Common Grammatical Errors, Punctuation, and USGS Style

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Common Grammatical Errors, Punctuation, and USGS
Style

• Dale Simmons
• New Jersey District Reports Specialist

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Common Grammatical Errors

• Subject-verb agreement
• The object of a prepositional phrase is commonly
  mistaken for the subject of the sentence. Verbs
  take their number (singular or plural) from their
  subjects, regardless of intervening words.

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Subject-Verb Agreement--continued

• Example
• Mechanical difficulties with the operation of
  the water-level recorder appears to be a major
  reason for the poor data.
• Should be
• Mechanical difficulties with the operation of
  the water-level recorder appear to be a major
  reason for the poor data.

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Subject-Verb Agreement--continued

• Compound singular subjects require a plural verb.
• Example
• The composition and texture of each sample was
  recorded.
• Should be
• The composition and texture of each sample
  were recorded.

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Parallel Construction

• When two or more items are paired, compared, or
  contrasted, they should be expressed in similar
  grammatical structure.

• Example
• He likes being in the field more than to work
  in the office.
• Should be
• He likes being in the field more than working
  in the office.

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Parallel Construction--continued

• Example
• The confining unit is clayey, discontinuous,
  and contains glauconite.
• Should be
• The confining unit is clayey and
  discontinuous, and contains glauconite.
• Or
• The confining unit is clayey, discontinuous,
  and glauconitic.

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Parallel Construction--continued

• Example
• The sites typically are residential, currently
  unsewered, and most are located on or adjacent to
  agricultural land.
• Should be
• The sites typically are residential,
  unsewered, and on or adjacent to agricultural
  land.
• Or
• The sites typically are residential and
  unsewered, and most are on or adjacent to
  agricultural land.

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Dangling Constructions

• Care must be taken to place participles,
  gerunds, and infinitives in sentences so that
  they refer clearly to a single noun.
• Example Having been demolished in the wreck,
  he dragged the old truck to a junk yard.
• Should be He dragged the old truck, which
  had been demolished in the wreck, to a junk yard.

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Incomplete Comparisons

• If a sentence attempts to compare two
  incomparable things or fails to specify both of
  the items being compared, the resulting
  grammatical problem is called an incomplete
  comparison.
• Example The observation wells in the Coastal
  Plain are shallower than the Newark Basin.
• Should be The observation wells in the
  Coastal Plain are shallower than (those, the
  wells) in the Newark Basin.

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Incomplete Comparisons--continued

• Example Chloride concentrations are higher in
  the eastern part of the study area.
• Could be Chloride concentrations are higher
  in the eastern part of the study area than in the
  western part.
• Or Chloride concentrations are higher in the
  eastern part of the study area than anywhere else
  in the United States.

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Common Word Problems

• Use upstream/downstream from, not of.
• Use upgradient/downgradient from, not of.
• Samples are collected, not taken.
• Measurements are made, not taken.
• Chloride concentrations are, not chloride is,
• greater than 250 milligrams per liter.
• Water is potable wells are not.
• Water contains contaminants, not contamination.
• Use contamination, not pollution.

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Common Word Problems--continued

• Use concentration for water quality, level for
  water levels.
• Use greater than, larger than, or more thannot
  above or over (except to denote location in
  physical space).
• Use less than, smaller than, or fewer thannot
  below or under (except to denote location in
  physical space).
• Dont use significant unless a test of
  statistical significance has been done. Use
  substantial or important.
• Dont use event (as in storm event, runoff
  event).

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Common Word Problems--continued

• Dont use quite, very, rather, somewhat. These
  words are used in speech but are virtually
  meaningless in technical writing. Exception
  very fine-grained sediment
• Use pumped well, withdrawal well, or production
  well, not pumping well.
• Use aquifer test, not pump test.
• Use positive or upward trend, not increasing
  trend.
• Use negative or downward trend, not decreasing
  trend.

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Common Word Problems--continued

• Use based on to introduce a phrase that modifies
  a noun.
• Example The model used in this study is
  based on the ground-water-flow model MODFLOW.
• Use on the basis of to introduce a phrase that
  modifies a verb.
• Example The model was constructed on the
  basis of the following assumptions etc. etc.

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Common Word Problems--continued

• Comprise means to contain or embrace.
• Example The jury comprises seven women and
  five men.
• Example The United States comprises 50
  states.
• Also correct
• The United States is composed of 50 states.
• The United States is made up of 50 states.
• Fifty states constitute the United States.
• Fifty states make up the United States.

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Common Word Problems--continued

• Its is the possessive form of it. Its is a
  contraction meaning it is.
• According to Survey style, people suggest and
  data indicate.
• Example Strunk and White (1979) suggest that
  authors avoid beginning a sentence with
  however.
• Example The data indicate that chloride
  concentrations in the study area are increasing.

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Common Word Problems--continued

• Altitude elevation
• Areal - aerial
• Between among
• Currently, last yr, this yr give year
• Described above or in a previous section
  be more precise
• Employ - use
• Ground water two words
• Higher or larger than what?

