Murray Bretschneider
How Bretschneider won the Public Speaking Contest
The university decided that first year engineering students desperately needed an additional course for one term to improve their skills in communicating before an audience. I recall the course was an afterthought and not leading to any credits. A lecturer, from the arts faculty in McGill met with us once a week. We were expected to prepare a short lecture for about 5 minutes on a subject of our choosing and to include some visual support on an easel. The students in the audience were expected to rate the performance after each presentation.
It soon became clear that the audience wasn't taking their responsibilities very seriously as many had their heads resting on their desks while others had raised newspapers to read.
Most presentations had to do with technical subjects close to their interests such as for example: heat pump designs , screw thread standards or features of combustion of some kind or other. The lecturer coming from an arts faculty found this very boring and said the presentations were lacking in lively expression and enthusiasm. In fairness it was clear from their behaviour that the audience agreed with him. When they raised their heads from the desk or laid down their newspapers to vote they graded these performances very poorly.
It was then my turn and I had failed to prepare anything (typical of my behaviour in the first term). I fortunately however happened to read while waiting my turn in the barber shop a very interesting article in the National Geographic on Emperor Penguins. In a bit of a panic I mounted the platform with my blank tear sheets and announced my talk was entitled The Difficult Sex Lives of Emperor Penguins. The lecturer seemed relieved that he wasn't going to endure listening to another complex technical lecture and even some sleepers in the audience raised their heads. I quickly drew a cartoon of a penguin and proceeded with an impromptu and disorganized ramble on this very difficult subject (since all penguins look the same and it is amazing how they figure out what's what and as you know they also face great hardships in the Antarctic). I was given a good rating but was criticized for drawing a belly button on the penguin,
It was now Bretschneider's turn and heads again rested on desks and newspapers were raised. He looked out nervously at his audience, wavered a bit, uttered something that sounded like 'glock!' and fell in a dead faint to the floor with a loud thump.
Newspapers were lowered, heads raised and cheers went out as two students helped him to his feet and raised his limp arms in victory. Despite the lecturer strongly disagreeing with the verdict Bretschneider was voted the outstanding speaker of the day. I wonder how the lecturer responded to his Dean back at McGill when he was asked, "Well how did it go?"
M. Bretschneider 1952
Bretschneider was a member of our graduating class in 1952. From the stories he told me his parents were poor garment workers in the St Urbain area of Montreal. He shared a very small flat with his parents and younger sister and whatever money they could save went to support his education. Soon after he received his diploma he boarded a bus en route from Montreal to St Anne's. A truck hauling a large bulldozer passed the bus in the other direction and the blade caught and sliced opened the left side of the bus like a can opener. Bretschneider and several other passengers who were seated in window seat on that side of the bus died instantly.
How Bretschneider won the Public Speaking Contest
The university decided that first year engineering students desperately needed an additional course for one term to improve their skills in communicating before an audience. I recall the course was an afterthought and not leading to any credits. A lecturer, from the arts faculty in McGill met with us once a week. We were expected to prepare a short lecture for about 5 minutes on a subject of our choosing and to include some visual support on an easel. The students in the audience were expected to rate the performance after each presentation.
It soon became clear that the audience wasn't taking their responsibilities very seriously as many had their heads resting on their desks while others had raised newspapers to read.
Most presentations had to do with technical subjects close to their interests such as for example: heat pump designs , screw thread standards or features of combustion of some kind or other. The lecturer coming from an arts faculty found this very boring and said the presentations were lacking in lively expression and enthusiasm. In fairness it was clear from their behaviour that the audience agreed with him. When they raised their heads from the desk or laid down their newspapers to vote they graded these performances very poorly.
It was then my turn and I had failed to prepare anything (typical of my behaviour in the first term). I fortunately however happened to read while waiting my turn in the barber shop a very interesting article in the National Geographic on Emperor Penguins. In a bit of a panic I mounted the platform with my blank tear sheets and announced my talk was entitled The Difficult Sex Lives of Emperor Penguins. The lecturer seemed relieved that he wasn't going to endure listening to another complex technical lecture and even some sleepers in the audience raised their heads. I quickly drew a cartoon of a penguin and proceeded with an impromptu and disorganized ramble on this very difficult subject (since all penguins look the same and it is amazing how they figure out what's what and as you know they also face great hardships in the Antarctic). I was given a good rating but was criticized for drawing a belly button on the penguin,
It was now Bretschneider's turn and heads again rested on desks and newspapers were raised. He looked out nervously at his audience, wavered a bit, uttered something that sounded like 'glock!' and fell in a dead faint to the floor with a loud thump.
Newspapers were lowered, heads raised and cheers went out as two students helped him to his feet and raised his limp arms in victory. Despite the lecturer strongly disagreeing with the verdict Bretschneider was voted the outstanding speaker of the day. I wonder how the lecturer responded to his Dean back at McGill when he was asked, "Well how did it go?"
M. Bretschneider 1952
Bretschneider was a member of our graduating class in 1952. From the stories he told me his parents were poor garment workers in the St Urbain area of Montreal. He shared a very small flat with his parents and younger sister and whatever money they could save went to support his education. Soon after he received his diploma he boarded a bus en route from Montreal to St Anne's. A truck hauling a large bulldozer passed the bus in the other direction and the blade caught and sliced opened the left side of the bus like a can opener. Bretschneider and several other passengers who were seated in window seat on that side of the bus died instantly.
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