RSSNotes on a Conference
August 7th, 2007 | View Comments
On Fonts
If the only lasting contribution to academia I make is to stop people from using Comic Sans in their presentations, I will die happy. People, it is called Comic Sans because it is a sans-serif font that’s designed to look like the text in speech bubbles in comic strips. Unless your research is about comics, I’d lay off the Comic Sans. It’s unpolished (by design) and hard to read.
I was pleased to see Century Gothic, which happens to be my favorite PowerPoint font, in the keynote.
On Locations
You know you’re in Nashville when you’re staying at a place called the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center. The hotel people had gone to great lengths to beautify the inside of the place, planting gardens, digging ponds and rivers (on which they gave boat tours), installing fountains, and putting the entire thing under a giant skylight. Rooms that faced the main atriums were equipped with balconies, the better to help you enjoy the fake outdoors. There were literally buildings inside the building. You would be walking along the lamplit, tree-lined cobblestone path, and all of a sudden, there would be a full-fledged pizzeria. With a roof. Inside the hotel. Not to mention the Pub District.
The effect was nice for the first day or so, and then it started getting creepy after I realized I hadn’t spent time in the real outdoors in a couple days. I started feeling like I was living in a space colony or in some sort of biodome built after a major environmental catastrophe. Which might explain why they were trying to charge you $15 for breakfast.
On Posters
Airport security personnel must really hate research conferences, what with all the long, suspicious-looking tubes that people are trying to carry on. It’s not a pool cue! You could check it (or be forced to check it, in the case of one guy who was told the cardboard poster tube would make a good battering ram), but it counts as odd-size luggage. And that’s assuming you trust the airline not to lose it (in the case of the guy above, the airline promptly lost it after he checked it, along with his regular luggage).
Yvonne posted this on August 7th, 2007 @ 12:14pm in Graduate School | Permalink to "Notes on a Conference"
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2. Yvonne » August 7th, 2007 at 7:33 pm
Speaking of Comic Sans and ridiculous, I saw an invited speaker at the same conference last year give a presentation that was not only 100% Comic Sans, but also 100% hot pink and purple text. For all 300 words on each slide.
3. Elenita » August 7th, 2007 at 9:16 pm
Welcome back!
a presentation that was not only 100% Comic Sans, but also 100% hot pink and purple text. For all 300 words on each slide.
Oh, dear god. My eyes just threatened to take a union break and not return until I get Lasik.
I haven’t stayed at GORCC, but I know several people who have. And, assuming I’m thinking of the right place, the creepiest thing I heard over and over was how lush the fake nature was indoors and how much the outdoors lacked. Does that sound about right? If so, it’s a sad commentary on society…
4. Yvonne » August 7th, 2007 at 9:25 pm
Yep. Inside is full of beautiful—and real—tropical foliage plants, and lots of lilies and orchids.
Outside? Concrete. Some bushes. Road. And a mile of toilets.
They were remodeling.
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1. Jane Chin » August 7th, 2007 at 1:52 pm
People still use Comic Sans for their presentations?!
Actually, I’ve seen an online form from a medical accreditation association that uses comic sans for their form. It looks ridiculous, when you consider using a comic strip typeface with a serious issue like minimizing conflicts of interest in medical education. I love CG (used it for my “C” hinspirations logo for years). I also like Franklin Gothic (demi or medium condensed bc they aren’t italicized).
I’ve stayed at GORCC. It does feel like a space dome where you never have to see the real outdoors again.