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Gramma r at Work
for Technical
Commun ication

Don Klepp
Okanagan Uni1Jersif)l College

Toronto
 ision of Pearson Canada Inc .,
Copyright © 2009 Pearson Education Canada, a div
Toronto, Ontario.

ntice Ha ll. All righ ts reserv ed. Thi s pub lica tion is protected by
Pearson Pre
m the publisher pri or to any
copyright, and permission should be obtained fro
system , or transmission in any
prohibited reproduction, storage in a retrieval
by any me ans , ele ctro nic , me cha nic al, pho tocopying, recording, or
form or
For info rm atio n reg ard ing per mis sio n, wri te to the Permissions
likewise.
Department.

a.
This ed itio n is au tho rize d for sale on ly in Canad

ISBN-13: 978-0-13-506272-2
ISBN-10: 0-13-506272-1

Acquisitions Editor: Chris Helsby

Senior Developmental Editor: Jennifer Murray
Production Editor: Claire Horsnell
Copy Editor: Susan Bindernagel
in
Production Coordinators: Janis Raisen/Khalid Elv

12 34 5 08 09 10 11 12

Printed and bound in Canada.

 co TE TS

Preface ....................................... .. . •
IV
Introduction .................................... 1
Diagnostic ....................................... 3
Basic Grammar ................................ 9
Nouns ............................................. .. . 10
Pronouns ............................................ 16
Verbs ............................................. ... . 26
Adjectives and adverbs .. ......................... 34
Conjunctions, Prepositions and Interjections 42
Sentence Grammar .......................... . 48
Sentence building blocks ........................ . 48
Types of sentences ................................. 50
Sentence errors and challenges ................. 53
Punctuation ....... ............................ . 65
End punctuation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... 65
Colons and semicolons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Commas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Apostrophes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Hyphens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Parentheses and brackets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 71
Underlining and italics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Quotation marks . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 73
Mechanics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... 80
Spelling ............................................ . . 80
Capitalization ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 83
Abbreviation .................................... 84
Numbers ............................................. 85
Proofreading hints ................................ 86
Vocabulary and Style ....................... . 91
Choosing the right words ....................... . 91
Writing concisely .................................• 95
Writing clearly ...........•..................•...... 97
Writing strong prose ......................... · ..•. 99
Answer Key .........•.......................... 110
orrection Symbols ........................... 136
Appendi A: Punctuating List ............. 137
Appendix B: Accidental Humour ........... 140

COPYRIGHT 2009 PEARSON EDUCATIO CANADA

 PR E
material and exercises to help wri ters
Gran11nar at 1Vork re ponds to a nec:d for . upplementary abulary and
irnpro e their kill this \Vorkbook focuses on gra1n1nar, entence structure, voc
bers . The book provides se)f-
u age, and n1cchanic uch as spc fiing , punctuation , and num
improve their mastery of business and
directed instruction and exercises that tudents can use lo
tion \\. ith the 4th Canadian edition of
technical :.ng l i h. Cranunar at H ork can operate in conjunc
1

Technical 01nn1101icution or as a stand-alone workbook.

This book contains these sef t"-hclp components:

and skill levels. You can then
• A J)ia gno ·tic Test. Exercises test your current knowledge
s you most need to improve.
use the seJf-evaluated results to detennine which skiJl area
exercise sections begins by
• sen tial Gra mm ar, Usage, and J\'Jechanics. Each of five
ws you to test you r skil ls as
reviewing basic principles and rules. Each section then allo
you progress.
exercises helps you gain
• eJf.. imp rov cme nt E erc i es. In three stages, each section ofprac tice exercises help you
t,
command of English gran1mar, mechanics, and usage. Firs
discussed in that section. The n,
detern1ine ho\V \veJJ you have understood the principles
icate in workplace writing.
sentence exercjses contain error that you wiJJ need to erad
JJy, the doc ume nt critique will sha rpen you r eva luat ion and editing skills. Pag e 136
Fina
Symbols that you 'll nee d to
provides the standard proofreading marks and orrection
complete the doc ume nt criUques.

rcises in this workbook.

Starting on page J I 0 you wi fl find answer keys for the exe

COPYRIGHT 2009 PEARsoN Eou ATION ANADA

Often during my four decades of teaching technical co1nn1unicat1ons, l've surveved business
people ~bout the comn1u~ications skills required for success in their industry or ..profession.
When I v~ as.ked what skills and kno\vledge should be taught in po4it-secondary English and
Commun1cations course&, they~ve responded with comments such as the following:

• ~'?ur employees need to analyse who reads their correspondence and report, becau e
different readers look for different information and analysis.''
• ul like to see short paragraphs and sentences in our company documents, so that they're
easy to read and understand."
• "When we hire employees, we look for people who can ~rite cleaL concise sentences .
We can't afford ambiguity in our instruction manuals and online prompts."
• "We spend more money on co1nmunications training than on technical training-it's too
bad that our employees don't leave college or university with better com1nunications
skills."

The most common response, often acco1npanied by impassioned, "colourfur' language, reads
something like this: "Please, please, PLEASE make your students pay attention to spelling,
punctuation, and grammar! We require correct English in all our documents .. ,

Thriving businesses emphasize language basics because they realize that business success
depends on clear, readable, persuasive communications. They also know that they are judged by
the quality of the documents lhey produce, not just by their products and services. Successful
business operators know that sloppily-written workplace reports, proposals and correspondence
will fail, even if those documents are technically accurate and well-designed.

Here's a portion of an actual letter sent by the owner of a construction firm to local businesses
affected by upcon1ing roadworks:

T. 1. Jones Contracting will be doing Roadworks on 35th Street+36th .Ave starting

ept. 17th until Aprx .. Nov.23rdin conjuction with the city of ........... + Rogers head
Office. Their will be no parking on 35th. Street, please advice your clients, we will have
traffic control, barricades, flashers on the street at all times they must find alternate
parking. We wi l1 be doing nc\v sewer connections on your properties in which you will
b~ nnt1 tied J day in advance having replace1nent the same day.

What is your in1pression of the above document? Based on the quality of ~he letter w?uld you
be tcrnpted to pre-judge the quality of work done by the writer's construction finn? Might ~h
judgtnt;;nts affect your deci ion to hire such a firm for a future .contract? If you manage a bu tne s
a f fectcd by the road and sewer construction, what concerns might you have? And, mo t of all, do
you under tand what the writer is trying to convey?

OPYRIGHT 2009 P ARSON EDUCATION CANADA

ITRD TI

Grammar at Work re ponds to a need for upplementary material and exercises to help writers
impro' e their kill - thi workbook focuses on grammar. sentence structure. voc~bulary
and
u age and mechanic uch a pelling. punctuation, and numbers. Th~
book provides ~elf­
directed in truction and exercises that students can use to improve their mastery of business and
technical English. Grammar at Work can operate in conjunction with the 4th Canadian edition of
Technical Communication or a a stand-alone workbook.
Plea e under iand that thi book does not present complete coverage of grammar, usage, and
mechanic . For that kind of in formation and advice see TLCJmical Communication' s "Appendix:
Review of Grammar U age. and Mechanics.'' pages 574-606. More exhaustive coverage is
available in a handbook such as the Simon & Schuster Handbook/or Writers, 4th Canadian
Edition or the Prentice Hall Canada Reference Guide to Grammar and Usage, 2•d edition.

This workbook progresses in three stage :

• On pages 3- 8. a Diagnostic Test provides exercises that test your current knowledge and
skill levels. You can then use the elf-evaluated results to detennine which skill areas you
most need to impro e.
• Leacl:ing into .each group of improvement exercises, a Review of Basic Principles
prov1.des adv1~e and examples that you will find useful in preparing to complete the
practice exercises and the self-improvement exercises.
• The Self-i~provement Esercises appear in the following order:
Bas~c ~mma!: pa.rts ~f speech (nouns. pronouns. verbs. prepositions.
con1unct1ons, 1nterJecttons, and articles)
Sentence grammar
a Punctuation
Mechanics (spelling, capitals, numbers)
Vocabulary and style
Ollowing
811pfove your review of
the English princip1es
grammar ·
mec1nheaac: h of thde fiive gro~ps listed above, the exercises help you
...__ w• bow weJI you understand' nics .an .· usage ·
· exercises
. f 1rst' a set o f practice
w those I heJps you
almlive f. pnnc1p es and what you need t . N
• poop o improvement exercises contains th . o improve. ext a more
18 ~ wri!ing. Finally, a document critique ;i~o:~a at you w1 II need to. avoid or eradicate
mu... Page 136 hsts the Correction Symbols that you' ll n:::; your proofreadmg and editing
0 complete the document critiques

oa pase 110, you wlll find answer key for th e e1erci se1 .in this workbook. .

