TED Outline Format

Oral Content

Topic: The Modern Female Nerd 

Purpose: To educate the audience about the misconception of the overly sexualized female nerds.

Thesis Statement: Female nerds add diversity of thought, opinion and perspective in every day situations and should be valued and appreciated instead of looked down upon. 

Introduction/Attention Strategy

“Boys seldom make passes at girls who wear glasses.” (Explain story).

Orienting Material: How will you begin this presentation in a way that appropriately garners audience attention? 

I will relay a short story before tying it in to a greater world issue.

It (the story) reminds me that despite the fact that we live in a technological age where it is increasingly acceptable to be nerdy, pop culture has invested most of its screen time to the archetype of the white nerdy guy, and women in geek culture have been virtually invisible. When they are represented, they are grossly sexualized and not taken at face value. Instead of rewarding female nerds’ quirky and unique interests, society treats these idiosyncrasies as shallow and decorative badges. And this really bothers me.

Body

1. Main Idea – Complete Sentence
   1. Female nerds are often oppressed because they are forced to operate in a male dominated world. 

1. Support Despite the fact that companies with female CEOs perform, on average, three times better than companies with male CEOs, women only make up 5% of CEOs. 

1. Specific Support 
   1. Even Google Images represents the gender divide of nerds. Out of 207 images under “nerd”, 195 of them are of men… and the remaining 12 crassly combine attractive women with nerdy references.
2. Specific SupportNerdy men feel women are a threat to the masculinity they worked so hard to achieve. They seem to have the mentality that girls are allowed to like nerdy things if and only if they do not threaten to challenge or emasculate the men who dominate these fields.

1. Support
   1. After peaking in 1991 at 36 percent, the rate of women in computing roles has been in steady decline. 

1. Specific Support 5. Now, they hold only 25 percent of computing jobs.
2. Specific Support 
   1. Women hold only 11 percent of executive positions at Silicon Valley companies.

1. Main Idea – Complete Sentence
   1. Female nerds are looked down upon because most people assume that they are faking it… just getting on the bandwagon of mainstream pop culture.

1. Support
   1. Studies show that when most people imagine a nerd, they imagine them as male.
2. Main Idea – Complete Sentence It’s hard to be different sometimes, and many women shy away from their inner nerd

Conclusion Leave the audience with a message of how to embrace their inner nerd, and be more accepting of the nerds around them.

Concluding Remark – A closing statement; last words 

My RA was surprised when I told her I identified as a nerd. It is my goal to lead by example and show other women that I am proud of who I am…. and the world should be too.

Reference Page(s)

 

https://www.ncwit.org/resources/numbers

12 Statistics About Women in Tech That Show How Big the Gender Gap Truly Is

https://www.themuse.com/advice/the-latest-stats-on-women-in-tech

 

What do you do when you’re a tea-nager in college with no classes on a Thursday night?

A. Sleep, because you’re an exhausted college student who spends way too much money on coffee so you can stay up until three am studying for an exam you have tomorrow that you haven’t started studying for.

OR

B. You pack up your books, throw on your combat boots, and head downtown to Webster’s.

If you’re like me, and need some time to yourself, you choose B… I figured Webster’s is the perfect place to seek solitude. The cafe on E. Beaver Avenue combines my two favorite things: books and tea, and although I had never been, I had heard positive reviews from others and was eager to try it.

Although an upperclassman had informed me that Webster’s had an extensive tea selection, I was shocked by just how large and eclectic the tea menu was. Webster’s has Pantheon teas, tisane (dry fruit) teas, and even naturally decaffeinated “rooibos”, or African Red teas.

I was feeling bold and decided to go with a tea called “100 Monkeys” which was a white, premium tea.

It was delicious, and sipping tea while studying made me feel like the quintessential college student.

A big thank you to Webster’s for making me feel so welcome and for the delicious tea.

Many people have heard of Teavana and their wide variety of teas. You’ve likely gone to the mall and walked into Teavana to sample two teas at the front of the store. This leads me to my first issue with Teavana: The sample teas are always the exact same.

This isn’t obvious to the average customer, however. After all, the tea is always named something different, ranging from the sweet, hot tea labelled “Cinnamon Ginseng Tea” or “Sweet Asian Fusion” to the colder brew labelled “Masala Chai” or “Chocolate Chai Latte.” The tea is always the same colors: A bright pink, colder brew and a sickeningly sweet warm yellow brew. Both teas taste terrible.