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Common Word Problems--continued

• Impact effect
• Insure - ensure
• It is apparent, clear, obvious antagonize
• Limited (confined) few, small
• Overly overlie
• Portion (share) part (fraction of whole)
• Percentage, percent
• - Spell out percent, except in tables

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Common Word Problems--continued

• Since because
• This, these, those refer to nearest noun
• Undertake no
• Up to as much as
• Versus and, in relation to
• While (at the time?) although, whereas, but, and

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Needless Words

• at its base the formation lies on granite
• close proximity
• throughout the entire area
• flood event, storm event
• ground water in the aquifer
• green in color
• It is important to note

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Needless Words

• contour line
• by means of
• during the winter months
• most of the cobbles are of large size
• in the month of March
• during the period 1995-99
• the report is in progress of preparation
• thin veneer

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Affect or Effect???

• As a verb, affect means to act upon or influence.
• Example Water levels in the study area are
  affected by pumping from nearby wells.
• As a noun, affect means feeling or emotion, and
  is rarely used except in psychology.
• Example A person who consistently exhibits
  a lack of affect may be clinically depressed.
• As a verb, effect means to cause, bring about, or
  accomplish.
• Example The discussion of competitive
  outsourcing effected an atmosphere of doom among
  the pub unit staff.
• As a noun, effect means something that inevitably
  follows an antecedent, as a cause or agent.
• Example The effect of agricultural land use
  on nitrate concentrations in ground water is well
  documented.

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That or Which???

• That introduces a defining, or restrictive,
  clause.
• Example The lawn mower that is broken is in
  the garage. (Tells which one)
• Which introduces a nondefining, or
  nonrestrictive, clause.
• Example The lawn mower, which is broken, is
  in the garage. (Adds a fact about the only lawn
  mower in question)

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Model or Simulation???

• A model is a physical, conceptual, or numerical
  representation of a real-world system.
• Simulation is a process that involves examination
  of a problem not subject to direct
  experimentation.
• Example Model results show substantial downward
  leakage through the confining unit.
• Should be Results of the ground-water-flow
  simulation show substantial downward leakage
  through the confining unit.

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Model or Simulation--continued

• Example The initial attempt to model flow in
  the study area was unsuccessful as a result of
  insufficient data.
• Should be The initial attempt to simulate flow
  in the study area was unsuccessful as a result of
  insufficient data.
• Correct use of model The model consists of
  seven layers that represent four aquifers and
  three intervening confining units.

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Relation or Relationship???

• Survey style is that people have relationships,
  and things have relations (are related).
• Example The relation between sodium
  concentrations and chloride concentrations is
  shown in figure 2.
• Example His relationship with his colleagues is
  one of mutual respect.

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One Word or Two???

• One word streamflow, streamwater, freshwater,
  saltwater, database
• Two words ground water, base flow, flow
  path, data set, web site
• Note Data is a plural word. Example The
  data indicate that streamflow increases
  downstream.

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Time Words

• Words that denote time should not be used to
  denote place or state.
• Example The aquifer sediments are usually dark
  brown, but sometimes they are gray.
• Should be Most of the aquifer sediments are
  dark brown, but some of them are gray.
• Or The aquifer sediments are dark brown in
  most parts of the study area, but are gray at
  three of the study sites.

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Time Words--continued

• Example The aquifer is (frequently, usually,
  often) overlain by a thin clay layer.
• Should be The aquifer is overlain by a thin
  clay layer in most (parts) of the study area.
• Or The aquifer (commonly, typically) is
  overlain by a thin clay layer.

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Time Words--continued

• Examples of correct use of time words in Survey
  reports
• Use while when referring to different activities
  occurring at the same time--
• While one person cleaned the sampling equipment,
  the other rinsed the sample bottles.
• The sewage-treatment plant has been in operation
  since 1972.

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Resist the temptation to anthropomorphize
(attribute human characteristics to things that
are not human)

• Example The model assumes that the aquifer is
  homogeneous.
• Should be In the model, the aquifer is
  assumed to be homogeneous.
• Or The model is based on the assumption
  that the aquifer is homogeneous.
• Example The graph in figure 6 compares water
  levels with withdrawals from the unconfined
  aquifer.
• Should be The relation between water levels
  and withdrawals (or the relation of water levels
  to withdrawals) from the unconfined aquifer is
  shown in figure 6.

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Foreign Words and Phrases

• Dont use foreign words (for example, via or
  versus). Exception in situ is allowed.
• Use for example instead of e.g.
• Use that is instead of i.e.
• Use through, with, or by means of instead
  of via.
• Use and others instead of et al. (except when
  writing for most journals.
• In figure captions, use y as a function of x or
  the relation between x and y rather than x
  versus y.

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Writing Numbers

• Spell out numbers less than 10, except where they
  are followed by time words or units of measure.
• Example 9 milligrams per liter, 6 days
• Spell out a number at the beginning of a
  sentence.
• Example Fifty samples were collected.
• When two numbers come together without an
  intervening word, spell out the first number.
  Example six 10-milliliter sample vials

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Writing Dates

• Do not use a comma between the month or season
  and the year.
• Example summer 2001, June 2001
• Do use a comma between the day and year in
  complete dates.
• Example June 24, 2001
• Do use a comma after the year in complete dates
  (month, day, year) within a sentence.
• Example Samples were collected on December
  6, 2001, and February 1, 2002.

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Periods of Time

• Examples
• Samples were collected from May to September
  2001.
• Samples were collected during May-September 2001.
• Samples were collected (in, during) May and June
  2001.
• Samples were collected from May 3 to June 20,
  2001.
• Note To avoid ambiguity, avoid saying, for
  example, Samples were collected between May and
  September. Although most readers will assume
  you mean May to September, the only months
  between May and September are June, July, and
  August.

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USGS Authors and Editors of the Future