Ork: good grammar is valuable

, dldn'l ~ ltudying grammar at school 8 nd .
-~111 cu lelt8I
.....d ...;;;;::::--· ' cnnge gra~
propouls, and bills rlMd to bewhen
I still I he that word [grammar], but in my

- - -• .., ..._errors. So I g - good grammar is a neces Hy ~rfect and free of spelling

, owner and manager of Oka sary ev1ll
_,.. locallona . at industrial and
nagan Aud1alab, Which testa hesnng

2
 DIA G OST IC TE T 0 F E GLISH SKILLS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Use the following test to learn whether you need to work on grammar, punctuation. mechanics or
vocabulary. After answering the questions, score the test by comparing your answers to the
answer key on page 110. Then, use the Skills Assessment form on page 8 to record your number
of correct answers for each section.

The following choices apply to items I through 10. In each blank, write the letter of the choice
that best describes each sentence.

A. incomplete sentence
B. run-on sentence (phrases or clauses are incorrectly strung togethen
C. modifying elements misplaced or left dangling
D. structure not parallel
E. nothing wrong

1. Stop here.

2. This system can recognize voice commands. respond to those commands

and also displaying current settings.

3. While the flag rose. the cheering increased.

4. Running quietly on a pedestaL I didn ·1 notice the machine at alt.

5. The printer, an advanced laser jet model. is quite reliable.

6. Measuring the stream output. the main function.

7. When it's convenient. file y ur report.

8. Se era) problem area ha\ c been identified. un~ rtunately. the "111 all
difficult to olve.

9. Running your own bu ine is t ) face the ri k f g bankrupt.

I 0. Smoking i nly pennitted in de ignated are n th1 campu

 Tl TE T F •

..11 blank l rite the letter of the choice '

Th ollowing ·hoi e app/ , to iten1s 11 through 20. In eac.; ·
that id ~ntifies the underlined -word{s) in each entence.

. ubjecl
B. verb
. ob 'ect
D. n1 di tier
E. conjunction or preposition

I 1. Run this part over to the loading dock.

J2. On Thursday, the Leafs Jost another game.

13. Bombardier Inc. has moved some of its aerospace operations to Northern
f refan<l.

14. Runn ing quietly, the~ machine doesn't disturb our conversations.

15. he printer is proving quite reliabJe.

16. Measuring electronic output is the main function of this multimeter.

17. When the job's complete, carefully report your findings.

18. We have found an assistant for you.

19. Your busi ness needs a complete communications audit.

20. Smoking is permitted but not encouraged at this job site.

Jn the blank'i for items 21 through 30. write the letter ofthe word or phrase that properlv
completes each sentence.

21. McDonald' s (A. is or B. are) experiencing stiff competition.

22. There (A. is or B. are) several reasons for the U.S. do11ar's slide.

23. Every worker who wants to control (A. their or B. his or her) own pen ion
plan must complete fonn W-256.

24. Not one of them (A. was or B. were) on time for the presentation.

25. An important factor affecting that finn's performance is that (A . they try
or B. it tries) to retain key personnel.

26. Once they (A. saw or 8. seen) the annual report, changes came quickly.

COrnloHT 02009 P1A1uJoN EDUCATION CANADA

 TOF Ll H 'Ill

27. The number of hooking penalties called in the HL (A. ha~ or B.

have) increased since the crackdo·wn on interference.

28. If I (A. \Vas or B. were) younger. I'd study robotic- engineering.

29. The receptionist (A. lay or B. laid) the drawings on the counter.

30. Either Hewlett Packard or Dell (A. ha or B. have) v.'on the bid.

For items 31 through 40. in the provided blank write the letter of the choice that best descrihes
the corresponding sentence.

A. all punctuation used correctly

8. some punctuation used incorrectly or incorrectly omitted

31. McDonald's which is a huge enterprise, is not easy to manage.

32. Look for evidence of slippage, shown by deep scratches in the surface.

33. Could you complete fonn W-256 each tin1e an application is successful.

34. The project engineer, Susan Marsh, said that, "'it's just a matter of time
before the bridge fails."

35. Cross Canada Engineering has offices in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Ottawa,
Ontario, Brandon. Manitoba, and Kelo\vna, British Columbia.

36. After checking his assistant )earned that three turbines had failed.

37. Do you have a clear idea of the company"s "rules of conduct?''

38. One n1ain option, then, remains: the turbine must be replaced.

39. Not all the spawning beds in Delorme Creek have been contaminated,
however we should continue to monitor the situation.

40. Hewlett Packard, Dell, and Acer-these three firms have met the bid
requirements.

COPYRIGHT 2009 PEARSON EDUCATION CANADA

The fl1llo wing choice~ appli to item 1· 41 through 50. 1
I11 each blank. wri Ie he letter ofthe choice
that be~/ ct crihes each sentence.

• error in punctuation
B. error in u e of ahbreviatinns or yrnbols
. error in u c or
nurnbcrs
D. error in capitaliztltion
E. no errors

41. Thi year's salmon run is high in the Adams river, despite adverse
spawning conditions.
42. Kovalev, Andrei Ko titsen & Markov have scored all the team's goals in
the past three games.

43. Bombardier Jnc. has moved some of its aerospace operations to northern
lrel"nd.
44. Tiiis semester, I m studying physics, English, and ~athematics.
45. The printer can print 12 pages per minute~ in co]our or in black and white.

46. The Johnsrude 3898 multimeter- last year's model, has four function
ranges.

47. When the job's complete carefully report your findings.

48. We have found an assistant for you~ please explain our operating
procedures to him.

49. Sale prices of houses in Saskatoon rose by an average of 27°/o last year.

50. Seven smelters wi 11 soon appear at thi job site which wi JI necessitate
stringent air quality monitoring.
 DIA 0 Tl f ~ T F ~ Gl I H Kil L

Jn the b/anlw for iten1s 51 through 60. 11irite the letter o_f the word or p111"a e that properly
conzpletes each sentence.

51. The McDonald's and \Vendy's chains \Vtll soon have to 1nodify
(A. their or B. they·re) menus to include low carb items.

52. The main (A. effects or B. affects) of global cooling wlll soon appear.

53. Our ethics gu1delines operate on the (A. principal or B. principle of

Hno harm. no foul."

54. We have four (A. prospective or B. perspective) candidate for the vacant
position.

55. Good team members (A. completnent or B. compliment) each other's

talents~ they do not compete for status within the team.

56. If we (A. loose or B . lose) this contract, our company \Vill have to lay off
nearly half of its employees.

57. After we hear the last of the six co1npeting proposals, the four tnembers of
our con1mittee should discuss the proposals (A. among or B . between)
ourselves.

58. Set the pallets of pav1ng tiles (A. besides or B. beside) the brick wall.

59. He has advanced the engineering designs (A. farther or B. further) than 'We
had thought possible.

60. Neither He\.vlett Packard or Dell has sho\.\'O that (A. its or B. it's bid i
.
superior.

COPYRIGHT 2009 PEARSON EDUCATION CA ADA

 In the space provided below, record the number of questions you answered correctly.

Que tion umber - ou Got Correct Skill rea

I- I0 Sentence stn1cture

11 -20 Grammar: Parts of speech

21-30
Grammar; Verbs and agreement

31-40 Punctuation

41-50 Punctuation and mechanics

51-60 Vocabulary

•
 B ICGRA
First, let's define this book's version of the tenn granunar. Often, people use the \\'Ord to refer
to all aspects of writing mechanics--correct use of the parts of speech~ sentence structure
spelling, punctuation, capitalization, spacing, verb tense. nu1nbers, and abbreviation . An~i
people often carry emotional (connotative) meanings for the word-gra1nmar is often associated
with rules, rules, and more rules, many of which don't seem to make sense. That feeling u"'ua\\y
results from mechanical teaching and rote learning of the ··rules' of grammar. 1t s no wonder that
school kids often recoil at the thought of a grammar lesson.

This book looks at grammar in three main ways:

• Gra1nmar should be descriptive rather than prescriptive-we should try to understand
which word combinations help make our meanings clear~ we shouldn't focus on
memorizing a host of rules. We should also realize that English is a living, changing
language and we need to react accordingly-when enough people use the noun acces as
a verb, we can follow suit. We don' t have to write the ungainly phrase, Hgain access to
the library;" we can simply write, "access the library.,, Eventually, the dictionaries catch
up to common usage. For example, the 2006 editions of the Oxford English and Merriam-
Webster dictionaries added google as a transitive verb, follo\ving the amazing succe --s of
Google Inc. 's search engine.1.
+ In this book, gra1nmar refers to parts of speech (nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives,
adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, interjections) and ho\V they function to convey
meaning. Punctuation, mechanics (spelling. capitalization. abbreviation. numbers), and
vocabulary usage are treated separately. For exan1ple, the difference between its and it's
is considered a spelling/punctuation issue, not a grammar issue.
• In Grammar at Work, a separate section called sentence grammar displays the structures
that make some sentences clearer and easier to read than others.

