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Speech by Bill Liao

Bill Liao on Entrepreneurship (RebelBioFuture)
Transcript
Highlights
Being smart seems to be under attack in today's world. I'm a great believer in science, um, and I'm passionate about science, and I'm passionate about the discovery of knowledge, and I'm passionate about extending human capacity. And all of these things require, in my view, being smart. And yet, it seems that, especially in the political covenant, being smart is being denigrated around the world, and I think that this is a terrible danger. Uh, I think that it's very easy for things to become, uh, seen badly in the public, and funding to dry up, and, uh, actual hostility to happen against science and smart stuff. And there's only one real way to change that. You know, uh, I'd like to tell you a, a brief anecdote. Um, you know, around Napoleon's time, there was a biotechnology that was introduced to Europe that was exceedingly beneficial to, you know, the majority of people. And at the time, uh, it was, uh... th- this particular technology was actually banned by the church in France, um, because it was felt that it caused leprosy. And there was this one fellow, uh, p- a, a surgeon, Parmentier, who said, uh, you know, who analyzed this. He was actually imprisoned, uh, in, in Prussia, and he was fed this technology regularly, and he realized that this actually doesn't cause leprosy, and it's actually very nutritious. The technology in question was the potato. And it was banned by the church, and it was denigrated in, in many areas, except for Spain, um, initially. Um, it was considered to be animal feed in other areas. And Parmentier, you know, he started by doing, uh, you know, lots of interesting research on potatoes, and, uh, he published, you know, papers as, as such as they were at the time, treaties. Uh, but... And he had the fundamental insight that this is actually a resilient crop, uh, at a time when France actually had famines, you know, based on the failure of wheat and other, other things. But it all came to naught. It didn't work. He c- he couldn't get people to take up potatoes based on rationale alone. So he set out to do an amazing PR campaign. He delivered bouquets of potato flowers to the royal family. He set up a plot of potatoes with armed guards, and he told the guards that they were to accept any bribe from anyone who would want to go and steal potatoes, and late at night, he made sure there was a couple of hours where the potato plot wasn't guarded. And potatoes suddenly were seen, through this remarkable PR campaign back in Napol- the Napoleonic era, to be a useful and good thing. I think that biotechnology has suffered particularly, uh, a very bad name. I think that we are in danger now of really being attacked, uh, along with a lot of other science, um, you know, a- across the world, and I think what we have to do is really combat that with enormous amounts of clever articulation and public relations. We have to get the message out, and I think one of the greatest ways to get the message out is to have successful startup businesses that get into the zeitgeist. So I would encourage you all to become part of that, and I would say that a big part of what Rebel does, Rebel Bio does for scientists is get them to be more articulate about how and why and what matters about their business and how to g- how to, how it's gonna make an impact. So just want to finish now with thank you to everyone, and, uh, up the back there, you'll find free food and actual alcohol, which is another useful technology. Um, and, uh, I would like to close the live stream with, uh, gratitude to you all. Thank you very much.
Speech Summary

You have a clear, timely thesis: public respect for “being smart” and for science is eroding, and the way to protect biotech is not just better facts but better storytelling and PR. The Parmentier-potato reveal is memorable and sets up a practical call to action for founders and RebelBio.

Speaking Pace

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142 WPM

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Delivery

6 notable moments in your vocal delivery

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Needs Work (2)

Rhetorical Highlights

You used 2 techniques that made your speech engaging

Improved Version
656377 words (-43%)

Using PREP

Point → Reason → Example → Point (restate + call to action)

Being smart and being pro-science feels under attack right now. I believe deeply in science, in discovering knowledge, and in extending human capacity. All of that depends on valuing smart thinking. When societies start denigrating it, especially in the political climate, it becomes a real danger. When the public starts seeing science as suspicious or harmful, support can evaporate quickly. Funding dries up, and hostility grows. If we want science, and especially biotech, to thrive, we cannot rely on facts alone. We have to win trust, attention, and understanding. A quick story from Napoleon’s era makes the point. A biotechnology that would benefit huge numbers of people was introduced to Europe and then banned by the church in France because people believed it caused leprosy. A surgeon named Parmentier looked at the evidence. He’d even been imprisoned in Prussia and was fed this food regularly, so he knew firsthand it was nutritious and did not cause leprosy. That technology was the potato. Parmentier researched it, published what we’d now call papers, and explained that potatoes were a resilient crop, especially valuable when wheat failed and France faced famine. But rational arguments didn’t change behavior. So he ran an ingenious PR campaign: he gave bouquets of potato flowers to the royal family, and he planted a potato plot guarded by soldiers, instructing the guards to accept bribes and leaving a window at night when the plot was unguarded. People stole the potatoes, and suddenly potatoes became desirable and accepted. Biotechnology has taken a particularly bad name, and science more broadly is vulnerable to the same kind of public backlash. The way to fight it is with clear, clever articulation and serious public relations. One of the best ways to get the message out is through successful startup businesses that enter the zeitgeist and make the value real and visible. That’s a big part of what RebelBio does for scientists: it helps you communicate how and why your work matters, what impact it will have, and how to bring it into the world. Thank you all for being here. And for those of you at the back, there’s free food and actual alcohol, another useful technology. I’ll close the livestream with gratitude to you all. Thank you very much.

Point

Being smart and being pro-science feels under attack right now. I believe deeply in science, in discovering knowledge, and in extending human capacity. All of that depends on valuing smart thinking. When societies start denigrating it, especially in the political climate, it becomes a real danger.

Reason

When the public starts seeing science as suspicious or harmful, support can evaporate quickly. Funding dries up, and hostility grows. If we want science, and especially biotech, to thrive, we cannot rely on facts alone. We have to win trust, attention, and understanding.

Example

A quick story from Napoleon’s era makes the point. A biotechnology that would benefit huge numbers of people was introduced to Europe and then banned by the church in France because people believed it caused leprosy. A surgeon named Parmentier looked at the evidence. He’d even been imprisoned in Prussia and was fed this food regularly, so he knew firsthand it was nutritious and did not cause leprosy. That technology was the potato. Parmentier researched it, published what we’d now call papers, and explained that potatoes were a resilient crop, especially valuable when wheat failed and France faced famine. But rational arguments didn’t change behavior. So he ran an ingenious PR campaign: he gave bouquets of potato flowers to the royal family, and he planted a potato plot guarded by soldiers, instructing the guards to accept bribes and leaving a window at night when the plot was unguarded. People stole the potatoes, and suddenly potatoes became desirable and accepted.

Point (restate + call to action)

Biotechnology has taken a particularly bad name, and science more broadly is vulnerable to the same kind of public backlash. The way to fight it is with clear, clever articulation and serious public relations. One of the best ways to get the message out is through successful startup businesses that enter the zeitgeist and make the value real and visible. That’s a big part of what RebelBio does for scientists: it helps you communicate how and why your work matters, what impact it will have, and how to bring it into the world. Thank you all for being here. And for those of you at the back, there’s free food and actual alcohol, another useful technology. I’ll close the livestream with gratitude to you all. Thank you very much.

Weak Words

10 words weakening your message

Hedging
I think6seems2in my view1I would say1
Filler Words
34
TOTAL
uh18
you know9
um7
Bill Liao " Bill Liao on Entrepreneurship (RebelBioFuture)" Speech Analysis | speaking.app