Subject Index - Publication Formatting

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508 compliance

As a leading, respected national laboratory, NREL must ensure that its publications and content are accessible to all people. Specifically, we must ensure that everything is “508 compliant.”

What It Means

In 1998, Congress amended the Rehabilitation Act of 1972 to require federal agencies to make their electronic and information technology accessible to people with disabilities. For example, individuals using assistive technology (such as JAWS, a computer screen reader program) can read a document that is 508 compliant.

What It Involves

All graphs, graphics, animations, fact sheets, and so on must be accessible. Further, videos, animations, and audio files must be 508 compliant. These media types require text versions.

Working with a communications representative will ensure that your content goes through the proper process and is 508 compliant before publishing.

**Don’t Forget To Add Alt Text!**

A key part of ensuring 508 compliance involves adding alt text for every figure and photo in technical reports, fact sheets, articles, web pages, social media, and so on. Alt text provides a semantic meaning or description of the image. It can also be read by search engines. 

Keep It Simple

Imagine if, instead of reading a document, you had to listen to it being read to you. By keeping this in mind, you can write alt text that is clear and descriptive. To help, see the following examples of alt text—one for a photo and one for an illustration. For more complicated figures or graphs, try to provide a high-level overview of what is being shown (versus describing every detail).

Alt text: Eagle flying out of a cage with wind turbines in the background.

Alt text: Illustration of spar-buoy, barge, and tension-line floating offshore wind turbines in the ocean, with foundations anchoring them to the seabed.

For more information on accessibility and alt text, review NREL’s Communication Standards.

Subjects:  Government Terms, Publication Formatting, Publication Policies and Services

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abstracts

An abstract usually accompanies a journal article or conference paper. It is an important indexing and research tool. Abstracts are usually 200 to 250 words in length and the content summarizes and highlights the major points of the journal article, conference paper, or report. It may also include a brief description of the purpose, scope, and methods used to reach the conclusions.

Some journals and conferences ask that you submit an abstract that briefly describes the paper’s purpose and contents before your submission is accepted. Check with the journal or conference sponsor for guidance on abstract requirements such as length.

Abstracts for NREL Publications

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Scientific and Technical Information requires an abstract of 200 words or fewer for its citation record posting. This abstract is also typically included in the metadata of the final publication PDF and should briefly describe the context, purpose, and nature of the work and summarize major results or conclusions.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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acknowledgments

You may acknowledge the reviews, funding, and other assistance of individuals and groups in NREL technical reports and papers. Acknowledgments can go in a preface or foreword in a technical report, or they can be on a separate page if they are extensive. They also often follow the main text in professional journal articles. Journals usually contain examples or instructions for authors.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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appendices

You can include detailed background or technical information, derivations, equations, or data tables in one or more appendices. Large, detailed tables are often placed in an appendix. If you have more than one appendix, title them with letters (Appendix A, B, C, etc.). If you have only one appendix, title it "Appendix" rather than "Appendix A." Name figures and tables in appendices so they reflect the title (Figure A-1, Table B-2, etc.). In the case of only one appendix, use the “A-1” convention for figures and tables. 

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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author-date citations

This is the preferred style for NREL reports and papers. Do not use a comma between the author's last name and the year: (Smith 2000). See also references.

Subjects:  Publication Formatting, Writing Style

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bibliography

A bibliography, which is different from a reference list, is a list of works that are related to your subject or publication but not cited, either by author or by number, in the text. Alphabetize works in bibliographies according to the last name of the first author. You may use NREL's reference style in listing the works if you don't have other guidelines (e.g., from a journal). Some bibliographies are titled "For Further Reading." Compile your in-text citations of literature and other sources in a list of references.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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bullets

Bullets are printed to the left of items in a list. You must have at least two items in a bulleted list.

Report Formatting
In text, the first level of bullet is indented 0.25 in., and text begins at the 0.5-in. mark. This level is bulleted with a solid dot. Second-level bullets are open dots, and third-level bullets are em dashes (—). Each subsequent level of bullet is sequentially indented 0.5 in. In lists with items that are more than one line, each bulleted item is followed by a 6-pt. space. 