Also, in this book, the tenn gran1n1atical denotes effective, well-formed phrases and sentences.
In other words, gran1nzatical reflects a judgment call, a positive evaluation of the V-lay words
have been strung together.

Note:
The above distinctions among grarnrnar. sentence grammar, punctuation, mechanics. and usage
help make this book easy to use because you can focus on one aspect of language at a time. Still
these elen1ents do not operate in isolation. and so this workbook's exercises appear as sentences
or paragraphs that t~st tho .. e ti e components of clear. effective writing.

1. oogle trademark lawyers have actively di couraged using google as a verb because they
argue the practice devalue the Google brand. They don' t want their company_name to be~ome a
generic term like thermos or aspirin. On October 25 ~006, Google pleaded with the ~ubh~ t~
"please only use 'Google' when you ·re actually refernng to Google Inc. and our services. { Do
You 'Google'?" posted by Michael Krantz of the Google Blog Team, at
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2006/ 10/do-you-google.html)

COPYRIGHT 2009 PEARSON EDUCATIO CA ADA

 R MAR

nd oun bra e
f e perience whether that
)n of language's mo t ba i function i to name elements )o our r 1.
. ds--our iee
. . d from our min tngs
xpericncc results from our sen. cs 1ght, hearing an so on or th verbs or other
and our jden Therefore any gi en dictionary page display~· morednouns ahrn h..
d"1rectly t oug our senses
.,. '
part of speech. S me nouns are concrete; they can be expenence . .
. . b 'd ·fi d d measured (kilogram, velocity,
(rock.., music bread, autornobde), or they can e I ent1 1e an .
caJoric... Ab tract noun tn1th rec 1nciliation, clarity. element) express our ideas.

Proper and common noun 1 A

AJJ the noun in the above paragraph are common nouns that name general c asses. com~on
noun uch as •'automobile" is not capitalized. But the name of a particular brand of automobile,
·t- · known as proper
such as an Acura RDX, is capitalized. These names of spec1 1c items are .
nouns. Similarly ''music 'refers to a general class of things, while a specific ~ong such as
"Stairway lo Heaven'' is capitalized. The sub-classes within a class (rock music or bluegrass or
hip hop are not capitalized.

ouns a ubjects and objects . . .

At the heart of ~ nglish expression nouns often denote the person place, thing, feeling, o~ idea
that forms the ubject of the en Lenee. Nouns also function as objects of verbs or prepositions.
In the follo\ving sentence, the nouns are underlined.
In its corporate QjQg, Google Inc. asked the public to preserve the value of Google's brand.

The above 16-word sentence uses six nouns, one as a subject (Google Inc.), two as objects
(pubJic value) of verbs (asked, to preserve) and two as objects (blog, brand) of prepositions (in,
of). The sixth noun (Google 's appears in the possessive form and essentially acts as an
adjective.

Here s a simpler sentence whose subject (engineer) is in a state of being (expressed by the
adjective, ·'uncertain.,). This sentence also contains two noun objects (causes, lands Iide) of
prepositions (about, of).

The engineer is uncertain about the causes of the landslide.

The point here is that each type of word has a job to do, a function to perform. Nouns (and verbs)
perform primary functions; English like all lndo-European languages, absolutely requires nouns
and verbs to express basic meaning. The other parts of speech support nouns and verbs-
pro~ouns stand in for nouns· adjectives and adverbs add detail and colour: prepositions,
conjunctions, and interjections help complex sentences flow smoothly.

When a noun i not a noun

Let's remember that certain words can function as nouns or as adjectives, or even as verbs:

These stee/(adjective) bolts are made of an extremely expensive alloy of stee/(noun) so

stl!e/(verb) yourself for the cost of the 1,000 bolts required tor the deCk supports. '

10 C'errlJoNf C2009 PEARSON EDUCATION CANADA

Plural nouns
Nouns can be singular: computer, law, battl,efield, textbook. Or they can be plural: con1puter ,
l aws~ battlefields, and textbooks demonstrate the most common way of making a noun plural-
we simply add an s.

However, we have several other ways of forming plural nouns:

• ox •oxen
• father-in-law • fathers-in-law
• child • children
• mediu1n • media
• life • lives
• box • boxes
• sheep • sheep
• company _ __.,.• companies
• woman • women
• datum or data • data
• cactus - - • cacti
• criterion • criteria
• mouse • mice
• cns1s • cnses
• appendix • appendixes or appendices

Why does English have so many ways of forming plural nouns? The short answer is that English
has been forged from one root language (Anglo-Saxon, an early form of German) and four
modifying languages (French, Latin, Greek, and Norse). So, for example, the plural form of
goose is geese because those \Vords can1e fron1 the original German, but by the time the words
caboo\·e and 1noose came into English plurals were being formed by adding ans sound or in the
case of 1noose, with no change in the word. Words that have come from Latin (medium, datum
and Greek (crisis, criterion) brought their native plural forms with them.

Pos essive nouns

Most English nouns add 's to denote ownership:

Steven Carr's Jaguar my sister's apartment

~However, the ..o\vnership' doesn ,t have to be legal:

the van's motor each worker's locker a dollar's worth

Here are the usual conventions for using apostrophes to indicate possession:
• For singular nouns including nouns ending ins, acronyms, and indefinite pronouns, add 's:

Chris's laptop OPEC's oil revenues everyone's answers

Mark's laptop

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 1RA M \R

• l·c r plural nouns ending in ~ add only the apostrophe:

the Joneses' trust fund three players' equipment

• I· or pJuraJ nouns not ending in s add 's:

women's opportunities men's privileges

• r~ or con1pounds, add 'sonly to the la t \Verd:

the Prime Minister's veto
someone else's idea my mother-in-law's advice

• To indicate indi vidual ownership, add 's to each name:

the engineer's and the technologist's drawings Tom's and Rhianna's desks

• To indicate joint ownership, add 's only to the fast name or to each name:

Tom and Rhianna's car Tom's and Rhianna's car

oun phrases
A noun phrase contains a noun and one or more modifiers:
several responsibte biofogists the woefufJy late report
the old bypass road

A noun phrase rni ght appear as a subject:

The old bypass road should be upgraded to handle the construction traffic.

It might function as an object:

Jeannine silently slid the woefully late report under her professor's door.

Or, it might function as a complement:

Norma Cross, the lab director, is one of the several responsible biologists whose
reputations have been tarnished by allegations of careless sampling methods.

12 ODPYIJolrr C2G89 PIAUON EDUCATIO CANAD

 RA MAR

Practice session-noun
U~derline the preferred cho1ce within each set of parentheses in the following sentence . y u
will find ans\vers for these exercises on page l l 0.

1. Our firm,~ (specialtys, specialties) are in data gathering and statistical ana ly is.
2. Water temperature exceeded 34 degrees (celsius, Ce/ ius) for the econd day in a ro\\.
3. Place the heavier equipment on the lffwer (shelfs, shelves).
4. Send your company newsletter items to the (editor-in-chief's. editor's-in-chief. editor-in-
chiefs) email address.
5. Our shop guarantees its repairs to (RVs and boats. RV's and hoat 's, RVs and boat's) for three
months.
6. Despite his heavy workload this spring, (Ryan Collins', Ryan Collin's, Ryan Collinses. R) an
Collins 's) reports have all been submitted on time.
7. George McAvoy, the acting (pit boss, Pit Boss. pit Boss), entered the mine just as the upport
beams collapsed.
8. (Bill and Wanda's. Bill's and Wanda's) reports recounted quite different versions of the
meeting with the city's solicitors.
9. A thorough analysis of the stream flow (data, datas) showed very little evidence to support
the conservation society's accusations.
10. Our company has been in business in Fredericton since the early (1980s. 1980 's, 1980,s).

Improvement exercises-nouns
In items 1 through 5 underline the common nouns and circle the proper nouns. You will find
answers for these exerci. e on page 1 l 0.

I. Each of the con ultants \\'rote a report about Riverbend Dain 's projected cost overruns.
2. ln this book, "'gran1matical'' refers to effecti e, \Vell-fonned phrases and sentences.
3. (iram1nar studies the rut~ go erning the use of language as Dr. Benson has stated many
ti1nes.
4. Written technical con1n1unication is not the only subject covered in Technical
on11nunication, a book de igned for present and future technical communicators.
5. Brick waJls can withstand considerably higher temperatures than concrete board walls.

