I give the caveat of 2014 because shortly after being hired I was initially asked to do a "lunch n learn" about
Java, mostly about it's capabilities and features, and the decision to use Java going forward had already been made. Now this lunch and learn isn't for the developers because that's me but for everyone else in this previously all Oracle shop.
A brief and panicked google search led me a book published in 1997.
In the time since that book was released I feel the industry has gone from java to RoR to javascript to back to java and I know based on my experience anything you can do in one you can do in the others. So my task is more allaying of fears that we aren't using Oracle, which we will be because that's where all the data is.
Even typing this I'm getting frustrated and confused because the depth and breadth of what Java can do is virtually anything.
I'm not even sure if this is the right place to post this question as this could just be a powerpoint about MVC and I can keep it moving to the backlog that is developing already.
So if you were asked the broad question of "What is Java and what can it do?" what would you do?