From the Steam Engine to DNA: Revolutions    

This chapter from the most recent book by STC's 1998 Honorary Fellow demonstrates that a great dynamic web of change links us to one another and to all the events of the past and the future. James Watt’s improvements to the steam engine are linked to the invention of the copier, carbon paper, and the safety match, as well as the discovery of DNA.

Burke, James. Technical Communication Online (1998). Articles>Rhetoric

PowerPoint-Based Lectures in Business Education: an Empirical Investigation of Student-Perceived Novelty and Effectiveness    

The use of PowerPoint (PPT)-based lectures in business classes is prevalent, yet it remains empirically understudied in business education research. The authors investigate whether students in the contemporary business classroom view PPT as a novel stimulus and whether these perceptions of novelty are related to students' self-assessment of learning. Results indicate that the degree of novelty that undergraduate business students associate with PPT-based teaching significantly relates to their perceptions of PPT's impact on cognitive learning and classroom interaction. Students' views of PPT as a novel stimulus are also associated with their perception of specific constructive and dysfunctional classroom behaviors and attitudes. The authors discuss their findings and offer implications for instructors and researchers in business education.

Burke, Lisa A. and Karen E. James. Business Communication Quarterly (2008). Articles>Education>Presentations>Microsoft PowerPoint