Punctuation 1. Why punctuation is important 2. Principles versus rules 3. Numbers versus numerals What is punctuation? Principles: Directs how to read, like musical notes to a musician Rules: Traffic signals of language: slow down, stop, detour Respect Courtesy: to help readers understand a story without stumbling Good manners are invisible: bad manners are shocking 1
Punctuation is to writing as religion is to morality: it can change everything. Isaiah 40: 3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness: Prepare ye the way of the Lord. The voice of him that crieth: In the wilderness prepare ye the way of the Lord. Casualties in casualness Luke, xxiii, 43 Verily I say unto thee this day, Thou shalt be with me in Paradise. Catholic Verily, I say unto thee, This day thou shalt be with me in Paradise. Protestant 2
Casualties in casualness A woman, without her man, is nothing. A woman: without her, man is nothing. Dear Bill, I want a man who knows what love is all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when we are apart. I can be forever happy will you let me be yours? Kirsti Dear Bill, I want a man who knows what love is. All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men I yearn! For you I have no feelings whatsoever. When we are apart I can be forever happy. Will you let me be? Yours, Kirsti Principles vs. Rules Rules: rights and wrongs No exclamation marks in academic papers! Principles: apply a good ear to good sense. 3
Apostrophe Possessive noun: The small teacher s room. The small teachers room. Time or quantity In one week s time Two weeks notice Four meters worth Plural of words: What are the do s and don t s? There are too many but s and and s in your sentences. It s = it is, it has Its = possessive of it Do not take a vehicle or its contents. Who s = who is, who has Whose = possessive case of who or which Whose vehicle should I take? No contractions in academic papers Comma Now I must go and get on my lover. Now I must go and get on, my lover. Illuminate grammar Direct rhythm, direction, tone, flow Original: a piece cut off for Greek actors (200 BC) Comfort ye my people (please go out and comfort my people) Comfort ye, my people (just cheer up, you lot; it might never happen) NO punctuation in the ancient languages (Hebrew and Aramaic) 4
6 Comma Rules 1. List three or more words: replaces and, or I dedicate this book to my parents, Mother Teresa and God. 2. Join clause: and, or, but, while, which, yet (generally not with however and nevertheless) 3. Parenthetical abbreviations i.e. (that is), e.g. (for example) Assignment 11, i.e., your first draft, is due today. 4. Before direct speech I said, Any job worth doing is worth doing well. 5. Bracket additional information She omitted, of course, the irrelevant details. 6. Think No dogs, please. The man walked on, his head, higher than usual. The driver managed to escape from the truck before it sank, and swam to the river-bank. Don t guess, ; use a timer or a watch. 5
Comma After Introductions Introductory elements often require a comma, but not always Introductory clause (subject and verb) Long prepositional phrase (more than 5 words) Distinct pause When you read aloud, do you pause to avoid confusion? Must read sentence twice to make sense of it? Do Not Separate Subject from Verb To start a paper without the three basic moves of an introduction[,] would be foolish. Submitting an assignment on time for evaluation[,] is a difficult task for most students. Extracting the most profit for the least expenditure on labor and materials[,] is the primary goal of a capitalist. 6
Commas for extra, unnecessary, information Appositive: noun/pronoun explains adjoining noun/pronoun Commas extra information John Kennedy, the popular US president, was known for his speeches. extra we know the subject My son, Peter, is a musician. (just one son name extra) No commas essential information The popular US president John Kennedy was known for his speeches. essential which president? My son Peter is a musician. (other sons name necessary) Hints: use a comma when a or an precedes the description of a name An unknown scientist, Jane Smith, won the Nobel Prize. a possessive describes a unique person or thing NMBU s youngest student, Randi Jensen, is only 16 years old. NMBU s student Randi Jensen is only 16 years old. 7
Why Use Colons : and Semicolons ; Optional Old-fashioned Dangerously addictive Mysteriously connected to pausing Difference is too negligible to understand Semicolon ; Relate independent clauses It is 12:10; I cannot reach class in time. It is 12:10. I cannot reach class in time. It is 12:10, and I cannot reach class in time. Emphasize relationship thus, however, therefore, besides, accordingly, consequently, I had never written a paper before; therefore, I did not know how. You do not have an outline; consequently, your paper lacks structure. 8
