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hyphens in a vertical row.
Typography
Electronic typography comes in two distinct constructs—TrueType and PostScript. PostScript was developed for laser
printers and provides clean sharp type regardless of how the image looks on the screen. TrueType works well on the
screen but can cause problems when
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converted to print. It is best used for slides projected from a computer and for other material that will be viewed from
a monitor. Always use PostScript fonts for publication purposes.
Times Roman is the most frequently specified typeface for text type in the body of a paper. It is an easy-to-read serif
type. (Serif type has little terminators, called serifs, at the end of the stroke lines forming each character.) The
typeface usually specified for headings in electronically submitted papers is Helvetica, a sans serif typeface. (Sans
serif characters do not have serif terminators at the ends of the strokes and, unlike serif type, are equally weighted,
with all strokes of each character having the same width throughout.) Journals also generally prefer that the text type
for a submitted manuscript be 12 points in size and double spaced to make it easier to read and comment upon in
writing. (In the United States, type is measured in points, with 72 points comprising one inch.)
The standard typeface for scientific symbols is, appropriately enough, Symbol. Scientific journals usually prefer that
you use Symbol when preparing your paper. Other typefaces were especially designed for mathematics and chemical
formulas. Some publications accept them, but others do not. If you are using a typeface other than Symbol, you must
be sure that the journal has a copy of the face you are using. Journals also prefer that you do not use a graphic symbol
as part of your text. Refer to the journal for the editors' preferences in this matter. Using a special symbol typeface for
a graphic, and submitting a hardcopy printout of the graphic as artwork for publication, usually presents no problem.
TeX is a word-processing type composition program created by Donald Knuth of Stanford University for typesetting
complex technical manuscripts. The name TeX, pronounced "tek," is based on the Greek letters Tau, Epsilon, and Chi,
whose Roman equivalents are T, E, and X. The program is available to run on Unix, Windows, and Macintosh
platforms. Such organizations as the American Mathematical Society <http://www.ams.org> prefer that manuscripts
sent to them be formatted in TeX. Templates are available for electronic formatting of a manuscript in TeX.
Final Review
After the manuscript has been input, you will be wise to do two things.
First, read it yourself. You would be surprised how many manuscripts are submitted to journals without being
proofread after final
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typing—manuscripts so full of typing errors that sometimes even the author's name is misspelled. Recently, a
manuscript was submitted by an author who was too busy to proofread not only the final typing of the manuscript but
also the cover letter. His letter read: "I hope you will find this manuscript exceptable." We did.
Second, ask one or more of your colleagues to read your manuscript before you submit it to a journal. It may well be
that the meaning of one or more parts of your paper is completely unclear to your colleague. Of course, this may be
because your colleague is dense, but it is just possible that this portion of your manuscript is not as clear as it could
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