Spell check fail of the day
"The shear quality of the program" I think The right word is "sheer" as in "unqualified," but I like the idea that if you want to leave the program early,…
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February 21, 2012
New possibility for medical publishing
I just got my first freelance assignment to help with publishing a study protocol. Journals are encouraging publishing of protocols from studies that are funded but not yet begun…
February 15, 2012
There is a difference between training and education
Thank goodness for a liberal education. What medically trained medical editor or technical writer could properly review my current freelance assignment: a Foucauldian analysis of nursing texts? My cultural studies…
February 8, 2012
What is a lingua franca?
A lingua franca is any set of language words and constructs that are agreed upon by a set of people. For example, for academics it is lingua franca to say…
January 31, 2012
Antennae vs. Antennas
A while ago my brother, an environmental planner, had to give a presentation about proposed radio antenna towers. He told me that the plural is antennas for radio towers, though…
January 30, 2012
“If I was drunk” vs. “If I were drunk”
When is a plural verb not a plural verb? When it's the subjunctive form. Compare these sentences. "If I was drunk at the time I made the offer, then it…
January 25, 2012
When is a consonant not a consonant?
When is a consonant not a consonant? Answer: When it's a word. The word for the letter "N" for example is "en." Thus, you get a National Institutes of Health…
January 12, 2012
I can do more than spell check better than a computer.
The other day I helped an author be clear about what findings she could and could not report in the first of two articles she hopes to publish about one…
January 9, 2012
Spell check fail of the day (or why you need a human editor)
One typo I consistently type results in two words that are spelled correctly: "doe snot." Does it convey what I intended? does not
January 4, 2012
Spell check fail of the day
Spell check fail of the day: "urinary track." The right word is "tract," but I like the idea that one could pursue scatology as a career path.
December 7, 2011