1. Avoid long, complicated compound sentences. These are often very difficult to follow.
2.
Use “which” and “that”
properly. “That” should be used for restrictive clauses (“This is the fish THAT
Jack caught.) whereas “which” should be used for nonrestrictive clauses (“This
fish, WHICH Jack caught, is a salmon.”) Most people use “which” in many cases
where “that” is more appropriate.
3.
Avoid all use of “there is”,
“there was”, “there are”, and “there were”, particularly at the start of
sentences. Use of these terms can make the subject of the sentence unclear.
4.
Avoid unnecessary amplification
of text. For example, say “sneaky mating is successful” rather than “sneaky
mating has been found to be successful”.
5.
Avoid the use of “while”,
except when the intended meaning is “during the time that.” In other contexts, “whereas”
or “although” are usually better.
6.
Write out all numbers less than
10 (i.e., one, two), unless the number is followed by a unit, such as m, mg,
min, h, etc.
7.
“Data” are plural. That is, you don't say: "the data is", you say "the data are." Datum would be the singular version.
8.
“Between” is used in reference to two things.
“Among” is used in reference to more than two things. That is, you study the differences between two populations, but the differences among three populations.
9.
Never use “etc.”
10. Never use “unique” unless you truly mean “one of a kind.” People
often say: “Our system represents a unique opportunity to test the theory
that…” Instead, say: “Our system represents an excellent opportunity
to test the theory that…” Similarly, never use “ideal” or “perfect” in this
same context.
11. My Mom (a grammar expert of sorts) tells me that only God “creates”
things (and she isn’t even religious). So, in short, don't use the term create unless you are invoking God.
12. Strive for parallelism between related sentences that appear close
to each other. As a simple example, use “Low predation sites are characterized
by few fish predators. High predation sites are characterized by many fish
predators.”, instead of “Low predation sites are characterized by few fish
predators. Many fish predators are found at high predation sites.”
13. Beware of misplaced modifiers. For example, “We measured body depth
using calipers.” Body depth does not use calipers, as this sentence implies.
Instead, use “We used calipers to measure body depth.” Sometimes it is
difficult to avoid misplaced modifiers without otherwise destroying the
sentence. In such cases, it is forgivable.
14. Use the active voice (“We measured body depth.”), rather than the
passive voice (“Body depth was measured.”), whenever reasonable and when not
explicitly disallowed by a journal. Be careful to not use it too much though.
Six sentences in a row, all starting with “we”, are very awkward.
15. Although many would disagree with me, I believe in the power of
punctuation. As one small example, I believe the second last phrase in a list
of phrases should have a comma before the “and.” For example, “Speciation can
occur by genetic drift, mutation, and natural selection.” rather than
“Speciation can occur by genetic drift, mutation and natural selection.” Using
the latter often introduces confusion when the phrases themselves are longer
and contain “and” within them. The cartoon gives another example:
16. Always use a single space between sentences. All journals do this
anyway, and it makes editing difficult if one person (me) uses single spaces
and other people (you) use double spaces.
17. Try not to use “may” unless you are implying permission. Instead
consider “might” or “can”.
