files will be copied from your USB drive to the hard drive of the
computer assigned to your session room, and presented from that same computer.
ICOET staff will assist you with copying and testing your file prior to your session start time, so
plan to arrive at your session room 15 minutes prior to your session to allow time to load your
presentation. Note that Apple Mac format files may not be fully compatible with Windows PC
format so cannot be supported by ICOET staff. Presenters are solely responsible for converting
Mac files to Windows PC format prior to your arrival at the conference.
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Audiovisual and Internet Facilities
Each session room will be equipped with a lectern and microphone, video projector, Windows PC
laptop w/USB drive, and projection screen. A speaker-ready room for reviewing and rehearsing
your presentation also will be available. Please note that laser pointers will not be provided;
using the computer’s mouse and the Pointer Options highlighting features of PowerPoint is
recommended to point out details on your slides.
Wireless Internet will be available in the meeting rooms; however, the WiFi signal strength and
bandwidth available at the time of your presentation cannot be guaranteed. If web access is
needed for your presentation, you are strongly encouraged to run the web files locally (from the
computer’s hard drive) rather than attempting to access the files via the WiFi connection.
If you have special audiovisual needs beyond those described here, promptly contact ICOET
organizing staff Andrea Jarus ([email protected]) and Eugene Murray ([email protected])
prior to conference. Additional fees may be required depending on your needs.
Handouts
Presenters must make their own arrangements to photocopy or print any handouts—pamphlets,
brochures, etc.—needed for their presentation. ICOET cannot provide copies of handouts.
Copying and printing facilities are available in the conference venue business center, and at
nearby off-site commercial locations, at the presenter’s expense.
Shipping Your Materials
Presenters are solely responsible for all shipping and handling charges related to handouts or
other presentation materials. Shipments originating from countries other than the US must be
cleared through US Customs (www.cbp.gov). It is the presenter’s responsibility to meet all shipping
requirements to assure that your materials arrive in time for your session.
Additional details on shipping to the conference venue is provided in the document “Sponsor
Artwork and Exhibit Space Guidelines” found in the Resources section of the ICOET website
www.icoet.net. Refer to “Shipping and Receiving of Exhibit Materials” on page 2 of the document.
Designing Your Presentation Slides
Your presentation’s subject matter will determine how many slides are needed to clearly convey
the content. As a general guideline, use as few slides as possible to present your key points. This
can help you to engage more with the audience while speaking, and avoid ‘overloading’ them
with too many slides within your limited presentation time.
A font size of 24 point or larger is recommended to make your slide text easily legible when
projected to a large audience. These font sizes also help you to fine tune the key words needed
on each slide to reinforce your talking points, and avoid creating slides that are merely a
‘verbatim’ transcription of your speech.
Sans serif font typefaces (e.g., Arial, Tahoma, Calibri) are more legible when viewing from a
distance; serif fonts (e.g., Times New Roman) can appear to blurry from several rows away in a
large meeting room. Also for legibility, avoid using all caps and do not include more than 10 lines
of text on a slide.
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Use font typefaces in PowerPoint that are standard on Microsoft Windows operating systems. If
your slides use a non-standard font(s) installed on your computer that is not installed on the ICOET
computer, a substitute font(s) will be used by the computer that may alter the appearance of your
slides. A list of typefaces included with Microsoft Windows is available on Wikipedia.
Choose font colors that contrast significantly with the slide background colors to create the best
viewing experience for your audience. Meeting room lighting conditions can vary and often have
limited dimming control, so it is best to design your slides with high contrast between the text color
and the slide background. For example, put a yellow font on a dark blue background, or a dark
brown font on an off-white background. A completely black background color is not recommended
as it can make the text difficult to read when the room lighting cannot be sufficiently dimmed.
Photos, graphics and video clips in your slides create a more visually interesting presentation for
your audience. Make sure any high-resolution photos and graphics imported into your PowerPoint
file are properly scaled down and formatted for computer screen resolution (96 dpi is
recommended). Also, minimize the use of animated slide transition animations. Following these
guidelines will help your slides to change more quickly and your presentation to run smoothly from
the laptop computer.
Units of Measure
When preparing your slides, authors are encouraged to provide measurements in both SI (metric)
and U.S. customary units. The measurement unit of the original research should be followed by the
equivalent conversion in parentheses.
Abbreviations, Acronyms, Symbols, and Standardized Terminology
Abbreviations, acronyms, and symbols used in your slides must be fully defined at first use; the full
term should be spelled out first, followed by the abbreviated term in parentheses.
Defining acronyms (e.g., NEPA, EIS, SAFETEA-LU, etc.) and technical terminology (e.g.,
streamlining, conformity, banking, etc.) is helpful to ICOET participants who may be unfamiliar
with these terms. International participants, for example, may not recognize many acronyms
common to U.S. practitioners. Using standardized terminology also helps clarify your results and
allows greater comparison between studies presented at ICOET. Refer to the Recommended
Terminology section of this document for some standardized terms to help in your presentation.
