The first brief handbook to put technology front and center, "The Brief New Century Handbook "continues to offer unparalleled coverage of using computers in writing, grammar, and research--and now offers superior coverage of writing across the curriculum as well. Highly lauded for its concise writing style, student-friendly grammar explanations, and outstanding research, this is a handbook made for today's students.
PART 1. WRITING
1. Thinking, Reading, and Viewing Critically
a. Think critically
b. Read actively and critically
c. View actively and critically
2. Preparing
a. Experiment and explore
b. Invent and prewrite.
c. Gather information while avoiding plagiarism
d. Plan and organize
3. Composing
a. Review your electronic journal
b. Draft on a computer
c. Collaborate
d. Be flexible about your writing process
4. Rewriting
a. Shift from writer to reader
b. Revise
c. Edit
d. Proofread
e. Give and receive feedback electronically
f. STUDENT SAMPLE: Final paper.
5. Structuring Paragraphs
a. Unified paragraphs
b. Organizational patterns
c. Sentence-linking techniques
d. Verb tense, person, and number
e. Parallelism and coherence
f. Appropriate paragraph length
g. Link paragraphs with key words
h. Effective introductions and conclusions
6. Constructing and Evaluating Arguments
a. Arguable thesis
b. Supporting evidence
STUDENT SAMPLE: Annotated argument paper
c. Understand alternative views.
d. Test your main points
e. Build a compelling case
f. Structure your argument
g. Avoid fallacies
h. Electronic argument
i. Visual argument
PART 2. RESEARCH
7. The Research Project
a. Become a researcher
b. Make a Schedule
c. Research notebook
d. Working bibliography
e. Background information
f. Focused research
8. Using the Internet for Research
a. Use Internet sources
b. Know the Internet and Web
c. Search the Internet and Web
d. STUDENT SAMPLE: Database searches
e. STUDENT SAMPLE: Internet searches
9. Evaluating Electronic and Print Sources
a. Legitimate sources
b. STUDENT SAMPLE: Web links evaluation
10. Using Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism.
a. Use sources responsibly.
b. Avoid plagiarism in using sources
STUDENT SAMPLE: Inadvertent plagiarism
c. Paraphrase accurately.
d. Avoid plagiarism in paraphrasing
STUDENT SAMPLE: Intentional plagiarism
e. Summarize briefly
f. Avoid plagiarism in summarizing
g. Quote sparingly
h. Avoid plagiarism in quoting
11. Writing the Research Paper
a. Rhetorical stance and thesis
b. Plan your structure
c. Write a draft
d. Review and revise your draft
e. Follow formatting conventions
PART 3. MLA DOCUMENTATION
12. MLA Documentation
A DIRECTORY TO MLA STYLE
a. Integrate sources and avoid plagiarism
b. In-text citations
c. Bibliographic footnotes and endnotes
d. Works Cited Page
e. STUDENT SAMPLE: Annotated research paper in MLA format
PART 4. APA, CMS, AND CSE DOCUMENTATION
13. APA, CMS, and CSE Documentation
APA System
a. Integrate sources and avoid plagiarism
b. In-text citations
c. Content notes
d. References Page
e. STUDENT SAMPLE: Annotated research report in APA format
CMS System
f. Integrate sources and avoid plagiarism
g. In-text citations
h. Notes
i. Bibliography entries
CSE System
j. Integrate sources and avoid plagiarism
k. In-text citations
l. References list
PART 5. DESIGN IN PRINT AND ON THE WEB
14. Design Principles and Graphics
a. Three design principles
b. Formatting tools
c. Graphics
d. Review your document
15. Designing Web Documents
a. Basic design
b. Planning
c. Writing
PART 6. WRITING FOR DIFFERENT PURPOSES
16. Electronic Communications
a. The rhetoric of etools
b. Email
c. Online networks
d. Instant communication (IMs, TMs)
e. Web course tools
17. Writing in the Disciplines
a. Disciplinary research
b. Disciplinary discourse
18. Writing about Literature
a. Read literature critically
b. Purpose, persona, and audience
c. Claim and thesis
d. Appropriate person and tense
e. Write your literature paper
STUDENT SAMPLE (MLA): Literary interpretation
