Given the wide variety of format issues and the even wider variety of options for those issues, these format guidelines cannot possibly present every format option that you will encounter in engineering and science. Such a collection would be cumbersome and, in the end, not particularly helpful. What's important is not that you learn every format which exists, but that you realize a specified format will often exist and that you follow that format. For those situations in which no specified format exists, you should choose a professional format to follow that is appropriate for your situation. Appendix A presents a professional format that is commonly used in engineering and science.
Style comprises structure , language , and illustration .
As an engineer or scientist, you cannot treat your writing in the same way that you treat fluid mechanics or organic chemistry. The game of golf provides a good analogy to the way you should view your writing. Think of your technical problems as your drives and iron shots. In your drives and iron shots, you want loft, accuracy, and distance. Now, think of your writing problems the same as you would a putt.