COPYRJOHT 2009 PEARSON EDUCATIO CA ADA

 h <, un der lin e the ubjec san d cir cle the objects. You will find answers for
In Jtcrn 6 throug f
the. crc i e on page 11 J.

t wr ote a rep ort abo ut Riv erb end Dam's projected cost overruns.
"ach of Lhc con ult an

tern 1 ''gran1 ma tica f refer to efl ect ive , we ll-formed phrases and sentences.
7. In thi book the
rul e go ve rni ng the use of lan gua ge, as Dr. Benson has stated many
8. Gra1nmC1r studie the
Lin1cs.

tec hn ica l cor nm un ica tio n js not the only subject covered in Technical
9. Written ure technical communicators.
ca1 ion , '1 book design ed for present and fut
on1n111ni
wi thstand con sid era bly higher tem peratures than concrete board walls.
J 0. Brick walls can

thr ou gh 20 , underline inapprop riate nou n plurals and possessives and write the
In itc1ns JJ
for these exercises on page 111.
ed. yo u wi lJ find ans we rs
correct form( s) in the space provid

are nearly twice that of sedans, and 30 pe rcent

- - ver rat e for SU Vs
1 I. - - - - - Ro llo
higher than that of pickup truck's.
-~ attention to aJJ the critcrions listed in the test procedure
I 2. --..---- Please pay
buJ fetins.

Su nd ins car eer as a To ron to Ma ple Le af appears to be ending.

I 3· - - - - - - -
bt load.
His pa rtn er' s off ers were insufficient to resolve the companies de
14.
twares.
Plagia ris m ma y be 1no re prevalent than ever, but so is detection sof
I 5.
than ou r
Re ven ue Ca nad a req uires more stringent accounting procedure
16.
finn can afford.
ng to Re ne Co rbe ils rep ort, the bridg e is no longer safe.
17. -- -- -- -A cc or di
ery on e of the sev en stim ulu ses introd uce d in the test sequence
18. Ev
on .
provoked abnormally high levels of radiati
D o n ' t exp ect yo ur cel lul ar ph on e's to receive strong sig na l's in the far
19. - - - - - - -
northern Arctic.
o kn ow s wh ich sho rel ine 's wil l be mo st affected by global wa nn ing ?
20. - - - - - - - Wh

4
 B R

Document critique-nouns
The fo l.lowing document may contain errors in grammar, capitalization~ punctuation or spe1\1ng.
Underltne all errors and identify them using standard proofreading 1narks. (See the Correction
Symbols list on page 136.) You will find answers for this exercise on page 111.

MEMO

To: Harlan Devonshire, Field Supervisor

From: Arjun Atwal , Accounting Office
Date: June 24, 2009
Subject: Expense Claims

We have had difficultys establishing the accurcy of recent expense claims submitted by your exploration
group. Especially this past month.

Would you please review all your team members expense claims before they are sent to are office? Im sure
that you no when claims are excessive and you'll be able to correct them before we have to deal with them.

As an example of what I mean, I've attached Rose Francis' claim for this May. I find it hard to belief that she
could spend $900 on camp supply's in addition to the food allowance!

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 AR

r n un
. . . writers (and speakers) use
Jn order to Crt;ate mooth phrasing and to avoid repeat1ng nouns,
pronouns.
· s week's production in their
Each Monday morning, the department heads report the prevto~ a is based on these
sections of the plant; they fret about these reports because thelf bonus P Y
production figures.
. . d · the antecedent of the
h· h 15
Tl1e pronouns they and their stand in for the noun hea s, w ic . h
pronoun ; heads is the antecedent of they and their. When the antecedent ts plural, t e
replacement pronoun(s) must be plural, to avoid confusing the reader. However, when the
antecedent is ._ ingular. the replacement pronoun must be singular:

When canwood Furniture announced its closure, 91 employees lost their jobs..

In the above example, it's clear that Canwood Furniture is a single entity, so the pronouns it or
its logically substitute for that proper noun. The plural pronoun their substitutes for the plural
noun employees.

However, the issue may not be so clear with a noun phrase such as the Montreal Canadiens. At
first glance, CanadiPn.s Jooks like a plural word and jf one is thinking of the many people in the
.,anadiens organi7at1on, the correct pronoun replacements would be they or their. On the other
hand, if one is thinking of the organization itself, the Jogical pronouns would be it or its. Just to
be sure about that point, let's cons1dcr these examples:

The Canadiens may finish in top spot in the league for the first time in many years, as they
rely on thekyoung players to provide scoring punch. The team has continued to be
financially successful; now its on-ice performance matches its corporate performance.

Plural antecedents
A pronoun might have more than one antecedent:

Ricky Ruiz and Efma deloos had their laptops stolen from their lockers on Wednesday.

Each of Ricky Ruiz and Elma deloos would be a singular antecedent, if used alone. However, in
the above sentence they form a plural antecedent, so the plural pronoun must be used.

Unclear antecedents
Sometimes, a pronoun's antecedent is unclear:

Elma deloos told Marcie Harper about the change to her work schedule; she was unhappy
about the changes, because she had already arranged for babysitting.

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 BA I GRAMM R

How would a reader understand the references to her and she in the above sentence unles the
reader already knows the situation? The acronym COlK has been coined for such unclear
references- "clear only if known!"

Such a sentence can be made clear by repeating nouns where necessary:

Elma deloos told Marcie Harper about the change to Marcie's work schedule; Marcie was
unhappy about the changes, because she had already arranged for babysitting.

Or, Elma deloos told Marcie Harper about the change to Elma's work schedule; Elma was
unhappy about the changes, because she had already arranged for babysitting.

Pronoun case
Grammar handbooks normally identify three pronoun cases, the term used for forms in which
pronouns are employed: subject, object, possessive. To those three, we could also add the
reflexive case, because increasingly the pronoun myself is mistakenly used instead of I and me.
The following table lists the singular and plural forms of these cases.

Table 1 Pronoun Cases

Subjective Objective Possessive Reflexive

Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural

First l we me us my, mine our, ours myself ourselves

person
Second you you you you your, yours your, yours yourself yourselves
person
Third he they him them his their, theirs himself themselves
person she they her them her, hers their, theirs herself themselves
it they it them it. its their. theirs itself themselves

Notes:
• The subjective case is so1netimes called the non1inaOve case. . .
• Later, this section discusses the subjective, objective, and possessive relative pronouns~ who
lvlunn .. whoever, ·wl1on1ever and whose.

ubjective pronouns perforn1 the action or precede a statement of being:

He ran the samples through a spectrometer. She is happy to be here.

"'ubjective pronouns can also follow a linking verb, as the following two examples demonstrate:

Are you certain that it will be she who is assigned to the Samuel Plains project?
Who is there? It is l

7
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 I R

. . b"ective case when \Vords are omitted

0
It can be tricky to cho e \ hcther tc use the subjective or J
in comparative t.ale1nen .
. ''am intelJigent".]
She is more intelligent than l [The omitted words here are
. d ds are "more than he likes".)
Professor Magellan likes you more than me. [The om1tte wor

Jn the first case abo e a subject is needed-"/ am intellige~t.'' ..

The;; ccond sentence requires an object- " .. .more than he hkes tne.

Problem· s with
· · .
p· r onoun. b' t' · ~i.orm of
biective or possessive
Jn n1any 1tuntJon , you wtll know whether to use the o ~cc ive. su J '

a pronoun, but son1e pronoun probJe1ns do plague ·writers (and readers).

1. Who and ver us that

w /10111 h h
Recent ly. speaker~ (and \vriter . too bave been using that instead of who or w om, p~r aps
because many people don't kno'w that who operates in the subjective case. and whom ts
designed to receive action (objective case). Or, perhaps many people a~e J~St lazy and they
don' t want to think about the distinction. Or more likely, we simply m1m1c what we hear,
wi1hout thinking about it much. Jlowever, careful writers should use "that" to refer to
inanimate object , anima Js that are not named, and ideas.
. 2
Remember that who and wlunn are for hun1ans or for animals that have been given names.

The young man who retrieved the record-breaking home run ball that Barry Bonds hit has
offered to sell the baff; he believes that the "finders/keepers" rule entitles him to the cash. Others
say that the baseball belongs in the Major League Baseball hall of fame in Cooperstown. Whom
do you support in this controversy? And what if Dusty the Bloodhound, who hangs out regularly
at TriCom Park, had "fetched" the ball? Should Dusty be able to trade the ball for a 20-year
supply of Dog Chow and a plush dog house?