Style Guides
In matters of spelling, definition, and compounding of words, follow the Merriam-Webster’s
Collegiate Dictionary (11th edition). The Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition) should be followed
for all other matters relating to grammar, punctuation, capitalization, use of numbers, equations,
quotations, and formats for references and bibliographies.
Recommended Terminology
Use the following terminology to help in writing text for your slides. These standardized terms can
help to clarify study results and allow for greater comparison between studies presented at the
conference.
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ICOET 2017 Guidelines for Podium and Lightning Talk Presentations
1. Describe wildlife or aquatic crossing structures from the animal’s perspective rather than
the driver’s perspective, using the modifier ‘wildlife’ or ‘aquatic’ where appropriate to
help clarify the perspective.
Example: “Our study investigated the effect of vegetation at the entrances of wildlife
underpasses.”
2. Describe wildlife or aquatic crossing structure dimensions in a consistent format, especially
in tables. Describe ‘span’ (width) first, then ‘rise’ (height). Span and rise are standard
engineering terms that reduce perspective confusion. Label all numbers with dimension and
unit. Use both metric and English units, with metric units first.
Examples: “The box culvert is 6.1 m (20’) span x 2.4 m (8’) rise.” or “The bridge has a
6.1 m span by 3.0 m rise (20’ x 10’) at low water level.”
3. Use the term ‘length’ when referring to the distance of a wildlife underpass or overpass
perpendicular to the road.
Example: “The elliptical culvert is divided into two lengths by the open median.”
4. Describe measurements of structures of varying spans using the largest measurement.
Further clarification in the text may be needed for V-shaped structures or asymmetrical
shapes. Measure rises from the center of the structure.
Examples: “The span of the arch culvert is 7.6 m (25’).” or “The bridge’s rise varies from
2.4 m (8’) at water’s edge to 1 m (3.1’) at the top of the abutments.”
5. Carefully distinguish ‘underpasses,’ ‘culverts,’ ‘bridges’ and ‘fences’ because this
terminology is easily confused. The term ‘underpass’ is a general term that includes several
structure types such as culverts and bridges.
Example: “Two types of wildlife underpasses occur in the project area: bridges and pipearch culverts.”
6. Carefully distinguish between ‘ecosystem’ and ‘landscape’ because these terms are also
easily confused. An ecosystem may be defined as “the complex of a community of
organisms and its environment functioning as an ecological unit,” while Forman and Godron
(1986) define a landscape as "a heterogeneous land area composed of interacting
ecosystems that repeat in similar form throughout." Give particular attention to scale which
can differentiate an ecosystem from a landscape.
7. Describe culvert shape, size and construction materials where possible because they are
important for functionality of fauna passages.
Examples: “I measured the effectiveness of three arch culverts and one round culvert.” or
“Round corrugated metal culverts in the study area all span 1 m (39”).”
8. Differentiate between right-of-way fencing and fencing designed for wildlife, and
describe dimensions and materials.
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Example: “Wildlife fencing in the study area is 2.4 m (8’) high and constructed of woven
wire.”
9. Define categories when using relative terms where no standard categories exist, including
wildlife crossing structure sizes, traffic volume, and roadkill (carcass or crash data).
Examples: “Roadkill carcass data in this study were defined as high (>5 per km per
year), moderate (2-5 per km per year), and low (<2 per km per year).” or “Traffic
volumes were high (>10,000 ADT) on State Route 50 within the study area.”
10. Define the terms ‘effective’ and ‘effectiveness’ when used to describe your research.
Example: “In this experiment, an effective escape ramp was defined as one that produced
less than 1 minute of hesitation prior to jumping out in 50% of the animals tested.”
Clearances, Copyright Permission, and Acknowledgements
Authors must secure all necessary clearances and written permissions from any contracting or
supervisory agencies involved in the research, and from any holders of copyrights on content (e.g.,
text, photographs, tables, figures, charts, etc.) used in the author’s ICOET presentation and
published materials. Authors also must have concurrence from all coauthors, and all contributions
to the work must be properly acknowledged.
An example of a typical acknowledgment would read:
"Reprinted with permission from [Reference 32. Copyright 1983 American Institute of Physics]."
For a figure or photograph, an example of an acknowledgment would read:
"Photo (or graphic) courtesy of [Arizona DOT]."
For a table, reprinted without change, an example of an acknowledgment should read:
"Source: [Houston METRO]."
Permission is not needed for brief quotations (50 words or fewer) when the quotation is properly
referenced. Permission must be obtained for longer quotations. Material published by the U.S.
government is not usually copyrighted and, if not, does not require permission unless it credits a
previously copyrighted source.
The presentation’s primary author is required to sign and return a Presentation Copyright
Verification Form. Failure to sign and return this form will result in rejection of your presentation
materials. The Copyright Verification Form is found in the document “Preparing Your Program
Materials Packet” available in the Resources section of the ICOET website www.icoet.net.
We look forward to your presentation at the conference!
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