Better Poster Guide
Project Title goes here and should be concise, clear, and free of jargon
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Award No. OIA-1946391.
Author Names
You can add your institutional logo below if you want to, then delete this text
Main finding goes here, translated into plain English. Emphasize the important words.
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We did or did not expect this result. We have an idea for next steps.
Supporting Figures or Images
Here’s why this work is important.
Background
Methods
Extra results
Who cares? Explain why your study matters in the fastest, most brutal way possible (feel free to add graphics!).
Assume they already read your punchline, and now include a little extra detail.
N=564�Adult full-time workers
EXPERIMENT GROUP
Given iPod Touch’s with a special app that pings them throughout the day with quick surveys.
Wait list �(CONTROL GROUP)
Mood Survey (4x per day)
Participants notified by the iPod at random times to take a short mood survey assessing current mood and attention.
End-of-week Survey
Assessed overall performance for the week.
HLM analysis
Used to relate within-person mood to differences in performance.
Here’s the main supporting image or figure.
Project Title goes here and should be concise, clear, and free of jargon
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Award No. OIA-1946391.
Author Names
You can add your institutional logo below if you want to, then delete this text
Main finding goes here, translated into plain English. Emphasize the important words.
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v
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A figure can go here.
Method or Novelty
Another figure can go here.
Why is this a big deal?
What other figures will reinforce your point?
Here’s the main supporting image or figure.
We did or did not expect this result.
Logos & Acknowledgement Here:
More tips
And examples
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Award No. OIA-1946391. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
Why must we pick sides? �The new poster format is a revolution, or the new poster format is garbage!��Take the good parts of the new format, keep the useful aspects of the traditional format, add in your own ideas, and create something better.
INTRODUCTION
Mike Morrison created a template for a “Better Scientific Poster” (BSP) (https://osf.io/ef53g/)
The BSP format has been praised by many, yet disparaged by others.
The current project had 2 goals:
METHOD
To create a new template, I identified strengths of the BSP template and the traditional format.
BSP strengths: clear take-away message, minimal text, QR code
Traditional format strengths: room for figures, reasonable text size on sides, large title to make finding posters in poster session easy, web link and email for people who don’t like QR codes
RESULTS
Preregistered analysis: 78% increase in liking compared to traditional format and 24% increase compared to the BSP format.
Exploratory analysis: room for improvement in this template (Arial font, seriously?!?!).
DISCUSSION
Sometimes it makes sense to pick a side; this is not one of those times.
Praise what you like, make suggestions for improvement, and then make something better.
Take Mike’s ideas, incorporate some of mine, be creative, and let’s make posters more useful.
We Don’t Have to Pick a Side: The Middle Is A Fine Place to Be
Andrew R. Smith
Appalachian State University
Poster template: https://osf.io/ayjzg/
smithar3@appstate.edu
PrePrint
Teach people something cool you learned in 5 seconds as they walk by (or scroll by).
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LEM HEWITT, Phillip Merman, Ted crisp �EXAMPLE Graphics donated by biorender.com
Immune checkpoint inhibits T-cell activation.
Method
Anti-PDF-1 antibodies permit T cell activation.
Explain what the graph shows. Like, spoilers are good.
Quickly explain what the graph shows. Help people think.
(illustrate your takeaway point)
Teach people something cool you learned in 5 seconds as they walk by.
Background
Methods
Extra results
PRESENTER
Lem Hewitt
LEM HEWITT, Phillip Merman, Ted crisp, veronica palmer
Who cares? Explain why your study matters in the fastest, most brutal way possible (feel free to add graphics!).
Assume they already read your punchline, and now include a little extra detail.
PrePrint
N=564�Adult full-time workers
EXPERIMENT GROUP
Given iPod Touch’s with a special app that pings them throughout the day with quick surveys.
Wait list �(CONTROL GROUP)
Mood Survey (4x per day)
Participants notified by the iPod at random times to take a short mood survey assessing current mood and attention.
End-of-week Survey
Assessed overall performance for the week.
HLM analysis
Used to relate within-person mood to differences in performance.
Main finding goes here, translated into plain English. Emphasize the important words.
Non-Cognitive Predictors of Student Success:�A Predictive Validity Comparison Between Domestic and International Students
BACKGROUND: Who cares? Explain why your study matters in the fastest, most brutal way possible (feel free to add graphics!).
METHODS
RESULTS
AMMO BAR
Delete this and replace it with your…
Take a picture to �download the full paper
PRESENTER:
Leeroy Jenkins
Title:�Subtitle
Leeroy Jenkins, author2, �author3, author4, author5, author6, author7, author42
Visualize your findings with an image, graphic, or a key figure.
Add a key figure�Show-and-tell the best, most insightful part of your methods & data.
Example donated by @drElsje
Try an on-theme background.�Add fun and reinforce your study’s context, but make sure to keep a high contrast between your text and background!
vvv
Example donated by @hydrogawker
Mountain photo by @mnthydro
Example by @mikemorrison
Example donated by @brenden0walker
Example donated by @SarraceniaMason
Example donated by @americoamorim
Example donated by @nasaman58
Try a ‘hat’ icon.�Fun, reinforces your finding, makes your poster memorable �— and can be interpreted at-a-glance.
Example donated by @DStroumsa
Example donated by @MCLaScience
Example donated by @ElzaRechtman
Example donated by @mikemorrison
Example donated by @akreutzer82
You can get free icons from�TheNounProject.com
Get full-color graphics on a transparent background �for ~$1/each from…
VectorStock.com
You can create biology figures with�BioRender.com
Stuck on a design dilemma? Do what other designers do! Go to dribbble.com and scroll through stuff until a solution jumps out at you. Try searching for “posters” or “graph”.
If your punchline is more than 2 lines, don’t center it. Centered text is slower to read than left-aligned text.
Gallery
Real posters designed based off of the main templates.
Example donated by @milankloewer
Example donated by @MattKuhnDVM
Example donated by @SPrinceWare
Example donated by @ramya_ramaswami
Example donated by @NoraBalboa
Example donated by @BrzezinskiRafi
Example donated by @RhondaVSharpe
Example by @mikemorrison
Example by @jesshlay
Here are some memorable science billboards for inspiration. �Ctrl+Click here for more.
Mods
Community-submitted modifications that you can edit.
Make them your own!
R/Markdown Template�https://t.co/UsW4crrPZO?amp=1
Portrait Orientation�https://osf.io/g6xsm/
Templates
Portrait
by @sina_lana
Landscape
by @rtsbailo
Download �(Ctrl/Cmd + Click)
Download �(Ctrl/Cmd + Click)
#butterposter
Get templates from https://derekcrowe.net/butterposter
The “L” layout
Adobe InDesign templates here: https://osf.io/zkmvw/
How to QR Code
How do I create a QR code?
How do I scan a QR code?
How can I link the QR to my paper and a copy of my poster and my contact details.
Ctrl-click this thumbnail to watch a video on scanning #betterposter QR codes.
Research that influenced this design:�a.k.a “I need some ammo to help persuade my faculty to try this.”
1. Need to know > Nice to know
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/inverted-pyramid
2. Plain language is interpreted faster.
https://www.nngroup.com/videos/plain-language-for-experts/
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/plain-language-experts/
3. Interaction cost.
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/interaction-cost-definition/
4. Effective designs minimize cognitive load