But how do you telI when to use who and when to use lvhon1? The down and dirty technique
identifies the key clause and then decides whether it needs a subject, which would eq uate to
who, or an object that would require whorn. For example the clause ''who/whom should be
Prime Minister?" requires a subject- if you substituted he or him for who or whrnn, you
would write, "he shou Id be Prin1e Minister." In other words the correct vcr ion of the above
1

example would be ''who should be Prime Mini ter?'

2. Mignon Fogarty, a.k.a. the Grammar Girl, who speak entertainingly about gran1rnar,
prefers the traditional rule outlined above. However she points out that ' it's rnc re of a gray
area than some ~eople think, and if you have strong feelings about it, you could 1nake an
argument for us1n~ that when you' re ~alking about people. But my guess is that people who
use wh? and that interchangeably do 1t because they don't know the difference.' See the
transcnpt of her podcast Episode 24, posted November 4, 2006 at
httP://grammar.guickanddirtytips.com/who-versus-that.amx

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 BA I G M 1AR

Hovv ab~ut this exa1nple: "\vho/whorn do you \Vant to lead the country?'' In thi ca e the ke
thought ts '"do you \Vant ?'~The clause requires an object such as hi1n (do you w~nt
him?), so the correct version of the above example would be "" 'hom do you want to lead the
country?'~

Additional examples follow:

• Who/whom saw Elvis at the car wash? (he saw Elvis)

• The professo~ glowered at whoever/whomever spoke out of turn. (he spoke out of turn)
• Who/whom did you see at the rally? (you saw him)
• I will hire whoever/whomever the hiring committee recommends. (the committee recommends
him)
• I will hire the person who/whom is best qualified. (he is best qualified)

2. Unclear refere nee pronouns

To help readers understand the relationship between a pronoun and the noun it replaces,
make sure that your pronoun refers to a noun that is nlentioned nearby and not merely
implied. To further help your reader, place that pronoun as close as possible to the noun it
replaces.

Unclear reference: Jason gave Roger his keys to the company van.
[Are these Jason's keys or Roger's keys?]

Clear reference: Jason gave his keys to the company van to Roger.
[The possessive pronoun his is now closer to the noun it references.]

Also, don't use the vague it or they if such words do not refer to a specific word or phrase. ln
some cases, you will need to reword a sentence in order to include the noun or phrase you
had in 1nind.

Unclear: Our office recycles as much paper as possible because it helps the environment.
[Does it refer to the paper, or to the office, or to something that's not even in the sentence?]

Clear: Our office recycles as much paper as possible because such efforts help the
envrronment.

Unclear: When we asked the company whether they would follow the new guidelines for
capturing pf'ant emissions, they did not respond.
[Who are they? And does the writer have persons in mind for each of the two theY5?]

Clear: When we asked the company whether it would follow the new guidelines for
capturing plant emissions, its Public Relations Office did not respond.

Remember:
The pronouns this, that, these, and those provide clear references only when they are
immediately followed by a noun or a noun phrase.

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 R M

eduction in dental coverage,

Unclear: Negotiators announced an expanded. health plan, a r e . rotests.
and on-site child-care facilities. This caused employe ~r the child-care facilities?]
[Does this refer to the health plan, the reduced dental coverage,
duction in dental coverage,
Clear: Negotiators announced an expanded_health ~Ian! adre t 1 coverage caused employee
and on-site child care facilities. This reduction in en a
protests.
. b h This has made the property
Unclear: The beach sand has eroded away, leaving a rocky eac ·
less desirable for tourist campers. h use-effect relationship?] The
(Does this refer to the erosion, or to the rocky beach, or tot e ca
three following edits express what the writer really meant to say.

Cleer: The beach sand has eroded away, leaving a rocky beach. This erosion has made the
property less desirable for tourist campers. rty ·15 le
Clear: The beach sand has eroded away, leaving a rocky beach. This prope now ss
desirable for tourist campers. ·"' . h h 5 made the property
Clear; The beach sand has eroded away, leaving a rocky beach, w,,ic a .
fess desirable for tourist campers. [Which refers to everything that precedes it.]

3. J\'lisu e of refle xive pronoun · 'fy th

Refl ex ive pronouns which are ometimes called intensive pronouns, reflect or intenst e
nouns or pronouns they invoke:
I finished it myself. Give yourselfsome credit ! They have only themselves to blame.

Jiowevcr, they should not be used as subjects:

No: Myselfand three others spoke at the meeting.
Yes; Three others and I spoke at the meeting.

Nor should they be used as objects:

NQ: The credit was given to myselfand Janus Czorzinski.
~= The credit was given to Janus Czorzinski and me.

4. Lack of pronoun agreement

Pronouns should agree in number, person, and gender with their antecedents:
The students handed in their assignments, confident that theirwork would be graded fairly.
For the third day in a row, Grant called in to say that he was sick.

The above two examples are quite straightforward but compound antecedents pose n1ore of a
challenge. So, when two parts of a compound antecedent are joined by and, use a plural
pronoun:
Television and radio commercials often express their pitches in colloquial language.

A compound antecedent that is preceded by each or every requires a singular pronoun:

Every period, comma, colon, and semi-colon has its useful function.

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 R R

When the parts of a compound antecedent are joined by or or nor, the pronoun agree with the
nearest antecedent:

Neither the company nor the union members would revise their bargaining posit1ons.

5. Possessive pronouns
Remember that not .one of the possessive pronouns requires an apostrophe. Not one of them!
Lef s repeat that point- ifs. his , hers, my, niine, our. ours, their, theirs, your, you,-s. whuse-
none of.these pronouns uses an apo~trophe. The apostrophe is used with nouns to indicate
possession.

6. The relative pronouns, that and which

The issue of whether to use that or which has plagued writers for generations, but luckily
there's a straightforward rule of thumb: that introduces essential phrases or clauses, while
which leads into nonessential phrases and clauses.
The car that he sold to me is in better shape than I thought.
[The that clause in this sentence is essential to the meaning.]

The Honda Civic, which has been the best selling car in Canada for the past three years,
suits my transportation needs perfectly.
[The which clause is not essential to the meaning; this clause presents extra information.}

7. Generic pronouns
English has tnasculine pronouns (he, him, his) and feminine pronouns (she, her, hers), but the
language doesn "t have gender-neutral singular pronouns. Until recently, English speakers
used masculine forms for either masculine or feminine expressions. In a post-feminist world,
that usage is deemed to be a gender bias and is therefore unacceptable. In the 1970s there
was a concerted effort to introduce the words tey, te1n. and ter as gender-neutral pronouns
but that initiative failed, as have previous attempts to introduce generic singular pronouns.

To avoid sexist language we need some way of dealing with sentences such as the following:
A student will succeed in a writing class only if he completes all his assignments.

A writer might be ten1ptcd to use the words she and her, perhaps in an attempt to compensate
for centurit:s of male sexisn1:
A student will succeed in a writing class only if she completes all her assignments.

However, that solution is no better than the male version, is it? Many people now hijack the
plural fom1s, they then1 and their, but that solution has its limitations, also:
A student will succeed in a writing class only if they complete all their assignments.

Apparently, that single student has been cloned! They and t~ei~ do ~ot agree in number with
their antecedent, a student. Still, ever-increasing usage of this 11log1cal approach may soon
crown this solution as the winner. Here's one advocate for the practice:

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 R MM R

. hat so1neday they\ ill be the

.
J 1H state r the rec rd that 1 am a .. k \Vord that fits the bi 11, and
fim1. believer t
1
1
acceptable ch ic I r thi 1111ation. English currently /~ a· n, they as a singular
1111, ny pe pie arc alrc.idy dthcr mi taken I~ or purpose • .,..r ~~:.!tually move in that
1
11

generic per 1nal pr noun · o it seem logtcal that ru!e d 29 ted December 8 2006 at
direction. Mignon r garty. transcript of podca .·t Ep1so e pos
er onal- ronoun.as x
) '
1
hrt ·/. 1 ra mrnar. uickandchrt ti .com/he-tht; - ene1 ic-
~" t an unknown gender or to refer to both
f fen;; arc .. ome other \Vay to u'"'e a pronoun to re1t;;f o
rnaJe and fcma le :

• Use the a\vkw rd cornbinations of he or he or hi or hers

A student will succeed in a writing class only if he or she completes all his or her
assignments.

• Recast the antecedents and pronouns into the plural form:

Students will succeed in a writing class only if theycomplete all their assignments.

• Reword the .. entencc to avoid the problem altogether:

Success in a writing class depends on completing all the assignments.

ln n1o t case., rewording j not onJy possible, but preferable.

