Guidelines for Punctuation and Font
Academic writing should be accurately punctuated. Important aspects of punctuation to note are:
Brackets
In academic writing, these punctuation marks must not be used to add information.
Example
Inappropriate version:
Nonlylphenol (NP) was continually reported to initiate a variety of responses in aquatic life (e.g. semen production and the development of embryos of the rainbow trout was significantly affected by 4-nonylphenol). (Note: Brackets are incorrectly used to add information.)
Appropriate alternative:
Nonlylphenol (NP) was continually reported to initiate a variety of responses in aquatic life, for example, the significant impact of 4-nonylphenol on semen production and the development of embryos in rainbow trout, as reported by Lahnsteiner et al. (2005). (Note: Brackets are used for an abbreviation (NP) and to indicate the year of Lahnsteiner et al.’s research (2005).)
Note: Brackets styles have usage conventions. Do not switch between styles ( ), [ ], { }, < >.
Check with your supervisor for information about conventions in your field.
Dashes
There are fixed rules for the use of dashes, which must be followed with care. The following information from the IEEE Style Guide and Manual outlines the rules for their use.
The En dash
The en dash (-) represents the words “to,” “through,” or “and.” Use it between page numbers (e.g., pp. 5–10), reference numbers (e.g., [5]–[10]), figure citations, (e.g., Figs. 2–4), academic years (e.g., 1996–1999), proper nouns (Bose–Einstein theory), a range of values (e.g., 10–20 cm), or for opposites (e.g., in–out). The en dash is also used in chemical abbreviations such as Ni–Al–Si. If the word “from” is used, the word “to” must be used rather than an en dash (e.g., from 5 to 50 times).
The Em dash
The em dash (—) is used to highlight a parenthetical phrase in a sentence (e.g., “An FIB modifies a surface by sputtering with energetic ions—usually Ga for technical reasons— in a beam with half-width of the order of 10 nm.”).
Source:
https://www.ieee.org/conferences_events/conferences/publishing/style_references_manual.pdf
Bullet points
Bullet points are generally avoided in academic writing to list information, except if the author wants to include several items or points in a list. See the example below for an illustration of this point.
Example
Inappropriate version:
In summary, the following series of processes, is known as acoustic cavitation (Suslick 1990):
- nucleation (formation)
- bubble growth
- implosive collapse
Appropriate alternative:
In summary, this series of processes, i.e. nucleation (formation), bubble growth and implosive collapse, is known as acoustic cavitation (Suslick 1990).
Note: Some forms of academic writing (i.e. reports) allow the use of bullet points. Check with your supervisor about the conventions for the use of bullet points in your discipline.
Exclamation marks
The use of exclamation marks in academic writing is inappropriate as it makes the writer appear to be making an emotional argument instead of an objective statement. They must be avoided, even if you wish to emphasise the significance of your research topic or your findings.
Example
Inappropriate version:
As an essential and indispensable topic in proteomics research and molecular cell biology, protein subcellular localization is critically important for protein function annotation, drug target discovery, and drug design!
Appropriate alternative:
As an essential and indispensable topic in proteomics research and molecular cell biology, protein subcellular localization is critically important for protein function annotation, drug target discovery, and drug design.
Commas and semi colons
Student writers often are confused about the use of commas and semi colons. If in doubt, refer to a style guide for the rules of punctuation. Two excellent examples are the Purdue Owl website (https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/607/1/) and the IEEE style guide Rules of Grammar (https://www.ieee.org/conferences_events/conferences/publishing/style_references_manual.pdf)
Tips for using commas
- In a series of three or more terms, use a comma after each term except the last.
- Enclose parenthetic expressions between commas.
- Do not use commas between adjectives.
Tips for using colons and semi-colons
- Use the semicolon, not the comma, to separate two complete sentences which form a compound sentence.
- Use a colon after an independent clause to introduce a list.
- Punctuation always goes inside the quotation mark, except for the colon and semicolon.
Fonts and font styles
The two commonly-used font styles in academic writing are Arial and Times New Roman in 12 point and black. Font sizes and styles for section headings also follow usage conventions. It is not appropriate to use fonts or styles that are not recommended in the style guide published by your university.
The use of italics is only acceptable for:
- identifying a letter of the alphabet when used as a word (the letters t and h, when used together pose pronunciation problems for students of some nationalities).
- highlighting a word or expression in a statement (This recommendation is highly questionable)
- highlighting a foreign language word used in a text, if it is not normally included in English usage (e.g. ‘la dolce vita’)
- identifying the title of a publication in a text (e.g. The IEEE Style Manual and Guide).
- sections of entries in a list of references/bibliography (e.g. Ameyaw, E.E. and Chan, A.P.C. A fuzzy approach for the allocation of risks in PPP water supply projects in developing countries. ASCE‘s Journal of Infrastructure Systems. Manuscript ID: ISENG-705).
Source:
https://www.ieee.org/conferences_events/conferences/publishing/style_references_manual.pdf