Presentation Guidelines

Creating Quarto RevealJS presentations with Rashid Lab branding

Overview

We use Quarto RevealJS as our standard presentation format. This provides:

• Version-controlled slides in Markdown/Quarto
• Code execution and live outputs
• Export to PDF when needed
• Consistent branding via CSS

Quick Start

Create a new presentation with lab branding:

---
title: "Your Presentation Title"
author: "Your Name"
date: today
format:
  revealjs:
    theme: [default, custom.css]
    logo: assets/RLlogoA.png
    footer: "Rashid Lab · UNC Chapel Hill"
    slide-number: true
    transition: fade
    width: 1920
    height: 1080
---

Required Files

Download these files to your project:

1. custom.css - Lab styling
2. RLlogoA.png - Light background logo
3. RLlogoA-dark.png - Dark background logo

CSS Template

Save this as custom.css in your presentation directory:

/*-- scss:defaults --*/
$body-bg: #FFFFFF;
$body-color: #13294B;
$link-color: #007FAE;
$presentation-heading-color: #13294B;

/*-- scss:rules --*/

/* Title slide styling */
#title-slide {
  text-align: left;
}

#title-slide .title {
  color: #13294B;
  font-size: 2.5em;
  font-weight: 700;
}

#title-slide .subtitle {
  color: #4B9CD3;
  font-size: 1.5em;
}

#title-slide .author {
  color: #13294B;
  font-size: 1.2em;
}

/* Section headers */
.reveal h1 {
  color: #13294B;
  border-bottom: 3px solid #4B9CD3;
  padding-bottom: 0.3em;
}

.reveal h2 {
  color: #13294B;
}

/* Code blocks */
.reveal pre {
  background: #F8F9FA;
  border-left: 4px solid #4B9CD3;
  border-radius: 4px;
}

.reveal code {
  color: #13294B;
  background: #F8F9FA;
}

/* Hyperlinks */
.reveal a {
  color: #007FAE;
}

.reveal a:hover {
  color: #4B9CD3;
}

/* Tables */
.reveal table {
  border-collapse: collapse;
  margin: 1em auto;
}

.reveal table th {
  background: #13294B;
  color: white;
  padding: 0.5em 1em;
}

.reveal table td {
  border: 1px solid #E5E5E5;
  padding: 0.5em 1em;
}

/* Callout boxes */
.callout-note {
  border-left-color: #4B9CD3;
}

.callout-warning {
  border-left-color: #F8E71C;
}

.callout-important {
  border-left-color: #E74C3C;
}

/* Footer styling */
.reveal .slide-number {
  color: #13294B;
  font-size: 0.7em;
}

Slide Structure

Title Slide

---
title: "Constrained Bayesian Optimization for Clinical Trials"
subtitle: "ARPA-H ADAPT Platform Trial"
author: "Naim Rashid, PhD"
institute: "UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health"
date: today
format:
  revealjs:
    theme: [default, custom.css]
---

Content Slides

## Background {.smaller}

- Point one with **emphasis**
- Point two with `code`
- Point three with [link](https://example.com)

::: {.notes}
Speaker notes go here
:::

Two-Column Layout

## Comparison

:::: {.columns}

::: {.column width="50%"}
**Method A**

- Feature 1
- Feature 2
:::

::: {.column width="50%"}
**Method B**

- Feature 1
- Feature 2
:::

::::

Code with Output

## R Example

```{r}
#| echo: true
#| fig-width: 8
#| fig-height: 4
library(ggplot2)
ggplot(mtcars, aes(wt, mpg)) +
  geom_point(color = "#4B9CD3") +
  theme_minimal()
```

PDF Export

To export slides to PDF:

quarto render presentation.qmd --to pdf

Or use the browser’s print function (Ctrl/Cmd + P) when viewing the HTML slides.

Tips

1. Keep slides minimal - One idea per slide
2. Use high-resolution figures - Export at 300 DPI minimum
3. Test on projector - Colors may appear differently
4. Version control - Commit slides to GitHub
5. Include speaker notes - Use ::: {.notes} blocks

F31 Lab Meeting Presentation Template

For your first research presentation to the lab, use the F31-structured presentation template. This template organizes your talk around the sections of an NIH F31 (Ruth L. Kirschstein Predoctoral Individual NRSA) fellowship application, helping you think through your research narrative early in your PhD.

Download: f31-lab-meeting-template.qmd (right-click → Save As, rename to .qmd)

The template includes:

• 12 slides mirroring F31 sections (Specific Aims, Significance, Innovation, Approach, Training Goals, etc.)
• Speaker notes with F31 guidance, page limits, and tips for each section
• Direct NIH links to the current FORMS-I application instructions
• Page limit reference table for all F31 sections
• Lab branding (uses the same custom.css and logo as all presentations)

How to Use

1. Copy the template and branding files into your project directory:

   cp ~/rashid-lab-setup/lab-handbook/assets/branding/f31-lab-meeting-template.qmd.txt ./my-presentation.qmd
   cp ~/rashid-lab-setup/lab-handbook/assets/branding/presentation-template.css ./custom.css
   cp ~/rashid-lab-setup/lab-handbook/assets/branding/logos/RLlogoA.png ./assets/

2. Rename and edit the .qmd file with your content

3. Press S during presentation to see the F31 coaching notes

4. Preview with quarto preview your-presentation.qmd

Note

Updated for FORMS-I (effective January 25, 2025). Section names reflect the revised fellowship application structure. See the NIH changes summary for details.

Creating Presentations with Claude Code

Claude Code can help create and edit Quarto presentations:

> Create a new Quarto RevealJS presentation with lab branding
> Add a slide showing the simulation results figure
> Help me format this code block for the methods slide

Claude knows the lab’s color scheme and styling conventions.

See Claude Code Guide for more on using Claude with Quarto.