Ten simple rules for short and swift presentations

Scientific communication is an independent research domain and has become a fundamental component of most scientific discourse and all public outreach. It now comprises a set of critical activities for many research programs Scientific communication has evolved because it does not have to happen only at the final stages of a research endeavor but can be used to engage the public to fund the research (https://scifundchallenge.org), participate in the data collection (http://www. audubon.org/conservation/science/christmas-bird-count), share or crowd source the code and analyses (https://github.com), and process the evidence (https://www.zooniverse.org). Unfortunately, scientific progress in some fields such as climate change has outpaced our capacity to effectively communicate and contextualize findings for the public To mitigate this shortcoming, resources specific to scientists have been developed Boot-camp training workshops are now also offered (i.e., American Institute of Biological Sciences [AIBS]), and discussion of how academics use brief communications, such as social media tools, is present within the primary research literature An interesting related opportunity has emerged that, in some respects, bridges the gap between lengthy, detailed presentations of scientific findings and "sound bites" such as headlines or short press releases appropriate for media reporting: very short, swift presentations. Admittedly, these talks are in essence sound bites, too, but with more depth and thus requiring special consideration in terms of how to best leverage their potential These shorter presentations are commonly directed both to peers at scientific conferences and to the general public at in-person events and online. This format is particularly suited to online dissemination and sharing through YouTube, with most major scientific institutions and organizations administering channels of curated content. Many major scientific conventions include offerings of rapid-fire format talks-at first to communicate meta-science but now also to share primary research findings. The specific guidelines vary, but the slide deck is often limited by a set number of slides, or the presentation is limited by very strict, short time constraints (such as found with lightning talks). In addition, the slides can be set to rapidly autoadvance, for instance, with PechaKucha presentations. These presentation formats are also organized into open, public series and feature involvement from experts in many disciplines on numerous topics, including science. Succinct prose is thus a critical element in communicating science using these presentation formats. On a cautionary note, reducing much longer talks to these shorter formats is likely not the most effective strategy because shorter total presentation times coupled with rapid pacing can dramatically influence the scope and depth of the material. Best practices for scientific communication certainly apply to these talks, but specific strategies are nonetheless needed. For instance, as a general rule-of-thumb, talks prepared for a more general public audience should emphasize the

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