Preparation of posters for IUSSI2010
Timing
In order to accommodate all posters, we will have a change-over of posters half way through the congress. All poster presenters should already have been informed which half of the week their poster should be displayed, and when it should be put up and removed. There will be two formal poster sessions on Tuesday and Thursday evening, when poster authors are expected to be at their posters to discuss their research. We will serve a stand-up meal during these sessions so that posters can be viewed and discussed over dinner.
The poster sessions will cover the following symposia:
Tuesday: 1, 7, 8, 10, 12, 13, 14, 20, 21, 23, 25, 27, 30, 31
Thursday: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 11, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22, 24, 26, 28
Student Prize!
The Royal Society have kindly agreed to sponsor a prize for the best student poster in each of the two poster sessions. Student posters will be judged by a committee led by Mark Brown and Nate Sanders. Posters will be judged on the quality of their presentation and the quality of their science, with an emphasis on the former. Judging criteria will be based on the instructions given below for poster design. Student posters will be clearly labeled as such by a sticker, which can be obtained from the organizers when the posters are put up.
General Information
Each poster should be 80 cm wide and no more than 120 cm high. Posters will be attached using pins, which will be supplied by the IUSSI2010 organizers. Poster boards will be identified by a simple code assigned to each poster, which can be found in the list of posters.
Each poster should have a single, easy-to-follow message, be readable in a few minutes, be eye-catching, have a logical layout, and include the last names and first names and addresses of all authors. It is also useful to have photographs of the presenting author on the poster so that they can be easily identified when not standing by the poster.
Make your posters eye-catching and easy to read. Posters should be legible from a distance of at least 2 meters. Design simple flow paths to guide the reader. Poor organization reflects badly on the scientific content.
Heading and subtitles should have the smallest letters in at least 80-point font (lowercase 12 mm, capitals 17 mm). In the text the smallest letters should be at least 36-point font (lowercase 7 mm, capitals 9 mm) with a line thickness of at least 1 mm. Sans serif fonts (e.g., Arial) are most appropriate for headings and short sectios of text, whilst serif fonts (e.g. Times New Roman) often work better for large blocks of text. You should try to keep text to a minimum, which means that sans serif fonts may be used throughout.
Think about colour. Remember that some people are colour blind, and that putting text on a similarly-coloured background or picture may make it difficult to read.
Tell your story with graphics rather than text. Use colour pictures, graphs and diagrams in preference to tables.
Keep the text to an absolute minimum. Avoid excessive details. Remind yourself that there is almost always too much text on a poster.
During your poster session, you are expected to be present to answer questions regarding your poster.
We have found that having miniature copies (on A4 or 8.5 x 11 paper) of your poster available is a good way to advertise your research. You can also use this as a check of your font sizes and graphics - If a miniature copy if not easy to read or follow, then neither is your poster.