Grammar, Punctuation and Capitalization - Handbook for Technical ...

Chapter 3. Punctuation Page 66• Parentheses are most appropriate to enclose a nonrestrictive element that is only loosely connected to thesentence and could be left out without damaging the sentence.• Do not insert a parenthetical element with no relation whatever to the rest of the sentence. The followingexample is taken from Fowler (1944):In writing this straightforward and workmanlike biography of his grandfather (the book wasfinished before the war and delayed in publication) Mr. Walter Jerrold has aimed at doing justiceto Douglas Jerrold ....The parenthetical idea has no bearing on the sentence!• Parentheses enclose numbers in an enumeration within a sentence:The scatterometer is separated into (1) a gimbal, (2) a transmitter-receiver assembly, and (3) rackmountedelectronics.When the enumerated list is displayed, a period following the number is sufficient to set it off (Skillin et al. 1974;and Chicago Press 1982):The scatterometer is separated into1.2.3.A gimbalA transmitter-receiver assemblyRack-mounted electronicsEbbitt and Ebbitt (1982) neatly explain use of parentheses with other punctuation marks as follows:When a complete sentence in parentheses comes within a sentence (notice the punctuation of thisone), it needs neither a capital letter nor a period. Commas and other marks of punctuation in themain sentence always follow the parenthesis (as here and in the preceding sentence). (A sentencein parentheses, like this one, that does not stand within another sentence has the end punctuationbefore the closing parenthesis.)Punctuation (for example, question marks, quotation marks) of the ideas within parentheses remains withinparentheses, while punctuation of the main sentence remains outside, almost always after the closing parenthesisrather than before an opening parenthesis. A comma precedes an open parenthesis if the parenthetical matterclearly limits the word following it (Skillin et al. 1974):Despite these differences, (digital) image-gathering systems can be compared with optical imagingsystems.3.11. PeriodThe period is a mark of separation. Its primary purpose is to separate complete thoughts, to mark the end ofdeclarative and imperative sentences. (Interrogative sentences end with a question mark; exclamatory, with anexclamation point.) The key word here is complete; a period should be used only after a sentence complete withsubject and predicate.• Do not use a period after headings on separate lines (run-in headings are often separated from text by a period),after running heads, after table titles, or after items in an enumerated, displayed list unless one or more of the