An electronic newsletter with communication tips and information
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Agricultural Communications, Purdue University An electronic newsletter with communication tips and information |
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February 1996 |
"Lay" and "lie" are often confused--and always confusing.
Lay
"Lay" is a verb meaning to put or place something somewhere.It takes a direct object. Its principal parts are "lay," "laid," "laid," and "laying."
Examples: Every day I lay the book on the table. Yesterday I laid the book on the table. I have laid the book on the table many times.I am laying the book on the table right now.
In all these examples, the verb is a form of the word "lay," and the direct object is "book."
Lie
"Lie" is, in this context, a verb meaning to recline. It does not take an object. Its principal parts are "lie," "lay," "lain," and "lying."
Examples: Every night I lie down. I lay down last night. I have lain down many times. I am lying down right now.
Help
If you're in doubt about whether to use "lay" or "lie," try substituting a form of the verb "place." If it makes sense, use a form of "lay." And if you have a grammar trap you'd like to see discussed or know of a tip that will help the rest of us avoid a grammar trap, please let us know.
After reading the item "Winter Meetings" in the December edition of "On Target," Zac Reicher, Purdue turf management specialist in Purdue Agronomy Department, writes that in addition to the points in that article, it may be a good idea to consider insurance on winter meetings. Reicher helps present the Midwest Turf Expo, held in Indianapolis each year. This winter one of his counterparts on the east coast was forced to cancel their Expo due to the heavy snows. As a result, that turf management program suffered more than $20,000 in incurred expenses and lost income. One such Expo cancellation would pay for 20 years of insurance, according to Reicher.
The Purdue Turf Expo brings in more than 1,500 people, which may warrant the insurance. An independent insurance company may be able to help you with conference cancellation insurance. The problem is, the annual price tag to buy insurance may be too costly for smaller events. If that's the case you can still work with conferences or hotels to identify options if you have a cancellation.
One option is to be hard nosed if you are ever faced with a cancellation. When dealing with a hotel or a catering service, keep in mind that they may be willing to negotiate especially if they want your future business. In a recent cancellation in West Lafayette due to bad weather, the hotel was going to charge full rates on meals that were canceled, but the party holding the conference bargained for a lower rate that covered the cost of food only. In addition, they demanded that the food be frozen and given to the conference hosts, since, after all, they paid for it.
Last month we talked about two of the telltale signs of do-it-yourself desktop publishing: two spaces after punctuation and using hyphens for bullets. This month let's discuss using all caps and underlining.
Frequently people keyboard their text in all caps for emphasis. The problem is ALL CAPS are more difficult to read. That's because we read not only by letters but also by shapes of words. All caps forces readers to read each and every letter which slows the reader down.
Sometimes all caps are used in headlines, subheads, lists, catalog entries, or the like for attention. But even then, cap and lowercase are still easier to read.
Inexperienced desktop publishers often use all caps because they have not learned all the options for emphasis available with their computer software.
Ask yourself if there is an alternative. How about bold lowercase; a different typeface; italics; or more space surrounding the text? And, of course, you would never set a script like Zapf Chancery in all caps! That quickly eliminates readability.
Failure to look for options is another reason people underline text for emphasis. Never do this in presentation graphics. It is the law! Yes, we were taught to underline titles of books, but that's because typewriters could not italicize.Eventually some could. Today, it is a more professional typesetting technique to italicize titles. And you never, never underline an italicized title or word.
So, my advice to you is "Think options."
This is the second in a series. If you would like to talk more about these or other design issues, please send email to: Pam Lassiter
It's always a challenge to know how to handle difficult discussions when communicating with a large group of people. The following, taken from The Ohio State University's CommuniCues, takes a brief look at how to frame your message.
The quality of your information is always important. And if you pay attention to your presentation, members of your audience will accept the information you're trying to share. Here are some helpful techniques:
So don't hold back. If you really want to get your message across, review your presentation and incorporate some of these techniques.
There is still a chance to register for the 1996 Agricultural Communicators in Education North Central Regional Conference to beheld at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana on March 12, 13, 14.
The conference theme is: Global Connections: Marketing and Technology. Participants will elect one of two tracks with topical themes of marketing or technology. Both tracks will merge to attend sessions with a global theme. Here's what to expect from each area:
1) Extension staff from Iowa State University -- fresh from training at Disney University -- will conduct a hands-on demonstration to show the role of marketing in achieving excellence;
2) Marketing specialists from a revamped Indiana technical college will reveal how they launched their new name;
3) A Dallas, Texas design firm will share a five-step approach to recruitment books that can be used for any publication;
4) A customer service guru from Purdue University will show how he uses multimedia images in a marketing package.
1) Hear from a Chicago-based company on the present and future of multimedia on the Web;
2) A Purdue professor will spotlight some of the challenges facing agricultural communicators in information technology; and
3) See a showcase of finished and on-going multimedia projects from around the region and discuss the development and design process of each.
1) Why should we communicate globally? Hear from Winrock, an agency that aims to reduce world hunger and poverty through rural and agricultural development;
2) Understand how to overcome obstacles in global communication presented by a Wellesley College professor ;
3) Two Purdue communicators will share experiences about how agricultural communication and the university's news service work together to reach international markets.
The conference will feature a fabulous dinner prepared by a Purdue chef who is the winner of six Culinary Olympic Gold Medals. In addition you'll brunch with the advertising agency executive who markets the Indiana Pacers, a team that went from being losers to winners in short order.
For information, contact conference chairs: Steve Cain, (765) 494-8410.
You can obtain a registration form on the WWW.
For full conference information and registration look on the ACE home page.
It is our goal as communication specialists to work hand-in-hand with you to serve your communications needs. We begin with a planning session that provides answers to a few basic but very important questions.
We'll ask you where you will give the presentation. Inside or outside? Small or large area? Your answers determine the size of the visual aid and the materials we'll use to produce it.
Consider the area and the location where your visual aid will be used.
Overcrowding a visual with too much information will not only look unattractive, but it will be counterproductive. This also holds true for the area in which it will appear. Your intended audience may tend to shy away from looking at the material because there is just too much there to see and read.
Remember, be selective; keep it simple; be concise and to the point.
Next month look forward to Part IV in the series.
We want to hear from you. Do you have a communication question? Do you have a comment on this issue of "On Target"? If so, please e-mail any of our writers.
It is the policy of the Department of Agricultural Communication Service of Purdue University that all persons shall have equal opportunity and access to its programs and facilities without regard to race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age or disability. Purdue University is an Affirmative Action employer. These materials may be available in alternative formats.