Still, a tea lover like me isn’t discouraged from shopping at a tea shop just because of the terrible samples. I’ve stupidly decided, on multiple occasions, to venture further than the sample stand and give the rest of the store a chance.

The moment you step past the sample stand, the staff is all over you. There’s no “Anything in particular I can help you with?” or “Let me know if there is anything you would like me to assist you with,” before giving the customer space. I have been to five different Teavana stores in my lifetime, and I was overwhelmed by the staff in each one. They are constantly attempting to upsale you, or going on unnecessary tangents about the history of some obscure tea. While I understand and respect the pressure of commission on employees, I think a line should be drawn when customers’ personal space is obtrusively violated. Teavana quite literally loses customers because of its’ aggressive employees.

Though I’ve never actually bought an item from Teavana, I have friends who have – and were completely manipulated by the staff. Take one of my friends, Alexa, who loves tea just as much as I do. She bought a tea (that wasn’t cheap by itself) called the Silver Needle Tea, She was pressured by a staff member into buying a complimentary tea, called the Golden Moon tea. As she was checking out, the employee unpackaged both teas and put them into small metal containers with a pretty, green oriental design. My friend recalled being initially pleased, as she assumed the containers were free and the employee didn’t tell her otherwise. Her total came to $54. When she looked at the receipt, she realized she had paid a collective $28 for the two containers. She attempted to get back in line to return the items right then and there, but the store was busy, she was in a rush, and the employee effectively dodged her. So she left.

Please, don’t give Teavana a shot. The staff is almost as bad as the tea itself.

Em’s rating:

Half a cup, only because the tea boxes look really cool.

Just don’t try the tea!

Thesis: Through the use of shock value, these ads push the general public to be more aware of their local and global communities as well as to take action in the lives of individuals to affect change to eradicate greater world problems.

Major proposition/claim of Item 1: Prohibiting reporters from traveling to combat zones is detrimental to the world’s well-being and to freedom. By not reporting on bloody conflict, the world is left uninformed about the state of the world.

Does this artifact exist as a reaction to a particular exigence? A kairotic moment?

This artifact likely exists as a reaction to perhaps the war in Syria, or to condemn abuse on reporters reporting in third world countries.

Who is the audience and how do you know? The audience is, presumably, all world citizens who have the power to prohibit reporters from traveling to unsafe areas.

What kind of proofs support this claim?

Intrinsic proofs:

Ethos – As world citizens, it is our duty to protect journalists who stand against religious intolerance, abuse, and independence of the media.

Pathos – If we do nothing, the death of the media is imminent within combat zones, and with it, the freedom of press and speech of repressed individuals.

Logos – Compares reporters to victims; it is the logic course of action to protect someone who is hurting. Let each person have a story.

Major proposition/claim of Item 2: This PSA uses pathos by providing the viewers with several snapshots depicting a slightly off-kilter household scene that coincides perfectly with the recorded telephone call.

Does this artifact exist as a reaction to a particular exigence? A kairotic moment?

This artifact exists as a reaction to domestic abuse and the responsibility of the public to act as listeners and defenders.

Who is the audience and how do you know?

This commercial targets American citizens

What kind of proofs support this claim?

Pathos – We should not let domestic abuse happen as it is frightening and psychologically jarring for everyone involved.

Outline Format

Topic:

Purpose:           

Thesis Statement:          

Introduction

Attention Strategy:  How will you begin this presentation in a way that appropriately garners audience attention?

Orienting Material:  Help audience understand what the topic is; contextualize

Preview:   Give us a brief synopsis of what we can expect to hear from you—main points

Body

1.                    Main Idea – Complete Sentence
2.                 Support
3.                   Specific Support
4.                   Specific Support
5.                   Support
6.                   Specific Support
7.                   Specific Support
8.                  Main Idea – Complete Sentence
9.                 Support
10.                   Support

III.                Main Idea – Complete Sentence

Conclusion

Summary Statement – Remind us of the main points you addressed

Concluding Remark – A closing statement; last words

Reference Page(s)

I have always loved tea (boo, coffee) so I was thinking about blogging about unique teas I have tried. What would make this blog unique is that I would also combine my teas with comics that feature a T(ea)-rex that struggles to drink tea because his arms are too short. This passion blog would incorporate my love for comics and for tea.