On the Web 
For web content (and for PowerPoint slidesand figures), terminal punctuation for a bulleted list is optional when there is no lead-in sentence. Use best judgmentand remember that consistency is key. When formatting bullets on the web, there should be a space between the text above the bullets and the first bullet. To facilitate scanning, consider adding a blank line between each bulleted item when the bulleted text is long. Do not use bullets with lists of links.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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captions

Each substantive photo and image should be accompanied by a caption. Capitalize the first word in a caption and use lowercase thereafter, except for proper nouns and capitalized abbreviations. You don't need a period at the end of a caption unless there is additional text below the caption such as a figure note or the caption includes multiple complete sentences.

For information about figure captions, see figures.

See also  photo, image, and video credits.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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citations

See references and citations for guidance on author-date and numbered citations.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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contents

See table of contents. For a list of all the content a report may include, see  report contents.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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executive summary

If you include a summary in a report, place it before the table of contents page. If your report is brief, a summary is not usually necessary. If your report is long, or if you think some readers will want one, you can include an executive summary.

An executive summary can be up to 5% to 10% of the length of your paper. It should be written so that it can be read independently of the full report, as executive summaries are frequently published as a separate document. Its content should include a brief statement of the problem or proposal covered in the report, background information, concise analysis, and the main conclusions. Furthermore, it should be written in plain language, where technical language is defined or examples/further context are provided, making it easy for nontechnical readers to understand.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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figures

Figures can include line drawings, graphs, charts, diagrams, schematics, flowcharts, illustrations, and photographs. Be sure that computer-generated figures are clear and readable, so they can be reproduced easily. Make sure the data in your figures correspond to the data in your text and tables.

Number figures in a simple sequence (e.g., Figure 1, Figure 2). In long reports, papers, or book chapters, you may include section or chapter numbers in the figure numbers (e.g., Figure 1-1, Figure 1-2, Figure 2-1, and so on).

Use 10-pt. Arial bold for captions. The caption is centered under the illustration. For data charts and graphs, use 9-pt. Arial for source lines below the figure. See also captions.

Figure 1. Renewables as a percentage of total installed capacity worldwide

No period is needed after a caption if it is an incomplete sentence (see Figure 1 above). If one or more full sentences follow the incomplete sentence (as a continuing caption or subcaption), each caption (including the opening incomplete sentence) should have a period. Don’t bold subcaptions. See Figure 2-1 below for an example.

As required, appropriate credit and Image Gallery information should be provided for figure images. See photo and image credits. Place credit information after the caption.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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fonts

Use Times New Roman for the text of NREL technical papers and reports. Use Arial for figures, tables, and headings.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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footnotes

You can use footnotes to place detailed explanatory or supplementary information at the bottom of a page; use in-text references to cite others' works. Use superscript numerals for footnote numbering. You can also place explanations, details, contradictions, and examples in the text rather than in footnotes. Footnote numbers are printed outside commas and periods but inside colons, semicolons, and dashes.

Mark the footnotes to tables in NREL reports with superscript letters: ^a, ^b, ^c, etc.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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foreword

The foreword to a book or formal report contains introductory remarks written, and usually signed, by someone other than the author or authors. Brief introductory remarks written by authors are contained in a preface.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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front matter and back matter

NREL reports can include front and back matter in the following order:

Front Matter

1. Title page
2. Disclaimer
3. Foreword
   
4. Preface
   
5. Acknowledgments
   
6. Nomenclature
   
7. Executive summary
   
8. Table of contents
   
9. Lists of figures and tables

Back Matter

1. Glossary
   
2. Reference list
   
3. Bibliography
   
4. Appendices

Paginate front matter with small Roman numerals (i, ii, iii) rather than Arabic numbers. Count the title page as page i, but don't print the number on it. All technical reports should contain a title page, a disclaimer, and a table of contents. Many outreach publications, such as DOE/NREL program overviews, contain only a contents list and brief acknowledgments in the front matter.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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glossary and nomenclature

If you use many mathematical or Greek symbols or technical terms in your report or paper, consider defining them in a glossary or nomenclature. Arrange the list alphabetically, and group Greek letters and definitions alphabetically in a separate list. Nomenclatures are usually in the front of a report, before the contents page. Glossaries usually go in the back, before the references.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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headings and subheadings

Here is a standard format for six levels of report subheadings:

You can number headings and subheadings (e.g., 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 2.0) if that will help readers with a long report. Print text in 12-point Times New Roman.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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introduction

Introductions usually contain background information on the research being reported, the general nature and context of the work, and its results (the "big picture"). Earlier related work can also be described.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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lists

You can use bulleted or numbered lists in NREL publications or web pages. Here's an example of a numbered list:

You can also list a few items or procedures in paragraph format and number them (1) one, (2) two, (3) three, etc. See bullets for more formatting information.

