专业信息交流英语教程教参电子文件 19 Oral Presentations TP

Chapter19OralPresentationsOralpresentationsareamajorapplicationofreportingtechnicalinformation.Youmayhavethechancetoreportcommitteework,laboratoryexperiments,andresearchprojects.Youmaygivereportsatbusinessmeetingsandacademicconferences.Howtoattracttheaudiences9attentionanddeliveryourspeechsuccessfullyisnotaneasyjob.Thischapterwillhelpyoudevelopyouroralpresentationskills.I.OrganizingYourPresentationThewayyouorganizeyourpresentationdeterminesitssuccesstosomeextent.Yourlistenersmustbeabletofollowyourideaseasily.Receptionofspokenwordsisgenerallymoredifficultthanwrittenwords,asreaderscanrereadaparagraphiftheyareconfused,butlistenersdonothavethatoption.Therefore,oralpresentationsneedstrong,obviousguidepostsandtransitionstoindicatetheorganizationofmovementthroughthepresentation.因此，口头表达需要强烈的和明显的指示和衔接词以显示发言的组织过程。Figure19-1presentsstructuralandorganizationalstrategiesthatmakeyourpresentationeasierforlisteners.Figure19-1WaystoOrganizePresentation(a-b)3=a3-3a2b+3ab2-b3StrategyandSuggestionsExamplesGivepurpose-audiencestatements:Stateyourpurposeandaudienceclearlyintheintroductionofyourpresentation.Thispresentationistoexplaintostudentsthatselfmotivationismostlikelytooccurwhentheycansuccessfullydealwiththestressesintheirlife.该报告向学生说明，当他们能够成功应对生活压力的时候，个人动力就最有可能激发出来。Setorganization:Telltheaudiencehowyouareorganizingtheinformation(bychronology,priority,comparison,etc.).告知听众你组织信息的线索(以时间先后、主次先后、比较等)Iwillgiveachorologicalorganizationofthestepstoeliminatethewatercontaminationproblem.我将以时间先后来讨论消除水污染的问题。Previewinformation:Tellinadvancewhatthepresentationcovers.FirstI'llsummarizedesignchangesinthisengine.ThenIwillidentifyproblemsthesechangeshavecausedandexplainthestepswe'vetakentoeliminatethem.Usetransitions:Useclearsignalwordstomarkmovementfromonetopictothenextorindicateashiftinperspective.NowthatI'vedescribedthestructureofthebacterium,Iwilldiscusssomesignificantcharacteristicsbasedonitsstructure.Usesummaries:Periodicallysummarizewhatyouhavecoveredsofar.SofarFveexplainedthreecommonmethodstoeliminateanimalhazards动物危害inyourstorehouse.Insertverbalsignals:Emphasizeimportantpoints.Followupwithanexampleforeachpoint.Themostseverehealthproblemsoccurintwohigh-riskgroups:infantsandelderly.Letmecompareinfantmortalityinthiscountrywiththatinotherdevelopedcountries.Forexample....Thisequationisgenerallyreadas:Thecube立方ofAminusBisequaltoAcubedminusthreeAsquaredBplusthreeABsquaredminusBcubed.二［力皿一宫⑶、匕加必Thisequationisgenerallyreadas:theintegral积分fromzerotopiovertwoofdxoveroneplusatimescosineofx,plusthesumfromrequalszerotorequalsnofthequantitynthingstakenratatimesquared,equalstheintegralfromxequalsOtobof/ofx.MolecularFormulasMolecularformulasaregenerallyreadinaliteralmanner,accordingtotheirwrittenforms.H2SO4：HtwoSOfour;FezCh：FetwoOthree(NH4)?Cr2O7：openbracketNHfourclosebrackettwiceCrtwoOsevenA12(SO4)3:AltwoopenbracketSOfourclosebracketthreetimesChemicalandPhysicalFormulasTherearegenerallytwowaysinreadingchemicalandphysicalformulasandequations.Onewayistoreaditinaliteralmanner,accordingtoitsappearance;theotherwayistoreaditinafreemanner,accordingtoitsmeaning.Thefreemannerofreadingisbasedonitsmeaning,andthussoundsmorepracticalinoralpresentation.Seetheexamplesbelow:2KC1O3MnCb»2KC1+3O2Literalmanner：TwoKC10three,whenheatedinthepresenceofMnOtwoasacatalyst,formtwoKC1andreleasethreeOtwo.FREEmanner：Twopotassiumchlorate氯酸车甲，inthepresenceofamanganesedioxide二氧化镐catalyst催化剂Ionheating,formtwopotassiumchlorideandthreeoxygen.