Presentation
      The students are expected to present their papers during the Presentation Days (to be announced later) in front of an audience consisting of mathematics faculty and students. The students are also expected to attend the presentations of the other students taking the senior seminar.
      Method of evaluation
             The student's presentation will be evaluated by the mathematics faculty based on:
      • Its structure,
      • Engagement of the audience
      • Demonstration of mathematical comprehension and problem-solving ability
      • Style, and
      • Level of difficulty.

      Structure
      • The presentation should begin with an introduction that describes the material to be presented, clearly states the objectives of the presentation, and states any special techniques to be used by the speaker.
      • Following the introduction, the presentation should have an identifiable body that focuses on the main points with logical transitions between the key ideas.
      • As appropriate, the speaker identifies specific applications, related questions, or directions for future development.
      • Following the introduction, the paper has an identifiable body that focuses on the main points with logical and clear transitions between them.
      • The presentation should be 15 minutes in length including a 3-4 minute question and answer period.

      Engagement of the audience
      • The presentation should be delivered in such a way as to assure its understanding by the audience.
      • The speaker should assume that the listeners have solid mathematical reasoning skills and have been exposed to the ideas of calculus and the fundamentals of logic, sets, and proofs. The presenter should not assume that members of the audience have any specific detailed background on the subject matter.
      • The speaker should provide appropriate review or development of any specific background necessary for understanding the material in the presentation.
      • The speaker may use note cards, and other forms of support as appropriate, but should speak to members of the audience as opposed to reading the paper.
      • The speaker should maintain eye contact during the presentation and should make an effort to include everyone in the audience.
      • The speaker should invite questions and comments, specifically at the conclusion of the presentation, and the speaker should treat all questions and questioners with respect.

      Demonstration of mathematical comprehension and problem-solving ability
      • If the presentation is to communicate an overview of the entire topic through a selection of definitions and theorems, then the speaker should explain the central concepts and results formally and accurately, and should provide appropriate examples to illustrate them.
      • If the presentation is to communicate an overview of the whole topic, but the mathematical treatment is more informal, then the speaker should introduce central concepts and results through examples and informal statements designed to stimulate intuitive understanding.
      • If a formal proof is part of the presentation, then the speaker should demonstrate a clear understanding of the way that definitions and prior results are applied in the course of the proof.
      • The speaker should respond appropriately and correctly (within the scope of the student's research) to questions during the question and answer period.
      • The speaker should identify, in the course of the presentation, the key issues of their topic/problem and the steps they took to resolve those issues.

      Style
      • The speaker should speak clearly and loudly enough for all audience members to hear.
      • The presentation should be delivered with sufficient clarity and professionalism so that the main points can be understood by most audience members.
      • The presenter should use adequate technology in the presentation. Computer projector presentations with elaborations on the blackboard are encouraged.

      Level of difficulty
      • The material should be appropriately challenging given the student's mathematical background and coursework.

      Sample presentation
      Submission of presentations
             The deadline for submitting your final paper is Tuesday, December 22, 2009. Paper submission guidelines are as follows:
      • Save your file as Lastname.pdf (of course replacing "Lastname" with your own)
      • Send your file to both your supervisor and BUMath480 [at] gmail [dot] com (the title of your e-mail message must be "Presentation")
             Incorrectly named files, and files not in "pdf" format will not be accepted.
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Last updated on September 15, 2009