Oral Presenter Guidelines

The following instructions are for Oral Presentations. Platform presentations will be conducted using Zoom Webinar. Attendees will view the presentations via the Conference App.

Watch the Zoom Speaker Demo Session.

Talk Length

The first talk in each concurrent session is an anchor talk and will be 15 minutes with 3 minutes for question and answer. As with the format from the in-person meeting, all of the other talks  in the session will be 10 minutes with 2 minutes for question and answer. The session chair will move on to the next speaker after 12 minutes. Please practice your talk to end within your allotted 10 minutes.

New this year, there will be 6 minutes at the end of each concurrent session when attendees can ask questions of any of the 9 speakers in the sessions. Please plan to stay until the end of your session to be available for this bonus question and answer period.

Presentation Time

You can look up the day and session on which your presentation has been scheduled via the Author Abstract Assignments page. All presentation times are shown in Eastern Daylight Time/GMT -04:00/UTC -04:00.

You should be prepared to present your talk at any time during your session. If a presenter that precedes you is unable to present, the session chair may decide to move your talk to an earlier time within the session.

Registration

You must register for the conference by May 13 to receive the speaker access link.

Recordings

All platform presentations will be recorded and made available to registrants through July 16, 2021 July 20, 2021.

Technical requirements

Connectivity

Make sure your connection speed is 2 Mbps upload/4 Mbps download or better. You can test your internet connection speed at SpeedTest.net. Please do the test in the location where you will be presenting, since connectivity may change with distance from your router.

Zoom Client

We strongly recommend that you download or update the Zoom Client for Meetings in advance of your presentation and test your sound and permissions prior to the day of your talk (see below). If you have attended a Zoom meeting recently, you likely already have the client installed. You’ll want to make sure you have the desktop client or mobile app: version 5.3.0 or higher.

Zoom Access Link

To access your assigned Zoom Webinar session as a speaker, you will receive a special link via email from Zoom the week before the conference. This link will not work until 10 minutes before your session. Note that you cannot use the links in the Conference App to access your session as a speaker.

Device

You will use your own device for your presentation. You should use a laptop or desktop computer, rather than a mobile device if possible. If you are using a Mac, in advance of your session, test screen sharing at https://zoom.us/test so that you can confirm you have granted Zoom the appropriate permissions. Doing so requires you to restart the application (which you won’t want to do during your session).

Sound

You should present in a quiet area without background sound and use a headset if possible. You can use https://zoom.us/test to test your Zoom audio in advance.

Camera

We recommend that you share your camera during your presentation, so that attendees can see you while you present.

Privacy and Recordings

All oral presentations will be available for registered attendees to view online until July 16, 2021 July 20, 2021. Although sharing of results without permission is a violation of the Code of Conduct, you should be aware that we cannot monitor whether attendees take photographs, screen shots, audio recordings, or video recordings during your presentation.

Code of Conduct

All registrants agree to abide by the GSA Conferences Code of Conduct. Our Code of Conduct was established to communicate a transparent set of standards and guidelines for acceptable behavior at GSA Conferences and to provide a positive, safe, and welcoming environment for all attendees. Note that all sessions will be moderated and actively monitored for disruptive behavior. Any attendees disrupting the session will be removed from the webinar by technical support staff.

Checklist – Before the Conference

• Register for the conference by May 13.
• Three days before your talk, you will receive an email with a speaker (“panelist”) link from one of the following email addresses: worm21zoom1@genetics-gsa.org; worm21zoom2@genetics-gsa.org; worm21zoom3@genetics-gsa.org; worm21zoom4@genetics-gsa.org; worm21zoom5@genetics-gsa.org; or worm21zoom6@genetics-gsa.org. If you have not received your email by two days before your presentation, please email mahoney@genetics-gsa.org.
• You will also receive a check-in email from alerts@ATIVsoftware.com with instructions on how to check your technology. Please click the confirm button once your check is complete.
• Set up the Zoom client on your computer (desktop client or mobile app: version 5.3.0 or higher).
• Use https://zoom.us/test to test your sound and app permissions.
• Use SpeedTest.net to test your connection speed.
• Look up the name of your Session Chair on the Schedule of Events so that you are able to send them chat messages during the session if needed.
• Attend one of the demo sessions for further instruction. Check back soon to sign up for a demo session.

Checklist – During the Conference

10 minutes before your session (not just your individual talk) starts

• Click the special Zoom presenter access link.
• Turn on your camera and mic.
• Open the chat window.
• Test your sound by unmuting and speaking to your Session Chair(s). Mute yourself once you have finished testing.
• Check that all other windows, notifications, and sounds not related to your talk are turned off.

During your session

• Chat window
  • Open the chat window so you can send and receive messages from technical support in case of problems.

• Giving your talk
  • Unmute your microphone and share your screen when the session chair introduces you.
  • Assume that everyone can see your screen and hear you unless the session chair tells you otherwise (no need to say, “Can you see my screen?”)
  • When your talk is over, mute your microphone and stop sharing your screen.
• Timing
  • To keep the session on time and allow people to move between concurrent sessions, the session chair may alert you as follows:
    • After 8 minutes, “2 minutes remain”
    • After 11 minutes and 30 seconds, “30 seconds remain, please complete your talk.”
    • After 12 minutes, “Thank you for your talk, it’s time to move to the next speaker.”
• Answering questions
  • Your session chair will select and read attendee questions that are submitted in the Q&A window. You will answer using your microphone. Remember to mute your microphone and stop your screen share when you are finished.
• Contacting live technical support
  • You can reach technical support staff (Zoom Host) during the session via the Zoom chat window. You can also email mahoney@genetics-gsa.org.
• Asking questions during other talks in the session
  • As a speaker, you cannot enter questions in the Q&A window. If you have a question to ask of another presenter during your session, send it to the Session Chair via the Chat window instead.

After your talk

• Stop sharing your screen and mute your microphone.
• Check your abstract entry in the app for any additional questions you might have received during or after the session.
• Enjoy the rest of the conference!