两个氯酸钾分子在二氧化钵催化剂和加热条件下，生成两个氯化钾分子和三个氧分子。6NH4OH+A12(SO4)3—►2A1(OH)3+3(NH4)2SO4LITERALMANNER：SixNHfourOHplusAltwoopenbracketSOfourclosebracketthreetimesyieldtwoAlopenbracketOHclosebracketthreetimesplusthreeopenbracketNHfourclosebrackettwiceSOfour.FreeMANNER：Whenammoniumhydroxideisaddedtoasolutionofaluminumsulfate,aluminumhydroxideandammoniumsulfateareformed.氢氧化铉加入硫酸铝溶液中会反应生成氢氧化铝和硫酸镂。L2E=meLiteralmanner：Eisequaltomcsquared.FreeMANNER：Energyisequaltomasstimesthevelocityoflightsquared.能量等于质量与光速乘积的平方。（爱因斯坦质能转换公式）t=t0/a/i-v2/c2LiteralMANNER：TisequaltoTodividedbythesquarerootof1minusVsquareddividedbyCsquared.Freemanner：Thetimeunitofaclockinmotionisequaltothetimeunitoftheclockmotionlessdividedbythesquarerootofoneminusthevelocityoftheclocksquareddividedbythevelocityoflightsquared.运动中的时钟的一个时间单位等于静止时钟的一个时间单位除以1减去钟速平方除以光速平方的平方根。Explanation：Thetimeunitofaclockinmotionislongerthanthatoftheclockmotionless,andthusisslowerthanthemotionlessclock.运动中的时钟的一个时间单位比静止时钟的一个时间单位要长，因此运动的时钟要比静止的时钟慢。（爱因斯坦时间方程）ExercisesSee19KeytoExercises.Provideaconclusion:Drawaconclusionthatreviewsthemajorpointsandindicatespreferredactionoftheaudience.Asyoucanseeonthepresentationslides,wehavecoveredsixkeypointsdealingwithairpollutionofthecity.Withthisinformation,weshouldbeabletojustifyourrequestfordevelopingpublictransportation.ILSelectingtheRightAudio-VisualAidsInoralpresentationslistenersoftenhavetostruggletorememberwhatissaid,toassimilate吸收andmakejudgmentsaboutit.Toaidtheircomprehensionandtosavetime,aspeakeroftensupplementsoralmessageswithfigures,tables,graphsandmodelstoincreasetheefficiency.Youmayturntoaudio-visualaidssuchasoverheadprojectors高射投影仪,PowerPointslides,videotapes,recordingsfbrhelpingreadersseethepointyouaremakingandwherethispointfitsintothegeneralschemeofyourpresentation.Eachtoolhasitsadvantagesanddisadvantages.Thefollowingsgivesuggestionsonhowtousethemeffectively.PowerPoint微软公司生产的制作幻灯片和简报的软件SlideshowscreatedinPowerPointarenowwidelyusedinprofessionaloralpresentations.Sincetheprogramissopowerful,someofitsfeaturescanbeeasilymisusedandthuscauseproblemsinyourpresentation.TomakethemostoutofPowerPoint,youshouldobserveseveralguidelines:Don'tputtoomuchononescreenatatime.Informationshouldbelimitedtoreasonablestoragecapacityforoneslide.Avoidtoomuchflashordecoration.Attractiveanimationatfirstsightcanbecomedistractingwithmoreviewing.避免过多的闪动信息或装饰信息。乍一看来有吸引力的动画如果长时间出现会分散注意力。Avoidtoosmallfontsizeandtoodimfontcolorforthesizeoftheroomandaudience.Avoidpoorresolutionofvisuals,lowfigure-groundcontrast,anddistractingbackgroundcolorandtexture.避免分辨率低的图像，避免字体和背景反差过小以及容易分散注意力的背景色彩和纹理Learnseveralwaystomovefromscreentoscreen.Inthecourseofansweringquestionsyoumayneedtouseascreeninawayyouhadn'tplanned.学会屏幕切换的不同方法。在回答问题时，你有可能会需要用事先未计划的方式来使用某一屏信息。Allowenoughtimeofdisplayfortheslideswithinformationthatneedscarefulreading.VideotapeandDVDVideotapeandDVDplayersarepowerfultoshowaprocessinmotionandallowtheaudiencetohearit,whichprovidesalevelofclarityandimmediacy.Ifyouaretryingtoexplainanewdevelopment,youcantapeitorcopyitonadiskandshowittoagroup.Buttheproblemswithsuchpresentationsshouldnotbeoverlooked.Thefirstissizeofdisplay.Large-screenprojectorstendtobeexpensiveandclumsy;regularTVmonitorsisfineforsmallgroupsbutposesvisibilityproblemsforlargegroups.Moreoverasvideotaperunsonitsownpace,onceyoustartthetape,itisverydisruptivetostopitandanswerquestions,orgoback.Anotherdisadvantageisthatvideotapeordiskmaterialsmaytakeoverapresentation.Oncethetapeunitisactivated,youaresupplantedandbecomeextraneousuntilthetapestops.Therefore,youshouldbecarefulaboutusingverylongvideotapeclips.Togetthemostoutofvideotapeordisks,followtheseguidelines:Selectyourtapeordiskcarefully.Fewtapesareclearinalargeroomorholdaudience'sinterestforlong.Introducethematerialcarefullysothatlistenersknowwhattheyaresupposedtofocuson.Keepsegmentsshort.Afewminutescanseeminglybelongincertainsituations.Ifyouwanttousealongtapeordisk,stopiteveryfewminutesfromtimetotimeandcommentonit,oraskforquestionsaboutit.Keeplistenersactivelyengaged.SlidesWithslidesyoucanprojectanimagetovaryingsizes—largeenoughforaroomof300orsmallenoughforagroupoffourorfive.Sinceslideshavebeenwidelyusedforalongtime,thereareplentifulchoicesinprojectionequipmentsandscreens,andthetechnologyisstableandreliable.Slidesallowavariablepacethatyouneedtopauseon,toskipoverorgobacktoslidesasyouwish.Howeverslidescanonlybevisiblewhenyoudimthelights,whichiseitherhardforpeopletotakenotesormaybeaninvitationtotheaudiencetosleep.Theycanevendrawattentionawayfromyouiflistenersaretoomuchengagedbytheslidestofocusonyourexplanation.Transparencies幻灯胶片Transparenciesareclearplasticsheetsdisplayedbyanoverheadprojector.Theyarerelativelyinexpensivetoproduceandarefairlyportable.Theyarealsopowerfulenoughthatitisoftenpossibletousethemwithoutdimmingthelights.Furthermore,thetechnologyforcreatingtransparenciesissimple;anyphotocopyingmachinecandothejob.Thedisadvantagesarethattheylacktheanimation,andtransparencieswithstandardtypewritertypemayappeartoosmallandtoocrowdedonthescreen.WiththewideapplicationofPowerPointslides,transparenciesarenolongerpopulartoday.Handouts讲义Ahandoutisasimplewaytohelppeoplerememberwhatyouhavesaid.Itmaycontaineitheranoutlineofyourremarksorthecompletetextofyourtalk.Byprovidinghandouts,thespeakercanreducethepossibilityofmisquotedmessagesbylistenerswhentheytakenotes.However,onedisadvantageforgivinghandoutsisthatlistenersmaystoplisteningandspendthetimereadingthem.Thenyouhavetodragtheirattentionbacktoyourtalk.Forthatreason,itisadvisablefbrspeakerseithertodeliverthehandoutsattheendofthetalk,ortoprovideanoutlineonlysothatthelistenerswillhavethekeypointsforreferencebutstillwanttolistentoyoutoelaborate详述theideas.Theotherdisadvantageofhandoutsisthattheymaylimityourtalk.Onceyouhaveahandoutpreparedanddistributed,youmayloseflexibilityinnotbeingabletoaddlargesectionstoyourtalk,ortodeletecommentsyoulaterfeelunnecessary.PostersandFlipCharts挂图Postersandflipchartsarethesimplestmediasomeprofessionalspeakersstillstickto,inspiteofallthemagicofthelatesttechnologyinelectronicdisplaymedia.Theiradvantageslieinthatyouneverhavetoworryaboutabulbburningoutinaprojector,oracomputercrashing,orbeingassignedtoaroomwithnoelectricaloutlets.Withpostersandflipcharts,nothingcangowrong.Thedisadvantageofthesetoolsisthattheyarenotvisibletoalargeaudienceinabigroom.Anotherproblemwiththemisthatyouhavetogetthemfoldedorcrushedintransportation,whichmayleadtopossibledamages.ChalkboardsThechalkboardisaquiteflexiblemediumandisessentiallyfree.Chalkboardsorwhiteboardsworkwellforinformalworkingmeetings.Onespeakercanwritedowninitialideaswhileothersaddpoints.Wordsorphrasescanbeerasedorrearrangedasthediscussionmovesalong.However,chalkboardsarenotsuitableforamoreformalmeeting.Theynotonlyrequirewriting(waiting)time,butalsorequirespeakerstohavefairlygoodhandwriting.Moreover,theymaynotbevisibletomanypeopleinalargeauditorium.Nomatterwhatvisualaidsyouareusing,youmayneedtomakenecessaryverbalandphysicaladjustmentsastocoordinatethevisualmaterialswiththespokenmaterials.Goodvisualmaterialshouldnotservefordistracting.Itshouldbeessentialtotheverbalmessage,leavingtheaudiencewithafeelingofcompleteness.IILChoosingAppropriateDeliveryTechniquesTherearefourbasicdeliverytechniques:impromptu,speakingfrommemory,speakingfromanoutline,andreadingfromamanuscript.ImpromptuDelivery即兴式发言Impromptuisanunplannedspontaneouspresentation.Itiscommonlyusedinaninformalspeakingsituationwhenyoureallyknowyourmaterialandfeelcomfortablewithyouraudience.Suchamethodistooriskytobeusedforatechnicalreport,inwhichaccuracyisvital.MemorizedDelivery记忆式发言Amemorizeddeliverymeansspeakingfrommemory,inwhichthespeakerisbusyrecitingthelinesandtryingtoremembereverything.Itisnotarecommendedspeechbecauseithasthefollowingdrawbacks.Yourplanbecomesinflexible.Youmayhaveamemorylapseinoneplacethatmayupsetyouforthewholespeech.Youthinkofwordsratherthanthoughts,whichmakesyourspeechartificial.Yourvoiceandbodyactionsbecomestylizedandlackthevitalsparkofspontaneity.声音和动作僵化，缺乏自发的活力。ExtemporaneousDelivery脱稿式发言(经过准备但不用讲稿的发言)Anextemporaneousdeliverymeansspeakingfromanoutline.Itisacarefullyplannedandpracticedspeechbasedonnotesthatkeepyouontrack.Youprepareanoutlinethatincludesanintroduction,aconclusionandallthemainpointsinyourspeech.Usecapitals,spacing,underliningandothervisualcuestobreakouttheimportantdivisions,andhighlightthekeypointsinyouroutline.Speakingfromanoutlineisahighlyrecommendedwayofspeechbecauseithastheadvantagesasfollows:Youcanmaintaineyecontacteasilywithyouraudience.Youneedonlyglanceoccasionallyatyouroutlinetokeepyourselfoncourse.Youhavegreaterflexibilitysinceyouareconcentratedonblocksofthoughtbutnotwords.Youcanadjustyourspeechflexiblyaccordingtoaudiences9response.Youkeepaconversationaltoneandyourspeechismorenaturalthanreadingorrecitingthemanuscript.ScriptDelivery读稿式发言Readingfromamanuscript,althoughnothighlyrecommended,isstillwidelyusedinreportingtechnicalinformation.Technicalreportsoftencontaincomplexinformationorextensivestatisticalmaterials.Suchreportsdonotconformwelltotheoutlinespeechform,andyouhavetoplantoreadthemfromthemanuscript.Theadvantageofthescriptdeliveryisthatyouwon'tmissorforgetanythingfromyourreport.Thedisadvantageisthatyoumaylosetheinterestfromtheaudiencebyconcentratingonyourreadingratherthanontheaudience.Therefore,youneedtodependevenmorethanusualonfacialexpression,gestures,andvoicevariationtomaintainaudienceinterest.IV.PracticingYourPresentationBeforeyougivethespeech,youshouldpracticeit.Rehearsingyourpresentationcanhelpyoueliminatepotentialproblemsandbuildupyourconfidence.Payattentiontothefollowingelementsinyourpractice.AdaptingtoaLocationApartfrompreparingyouroralreport,youshouldalsoconsiderthequestionsofwherethemeetingwilltakeplaceandwhatkindofequipmentisreasonableforthatfacility.Roomsvaryinsize.Someroomslendthemselvesnicelytosplashypresentations;othersarepoorlydesignedforthispurpose.Ifpossible,visittheroombeforeyourtalkandknowwhatyouaregettinginto.Trytominimizetheproblemsthatmayhappenonthespot.IfyouplantousevisualaidssuchasPowerPointslides,askyourselfthefollowingquestions:Willtheprojectionequipmentbeavailable?Istheroomadequatelyequippedwithelectricoutlets?Isthereanyspacetosetupascreen?Canwindowsbecoveredtodimthelights?Canpeopleinthebackoftheroomseediagramsorothervisualaids?TimingWhenyouarerehearsingaspeech,payparticularattentiontotiming.Mostspeakersaresurprisedattheslipoftimewhengivingapresentation.Theyplanatenminutes9speechbutoftenenduptalkingforhalfanhour.Dependingonyourstyleandtheoccasion,planonadeliveryrateof120-180wordsperminute.Rehearseyourpresentationseveraltimes,completewithvisualaids,andkeepthetimerecorded.Youwillnormallyfindthatyouhavetodeletecertainmaterialtomeetthetimelimit.3・ClearingConfusionDonotpracticealone.Alwaysinvitetriallistenerstohelpyou.Theycanbeyourclassmatesorco-workerswhocanspotplaceswhereyouarenotclear,oroutsidersofyourtopicwhocanbringyouthecluesforexpectedsimplificationsorneededillustrations.Thiswillletyouknowhowwellyoumakeyourselfunderstood.V.DeliveringYourOralPresentationStartingYourPresentationHowtostartyourpresentationeffectivelyisnotaneasyjob.Peopletendtomumbleandwanderwhentheyarenotsurehowtostart,creatingaverypoorinitialimpression.Someothersbelieveinthemyththatgoodpresentationshouldstartwithajoke.However,ahumorinoneculturemaynotbeunderstoodbypeoplefromanothercultureinaninternationalconference,andinappropriatehumorcouldonlybringnegativeeffect.Approachestobeginningthespeechvary:bystraightforwardness,byappreciation,bybackgroundintroductionorbywitandhumor.Whicheverforms,itshouldservethesamepurposeofcatchingyourlisteners'attentionandpreviewtherestofthepresentation.Theaudienceshouldbefocusedonthespeakerandbereadytofollowalong.Therearesomestrategiesyoucanchooseforthespeakingsituation.Figure19-2StrategiestoBeginaPresentation

StrategyExampleDeclarativestatementOurconstructionofthedamhasbeenprogressingsmoothlyuntilthismonth.Nowwehaverunintothreeproblems.Iwanttodescribeallthreeandgetyourhelpindetermininghowtoresolveeachone.ImpressivefactorstatisticAccordingtothelatestWHOestimatesin2007,currently300millionpeoplehaveasthma哮喘，210millionpeoplehavechronicobstructivepulmonarydisease.慢性阻塞星肺病whilemillionshaveallergicrhinitis过敏性鼻炎andotheroftenunder-diagnosedchronicrespiratorydiseases慢性呼吸道疾病.Iwanttointroducemeasuresabouthowtoreducethenumberofmorbidity发病率，disabilityandprematuremortality早亡relatedtochronicrespiratorydiseases.RhetoricalquestionDoesitfeellikeyou'rebeingtorninalldirections?Likeyou5regettingstressedout?Likeeverythingiscomingdownonyouallatonceandyou'renotsureyoucanwithstandthepressure?Stressdepletesbothenergyandmotivation.However,self-motivationismostlikelytooccurwhenyoucansuccessfullydealwiththestressesinyourlife.ExampleMrs.PhyllisAndersonisapatientofmine.Shehastobeconfinedtothewheelchairandishavingincreasingdifficultybreathingbecauseofseriousosteoporosis骨质疏松症.Hergranddaughterwillsharethesamefateunlesswecandoamuchbetterjobofhomehealtheducationthanwearecurrentlydoing.DeliveringYourPresentationListeningisgenerallymoredifficultthanreading.Peopleusuallydon'tlistenwellbecauseitistheirshort-termmemorythatworksintheprocessoflistening.Typically,short-termmemoryholdsamaximumoffivetosevenchunksofinformation信息组块.Thisnumberdecreasesrapidlyasthecomplexityoftheinformationincreases.Italsodecreasesasinformationispresentedorally.Therefore,inyourspeech,youshouldtryyourbesttomakeaudiences5short-termmemoryworkeffectively.Thefollowingskillsandsuggestionscanbeofhelpinyourpresentation.Figure19-3Sk川sandSuggestionsonDeliveringaPresentationHandlingQuestionsDuringapresentation,youmaybeinterruptedfrequentlywithquestions,soyouneedtoplanhowandwhentorespond.Informalpresentations,questionsareusuallyhelduntilthequestion-and-answersessionattheend,particularlywithlargeaudiences.However,ifthesessionissmallandinformalandyoudonotmindinterruptions,youmaytelltheaudiencethatyouwillrespondtoquestionsastheyarise.SkillsSuggestionsWearAppropriateClothing■•Wearclothesthatmakeyoufeelgoodandthatyoudon'thavetoadjust.Avoidclothesandjewelrythatwoulddetractlistenersfromthepresentation.BehaveNaturally•■Gesturenaturallyasyouwouldinadiscussion.Donotshovebothhandsonyourpockets,clutchthepodium,orgesturewildly.Trytomovenaturallyandcomfortablybyfocusingonwhatyouaresaying,notonhowyoulook.Donotrockbackandforth•前后摇摆MakeEyeContact■Lookdirectlyatyouraudiencetoestablishaharmoniousrelationshipandalsogiveyourselftheappearanceofconfidence.Peopleareunlikelytolettheirattentionwanderifyoulook(evenbriefly)directlyatthem.UseClearandDirectLanguage■•.•Useshort-to-mediumlengthsentencestoeasethecomprehension.Choosewordsthatexpresstheexactshadeofmeaning.Avoidvagueandclumsymodifiers,ordistractingsubordinateclausestoreducemisunderstanding.Useauniformtypeofsentencestructureandsimilarphraseologyinstatingthemainpoints.陈述要点时应使用统一的句子结构和相同的词语。Simplifyinglongandcomplextermsforbetterunderstanding.Connectnewinformationtoinformationyouraudienceshavealreadyknown.ControlYourVoiceandSpeechRate■•Speakclearlyandloudly,neithertoofastnortooslow.Emphasizethekeytermswithastress.Usepausestosignalchangesinyourspeech,suchasthechangeoftopicsormainpoints.AdjusttoAudiences'Response■Watchyouraudienceswhilespeakingandnoticetheirresponse:fascinated,wondering,bored,confused,orscribblingmadlytotakenotes匆'忙地t己笔t己.Makeon-the-spotadjustmentaccordingtotheaudiences9response.根据听众的反应及时做现场调整。Questionsraisedforyoucanbeextensiveandunpredictable;theycanbefrominsidersinthefield,orfrompeoplewhoarefamiliarwiththecontent,orevenfromthefaultfinders.Itiswisetoanticipatethequestionsandmakepreparations.Thefollowingstrategiescanhelpyouhandlequestionseffectively.Ifyoudon'tknowtheanswertoaquestion,simplysay,withoutembarrassment,"Tmsorry,Idon'tknow,butifyou'dlikemetofindout,contactmeafterthepresentation.Aspeakerisnotexpectedtoknoweverything.Ifyoucan'thearthequestionclearly,askthequestionertorepeatit.Ifpartsoftheaudiencecan'thearaquestion,youshouldrepeatitsothateveryonecanhear.Repeatingthequestionhasthebenefitofaffirmingthatyouunderstandwhatwasasked.Ifonepersondominatesthequestioning,youmaysuggestthatthepersonmeetyouafterthepresentation,oryoumayaskifotherpeoplehavequestions,andthencallonanotherperson.Ifapersonasksaquestionthatyoudon'tunderstand,itmaybetoocomplicatedorpoorlyworded.Inthiscase,youcanaskthequestionertorephrasethequestion.Ifyousimplyaskthepersontorepeatthequestion,youmightgetarepetitionyoustilldon'tunderstand.Iftherephrasingdoesn'thelp,youmightnotprovideananswer.Ifapersondisagreeswithyou,youmaysimplyacknowledgetheareaofdisagreement,notingthatmultipleviewsorinterpretationsarepossible.Youmayalsofocusonthelikelycauseofthedisagreementandspecifyyourcase.Ifsomeoneasksaseeminglystupidquestionoraquestionaboutsomethingyouhaveexplained,actasifthequestionisreasonableandgiveastraightanswer.Ifapersonmakesastatementratherthanaskingaquestion,youcanexpressyourinterestint