Gathering and Discerning Information in the 21st Century
Celebrating over 16 years on the web.
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“Each of us believes himself to live directly within the world that surrounds him, to sense its objects and events precisely, and to live in real and current time. I assert these are perceptual illusions. Sensation is an abstraction, not a replication of the real world.” Vernon Mountcastle

Quote from YouTube Video: Kavli Prize Laureate Lecture – The Restless Brain

The Professional Speaking Guide

Sound:

Sound can be categorized in two ways:

  1. Flat, monotone, lifeless, locked in and
  2. Energetic, lively, flexible, variable.

Flat sound:

– Emotionally dead.

– Hides our real feelings.

– Can be a result of insecurity or fear.

– Is alienating to our listeners.

Energetic sound:

– Engages body connection to the voice.

– Prevents the voice from being locked-in. (monotone )

– Keeps listeners alert and interested.

*** If we feel flat and deliver our speech in a monotone we will not be effective. But by using an inflected voice we can make ourselves feel more energetic allowing us to achieve our goals.

– Play the role.

– Put on a happy voice.

– Say every word like you mean it!

Concentrate on the meaning of the words and allow the appropriate inflection to reflect that meaning!

Exercises for range and inflection:

– With the hiss of exhalation, release the voice into a Siren. Let the sound soar up and
down, using the strength of the abdominal muscles. Keep the throat open and relaxed,
let the jaw hang freely. Explore the top and bottom of the vocal range.

– Turn the siren into a wave of slow, steady waves of sound up and down. Use your finger to draw the waves of pitch in front of you as you follow the motions with your voice. With mouth closed, practice the siren.

– Begin to infuse the sounds with emotion and honesty, rhythm and speed.

– Passing the Pumpkin exercise: Use the exercise (with or without an accompanying phrase) to explore inflection, meaning, rhythm, emotional variety. Explore the feeling of giving your message with your body and your sound.

Science-fact-theory-hypothesis

Definitions key to discussions:

  • Fact: A fact is a statement that is true and can be proved with evidence.
  • Hypothesis: A hypothesis is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon that can be tested by the scientific method. A hypothesis has not been tested.
  • Theory: Scientific theories are distinguished from hypotheses, which are empirically testable conjectures, and from scientific laws, which are descriptive accounts of how nature behaves under certain conditions. Theories have been rigorously tested and widely accepted by the scientific community who agree the theory best explains the observations or phenomenon we experience.
  • Scientific Method: The scientific method is a body of techniques for investigating phenomena, acquiring new knowledge, or correcting and integrating previous knowledge.
  • Empirical Evidence: Empirical evidence is the knowledge received by means of the senses, particularly by observation and experimentation.
  • Reality: Reality is the state of things as they actually exist, as opposed to an idealistic or notional idea of them.
  • Delusion: A delusion is a belief that is held with strong conviction despite superior evidence to the contrary.
  • Insanity: Insanity, craziness, or madness is a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns.