Frequent Mistakes Found in Ph.D. Proposals

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Frequent MistakesFound in Ph.D. Proposals
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Format Issues Spacing

• Double space text in proposals.
• Keep text out of the page number column
• Table of Contents
• List of Figures
• List of Tables
• List of Terms

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Format Issues Figures/Tables/Equations

• Introduce a figure/table/equation in the text
  before inserting that figure/table/equation.
• Insert a figure/table at the end of a sentence or
  paragraph not in the middle of a sentence.
• The words figure, table, and equation should be
  capitalized when they are followed by a number.

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Use/Usage

• Use refers to using or employing something.
• We use a chair as a place to sit.
• A yard stick is used to measure distances.
• Usage refers to customary practices.
• To substitute a chair for a ladder is a common,
  but frequently unsafe, usage for reaching items
  in high places.
• To retrieve lost items from under a refrigerator
  is a common usage for a yard stick.

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Due to

• The correct use of due to is after the verb to be
  in all its forms (am, is, are, was, were).
• Transmissivity errors are due to the
  uncertainties in the measurement amplitude. (Are
  is a linking verb in the previous sentence, so it
  is correct to use due to.)
• As a result of the uncertainties in the
  measurement amplitude, transmissivity errors
  occur. (Occur is not a linking verb, so due to
  should not be used.)

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In Order to

• The use of to alone is preferred to the wordier
  form in order to.
• The student used a Boolean equation to solve the
  problem.
• To win on the road, the Yellow Jackets need to
  improve their three-point shooting percentage.

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Acronyms

• The first time an acronym is used in a document,
  the full name for which the acronym stands should
  be given first, followed by the acronym.
• Programmable array logic (PAL)
• System on a chip (SoC)
• The full name for which the acronym stands is not
  capitalized (unless the first word in the full
  name begins a sentence).

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Comparisons

• The reader should be told what is being compared.
  
• Incorrect The digital version is better.
• Correct The digital version is better than the
  analog version in terms of cost.

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Hyphenated Adjectives

• When two or more adjectives function as one
  adjective, a hyphen is needed between the two
  words.
• This arrangement allows real-time (compound
  adjective) interaction.
• The interaction is not a real interaction.
• The interaction is not a time interaction.
• The interaction is a real-time (compound
  adjective) interaction.
• We are dealing with a low-pass (compound
  adjective) filter.
• The filter is not a low filter.
• The filter is not a pass filter.
• The filter is a low-pass (compound adjective)
  filter.

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Hyphenated Adjectives (2)

• When the same two words are used as a noun, no
  hyphen is required.
• The imagery appears in real time (object of the
  preposition).
• The filter is low pass (predicate nominative).
• Therefore, Change All is not an option for
  correcting hyphenated adjectives in a document.

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Numerals

• Spell out numbers under 10.
• Use numerals for numbers over 10.
• Spell out any number that begins a sentence.

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That Clauses

• A that clause contains essential information.
• No punctuation separates a that clause from the
  rest of the sentence.
• The quality factors of line-based passive
  components are degraded by the current
  redistribution that is caused by the proximity
  effect and the skin effect.

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Which Clauses

• A which contains non-essential information.
• A comma before and after the which clause set the
  which clause apart from the rest of the sentence.
• The problem, which is difficult to solve,
  requires concentration and effort.
• A which clause that appears at the end of the
  sentence does not need a comma at the end of the
  clause.
• The balun has two coupled-wire transmission
  lines, which have side and bottom ground shields.
  

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There

• Introducing a sentence with the word there
  weakens the sentence.
• Weak sentence There are many digital modulation
  schemes for various applications that have been
  invented in recent years.
• Strong sentence Many digital modulation schemes
  for various applications have been invented in
  recent years.

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Colons

• Do not use a colon after a preposition in a
  sentence or in the introduction to a list
• Correct This computation can be expressed as (no
  colon) XYZ.
• Correct This computation can be expressed as
  follows XYZ.

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Colons (2)

• Do not use a colon after a linking verb (to be
  am, is, are, was, were) in a sentence or in the
  introduction to a list
• Correct The winners are (no colon) Ruben and
  Austin.
• Correct The winners are the following students
  Ruben and Austin.

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Commas in Independent Clauses

• A comma is placed before a coordinating
  conjunction that joins two independent clauses.
• An independent clause is a group of words that
  has a subject and a verb and that expresses a
  complete thought.
• Coordinating conjunctions are the following
  and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so.
• Correct The Wiener filter was primarily confined
  to scalar signals in noise with stationary
  statistics, and the Kalman filter was a dramatic
  improvement over its minimum squared-error
  predecessor.

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Commas in a Series

• A comma is used to separate the items in a
  series.
• Using a comma before the and in a series is the
  preferred method, but you may omit this comma if
  you are consistent in doing so.
• Correct Lingering eye contact, expressive facial
  expressions, comfortable body movements, and
  appropriate hand gestures enhance an oral
  presentation.
• The comma before and in a series is known as
  the Harvard comma in the United States and as the
  Oxford comma in the United Kingdom.

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Commas between Coordinate Modifiers

• If and can be inserted between two modifiers that
  describe the same word, the modifiers are
  coordinate, and a comma is needed to separate the
  words.
• Correct The Kalman filter incorporates an
  accurate, thorough, and dependable description of
  the system noises.

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Punctuating Sentences Containing Equations

• An equation is punctuated to read correctly as
  part of the sentence.
• Correct The equation can be expressed as
• XYZ, (note the comma
  after Z)
• where Y is gtQ.
• Correct The equation can be expressed as
• XYZ. (Note the period after Z.)
• Correct If Y is gtQ, the equation can be
  expressed as
• XYZ. (Note the period after Z.)

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Technical Writing Resources

• http//users.ece.gatech.edu/gpalmer/ece8020/index
  .shtml
• http//ewh.ieee.org/soc/es/Aug1996/030/cd/write/be
  gin.htm
• L. C. Perelman, J. Paradis, and E. Barrett. The
  Mayfield Handbook of Technical Scientific
  Writing. Mountain View, California Mayfield
  Publishing Company, 1998.
• D. Beer and D. McMurrey. A Guide to Writing as an
  Engineer. New York John Wiley Sons, Inc.,
  1997.
• W. Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White. The Elements of
  Style, Fourth Edition. New York Longman, 2000.

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Contact Information

• Gail Palmer
• Lecturer
• Graduate Professional Communications Program
• School of Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Georgia Institute of Technology
• Web site http//users.ece.gatech.edu/gpalmer/ind
  ex.shtml
• E-mail gpalmer_at_ece.gatech.edu

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