Visualizing science: the reception of powerpoint presentations

Abstract

Presentations with PowerPoint, made possible by digitalization, are another step towards more visualization in the history of science communication. This new genre of communicating scientific knowledge to an audience combines several semiotic sign systems and therefore can be analysed as a form of multimodal discourse that integrates pictures, text, design, etc. on the slides, as well as spoken language, gestures, acts of pointing, etc. by the speaker. This study approaches the problem of multimodal discourse – how meaning is constituted by the different modes – empirically from a recipient’s perspective. To reconstruct the meaning-making process, the authors apply eye tracking and other methods of reception research in real-life scenarios as well as in laboratory settings.