Nerds can dominate a New Year's Eve party; don't be left out of the conversation.
It's that time of year for eggnogging and partying. And let's face it, lots of parties consist of moseying around a room, drink in hand, stopping in on various clutches of fellow revelers engrossed in colloquies on one subject or another. The challenge: to find a series of conversations to join where you can make a few strikingly original and/or clever au fait statements and then quickly move on to the next chat before you stick your foot in it.
But how do you know, as you float, if a given conversation is one whose subject matter can give you an opportunity to shine or will leave you standing there with nothing to say? Here's my strategy: I try to pick out a word or two from the conversation as it comes within earshot and if on that basis the conversation seems promising, I pounce; if not, as the song goes, I "walk on by."
To read the full, original article click on this link: Brush Up on Your Science-Speak for the Holidays: Scientific American