Semicolon ; Trend to eliminate To separate independent but related clauses Items in a series, usually long, with own punctuation To pass this course you must meet requirements, including attending class (at least 10 of 14), another is to pass 10 weekly assignments, including the final paper, and the last requirement is to laugh at 80% of the professor s jokes. To pass this course you must meet 3 requirements: (1) attend at least 10 of the 14 classes; (2) pass 10 weekly assignments, including the final paper; (3) laugh at 80% of the professor s jokes. Colon : Amplify or interpret first clause Your paper was approved: it fulfilled all five requirements. Fulcrum between oppositional statements Man proposes: God disposes. Introduce quotations > 4 lines or 40 words of text No said or stated 9
Colon : Start a list I find fault with only three aspects in your paper: the beginning, the middle, and the end. Set up surprise Per has only one dietary requirement: the animal must be dead. Set off sub-title Gandhi II: The Mahatma strikes back. Business letter salutation Dear Dr. Smith: Parenthesis ( ) clarify Smith (2007) notes authorial asides Putin denies invading Ukraine (that is absurd). Ellipsis... missing words After the review... the paper was graded. trail off The samples were store sequentially: 2, 15, 37... Clarifications Brackets [ ] correct direct quote The Time s [sic] claimed that... sic = just as written edit direct quote Data were invalid. [...] Nevertheless... The vital [emphasis added] data... [emphasis mine] [italics added] [italics mine] 10
Italics Latin expressions sic, in vivo (in a living organism), in vitro (outside a living organism, in situ (in its natural place) not: e.g., ca., et al., etc. (etc.?) Genus and species names: Conifers like Pinus strobus E. Coli can cause cholera. The gray wolf (Canis lupus) Foreign words: If definition follows, use quotation marks Jensen s ecological uthus ( outhouse ) separates urine... Emphasis: The resolution specified immediate action... Translations If you have many translated quotes, footnote 1. Unless otherwise specified, all translations from Norwegian are the author s. Translate foreign reference to English Shelestina, O. & Stankovic, B. 2013. Ekonomicheskoe raionirovanie Украина [Economic regionalization of Ukraine]. Moscow: KGB Publishing. 11
Dash to break Parenthesis (suppresses the interjection) He was (I still can t believe this) trying to ask me on a date. Commas add the interjection, e.g., He was, I still can t believe this, trying to ask me on a date. Dash the interjection stands on its own He was I still can t believe this! trying to ask me on a date. The axel began to make a noise a grinding, teeth-gritting rasp. Hyphen join-together To avoid ambiguity A re-formed rock band A reformed rock band Clarify word cluster anti-apartheid movement high-pressure hose Avoid letter confusion Deice de-ice Shelllike shell-like Spell out numbers thirty-two ninety-five Capital letter/number and noun N-terminal 100-fold Link nouns with nouns Oslo-Bergen train 12
Compound nouns "half- or number half-life one-half two-thirds three-electrode tube "-free salt-free Cd-free solder Distinguish homonyms re-cover (cover again) or recover re-solved (solved again) or resolved Symbol, number non-newtonian physics Cd-tolerant dose pre-1970 designs Capitalization Proper nouns Persons, places: Huntington s disease, Celsius, Fahrenheit Organized bodies: religions, schools, corporations, clubs Months, days, (not seasons), languages, races, historical periods Title except prepositions, e.g. Journal of Bacteriology Parts of a book: Appendix A, Chapter 2, Volume 12 Not common nouns: everday objects I will graduate next spring. The sun warms the earth (i.e., dirt). The Earth orbits the Sun, but our Solar System is not the only solar system. 13
Numbers depend on style Words for one-digit numbers : nine percent Numerals for two or more digits: 13 percent If both in sentence, only numerals: 9 and 13 percent Do not start a sentence with a numeral: The economic growth (3%) was significant. Three percent economic growth was significant. Numbers Numerals with abbreviated units of measure 3% 14 ppm 6 mm Words for rounded large numbers Annual bear mortality was about three hundred. Numeral and word if > million rounded The bird population was estimated to be 1.3 million. 14
Fractions Word for denominators two through nine one-fourth, two-thirds Numeral for denominator 10 or more a 10 th, a 16 th Or follows a numeral: 3 ½ years numerator denominator Number Rounding Decimals Decimal place < 10 million Two 9.23 million 10 million-1billion One 324.8 million 1-10 billion Two 6.14 billion >10 billion One 33.7 billion Percentages < 10 One 9.7% not 9.68% >10 Whole number 15% not 15.3% 15
Punctuating Numbers Full stop for decimal points: 21.9, not 21,9 Comma in all numbers >1000: 4,383 Hyphenate if number precedes unit of measurement: two-ton truck, 12-meter pipe except currency: $14 trillion debt percent: 28 percent gain Don t run grammar check: think Syntax: how agent and action are arranged Having completed the study, the villagers were of little interest. Who completed the study? After standing in boiling water for an hour, examine the flask. Punctuation Using a sterile wire rabbit, sheep and goat were inoculated 16
Run Spell-Check If you have two options use both Later, select right word theatrical theoretical We rely on theatrical calculations to give the lifetime of a star on the main sequence. (Annual Review of Astronomical Astrophysics) Sadism Hussein Untied States of America Genital decline of the economy 17