19. Writing in the Natural and Social Sciences
a. Types of writing
b. Purpose and audience
c. STUDENT SAMPLES (APA and CSE): Research reports
20. Business Writing
a. Business letters
STUDENT SAMPLE: Business letter
b. Letters of application
STUDENT SAMPLE: Letters of application
c. Résumés
STUDENT SAMPLE: Résumé
d. Memos
STUDENT SAMPLE: Memo
21. Oral Presentations
a. Preparing
b. Select visual aids
c. Practice, practice, practice
d. Speak with enthusiasm and focus
e. Design overhead transparencies
c. Use PowerPointTM
22. Essay Exams and Portfolios
a. Preparing
b. The essay writing process
c. STUDENT SAMPLES: Essay exam responses
d. Prepare a writing portfolio
PART 7. CORRECT SENTENCES
23. Sentence Structure
a. Parts of speech
b. Basic sentence patterns
c. Expanding sentences
d. Classifying sentences
24. Pronoun Problems
a. Number and gender agreement
b. Noun antecedents
c. This, that, which, and it
d. That and which
e. Subjective case
f. Objective case
g. Compound constructions
h. Interrogative pronouns & relative pronouns
i. Possessive pronouns
j. Comparisons
25. Verbs
a. Regular verb forms
b. Common irregular verb forms
c. Auxiliary verbs
d. Tenses
e. Sequence of tenses
f. Transitive and intransitive verbs
g. Active and passive voice
h. Mood
26. Subject-Verb Agreement
a. Plural and singular subjects and verbs
b. Compound subjects
c. Disjunctive subjects
d. Indefinite pronouns
e. Collective nouns
f. Plural form but singular meaning
g. Linking verbs
h. With there or here
27. Adjectives and Adverbs
a. Adjectives
b. Overuse of nouns as modifiers.
c. Adverbs .
d. Commonly confused adjectives and adverbs
e. Comparative and superlative forms
PART 8. COMMON GRAMMAR PROBLEMS
28. Sentence Fragments
a. Grammatically complete sentences
b. Connect dependent clauses
c. Connect phrases
d. Sentence fragments for special effect
29. Comma Splices and Run-On Sentences
a. Creating a subordinate clause
b. Separating clauses (comma, conjunction)
c. Separating clauses (semicolon)
d. Separating clauses (period)
30. Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers
a. Positioning modifiers
b. Avoid ambiguity
c. Lengthy modifiers
d. Disruptive modifiers
e. Dangling modifiers
31. Faulty Shifts
a. Focus
b. Verb tense and mood
c. Tone
d. Mixed constructions
e. Subjects and predicates
f. Direct and indirect discourse
PART 9. EFFECTIVE SENTENCES AND WORDS
32. Clarity and Conciseness
a. Length
b. Repetition and redundancy
c. Expletives
d. Passive voice
e. Wordiness
f. Noun-heavy style
g. Express meaning precisely
h. That to clarify sentence structure
i. Comparisons
33. Coordination and Subordination
a. Combine closely related sentences
b. Coordinate related sentences
c. Subordinate less important ideas
34. Parallelism
a. Parallel content in parallel form
b. Lists and series
c. With correlative conjunctions
d. Comparisons or contrasts
e. Complete, clear parallel constructions
35. Variety
a. Length.
b. Structure
c. Repetition
36. Choosing the Right Words
a. Denotation
b. Connotation
c. Level of formality
d. Jargon, slang, or dialect
e. Pretentiousness
f. Figurative language
37. Language and Power
a. "Correctness"
b. Language and identity
c. Gender
d. Race and ethnicity
e. Age and other differences
38. Using a Thesaurus and Dictionary
PART 10. PUNCTUATION
39. End Punctuation
THE PERIOD
THE QUESTION MARK
THE EXCLAMATION POINT
40. The Comma
41. The Semicolon
42. The Colon
43. The Apostrophe
44. Quotation Marks
45. Other Punctuation Marks
PARENTHESES
DASHES
BRACKETS
ELLIPSES
SLASHES
PART 11. MECHANICS AND SPELLING
46. Capital Letters and Italics
CAPITAL LETTERS
ITALICS
47. Abbreviations and Numbers.
ABBREVIATIONS
NUMBERS
48. The Hyphen
49. Spelling
PART 12. ESL ISSUES
50. Tips on Nouns and Articles
51. Tips on Verbs
PHRASAL VERBS
VERB COMPLEMENTS
VERBS OF STATE
MODAL AUXILIARY VERBS
CONDITIONAL SENTENCES
52. Tips on Word Order
53. Tips on Vocabulary
Glossary of Usage
Cross-Curricular Resource Atlas
Index