Grammar at Work: "they" should not replace "he or she" in sottware documentation

"I always rewrite or use "he or she"; singular "they~· is not in the company style guide largely because I
wouldn't allow if. I understand the reasoning behind it and I agree the language is likely to evolve to make
it a non-controversial solution but it hasn't evolved that far yet. When I read singular "they" I always
1

notice it, feel that 1t is inaccurate, and wince .... I'll JUSt point out that if you're writing for translation. as
technical writers often do, those pronouns should absolutely be left in. As grammatical markers they aid
translators by eliminating any possible syntactical ambiguity n

,~-~ Tom Storer, writing in response to a Grammar Girt podcast and blog post re: generic pronouns
Available at http://grammar.quickandd1rtytips.com/he·they-genenc-personal-pronoun. aspx

---- - -~-- ---- - -- -

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 RA llAR

Practice session-pronoun
U?de!line the preferred choice \Vithin ...-=ach set of parcnth~ses in tht: folio\\ ing ent~n es. y u
w111 find ans\ver for these exercises on page 112.

1. Return that spectron1eter to Gordon Bums or (n1.vse(I: n1e) when you've fin1shed u"'t ng it.
2. Despite the strong Canadian dollar and low U.S. dernand for lumber. Foreman Brother Ltd.
is increasing (their, its) production of fran1ing lu1nber.
3. He is a basketball player (that, ivho) can rebound, run the floor, and hoot three-balls.
4. Everyone has (his or her. their) en1ail address posted on the clas message board.
5. Our shop guarantees (it ·, their) repairs for three months.
6. After the environmental assessn1ent board tabled (it . their) report, three mining firms
disputed the board's conclusions.
7. When you challenged the security officer's dispersal order after the pep rally, did you know
to (1vho, vvho111) you were speaking?
8. (Myself, I) and Toni Colette were the first observers to recognize the SARS symptoms.
9. Let's be honest-( ivho, ivhon1) really knows how global wanning 'vill affect the East Coast?
10. Every collector bottle, pipette. and Petri dish has (its, their) function in this experiment.

Improvement exercises- pronouns

f n ite1ns 1 through 5, replace the underlined nouns with the correct pronouns. You \Vill find
answers for these exercises on page 11 2.
l . Each of the consultants wrote a report about Riverbend Dan1 · s projected cost overruns.
2. To which government agent will you send the gas well report?
3. The Environmental Protection Board has issued the Environmental Protection Board's
assessment of Alberta· gas-powered power generators.
4. After examining the project fi Jes closely, can you tell \vhich person s drafting errors
contributed to the failed earth dan1?
5. The engineerin g fim1 subtnitted the firm 's proposal three days early.

Jn each of itc1ns 6 through I0, write the correct pronoun in the space provided. You will find
ans\v~rs for these e. erc i s~s on page 11 2.

6 . E"ac h o t.. tlle consu It an t s wro te a report about (his or her, their view of
Ri erbend Dam· s projected cost overruns.
7. Make sure to include lvou 're, your) receipts when you submit this month' s
travel expense claim.
8. (We. Us) technologists know what will work, not the project engineers.
9. Bring the design to (myself; me) for final approval.
l O. Much of the time, our (company 's. companies) equipment is inadequately
maintained.

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 RAMMJ\R

. a e spelling, or punctuation.
1ng I 5 sentence 1nay con rain errors rn pronoun u. gl d orrect write C in the
1
1
rite tho sentence correcting the errors. lfa sentence area .Yc pages J 12- 113
• • c-. these exercises on ·
·pace tof1 \.v1ng the cntence. You wtlt find answers 1or

I J. Myscl f and aJ I the te'1m at · B Jook forward to hearing from you.

t m it is in generally good
J 2. 1 he c dense patches of forest are not a vulnerable ecosys e ' a· tu b db
condition but they an'.; found on steep slopes and wou ld be best left un is r e Y
developn1ent.

1
b:
13. In order to create a ne~v water intake at Lambeau lake, a new structure wil l hka~e to) built
below the curn.:nt water JeveJ of J I 2 feet. In order to accomplish this, the a e eve as to be
dropped to af1ow construction at an elevation of about 92 feet.

14. The housing u. eel to protect the stream meters is a 2-inch galvanized pipe, that rests flush
with the riprap bouJders on the left bank.
15. The systen1 includes two cjgar-sized dataloggers which contain both pressure transducers and
tc1nperature recorders. These are housed in protective casings.

I 6. anadian National Railways (CN) has mapped the location of all known streams that are
crossed by their raiJways. on a G1S-based railway Information System.

17. Box type concrete culverts were constructed with a concrete skirt (Figure 15) downstream of
the outlet. The reason for this was to reduce scour below the ') kirt, which would block fish
passage.

18. '"fo tran fer vinyJ records to MP3 fi les, it must meet certain specifications.

19. Just between you and J, our nehvork specifications will not meet Microsoft's standards.

20. Martin Technologies has just announced who they have chosen as their main supplier of
cabJe and peripherals.

21 . Its time for the company to review all its' recruiting practises.

22. Each of Frances and Donna have told their clients about the new line of excavators.

23. Austin St. Pierre of St. Johns Ambulance Services wiJI explain their new billing policy.

24. ln Calgary. officials ended their (intersection) red light camera program after stati tics
showed a 40 percent drop in ticketable offenses.

25. I found that in researching this report it was useful in learning about management techniques.

24 COP'VllOHT 02809 PIAuoN EDUCATION CANADA

 BA I GRA M R

Document critique--pronouns
The fo l.lowing document.may_ conta in errors in grammar, capitalization punctuation or pe\\ing.
U nderhne all errors and tdentify the1n us1ng standard proofreading marks. (See the Correction
Symbols list on page 136.) You will find answers for this exercise on page 113.

Concept Architectural Designs

MEMO
To: Devin Marchand, Architectural Technologist
From: Shirley Tostenson , Managing Partner
Date: April 16, 2009
Subject: Preliminary Research for Potential project

We are in the preliminary stages of preparing a proposal to design Halifaxes potential Seaport
Redevelopment project. I am assigning yourself to conduct reserch that will place our proposal in context.

Please review all the available literature on the folowing group of Waterfront developments, Granville
island, Vancouver, the Distillery district, Toronto, the custard Factory, Birmingham, Eng,and, the forks,
Winnipeg, make note of its capitalization, scope, end uses. community involvement, sources of capital,
architectural themes, blend of commercial. retail, arts and crafts and residential.

Complete the survey by April 25 and bring the results directly to myself. This is a high priority so drop
everything else which you are doing. Don't discuss this outside of the office, we don't this leaking out to who
might be also submitting a proposal.