On the Web

All of the above guidelines apply to the web. When formatting lists on the web, there should be a blank line between the text above the list and the first item listed. To facilitate scanning, consider adding a blank line between each listed item when the text for each one is long.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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pagination

Paginate the front matter of NREL reports with lowercase Roman numerals, up through the lists of figures and tables. The title page is usually page "i," although that number isn't printed on the page. Paginate the main body of your report with Arabic numerals. You may insert a blank page before Page 1 to make sure it will be a right-hand (odd-numbered) page, but don't insert blank pages after that. All subsequent sections can begin on the left or on the right, as they fall. Center the page numbers on each page.

If you include appendices at the end, you may continue to paginate them sequentially with numerals or use A-1, A-2, A-3, B-1, B-2, and so on, for the page numbers.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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photo, image, and video credits

If you use a photo, image, or video from the NREL Image Gallery, an NREL staff member, or a paid or external source, you must provide appropriate credit. See the entries on captions and sources for more information, as well as the copyrighted material page on the publishing site.

For Publications

For the Web

For photos, images, and video on the web, include the credit after the caption and italicize it.

Use "from" for external sources and "by" for NREL sources. Do not use "courtesy of."

Don't include image numbers in the credit. Instead, the photo image file name should include the image number so it can be easily located in the Image Gallery if needed.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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preface

Brief introductory remarks and acknowledgments go in the report's preface. The preface comes after the title page and disclaimer page. (See front matter.) A preface written by someone other than the authors of the report is usually called a "foreword."

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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references and citations

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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report contents

Report contents may include (in order):

1. A report cover
2. A title page
3. A disclaimer
4. A foreword
5. A preface
6. Acknowledgments
7. A nomenclature, list of abbreviations, or list of acronyms
8. An executive summary
9. A table of contents
10. A list of figures
11. A list of tables
12. Body text
13. A glossary
14. references
15. A bibliography
16. Appendices.

See also front matter and back matter.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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report covers

NREL uses standard covers for most technical reports and papers and subcontract reports. Covers contain the laboratory's name, address, and logo as well as an NREL report number and date of publication. You may spell out an author's first name with or without a middle initial or use initials for the first and middle name.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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sources

Include the sources of all figures and tables that were originally published by others, especially those outside NREL. If figures or tables come from a copyrighted publication, you may need permission to reproduce them. Add the source at the end of a figure caption or in a note following a table.

Write out the source in full, as in the example, if it is not in your reference list or bibliography. If it is in the reference list, use one of these styles.

Subjects:  Publication Formatting, Publication Policies and Services

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spaces

Use only one space between a period and the beginning of the next sentence.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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subcaptions

Print captions to figures and photos in a bold font. Subcaptions are supplementary information that follows a period after the main caption. Subcaptions are not printed in bold.

But follow the publisher's guidelines for journal articles and conference papers.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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table of contents

A table of contents is required in most technical reports. In NREL reports, the table of contents follows the rest of the front matter. Lists of figures and tables follow the contents page(s). Each main section of the report is listed in the table of contents with the page it begins on; some authors also like to list subsections. Nothing that comes before the table of contents (front matter) is listed, but references, bibliography, and appendices (back matter) are listed. Publications for general audiences probably should include a contents list if the publication is more than 10 pages long.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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tables

In small or average-sized tables, place a horizontal line (as wide as the table) under the title, under the column headings, and below the table (between the table and sources or notes, if any). Delete vertical lines and extra horizontal lines. If the table is very large, shading every other line with a light color or inserting horizontal lines every three or four rows can help readers locate data.

Number tables in simple sequence or by section in long reports (Table 1, Table 2 or Table 1-1, Table 1-2, and so on). Center the table title (in title case) over the table (unlike a figure caption, which is sentence case and goes under the figure) and print the title in 10-pt. Arial bold; supplementary material in the title is not in bold. If possible, print tables in Arial, rather than Times New Roman. Define abbreviations in notes to the table if they are not obvious. Table notes are denoted by lowercase superscript letters (a, b, c) rather than footnote numbers or asterisks.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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title page

Most NREL technical reports contain a standard title page inside the cover.

Subject:  Publication Formatting

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