The Grammar Logs -- Number One Hundred, Eight

The
Grammar
Logs
# 108

Question I have an introductory sentence with statements following (see below). I want the statements in a list with a bullet (dot) before each one. What is the accepted form of puncuation and capitalization (or none) at the beginning of each statement. Example:
We believe professional educators or practitioners as reflective decision-makers:

are able to make informed, rational choices in a variety of classroom contexts and assume responsibility for those choices . or ; (?)
are not simple dispensers of information, but are active learners who serve as practitioners, mentors, coaches, and collaborative creators of learning experiences . or ; (?)
Should caps be at the beginning? lower case? If semicolons are used, should the next to the last statement (there are 5 statements) have an _and_ following it? Should there be a colon after _decision-makers_?
Thank you.
Source & Date
of Question Springfield, Missouri
21 April 1998
Grammar's
Response Such arrangements are called vertical lists. The Chicago Manual of Style recommends this way of handling them: "Omit periods after items in a vertical list unless one or more of the items are complete sentences. If the vertical list completes a sentence begun in an introductory element, the final period is also omitted unless the items in the list are separated by commas or semicolons. . . . " When items are separated by commas or semicolons, each item begins with a lower case letter. The Chicago manual doesn't provide for bullets (it numbers items -- 1. , 2. , etc.), but that manual is designed primarily for writers whose work is designed for future publication. Go ahead and use them if they make your work look more professional. You don't want an "and" prior to the last item in the vertical list. You could use a colon after your initial sentence or not, but the items in the list itself might as well be complete sentences since they don't "flow" from the initial statement.
Authority: Chicago Manual of Style 14th ed. U of Chicago P: Chicago. 1993. 160.

Question Should you use hyphens in the following:
service available 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week?
Or should it just be 24 hours a day, seven days a week?
Source & Date
of Question Tampa, Florida
21 April 1998
Grammar's
Response No hyphens are necessary in those constructions.

Question What is the correct use in this sentence?
The position advertised in the (name of newspaper) on (in) the week of April 5 - April 11, 1998.
I use "ON" when I use the date only, on April 5, 1998.
Thank you in advance.
Source & Date
of Question Toronto, Ontario, Canada
21 April 1998
Grammar's
Response For inclusive dates like that, you're better off saying "during the week of April 5 to/through April 11" or just "from April 5 to April 11."

Question Should the article "the" be used with an acronym when the first word of the acronym stands for "the"?
Example:
"Please contact the TWS office." (TWS is the acronym for The Wildlife Society).
or should the sentence read:
"Please contact TWS office." ?

Source & Date
of Question Bethesda, Maryland
21 April 1998
Grammar's
Response I can't think of any abbreviation/acronym in which the initial letter is an article, but I'll believe in this one if you say it's so. I guess you have to say "the" TWS office; it sounds too dumb to leave it out. The good people of TWS should have come up with a better abbreviation for their office. Call up TWS and ask them. (I'm sorry if that sounds a bit impolite; I didn't mean to be. Blame it on TWS.)

Question I have this sentence:
PEU members represent all the professional education programs located in SMSU's six academic colleges: (1) education, (2) business, . . . . etc. to (6). . . .
Is it proper and correct to remove the parentheses and merely enumerate with 1. , 2., and so on to 6.? Is the colon correct following the word _colleges_? You surely are a godsend--thanks. Jim
Source & Date
of Question Springfield, Missouri
21 April 1998
Grammar's
Response According to the Chicago Style Manual, the answer is no. Keep the numbers within parentheses when the enumeration happens within the flow of your text like that. Exactly as you did it, in fact. The colon is appropriate in that sentence because the clause preceding it could stand by itself (even though you're waiting for the list to follow). Well done.
Authority: Chicago Manual of Style 14th ed. U of Chicago P: Chicago. 1993.

Question Please identify the difference between first person and third person when doing an essay.
Thanks in advance.
Source & Date
of Question Fayetteville, North Carolina
21 April 1998
Grammar's
Response When you use the first person, you refer to "I," getting yourself involved in the writing. The third person is supposedly more objective, or at least it feels so, because you're referring always to what the viewer, the reader, or he or she, or one is thinking or doing. In talking about a poem or painting, say, it is regarded as appropriate to talk about what the reader or viewer thinks, or what "one" sees happening in that painting or poem, as opposed to what "I" think or see. Many instructors go bonkers when they see "I" in academic prose (the more technical, the more this is so), so be sure and talk to your instructor before ever using the first person "I."

