Michael Alley, Penn State
Writing as an Engineer or Scientist
  • Home
    • Scientific Presentations
    • Scientific Posters
    • Scientific Film
  • Reports
    • Reports Tutorial >
      • Reports Tutorial: Full
      • Badge: Writing Reports
    • Report Formats >
      • Sample Report Format
      • Report Templates
    • Laboratory Reports
    • Design Reports
  • Emails
    • Tutorial: Emails
    • Writing Professional Emails
    • Writing Professional Letters
    • Badge: Writing Emails
  • Research Papers
  • Grammar
    • Section 1: Grammar
    • Section 2: Punctuation
    • Section 3: Usage
    • Comprehensive Quiz
    • Badge: Grammar Errors
  • Teaching Resources
    • Short Films
    • Canvas Quizzes for Report Tutorials
    • Kahoots to Teach Writing
    • Craft of Scientific Writing >
      • Lessons >
        • 2: Being Precise and Clear
        • 3: Avoiding Ambiguity
        • 4: Sustaining Energy
        • 5: Connecting Your Ideas
        • 6: Being Familiar
        • 9: Emphasizing details
        • 10: Incorporating Illustrations
      • Errata
    • Why Our Students Struggle With Scientific Writing

Self-Study Guide
Avoiding Errors of Grammar, Punctuation, and Usage
Commonly Made in Engineering and Science

​

Picture

Picture
If you selected all of the correct answers, congratulations. You have completed the guide. Best wishes on all of your documents in engineering and science.
If you missed any questions, review the parts of the guide for those types of errors. After doing so, feel free to take the comprehensive quiz again. Note: On a retake of the quiz, you should add a "2" to your Kahoot name.



Picture
Instructors in Engineering and Science: You are more than welcome to assign this tutorial to your students. Also, if you would like the scores of your students on the tutorial's comprehensive quiz, please fill out a request form.
Picture

Acknowledgments

This self-study guide was made possible by funds provided by the Leonhard Center for the Enhancement of Engineering Education in the College of Engineering at Pennsylvania State University. Providing technical assistance on the films is the Office of Digital Learning, which is also in the College of Engineering at Penn State. 
Role
Name
Department
Institution
Faculty Editor
Professor Michael Alley
College of Engineering
Penn State
Film Editor
Casey Fenton
Office of Digital Learning
Penn State
Film Editor
Elaine Whitmer
Office of Digital Learning
Penn State
Student Editor, 2022
Olivia Brencovich
Mechanical Engineering
Penn State
Website Editor, 2022
Marissa Beighley
Computer Science
Penn State


​References
  1. Peg Tyre, "The Writing Revolution," The Atlantic Monthly (October 2012), pp. 99-100.
  2. Catherine Walker, "Time to Stop Avoiding Grammar Rules," The Guardian (September 2012).
  3. Tessa Schlesinger, "Why Grammar Matters," Owlcation (7 September 2017). 
  4. Michael Alley, The Craft of Scientific Writing, 4th ed. (New York: Springer, 2018), Appendices A, B, and C.
  5. Cheryl Glenn and Loretta Gray, The Writer's Harbrace Handbook, 5th ed. (Boston: Cengage Learning, 2012).
  6. William A. Sabin, The Gregg Reference Manual: A Manual of Style, Grammar, Usage, and Formatting, 11th ed. (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010).

Please feel free to provide comments, questions, and suggestions for the films, text, and quizzes of this website. To help us understand your feedback, please let us know whether you are a student or faculty member (or other professional).
Leonhard Center, Penn State 
University Park, PA 16802

Content Editor:

Michael Alley
​
mpa13@psu.edu