In two minutes, Julia Wold can look at a quotation, create an outline and formulate a speech. In another five minutes, she can deliver the speech with few pauses in between words and minimal "ums."
"There's different ways you can formulate your speech, but essentially you draw on the things you know about," said the 19-year-old Northern State University freshman. "(For example), if you know about history or pop culture or sports or what you have a lot of knowledge about. Because things can be easily applied."
Wold is one of 10 Northern students who will compete in the a joint forensics tournament today and Saturday for the South Dakota Intercollegiate Forensics Association and North Dakota Intercollegiate Speech League.
Forensics is known more commonly as speech and debate, said Anthony Wachs, director of forensics at Northern.
"Funny thing is, most people, when they think forensics, are going to think 'CSI',” said Wachs, referencing the television crime show. "And that's kind of right."
He explains that before the advent of technology, court cases would be determined through argumentation of facts.
"That's really what a court proceeding is, it's essentially forensics or judicial rhetoric," he said.
The tournament is expected draw around 30-35 students from universities in North Dakota and South Dakota in team and individual events. The events cover a variety of issues, such as argumentations, persuasive speeches and impromptu speeches.
"It really becomes a learning activity (for audience members) in many senses where we can understand the issues in a new way from other people speaking to us about them," Wachs said.
The students who speak on the issues really bring the text to life, he said.
"There's a lot of great literature that is out there and, essentially, that literature is simply just dead words on a page until some of these kids can bring it to life," he said.
Michael Newman, a 21-year-old junior who joined the forensics team about three weeks ago, will be participating in a parliamentary debate, an event in the team section.
"At a debate, you get a proposition 15 minutes before you have to debate and you build a case like that," Newman said, snapping his fingers. "If you're on opposition, you try to anticipate what the case will be that they come with and you just try to get as much down as you can in that short period of time."
While coming up with an argument, you often think of counter arguments to your arguments, said Jordan Abu-Sirriya, a 20-year-old sophomore who is also in parliamentary debate.
"Sometimes you get ideas thrown at you that you don't expect, but you got to make due with what you can get and you just go against it," he said.
Wold, the impromptu speaker, said how a person communicates is important in how others perceive them.
"I think that being well-spoken is an admirable trait," she said.
