CCE CCE Tables, Figures, and Special Elements Questions and Answers 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following is the correct editorial label for a non-table, non-photograph illustration such as a diagram or chart?
- Figure (Correct answer)
- Exhibit
- Plate
- Graphic
Correct answer: Figure
In most editorial style guides, all illustrations that are not tables (including diagrams, charts, maps, and photographs) are labeled as figures.
Question 2: When a manuscript's list items are complete sentences, what punctuation rule applies?
- Each list item ends with a period. (Correct answer)
- List items never end with punctuation.
- End each item with a semicolon except the last, which ends with a period.
- Only the last item ends with a period.
Correct answer: Each list item ends with a period.
When list items are grammatically complete sentences, each should end with a period, consistent with standard sentence punctuation.
Question 3: An author uses a vertical list introduced by 'The following items were found:' followed by fragments. What punctuation should appear after each fragment?
- No end punctuation, or a semicolon after each item with 'and' before the last (style dependent). (Correct answer)
- A period after every item.
- A colon after every item.
- A dash after every item.
Correct answer: No end punctuation, or a semicolon after each item with 'and' before the last (style dependent).
When list items are short phrases or fragments rather than complete sentences, most style guides call for no terminal punctuation or for semicolons with a concluding conjunction.
Question 4: What is the purpose of a source note beneath a table?
- To credit the origin of the data or to cite the source of the table. (Correct answer)
- To define abbreviations used in the table header.
- To explain the statistical method used.
- To cross-reference another table.
Correct answer: To credit the origin of the data or to cite the source of the table.
A source note attributes the data or the table itself to its original source, appearing at the bottom of the table before other footnotes.
Question 5: A copyeditor encounters a bulleted list with some items capitalized at the start and others not. What should be done?
- Standardize capitalization throughout the list per the applicable style guide. (Correct answer)
- Capitalize only items that are complete sentences.
- Lowercase all items to maintain a conversational tone.
- Leave capitalization as the author wrote it.
Correct answer: Standardize capitalization throughout the list per the applicable style guide.
Consistency within a list is a core copyediting principle; capitalize (or lowercase) all list items uniformly according to the chosen style.
Question 6: In a scientific or technical manuscript, which element typically appears directly below a figure?
- The figure caption. (Correct answer)
- The figure title above.
- A source attribution only.
- A table of related data.
Correct answer: The figure caption.
By convention in most style guides, figure captions appear below the figure, whereas table titles appear above the table.
CCE CCE Tables, Figures, and Special Elements Questions and Answers 2
Which of the following is the correct editorial label for a non-table, non-photograph illustration such as a diagram or chart?