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Georgi Genchev
SES 360B
February 25, 2015
Assignment 5

Don't Panic The Truth about Population

Hans Rosling is not only a medical doctor, academic and statistician, but he is also one of
the best public speakers I have ever watched. In the Don't Panic The Truth about
Population for the This World BBC series, he uses a mixture of presentation skills and technology
to show us how rapidly the world changes.
What he wants to prove in this video is that almost unnoticed, we have actually begun to
overcome the problems of population growth and extreme poverty. Rosling did a great job
convincing me that actually within a few generations, the population explosion in Asia will be
over and that within a few decades the extreme poverty will be eradicated.
I believe that without all presentation tricks he uses, the effect wouldnt be the same. In
particular, when making his initial statement, he uses a video that enable the audience to get a
better sense of his argument. Further, the humor and self-irony he uses throughout the whole
presentation are something that involves and relaxes the viewers, also contributes to the overall
credibility of presenter. On the other hand, Rosling is sometimes careless with various
presentation skills. For example, having his hands in his pockets or too much contact with the
screen. Although some might think of this as a flow, I believe that he does this on purpose, in
order to look more genuine. His calm pace and sense of humor are effectively used from the
beginning to the end. What I find most amusing is the way he presents his ignorance survey
that shows how British university graduates could be outperformed by chimpanzees.

The use of visual aids is also very essential for his performance. The state-of-art 3D
graphic are probably the most engaging thing in the whole presentation. I am not sure what
technology he uses but it is a perfect way to illustrate statistical data. It enables the audience is
able to understand the context thoroughly.
Unfortunately, we do not have the same technology for presentations. What we can learn
from Rosling however, is to his ability to engage the audience. The combination between being
competent, acting naturally and visualizing claims and points is what makes a perfect
presentation.