Speeches

Speeches. Public speaking. Most people cringe at the mention of those words. I've heard it's the biggest fear of the adult population. Getting up there, in front of everybody, everyone staring at you...well, it doesn't worry me one bit. I used to be scared, but now I have decided to enjoy it. Now I am focusing on improving, and becoming a great public speaker, not just someone who can do it.

For this year's speech in English class I decided to do the speech on The Brain. My topic wasn't that broad, we only had 3-5 minutes, but that's what I told anybody that asked. My speech was about sight and the brain. I mentioned three cognitive phenomenons intertwined with a lot of lame jokes.
This, I think, was my best speech so far. First of, the topic seemed to fit all the criteria. I found it interesting, it was relative, there were audience interactions, it was even humorous. My presentation went pretty much by the book, too. The beginning grabbed the audiences attention, I spoke slowly and clearly (thanks, debating), made eye-contact and varied my tone and pitch.

It wasn't perfect, though. I completely mucked up the start of one topic, and ended up saying 'sorry, I'll just start that again'. The most horrible bit was a certain movie that buffered for about a minute. I hadn't planned for that. I talked for a little bit, then asked if anyone had questions. It was so awkward. I freaked out- if my speech had been a joke, that clip was the punchline. It finally came on though, what a relief!

The main pre-speech worry was also concerning this video. It relied on people not paying attention, and I was worried that it wouldn't work. That everyone would just see the thing and I would be ruined. Luckily, that did not occur. Everyone, expect Seamus in Josh (who I still doubt) performed just as scientists had predicted. The people in my class liked the video and the flicker image; it was nice to pull something off.
The first experiment didn't work though- no one saw the black flash. My friends and some lovely people in my class put their hands up anyway. I think to see the flash requires time and concentration.
I'm remembering all the bad stuff now, ew!
Next speech, also, I have to remember my slides (and not have a picture of a clock pop up right after you;ve finished talking about it).

Anyway, here are a few excerpts from my speech. It was a lot better than I have made out, I am quite proud of myself.

-clears throat-

It’s over three quarter’s water.

It weighs about 1.4 kilo.
It can’t feel pain and it generates more electrical impulses in one day than all the phones in the world.
YOUR BRAIN

You and those 100 billion neurons share the most intimate relationship possible. That slimy organ is how you interact with the world around you. It enables you to see and smell, touch and hear, think and remember, and of course, it controls your vital functions. In my speech today, I am going to focus on sight and the brain.

Okay, so you might think that you and your brain are like best friends. I mean, you’ve known each other forever. It must be on your side, and of course it would tell you the truth, right? Wrong.

Yes, your brain is initially on your side, but sometimes, it deceives you, distorts your view of the world, and, well, sometimes, it’s just plain lazy.

If you want to see something amazing, click here. Look at the clip and count the number of passes the team in white shirts makes to one another. Don't cheat. Read the paragraph after. Do it.

Alright, how many did you count? But who saw the gorilla? No one saw the gorilla?
I’m not crazy, watch it again, and look out for the person in the gorilla suit.

This is the most famous example of inattention blindness, conducted at the University of Illinios by Daniel Simmons and Christopher Charbris.

What you have just experienced is known as ‘inattention blindness”. Basically, you haven’t got enough attention to go around. You are too busy concentrating on one thing, to notice something you would usually. To work, though, the distraction has to be unexpected. Real-life examples of inattention blindness happen everyday. Ever heard some involved in a car accident saying that they ‘simply didn’t see’ the other car?

During my speech today, I hope I have taught you something. I trust that you now understand that seeing really isn’t believing. Perhaps, I have even helped you begin to realise how amazing, yet not always factual, the human brain is.

But I know I have succeeded, because next time you find yourself in fourth block, staring at the clock, you’ll think of me, and some half remembered garbage about your brain and you eyes.