1. L.S Lowry’s Matchstick Men Paintings

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=60&v=rTJT3fVv1vU

Domestic Violence Awareness Commercial

3. The Albany Plan

4. Reporters Without Borders

5. The Golden Rule

If you were to look up the top ten most inspirational bloggers in the world, Gary Vaynerchuk would be the first person on the list.

His blog turned his wine business from a $3-million-dollar-a-year wine retail store to a $60 million dollar fully-fledged business; and it’s easy to see why(ne).

Gary is a master at not only initially engaging his audience, but keeping them engaged. Instead of leaving standard reviews on wine, Gary creates videos in which he conducts blind taste tests, debunks myths and stereotypes regarding wine, and occasionally goes on rants about his (misplaced) love of the New York Jets.

What makes this blog work so well is Gary’s charisma, passion and seriously contagious enthusiasm. As I watched his 1001st video, I couldn’t help but crack a smile in the opening minutes.

Gary has a unique story. According to his blog:

“As a teenager, tasting wine was legally impossible, so Gary set out to train his palate “backwards”. To study various flavors associated with wine, Gary tasted obscure fruits and vegetables, along with earthly influences, including grass, dirt, rocks, tobacco and wood. “I probably consumed more New Jersey grass in my teens than any lawn mower.” By familiarizing himself with the numerous tastes that contributed to a specific wine, Gary was able to detect subtleties that an ordinary palate wouldn’t recognize.”

Because of his eclectic taste and unconventional experience, Gary has become an expert at educating viewers about the effects of external factors like sun, wind, rain and the density of the soil, as well as how to properly buy wine.

Wine not try out this blog and see what I’m talking about. You can check it out here:

Home

https://zenhabits.net/

I must have had at least nine different tabs open when I stumbled across Leo Babauta’s “Zen Habits” Blog.

The format – or lack there of – is what caught my eye. There was no color, no pictures, and no interesting paragraph format. In a day and age where even news articles have pop up ads, the simple vertical text was refreshing. Intrigued, I read the first post.

I had originally thought that the minimalist style of this blog was what made it unlike the showy, obviously subscriber-seeking blogs I had viewed earlier, but I soon realized I was wrong. Like most people would expect from a Zen Blog, Babauta’s writing is gentle and soothing, but his straightforward writing style makes his readers listen.  Babauta made me feel more present. In fact, upon reading this first line, I closed all of my tabs and started to actually pay attention to how Babauta was telling me to live my life:

“I’m going to share a secret to productivity, happiness and mindfulness that you can practice right now, and every day:

Devote yourself single-mindedly to anything you do.”

Yeah, maybe he sounds a little preachy there, but Babauta includes a few lines in his “Single Minded Devotion” blog that reminds his readers that he is human, just like us.

“Most of us try to combine doing two or more things at once, by listening to a podcast while running. I’ve done this, and you can’t really enjoy either activity fully. You’re not really present with either.”

By using himself as an example, the reader becomes cued in to the fact that Babauta has discovered what he knows from trial and error. Even before browsing through the other posts, I began to get more of a sense of who Babauta was.

The post that resonated with me the most on Babauta’s blog was a post titled: “The Eternal Dilemma: Revenge or Forgiveness?” One thing Babauta did in this post that I liked is that he broke down the issues of revenge by using bullet points, and then gave a few examples of the benefits of compassion in the same format.  I admired the fact that he tackled the greater dilemma one piece at a time, instead of diving directly into the heart of the issue. It was useful to me, as a reader, to see the weigh-in of each side.

Perhaps the best paragraph I read on this post is the one I pasted below:

“Compassion isn’t about not respecting yourself — in fact, it’s the opposite. You often need to take steps to protect yourself, so you don’t get hurt. Or at least to speak up for yourself. It’s not compassionate to remain silent when you’re being hurt.”

I had never really thought about compassion in this way, and I felt really relieved to hear this new perspective on a word I had always used when referring to the care of others.

All in all, I felt welcomed by the minimalistic layout and writing style that Zen Habits offered. I think I’ll be visiting again soon.