PUNCTUATION
Period (.) Do not use periods after most abbreviations and symbols, except when the abbreviation could be confused with another word (for instance, at. for atomic, No. for number, etc.). Do not use periods after the title, authors, and addresses in the main heading of a text, or after headings and table titles. Do use а period after figure captions and footnotes to tables.
Comma (,) Use а commabefore the coordinating conjunctions and, or, nor, but, yet, for, so when they connect two main clauses (with separate subjects and predicates). Use а semicolon if the clauses themselves contain commas or are very long. Toluene and hexane were purified by standard procedures, and benzene was redistilled from calcium hydride. The experiment was successful, and the results were analyzed. Use commas both before and after nonrestrictive clauses. Use а comma before while, since, although, because, whereas in а nonrestrictive clause. Use comma(s) to set off an adverbial clause (or long clause) that precedes or interrupts the main clause. Because of the known reactivity of sulfides, it is not surprising that compound 10 is easily converted to the hydroxyl sulfide by water. Our experiments showed that, upon exposure to oxygen, all the compounds became brittle. After an hour of exposure to light, the cells died. Often а sentence can be improved by moving an interrupting adverbial clause to the beginning of the sentence. Рооr Better Do not use а comma in а sentence with а compound predicate that is not а member of а series. Incorrect Correct Also correct In series containing three or more items, use а comma before and and or. water, sodium hydroxide, and ammonia but water and ammonia The samples were collected, washed with toluene, and dried in а vacuum desiccator. Usecommas to set off transitional words and expressions (on the contrary, on the other hand), conjunctive adverbs (consequently, furthermore, thus, however, that is, i.e.),and expressions that introduce an illustration or example (namely, for example, e.g.). Your second question, on the other hand, remains unanswered. He responded as completely as he could; that is, he answered each of the individual questions. He will travel through two countries, namely, France and England. Note: А semicolon, not а comma, should be placed before а conjunctive adverb. I had never been to this place before; furthermore, I knew none of the people present. The exclusion is whereas always preceded by a comma. Use а comma to introduce direct questions or quotations; but if the quotation is used as а subject, object, or predicate nominative, or if it is not being presented as actual dialogue, а commais not used. Mary said, "I am leaving." "The computer is down" was the reply. To avoid ambiguity, use а comma to indicate the omission of а word or words, andespecially а word or words used earlier in the sentence. (Do not use an em dash like in Russian!) However, this construction is difficult to read and should be avoided. If the meaning is clear without а comma, do not use one. Correct Better Never separate а verb from its subject or its object with а single comma. Incorrect Correct In names in text, use а comma before and after Jr. and Sr., but not II or III. Martin Luther King, Jr. Nicholas II Goddard III In references, such names are formatted as follows: King, I.V. Jr., … Goddard, W.А. III … Set off etc. with commas when it is used in running text. The trucks deliver tubing, cable, etc., on a weekly basis. Write dates with а comma after the day, but not after the month when the day is not given. Within а sentence, use а comma after the year as well. June 1994 June 15, 1994 Control will revert to us in July 2002. In June 1999, an important event took place. On June 15, 1999, an important event took place. Use commas to set off individual elements in addresses and names of geographical locations or political divisions. Please send all proofs to the author at 743 Market Drive, Saint Louis, Missouri The town of Khanty-Mansiysk, Khanty-Mansi autonomous okrug, Tyumen oblast Generally, do not use а comma to set off symbols, formulas, or variables. However, if the variable is long or the sentence is complex, it may be necessary to set off the variable for clarity. Incorrect Correct Also correct Commas usually set off the word, clause, or clause that is in apposition to а noun. Mark, our boss, decided against the plan. Do not use а comma to represent а decimal point (Russian translators often make this mistake).
Semicolon (;) Use а semicolon to separate independent clauses if no conjunction is used. Incorrect Correct Use а semicolon between independent clauses joined by conjunctive adverbs such as that is, however, therefore, consequently, furthermore, and thus. Incorrесt Correct Use semicolons between items in а series if at least one of the items already contains internal punctuation. Persons in attendance were James Taven, University of Maryland; Anne Schmidt, MIT; and Robert Berren, Ohio State University. This rule holds even if the only group containing the commas is the last in the series. The compounds studied were methyl ethyl ketone; sodium benzoate; and acetic, benzoic, and cinnamic acids.
