12.2 Punctuation, Part 1

The comma

Reading this section helped me understand proper places to put commas within paragraphs. Commas are important because they break up the sentence, creating a better flow between words. This point here:" "Use a comma after an introductory class or phrase. Such word groups usually tell when, where, how, why, or under what conditions the main actions of the sentence occurred," is one point about commas that I need to work on, as I tend to forget to add commas after introductory phrases. 

The colon

This section discussed colons, and when is the appropriate time to use them. I enjoy using the colon when making a list of items within a paragraph, however I did not know that you can use a colon when introducing a quote. "Use a colon after an independent clause, to direct attention to a list, an appositive, a quotation, or a summary or an explanation." This section was very helpful in giving me distinct examples on when to use a colon. 

Unnecessary Commas

I think that this chapter was similar to the comma chapter except it explained where not put them. One of the things I learned in this chapter was not to "use a comma to separate a verb from it's subject or object."  I found myself trying to think of sentences where I could put a comma despite having a rule against it. Putting commas where they are not supposed to prevents the paper from flowing properly. 

Steven

Reflection:

I added the comma after the word radiation. I think that adding a comma there is appropriate due to phrase following it helps answer the "where."

"Foreground radiation is any matter that emits microwave radiation, and there is a lot of it in the universe" (Ortega).

After reading the colon section of the book, I think that a colon could work nicely here just before the quote. Since the book stated that we are allowed to use a colon when writing a quote, I feel that a colon, with the addition of a comma, would help make the sentence flow better.

"Ian O’Neill science writer for Discovery News, “but just because the signal looked like evidence for gravitational waves, the BICEP2 researchers had underestimated the impact of the magnetized dust that fills our galaxy.” (O’Neill)" (Ortega).

Unnecessary commas can disrupt the flow of the paper. In this sentence for example, I feel that the comma after the word 'but' is unnecessary. I think that it causes too much pausing for one sentence.
But, there is a problem; CAM does not get recognized by conventional medicine (Acosta).

After reading these three chapters, I have been paying more attention of when to or when to not use commas and colons. By paying close attention to this, I hope that my writing improves.