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Writing legibly in a field

Found at: republic.circumlunar.space:70/~johngodlee/posts/2020-11-18-writing.txt

TITLE: Writing legibly in a field notebook
DATE: 2020-11-18
AUTHOR: John L. Godlee
====================================================================

		

		
This post is going to sound very preachy, but I do think it's an 
important topic, and something that's easily overlooked during 
ecological fieldwork.

		
When I'm working with a team of people to construct a vegetation 
survey plot, one person is normally tasked with writing down 
measurements in a notebook or on a data sheet attached to a 
clipboard, a scribe. That person needs to write down the 
measurements quickly, in an organised fashion and neatly, so that 
the measurements can be later transferred to a computer. It's not 
an easy job, and it carries a lot of responsibility.

		
Reading through old notebooks, there are a number of times when a 
hastily written number or letter has left me wondering about the 
correct value. Over time I've tried to adapt my handwriting to 
minimise ambiguity of each character.

		
For example, it's tempting to write the number 1 as a straight 
line, but this can easily be misinterpreted as a straight line, 
i.e. part of the table architecture, or the letter 'l'. It's also 
easy for an un-serifed straight line to blend into the border of a 
table, or into the page margin. I always aim to put a hat and a 
base on the number 1 to make sure it can only be that character.

		
  ![Comparison of the number 
1](https://johngodlee.xyz/img_full/writing/one.png)

		
Even with the embellishments on the number 1, a major problem can 
still occur from misinterpreting a 7 as a 1. I put a horizontal 
line through the body of the 7, to make sure it can't be mistaken 
for a 1.

		
  ![Comparison of the number 
7](https://johngodlee.xyz/img_full/writing/seven.png)

		
One problem I haven't managed to solve is how to make sure a 5 
can't be mistaken for an 's'. In most cases it doesn't matter 
because numbers and letters are rarely combined in the same cell, 
but at least once I've had to fill a table cell with stem mortality 
notes, one of which is whether the stem is standing (S) and one of 
which is the condition of the stem (1-5 scale). It's important to 
ensure the top of the 5 is angular, but I wonder if there's a 
completely different glyph to describe the number 5 which I haven't 
thought of.

		
When recording stem diameter measurements it's extremely important 
that the decimal point is in the right place. As an example, using 
the equation from Chave et al. (2014) and the Worldwide wood 
density database from Zanne et al. (2009), a Brachystegia 
spiciformis tree in Bicuar National Park, Angola, with a diameter 
of 5.3 cm has a biomass of 0.0049 t DM^-1 (dry matter), while the 
same tree with a diameter of 53.0 cm has a biomass of 1.6821 t 
DM^-1. While the difference in DBH is only a factor of 10, the 
biomass is increased 343 times. Writing decimals as a dot isn't 
sufficient, especially when using a pencil. Instead I always try to 
write the point as a filled circle, which admittedly take a bit 
more time. Aligning the decimals in a table column can also help to 
catch any obvious errors in decimal placement, and means you can 
fill in the decimal points later during a free minute.

		
  ![Decimal 
places](https://johngodlee.xyz/img_full/writing/decimal.png)

		
Writing implements are an important consideration. I use a 
Rite-in-the-rain No. 390, a waterproof hardback notebook with ruled 
pages. I always use mechanical pencils to make sure my measurement 
recording is precise. Normal pencils become blunt very quickly and 
it's a pain sharpening them in the field. My favourite pencils are 
the Kokuyo Campus Junior 1.3 mm Pink (PS-C101P-1P), and the Pentel 
0.9 mm Yellow (P209). Notice that both pencils are gaudy colours so 
if they drop on the ground I don't lose them in the undergrowth. I 
change my mind regularly on the best diameter pencil lead. I think 
it's really just personal preference.

		
  ![Notebooks and 
pencils](https://johngodlee.xyz/img_full/writing/notebook.png)

		
Part of the responsibility for writing precise and clear 
measurements lies with the person reading out the measurement. 
Consider an example where researchers are weighing the fresh weight 
of dead-wood samples on the forest floor using a set of digital 
hanging hook scales. The measurement is 1432.54 g. Instead of 
saying "one thousand four hundred and thirty two point fifty four", 
say "one four three two point five four", it removes a lot of 
ambiguity. Similarly, if a tag number on a tree is 344A, don't say 
"three hundred and forty four A", or even "three double four A", 
say "three four four A". When a lot of measurements are being read 
out one after another, try to say them in the same order each time, 
and call out the name of the measurement first, so the scribe's 
hand is primed at the correct place on the page, for example: "DBH 
fifty one point two. Height twelve point five one, condition 
standing and topkilled".


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