Jack Sherman

1. Identify FIVE specific things in your slides that you could have done differently

• In one of the questions we received from the judges he was confused on whether our project was actually a hydroponic system or whether it was grown in soil. I think that since this was unclear we could have created a slide that was fully dedicated to explaining how our product is a hydroponic system and why we chose this. 
• Also, since we had technical difficulties with our slides we can ensure next time that this won’t happen by having it downloaded and making sure that it would work with the conductor of the presentations before it came time for us to present. Since we didn’t realize that half of the presentation slides were missing and it was hard for our speakers to keep presenting without showing the slides that we created.
• I think it would have been beneficial to include even more visuals of pictures that we have taken. Certain slides like the microbe research slide, I think would have been made better by adding a few visuals.  Perhaps there was a picture or some visual related to the microbe to research. 
• I did notice that when we were speaking about biophilia and the meaning behind it we didn’t have a slide that actually had the definition of it on it. We kind of just supported it through the pictures we included of ourselves in nature. I think that next time we could have utilized a slide specifically for that in order to really establish that idea. My professor utilizes the saying “one thought per slide” and I think there was room for improvement in enforcing that. 
• Additionally, it would have been beneficial to add a slide that explains how we are utilizing the data we are collecting from the sensors and applying it to continue learning about our project and how we can further implement into establishing our prototype of what we want our project to actually look like.

2. Identify FIVE specific ways in which you could have delivered your presentation is better.

• In my portion of the presentation, I could have delivered the presentation better by having more confidence behind my words. This could have minimized the stuttering and sound more convincing to the judges. 
• I could have given more clarification and an in depth explanation of each slide. I feel as though I touched each slide on a surface-based level. I could have elaborated more on the hydroponic bacteria we were researching and explained our NFT system a little more clearly in a way so that the judges could understand the workings of it.  
• During the majority of the presentation, I kept on looking back at the presentation board rather than the audience. In this case, I lost a lot of that connection with the audience. If I am not engaged with the audience, then they won’t be engaged in what we have to say either. So in other, I should maintain eye contact with the audience in order to keep them engaged.
• Similarly to the last point, for next time, I should reduce the amount of times I look back at the presentation for guidance. This may lead judges to think that I do not know enough about the project or that I was not well prepared.
• In delivering the presentation, I should take more pauses between my sentences in order to gain more time in thinking what to say. If I attempt to go through the presentation quickly, I tend to mess up. So to reduce such mistakes, I should take pauses, not only to prevent stuttering and mistakes to happen, but so that the audience can follow along at a generous pace. 

3. Identify FIVE specific ways you could have built your credibility further.

• Our first scores to create an IRB approved to psych study. We want to specifically show that our product has the desired effects. This will help us sell our product to the judges and hopefully one day I actually sell our product to a market.
• In my presentation portion, are used a lot of statistical facts. I definitely could’ve done a better job making sure that I showed the credibility of where they’re from.
• I also think throughout the process the more time we have interviews and new opportunities to speak with judges, we will be better equipped to answer questions that we are tackling. Our new team is taking on challenges that go above and beyond development. This is a fun and exciting time but it’s also a lot of work to answer all these questions. The more we have a team work hard and develop answers the better credibility we will gain. 
• When we actually have customer interviews, we will be able to list people we have spoken with and companies we have reached out to. This will help a show the depth of industries we have spoken with about this product, and it will further guarantee that there is a market for it.
• Developing an actual prototype that is fully automated, and self sustaining will be probably one of the most impressive things we need to accomplish. Once this is actually been done, we will actually have something to show and definitively say that the system can work. 

4. Identify FIVE specific questions that you could have answered better. What was the question, how did you respond, how should you have responded?

• We could have answered the question about our target audience better. Our answer was too limiting and we should have explained why corporate markets are a more viable option than healthcare or schools.
• Related to the first question, I think we could have done a better job responding to the panelist’s comment on putting this in elementary and middle schools, and explaining how the cost of production in the beginning stages of our product development would cause high prices that might eliminate this sector as a potential market.
• We were asked if our plant selection is customizable. We responded by saying yes, although I think it would have been better if we said that we plan for customization once we have tested enough plant species to be confident that our nutrient system can successfully regulate a larger variety of plants.
• We were asked about how we control the hazards of soil indoors- even though our plants use hydroponics so there is no soil involved. I think we could have better explained the core concept of our engineering design to avoid this question altogether.
• We were asked if we could put EcoRealms in more spaces on campus. I gave too lengthy of a response, the better answer would have been a simple, “Yes, absolutely”.