Some ideas: I would like to thank A for helping me with ... Thank you to B for all the help he he gave me on... And a special mention goes to C, who supported me with... How can I forget D, who made me coffee whenever I needed! You could watch a few Oscar acceptance speeches and notice how they start their thanks.

Michaels suggestions are not weird, Whatever acknowledgements you make will need to be in natural current English. You could use Michaels suggesting but just expanded a little to be more technical or scientific. Possibly using relevant Technical or Scientific terms. Any acknowledgements will automatically be personal, because you will have mentioned them personally by their names. A, B and C. FROM THE WEB (internet). I would like to thank the University College and especially Professor Gittins for providing all the facilities which we have enjoyed. I wish also to thank the two chairmen for the capable way in which they have conducted their sessions. We are indebted to them. Then the panel. Some of them had to overcome considerable difficulties to be able to come but they all came and they all have given us excellent addresses. I should like to thank Dr Law and Dr Revie for organising this day for us and, finally, Messrs Geigy (U.K.) Ltd.,Pharmaceuticals Division for making the symposium possible and especially Mr Leighton andMr Ruff who have given the very greatest assistance to the symposium committee. We are very much indebted to Messrs Geigy for all that they have done. If you do not feel confident to say something like this actual text. You can still use Michaels suggestions. It will not matter the main thing is you thanked them. They will understand if you are a second language learner, and you will still get your well deserved applause.

Michael's answer is good, but informal. Oscar-style thankyou would be entirely out of place in the IEEE conferences that I have attended. . What is the nature of the presentation? In which area? Look for an example from last year's conference. . Some people, some cultures, are used to formal acknowledgements. Some, expect they are named correctly, with full titles. Particularly, those who might have sponsored you, might expect some thing formal. This work was partially funded through the X scheme from the Y. . Not weird. Acknowledgements in talks, are often just the final slide. In my area, often not read out, spoken to, but brought to the attention of the audience and left on the screen during question time. . If you must orally acknowledge in your field, "I will" - is strange. (Present tense/aspect is better) I thank ... I would like to thank.... I acknowledge the contributions of .... . THe acknowledgements in theses are often quite personal, but in my area, at least, in presentations and papers, usually formal.