Colon (:) Use а colon to introduce а word, clause, complete sentence, or several complete sentences that illustrate, clarify, or expand upon the preceding information. The report was poorly written: it lacked both unity and coherence. We now report а preliminary finding: no changes were detected in the range 0.1–10. If the series is made up of complete sentences, capitalize the first word of each sentence and end it with а period. If the series is made up of clauses or fragments, the first word should be lowercased (unless it is а proper noun) and the parts of the series should be separated by а comma or semicolon. When а list is blocked beneath running text, the first words should be capitalized. The following are our conclusions: Wide-angle x-ray scattering studies give us an accurate picture of structures up to 9 A. Such studies do not permit the specification of defects, such as random ruptures of chains. The structural models defined are strongly supported by magnetic measurements. Use а colon in expressions of time and ratio. А colon used to indicate а ratio is preceded and followed by а space. 8:30 a.m. а ratio of 3: 5 Use а colon to separate titles and subtitles. Field Development: Well Grid Configuration
Apostrophe (’) In general, use of the possessive should be avoided except in accepted forms or when awkwardness would result if the possessive is not used. Halley’s comet Stalin’s five-year plan but the results obtained by Steinberg The use of an 's with words ending in [s] or [z] sounds depends on whether а pronounceable final syllable is formed: if the syllable is formed, the 's is used; if no final pronounceable syllable is formed, the apostrophe is retained but the s is not added. Cooper’s products Aristophanes’ play for righteousness’ sake Form the possessive of а joint owner by adding ’s to the final name only. Ivanov and Sidorov’s results Smith and Green’s theory Note: For use of apostrophes with numerals, see Numeral Usage. Unless confusion would result, add s without an apostrophe to form plurals of acronyms, capital letters used as words, hyphenated coinages used as nouns, and numbers. BOPs the three Rs ABCs sixes and sevens However, abbreviations with periods, lowercase letters used as words, and capital letters that would be confusing if s were added alone, form the plural with ’ s. PhD’s х’s and y’s SOS’s
Parentheses () and Brackets [ ] A parenthetic expression contains information that is subsidiary to the point of the sentence. The sentence does not depend on the information within the parentheses. Thus, water-soluble complexes containing morethan а threefold excess of polycation chain units (compared to negatively charged protein groups) have been found and studied. The parenthetic expression needs neither capitalization nor а final period, but may have а question mark, an exclamation point, а set of quotation marks, or а period after an abbreviation. Years ago, someone (who was it?) told meabout it. Do not use parenthetic expressions as isolated sentences. When this construction cannot be avoided, capitalize the first word and place the final punctuation within the parentheses. А combination of parentheses and em dashes may be used to set off two sentence elements, one of which contains the other: He had forgotten what caused their quarrel—something about the will, he suspected (it certainly wouldn’t be surprising!)—but he knew that they hadn’t spoken since. Use parentheses to enumerate when listing within the text. Place the number before the item it is listing, not after. Do not use а hyphen or dash after the number. Always use parentheses in pairs, not singly. These rules apply as well to figure captions and other parts of the text. Example (correct) Use parentheses to enclose abbreviations that occur after their spelled-out form. A ruling by the Data and Consulting Service (DCS) Use parentheses without а space next to а function with its argument. ехр(–х) Use parentheses when citing an equation or formula in text. Keep the parentheses intact in multiple citations. Accounting for (7), we have the following expression... The equality of expressions (6)-(8) for models... not The equality of expression (6-8) for models... In а figure caption, letters or numbers identifying panels of the figure or items within the figure should be in parentheses. In the figure itself, letters designating panels of the figure (but not items within the figure) should also be in parentheses, i.е., (а), (b), etc. Use square brackets within quotation marks to indicate material that is not part of а direct quotation. In the words of Sir William Lawrence Bragg, "The important thing in [physical] science is not so much to obtain new facts as to discover new ways of thinking about them." Note: Do not enclose parentheses in brackets.
Ampersand (&) Ampersand, which substitutes for and, is not acceptable in most instances. Exceptions include a few abbreviations, such as E&P, R&D, P&ID, and BS&W, as well as preservation of the ampersand where it appears in trade names. It also is used in journal titles. SPE Reservoir Evaluation & Engineering Health, Safety, & Environment
Hyphen (-) Always use a hyphen without spaces on both saides. Do not hyphenate most prefixes added to common nouns, even if а double letter will result. Note that most prefixes and suffixes are hyphenated when added to foreign words. (See Appendix 2). Do not hyphenate а common noun of one or two syllables when it is combined with the suffix - like, unless the noun ends in an l. Do hyphenate words of three or moresyllables, as well as chemical and mineral names, when combined with -like. slitlike gridlike but perovskite-like metal-like Hyphenate the suffix -fold toа numeral, but not to а word. 25-fо1d but fivefold multifold Hyphenate the prefixes self- and quasi-. self-confident self-hater quasi-equilibrium (except quasiparticle, quasicrystalline) Do not hyphenate а common noun and the suffix -wide. worldwide statewide Do not hyphenate а directional word unless it is made up of three and more directional words. Hyphenate compound directions when they are used to form one direction; use a slash to represent the varying or roughly estimated direction. northwest but north-northwest The fault runs northwest/northeast. Hyphenate prefixes and suffixes added to proper nouns, and retain the capital letter. Kennedy-like anti-American pre-Cretaceous (but Precambrian) Hyphenate а prefix to а chemical name. non-hydrogen bonding non-phenyl atoms Words, suffixes, or prefixes combined with letters or abbreviations are often hyphenated. x-ray y-axis e-mail but d orbital σbond Hyphenate numbers between twenty-one and ninety-nine. twenty-three seventy-second Hyphenate fractions as one-third five-seventh Hyphenate compound words. Compound words are two or more terms used to express а single idea. son-in-law up-to-the-date state-of-the-art yet-to-find reserves If а prefix or suffix is added to а compound, hyphenate it. non-radiation-caused effects pseudo-first-order reaction Do not hyphenate ordinals. not 3-rd but Зrd not i -th but i th Use а hyphen to link compound personal names and compound company names accepted as units. Nikolayev-Nidvorayev Petrov-Vodkin Hewlett-Packard McGraw-Hill Use a hyphen in customary units (mD-ft, B/D-psi) and space in metric units (mD·m) to indicate multiplication in combined units.
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