COPYRIGHT ©2009 PEARSON EDUCATlON CANADA

Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
 VISIT TO MIR'S CASTLE. 39 walls of the foundation upon
which the inhabited quarters are raised, are said to have been the
work of Balti workmen who came in the train of a Balti princess, and
from whom the place has derived its name, Baltit, From the roof of
the castle where I found the Mir with his numerous retainers, a
superb view extends over the main portion of the Hunza valley. A
newly-built pavihon-like structure where I was FORT-VILLAGE OF
ALTIT. subsequently entertained to tea and cake, occupies the same
elevated jx)sition and offers the same delightful prospect.
Notwithstanding some European articles of furniture of doubtful
taste which had already found their way to this apartment, the
whole showed clearly the prevalence of Central-Asian manufacture.
Carpets from Yarkand, Chinese silks and gailycoloured prints from
Kashgar could indeed make their way to Hunza far more easily over
the Sarikol passes than Indian articles before the opening of the
Gilgit route. Even now
 40 THEOUGH HUNZA. the latter is open to trade for a far
shorter period than the passes from the North. Returning from my
visit to this interesting place I noticed several small mosques
constructed of wood, and showing on their beams and posts a good
deal of effective carving. Rougher in execution than old Kashmir
woodwork, it yet displayed, just like the latter, decorative elements
of a distinctly early Indian type, e.g., the double ' Chaitya '
ornament, the Sacred Wheel, the Svastika. The work I saw was said
to be of comparatively recent date, which makes the survival of
these patterns borrowed from the South so much the more curious.
My march on June 21st looked short on the map, but the accounts I
had collected of it prepared me for its difficulties. Soon after passing,
about two miles above Baltit, the picturesque fort-village of Altit, the
valley contracts to a gorge of rugged rocks, almost without a trace
of vegetation. A narrow path winds along the cliffs, sometimes close
by the swollen river, sometimes several hundred feet above it. A
small alluvial plateau, reached some four miles beyond, bears the
little village of Muhammadabad, But the track leads far below over
the sandy bed of the river. This bed indeed forms the easiest route
up the valley, and only when^its water is low in the winter can
ponies be brought up or down. The frequent crossing of the river
which this winter route necessitates is altogether impossible when
the snow on the mountains has once begun to melt. Accordingly a
high rugged spur had to be climbed and the d6bris of an enormous
old landslip to be traversed before I could descend again to the
riverside and reach the campingground of Ataabad. The hamlet
which gives this name was scarcely to be seen from below, and shut
in by an amphitheatre of absolutely bare rocky heights, our halting-
place looked a dismal spot. About half a century ago the Ghammesar
landslip, already referred to, is said to have blocked the whole valley,
when from Ataabad upwards an enormous lake was formed. The
black glacier-ground sand, which the Hunza River brings down and
deposits in large quantities,
 CLIMBS OVER RAFIKS. 41 rose in thick dust with the wind
which blew down the valley in the evening. Drink and food tasted
equally gritty ; it seemed a foretaste of the Khotan desert. In so
desolate a neighbourhood I felt doubly grateful for the Dak-runner
who at nightfall brought a long-expected home mail. The march of
the ne.xt day proved a trying experience. A short distance above
Ataabad the river passes along a series of cross-spurs which at their
foot are almost perpendicular. So the path climbs up their sides, and
clings to them where they are too steep by means of narrow
galleries. These are carried in parts over branches of trees forced
into fissures of the rock and covered with small stones. Elsewhere
narrow natural ledges are widened by flat slabs packed over them.
In some places these galleries, or ' Ratiks,' as they are locally called,
turn in sharp zigzags on the side of chffs where a false step would
prove fatal, while at others again they are steep enough to resemble
ladders. To carry loads along these galleries is difficult enough, and
for cattle as well as ponies, surefooted as the latter must be in
Hunza, they are wholly impassable. At more than one place even '
Yolchi Beg,' my little terrier, had reluctantly to submit to the indignity
of RAFiK ABOVE ATAABAD. bcing Carried,
 42 THROUGH HUNZA. though on our cHmbs in Kashmir I
had found few rocks that would refuse him a foothold. Scrambles of
this kind alternated along the whole march with passages over
shingly slopes and climbs over rock-strewn wastes. Only at a few
spots the barren grey and yellow of the rocks was relieved by some
green shrubs growing where scanty watercourses forced their way
down the fissured slopes. After six hours' steady climbing and
scrambling it was a relief to see at last the valley widen again, and
two hours more brought me to Ghulmit village. It occupies a wide
alluvial fan on the flank of a considerable glacier, the white crest of
which could be seen from a distance rising above the orchards and
fields. At Ghulmit that part of the Hunza Valley is entered which is
known as Little Guhyal. It takes this name from its inhabitants,
Wakhi immigrants from Wakhan or Guhyal on the Oxus. It was easy
to notice the change of race in the assembly of well-built handsome
village headmen which received me some distance from the village.
Headed by the Mir's relation, Muhammad Nafiz, who acts as his
representative among the villages of this part of the valley, they
escorted me in stately procession to the little orchard of apricot trees
where my camp was to be pitched. I was delighted to hear at last
the language of Wakhan, which had attracted my attention years
before I first came to India, as a remarkably conservative
descendant of the ancient tongue of Eastern Iran, It seemed strange
that I should have first touched the linguistic borders of old Iran,
high up in these mountains. The fact was bound to remind me that
the Pamirs which I was about to approach, mark the point of contact
not only of great geographical divisions, but also of equally great
language families and of the races speaking them. Close to the Kilik
Pass is the point where the watersheds bounding the drainage areas
of the Oxus, Indus, and Yarkand Rivers meet ; and it is plain that as
far as history can take us back, these areas belonged to the sphere
of the dominant races of Iran, India, and Turkestan. The Wakhis of
Little Guhyal, numbering altogether about a thousand souls, are a
line stalwart type, taller than the men
 WAKHI SETTLEMENTS. 43 of Hunza and usually showing
clear-cut and intelligent features. The characteristic eagle-nose of
the true Iranian was well represented, and their complexion, too,
seemed to me distinctly fair. Many of them talk Persian with more or
less fluency, and I was thus able to indulge in short chats. The
connection with the people of Wakhan and Sarikol is still maintained
by WAKHI VILLAGERS, GHULMIT. occasional marriages, and the
original immigration from the Oxus Valley is distinctly remembered.
How the Hunza people proper, undoubtedly more warlike and so
pressed for land, acquiesced in this invasion, seems difficult to
explain. The peaceful character of the Wakhis is curiously
s}Tiibolised by the implement which every respectable householder
carries about with him on state occasions. It is a long staff with a
small heart-shaped shovel of wood at the end, used for k
 44 THEOUGH HUNZA. opening and damming up the
irrigation courses that bring fertiHty to the laboriously cleared
terrace lands. Ghulmit cannot have seen many Sahibs, for a large
assembly of villagers remained for a long time round the neat little
fruit garden where I was encamped. Next morning we made a late
start owing to the change of coolies, when time is always lost until
every one settles down to the load he fancies. But the VIEW TO
NORTH-EAST OF PASU VILLAGE. march to Pasu proved short, and
after the previous days' experience unusually easy. This does not
mean, of course, that the track is as yet fit for perambulators. For a
short distance above Ghulmit the Ghulkin glacier comes down close
to the river, and the numerous channels in which its ash-grey waters
rush forth, are troublesome to cross at this season. But the valley is
open, and the stony plateaus along the right riverbank afforded easy
going. Just before the end of the march the road passes in front of
the Pasu glacier, which comes
 BATUR GLACIER. 45 down with its debris- covered masses
of ice from a great peak of over 25,000 feet, also visible from
Aliabad and Baltit. An enormous side moraine, which is crossed by
the route, shows that the glacier must have advanced further at a
former period. The little village of Pasu, situated immediately to the
north of the glacier-head, formed with its green fields and orchards
a pleasant contrast to the bleak scenery around. It owes its BATUR
GLACIER, SEEN FROM SOUTH-EAST. existence to the irrigation cuts
which catch some of the water issuing from the glacier. A little
orchard in the midst of the few scattered homesteads which form
the village, was my cheerful camping-ground for the day. The cooler
air and the backward state of the crops of oats and millet were
indications of the elevation of the place (circ. 8,000 feet above the
sea). The flowers by the side of the fields, scanty as they were, gave
the whole a springlike look which was most pleasing.
 46 THEOUGH HUNZA. HUNZA VALLEY BELOW KHAIBAR.
The inarch of June 24th brought me first to the huge Batur glacier,
some three miles above Pasu. Probably over twenty-four miles long,
it fills completely a large side valley which descends from the
northwest, and unlike the glaciers previously passed, it advances its
frozen walls down to the river-bed. They are covered for miles up
the valley with an extraordinary mass of detritus, and thanks to this
thick crust of rock and shingle the crossing of the glacier was
comparatively easy. All the same it took me nearly an hour to
scramble across the mile and half of glacier, and the slippery ground
delayed the coolies still longer. There are years' when masses of ice
pushed down from the unexplored upper reach of the glacier make
the crossing far more difficult even for men, and altogether close the
route for animals. It is in view of such obstacles, which no skill of the
engineer can ever completely overcome, that one realises the great
natural defences of the Hunza Valley route against invasion from the
North. Above the Batur glacier the valley contracts and continues
between bare walls of rock and shingle to Khaibar, the next
inhabited place above Pasu. The river, no longer fed by the
 MARCHING OF KANJUTIS. 47 glacier streams from the high
ranges, is now far smaller in volume, yet still quite unfordable in