Question I believe this sentence is not correct:
Our people are capable, competent and share one direction.
I believe it must be: Our people are capable, competent and they share one direction.
If I am right, on grounds of which rule is the sentence not correct, and where can I look this up?
Source & Date
of Question Melbourne, Australia
22 April 1998
Grammar's
Response The original sentence has a problem in Parallelism. Put simply, we have three elements about "our people" and we want those three elements to be similar: adjective, adjective, adjective -- capable, competent, and happy. But if we can't think of another adjective for "share one direction," it would be wise to give up on it and put it in another independent clause, as you did, or better yet, put it in another sentence. The two adjectives set up an expectation, a rhythm, that demands another one, and if we can't come through, we need to break the rhythm. (The section on parallellism, linked above, borrows heavily from William Strunk's Elements of Style.)

Question What is the difference between 'wear' and 'dress'? And then give you an example: All a hotel manager has to do is___ smartly.
Thank you very much.
Source & Date
of Question Hong Kong
22 April 1998
Grammar's
Response In that context, "wear" is transitive, carries an object: "He wears a jacket every day. He wears that well." And "dress" is not: "He dresses smartly. He dressed as if he were going to a funeral." ("Dress" can be transitive in another sense: "He dressed his dog in a silly sweater.")

Question Could you please give me the rule for syllabication of vowels or where I could find it on the Web? Thanks
Source & Date
of Question Anaheim, California
22 April 1998
Grammar's
Response I assume this means you're talking about word division? There are about five pages of rules in the Chicago Manual of Style about word division. With word processors and ragged-right margins, most writers don't worry their heads much about this issue anymore. I don't know where this information could be found on the web. Here are two useful rules from the Chicago manual:
Division should be made after a vowel unless the resulting break is not according to pronunciation. Where a vowel alone forms a syllable in the middle of a word, run it into the first line. Diphthongs are treated as single vowels. (preju-dice, sepa-rate, physi-cal, eneu-rysm)
Final syllables in which the liquid l sound contains the only audible vowel sound should not be carried over to the next line: (convert-ible, pos-sible, en-titled)

Question Am I correct that modifiers should be singular? This usually comes up when the writers convert nouns to adjectives. For instance, there's a group of pesticides called triazines. The writer keeps saying things like "determined triazines concentrations" and I keep changing it to "determined triazine concentrations," because (1) triazines concentrations sounds awkward and (2) in this case it's the concentrations that are plural, not the modifier. Is there a rule that covers this case?
Source & Date
of Question Lexington, Kentucky
23 April 1998
Grammar's
Response I've never heard of a plural modifier before, but as soon as I say that someone's going to come up with one. These pesty writers would be much better off with "triazine concentrations," or if there is more than one triazine, they could always writer about the "concentration(s) of triazines.."

Question In English, does one write "the project on which we are engaged" or "the project in which we are engaged"?
Source & Date
of Question New York, New York
22 April 1998
Grammar's
Response I know that we work on a project and you could probably work within a project, but when you're talking about engagement, I think you're engaged in it. We're certainly involved in a project. If you wrote engaged on a project, I don't think very many people would object, though.

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Question	Should you use hyphens in the following: service available 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week? Or should it just be 24 hours a day, seven days a week?
Source & Date of Question	Tampa, Florida 21 April 1998
Grammar's Response	No hyphens are necessary in those constructions.

Question	What is the correct use in this sentence? The position advertised in the (name of newspaper) on (in) the week of April 5 - April 11, 1998. I use "ON" when I use the date only, on April 5, 1998. Thank you in advance.
Source & Date of Question	Toronto, Ontario, Canada 21 April 1998
Grammar's Response	For inclusive dates like that, you're better off saying "during the week of April 5 to/through April 11" or just "from April 5 to April 11."

