Why would you present data orally instead of in print? You might think that if all you have is data, why bother with the sweaty palms? Just post the paper online and let people read it!
Not if you want to test your conclusions. Oral and written renditions have different effects, and elicit different responses.
Malcolm Gladwell told how he realized this on an always interesting podcast, the Ezra Klein Show.
Here’s Gladwell’s explanation almost verbatim, starting at 57:25.
… Read the rest “Malcolm Gladwell: why oral data’s different”My father taught math and would be constantly going off to conferences. I was always very skeptical.
I thought, What possible value is there for him to go and present a paper when they could just send someone the paper?