summer. The mountains on either side culminate in serrated rock
pinnacles of fantastic forms, but \'ie\vs of mighty masses of ice and
snow no longer meet the eye. The hamlet of Khaibar, which I
reached after a tiring march of six hours, lies on an alluvial fan at
the mouth of a narrow side valley. Scanty indeed are the fields of the
place, and one wonders how they can support even the half-dozen
homesteads. Yet even here where Nature is so harsh, defence
against human foes was not so very long ago a necessary condition
of existence. The path which leads to the plateau is guarded at a
point of great natural strength by a rude gateway or ' Darband,' a
necessary jmt " precaution seeing that the opposite bank of the ?^^
river was easily accessible to the people of Nagir, the hereditary
enemies of Hunza. ' From Khaibar to Misgar there are two routes
available, one leading through the hamlet of Gircha by the left bank
of the river, and the other through Khudabad on the right. The
former, which was said to be easier if the water of the river was not
too high, was reported impracticable soon after I had started on the
morning of June 25th. Hence the track on the right bank had to be
taken. Without offering exceptional difficulties that day, it was trjdng
enough, leading almost the whole length over boulderstrewn slopes
and along banks of slatey shingle. Just opposite to the hamlet of
Murkhun, RAFIK NEAR MURKHUX.
 48 THROUGH HUNZA. where a route to the Shimshal Valley
opens eastwards, the path descends over a long Rafik built out in
the usual fashion from an almost perpendicular rock face. Curiously
enough at one point of the narrow ledge which bears the gallery,
there issues a little spring of deliciously clear water, offering
welcome refreshment to the wayfarer. Not far beyond I met, to my
surprise, the messenger whom the Wazir of Hunza had despatched
to Tashkurghan to notify to the Political Munshi there my
approaching arrival. The man had left Hunza on the morning of the
i8th, and now he was returning with the Munshi' s reply and a
considerable load of merchandise which he was bringing back as a
private venture. As an illustration of the marching powers of the men
of Hunza this feat deserves record. The distance from Hunza to the
Kilik is about eighty-one miles, and of the character of the track my
experiences so far described will suffice to give an idea. In addition
to this and half the return journey, the man had covered twice the
route along the Taghdumbash Pamir to and from Tashkurghan, a
distance of at least eighty miles each way. Performances of this kind
make it easy to understand how the raids of Kanjuti parties could be
carried to so great distances, and thanks to the rapidity of their
movements, usually with impunity. At Khudabad, a hamlet of eight
houses, my day's march ended. Here I passed once more out of the
Wakhi area into that of small Hunza settlements. The fact reminds
me of the strange variety of tongues which at that time could be
heard in my camp. Apart from Turki conversation with my personal
servants, Persian served me as a convenient medium with my Wakhi
guides and the more intelHgent villagers. My coolies spoke partly
Wakhi, partly Burisheski, while the Dard dialect of the Shinas was
represented by " Raja " Ajab Khan, a relative of the hill chiefs of
Punyal, whose services as an orderly Captain Manners Smith had
kindly secured for me, and by his retainer. In addition to these
languages there was Hindustani talked between my Sub-Surveyor
and Jasvant Singh, his Rajput cook. Had I brought the Kashmiri
servant whom I had first engaged before Sadak Akhun joined me
from
 CLIMBS TO MISGAR. 49 Kashgar, I should have had an
opportunity to keep up my Kashmiri also. Notwithstanding this
diversity of tongues things arranged themselves easily, for everybody
seemed to know something at least of another's language. The
march from Khudabad to Misgar which I did on the 26th of June had
been described to me as the worst bit of the route, and as an Alpine
climb it certainly did not fall- short of the estimate I had been led to
form of it. The Chaparsun River, which comes down from the glaciers
near the Irshad #-ii and Chillinji Passes in the north-west, was
fortunately low at the early morning hour, and could be forded
immediately above Khudabad. A long detour and the use of a rope
bridge were thus avoided. But the succession of cUmbs which
followed in the main valley beat all preNnous experience. Scrambles
up precipitous faces of slatey rocks, alternated with still more trying
descents to the river-bed ; ' Rafiks ' and ladders of the t5rpe already
described were in nmnerous places the only possible means of
getting over the cliffs, often hundreds of feet above the river. The
previous five days, however, had accus 
 50 THROUGH HUNZA. tomed me somewhat to such modes
of progress, and it was in comparative freshness that 1 emerged at
last in the less confined portion of the valley above its junction with
the gorge of the Khunjerab River. Some miles before Misgar I was
met on a desolate little plateau by the levies of that place, a
remarkably striking set of men, and conducted to their village. After
the barren wilderness of rocks and glacier streams through which I
had passed, the smiling green fields of Misgar were a delight to the
eye. They are situated on a broad plateau some 300 feet above the
left river-bank, and amply irrigated by channels fed from a stream of
crystal-clear water which issues from a gorge to the east. The millet
and ' Rishka ' were still in young shoots, since the summer comes
late at this the northernmost village of the valley. In the midst of the
fields and the scattered homesteads I found an uncultivated spot
just large enough for my tent, and enjoyed again the pleasure of
camping on a green sward. Close by was the Ziarat of a local saint,
Pir Aktash Sahib, a simple enclosure adorned with many little flags
which fluttered gaily in the wind, just as if they marked the approach
to a Buddhist establishment in Sikkim or Ladak. The open view
across the broad valley was most cheerful after the gloomy
confinement of the previous camping grounds. Far away to the
north-west I even beheld a snowy ridge which clearly belonged to
the watershed towards the Oxus. I felt at last that the Pamir was
near. At Misgar I was able to discharge the hardy hillmen who had
carried our impedimenta over such trying ground without the
slightest damage, and on the morning of June 27th I moved on with
fresh transport. This consisted chiefly of ponies, as the route further
on is open to baggage animals at all seasons. Though the road no
longer offered special difficulties, it was tiring owing to the boulder-
strewn wastes it crosses for a great part. At Topkhana, where there
stands a half-ruined watchtower amidst traces of former habitations
and fields, I was mot by a jolly-looking young Sarikoli, whose
aj)pcarance and outfit at once showed that he came from Chinese
territory. It was one of the soldiers of the ' Karaul ' or guard kej^t by
the Chinese on the Mintaka Pass who had been sent down to
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4*
 52 THKOUGH HUNZA. inquire as to my arrival. He carried a
long matchlock with the gable-ended rest sticking out beyond it, an
indispensable implement of the Celestial soldiery of the old type all
through the empire. Ruddy-cheeked and clothed in fur cap, mighty
boots, and a series of thick ' Chogas ' or coats, the young fellow
looked serviceable enough. Less so his matchlock, which had lost its
breach-piece, and in the barrel of which a broken ramrod had stuck
fast evidently for many a long day. He assured me that the expected
yaks and ponies were already waiting for me, and tried to make
himself as useful on the rest of the march as if he belonged to my
following of Hunza levies. In reality the frontier line seems of little
consequence to the Wakhi herdsmen who live on either side of it.
When after a march of over twelve miles I arrived at Murkushi,
where the routes to the Kilik and Mintaka diverge, there was a set of
picturesque Wakhis from across the border waiting for me. They had
left their yaks on this side of the pass, where they found better
grazing. It was a pleasure to behold these sturdy fellows in their
dresses of Yarkand fabrics showing all colours of the rainbow. Their
clear-cut Iranian features, almost European in complexion, seemed
to contrast pleasantly with their Kirghiz get-up. Down in the little
wood of stunted birch-trees by the river where I camped for the
night, it was scarcely as cold as might be expected at an elevation of
nearly 12,000 feet. At 6 a.m. on the following morning the
thermometer showed 47° F. A march of four hours brought me on
the 28th of June to the high grazing ground known as Shirin Maidan
(" the Milky Plain "), close to the foot of the Kilik Pass. Here the
change in the temperature due to the great elevation made itself
most perceptible. When the sun i)assed behind light clouds at noon
and a fresh breeze blew down the pass it was bitterly cold, and I
was glad to get into my fur coat as soon as the baggage arrived.
The range immediately to the north which is crossed by the pass,
appeared low by the side of the rugged peaks which show their
snowy heads further down in the valley. More
 II CAMP AT SHIRIX MAIDAN. 53 imposing than the
watershed towards the Taghdumbash, looked a distant glacier-
covered ridge \'isible through a side valley westwards. Behind it lay
the sources of the Oxus, or more exactly of the Ab-i-Panja branch.
My Guhyal coolies and Hunza levies had now all been discharged,
and I was left to enjoy the change in my camp surroundings.
Muhammad Yusuf, the Sarikoli headman, and his seven relatives who
brought the yaks that were to take my baggage onwards, were
cheerful to look at and talk to. They understood Turki quite well and
were most communitative. In their midst I felt that I had passed out
of India.
 yLi i V YAKS STARTING FORIkILIK PASS. CHAPTER IV. ON
THE TAGHDUMBASH PAMIR. When early on the morning of the 2gth
of June I struck camp to move over the Kihk or ' Kahk ' Pass, as it is
called by Kanjutis, the ground was covered with hoar frost and the
little streams which came down from the pass were partly frozen. I
tried to start early in order to find the snow still hard ; but the
packing of the baggage on yaks proved a lengthy affair, and it was
not till 8 a.m. that the caravan moved off. I had the satisfaction of
seeing the servants whom the previous marches had tried a great
deal, now comfortably mounted on yaks. Tinascent lay northwards
through a comparatively open though steep nullah for about an hour.
Then the ground widened, and the flat watershed still covered with
snow came into view. On the cast the i)ass is flanked by spurs of a
rugged peak, which rises to a height of nearly 20,000 feet. On the
west two small glaciers stretch down to it from a somewhat lower
range, the cul 
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