Question	Should the article "the" be used with an acronym when the first word of the acronym stands for "the"? Example: "Please contact the TWS office." (TWS is the acronym for The Wildlife Society). or should the sentence read: "Please contact TWS office." ?
Source & Date of Question	Bethesda, Maryland 21 April 1998
Grammar's Response	I can't think of any abbreviation/acronym in which the initial letter is an article, but I'll believe in this one if you say it's so. I guess you have to say "the" TWS office; it sounds too dumb to leave it out. The good people of TWS should have come up with a better abbreviation for their office. Call up TWS and ask them. (I'm sorry if that sounds a bit impolite; I didn't mean to be. Blame it on TWS.)

Question	Please identify the difference between first person and third person when doing an essay. Thanks in advance.
Source & Date of Question	Fayetteville, North Carolina 21 April 1998
Grammar's Response	When you use the first person, you refer to "I," getting yourself involved in the writing. The third person is supposedly more objective, or at least it feels so, because you're referring always to what the viewer, the reader, or he or she, or one is thinking or doing. In talking about a poem or painting, say, it is regarded as appropriate to talk about what the reader or viewer thinks, or what "one" sees happening in that painting or poem, as opposed to what "I" think or see. Many instructors go bonkers when they see "I" in academic prose (the more technical, the more this is so), so be sure and talk to your instructor before ever using the first person "I."

Question	I believe this sentence is not correct: Our people are capable, competent and share one direction. I believe it must be: Our people are capable, competent and they share one direction. If I am right, on grounds of which rule is the sentence not correct, and where can I look this up?
Source & Date of Question	Melbourne, Australia 22 April 1998
Grammar's Response	The original sentence has a problem in Parallelism. Put simply, we have three elements about "our people" and we want those three elements to be similar: adjective, adjective, adjective -- capable, competent, and happy. But if we can't think of another adjective for "share one direction," it would be wise to give up on it and put it in another independent clause, as you did, or better yet, put it in another sentence. The two adjectives set up an expectation, a rhythm, that demands another one, and if we can't come through, we need to break the rhythm. (The section on parallellism, linked above, borrows heavily from William Strunk's Elements of Style.)

Question	What is the difference between 'wear' and 'dress'? And then give you an example: All a hotel manager has to do is___ smartly. Thank you very much.
Source & Date of Question	Hong Kong 22 April 1998
Grammar's Response	In that context, "wear" is transitive, carries an object: "He wears a jacket every day. He wears that well." And "dress" is not: "He dresses smartly. He dressed as if he were going to a funeral." ("Dress" can be transitive in another sense: "He dressed his dog in a silly sweater.")

Question	Could you please give me the rule for syllabication of vowels or where I could find it on the Web? Thanks
Source & Date of Question	Anaheim, California 22 April 1998
Grammar's Response	I assume this means you're talking about word division? There are about five pages of rules in the Chicago Manual of Style about word division. With word processors and ragged-right margins, most writers don't worry their heads much about this issue anymore. I don't know where this information could be found on the web. Here are two useful rules from the Chicago manual: Division should be made after a vowel unless the resulting break is not according to pronunciation. Where a vowel alone forms a syllable in the middle of a word, run it into the first line. Diphthongs are treated as single vowels. (preju-dice, sepa-rate, physi-cal, eneu-rysm) Final syllables in which the liquid l sound contains the only audible vowel sound should not be carried over to the next line: (convert-ible, pos-sible, en-titled)

Question	Am I correct that modifiers should be singular? This usually comes up when the writers convert nouns to adjectives. For instance, there's a group of pesticides called triazines. The writer keeps saying things like "determined triazines concentrations" and I keep changing it to "determined triazine concentrations," because (1) triazines concentrations sounds awkward and (2) in this case it's the concentrations that are plural, not the modifier. Is there a rule that covers this case?
Source & Date of Question	Lexington, Kentucky 23 April 1998
Grammar's Response	I've never heard of a plural modifier before, but as soon as I say that someone's going to come up with one. These pesty writers would be much better off with "triazine concentrations," or if there is more than one triazine, they could always writer about the "concentration(s) of triazines.."

Question	In English, does one write "the project on which we are engaged" or "the project in which we are engaged"?
Source & Date of Question	New York, New York 22 April 1998
Grammar's Response	I know that we work on a project and you could probably work within a project, but when you're talking about engagement, I think you're engaged in it. We're certainly involved in a project. If you wrote engaged on a project, I don't think very many people would object, though.