Higgs Boson Discovery Slide

What would you have searched for with Seven Billion Quid?

Well, those boffins at Cern in Geneva seem to have used the cash to go and find the wotnot that gives us ‘mass’.

I know this because I saw the resulting powerpoint slide. It was duly plastered all over the telly and newspapers yesterday. Cue the tearful Professor Peter Higgs that came up with the idea munro trotting in Scotland in the Sixties. Not a dry eye in the house. Here it is.

A beauty, I’m sure you’ll agree…

Well, not quite!

Whilst I’ve every sympathy for an infrequent presenter, and yes, the audience may have lapped it up so all was not a disaster, considering the magnitude of the topic, it is quite startling. Yet an amazing insight into a trap presenters can fall into around their subject matter.

The person speaking was clearly blinkered in his own world. And I see this so often in sales presentations too.

(& what about the ‘in summary’ message top-right?!)

Yes, the detail is important, but forget the sausage for a moment, what about the good old sizzle?

By way of contrast, when I was surfing for an image of this slide, I came across one article where they understood what really counts. It features a glossy pic of the Large Haldron Collider, with a simple message. Maybe not perfect, but a great start and certainly shows you what lines you need to be on;