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                                                                                                                     Style Manual for
                                                                                                                     AASHTOPublications
                                                                                                                                                                     July 2005
                            American Association of State Highway 
                                   and Transportation Officials
                           444 North Capitol Street, N.W., Suite 249
                                    Washington, DC 20001
                                        (202) 624-5800
                                    www.transportation.org
                                        ISBN: 1-56051-314-4
                                        Publ. Code: ASM-1
                                                                                                                              American Association of State Highway
                                                                                                                              and Transportation Officials
                                                   Style Manual for AASHTO Publications 
                                                                   Table of Contents 
                   PART 1:   PROJECT MANAGEMENT...................................................................................................................1 
                   1.1      Overview..........................................................................................................................................................1 
                   PROJECT MANAGEMENT OF AASHTO PUBLICATIONS..............................................................................2 
                   1.2      Outsourced Projects.......................................................................................................................................3 
                      1.2.1    Editorial Production..................................................................................................................................3 
                      1.2.2    Design/Layout.............................................................................................................................................6 
                      1.2.3    Technical Review........................................................................................................................................7 
                      1.2.4    Printing.......................................................................................................................................................9 
                   PART 2:  DESIGN PREFERENCES FOR AASHTO PUBLICATIONS............................................................12 
                   2.1      Text................................................................................................................................................................12 
                      2.1.1    Selection of Layout Software...................................................................................................................12 
                      2.1.2    Document Format....................................................................................................................................12 
                      2.1.3    Color..........................................................................................................................................................15 
                      2.1.4    Document Organization...........................................................................................................................16 
                      2.1.5    Figures.......................................................................................................................................................16 
                      2.1.6    Tables........................................................................................................................................................25 
                      2.1.7    Equations..................................................................................................................................................28 
                   2.2      Front matter..................................................................................................................................................28 
                   2.3      End matter....................................................................................................................................................30 
                      2.3.1    Glossary ....................................................................................................................................................30 
                      2.3.2    Index..........................................................................................................................................................30 
                      2.3.3    Keywords for Web...................................................................................................................................30 
                      2.3.4    References.................................................................................................................................................31 
                      2.3.5    Output.......................................................................................................................................................31 
                   2.4      Covers............................................................................................................................................................31 
                      2.4.1    Color..........................................................................................................................................................31 
                      2.4.2    Front Cover..............................................................................................................................................32 
                      2.4.3    Back Cover................................................................................................................................................32 
                      2.4.4    Spine..........................................................................................................................................................32 
                      2.4.5    Jewel Case Covers, Tray Card Inserts, and CD-ROM Labels.............................................................34 
                      2.4.6    Output for Bookstore...............................................................................................................................34 
                   2.5      Design and Production of AASHTO CD-ROMs........................................................................................34 
                      2.5.1    Jewel Case Covers....................................................................................................................................34 
                      2.5.2    Tray Card Inserts.....................................................................................................................................35 
                      2.5.3    CD-ROM Labels......................................................................................................................................35 
                      2.5.4    Splash Screens..........................................................................................................................................36 
                      2.5.5    Encryption and Security..........................................................................................................................36 
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                      2.5.6    Creating PDFs for CD-ROMs.................................................................................................................36 
                      2.5.7    Care and Handling of CDs......................................................................................................................37 
                   2.6      AASHTO Web Guidelines...........................................................................................................................38 
                      2.6.1    Submission of Materials for Posting on Any AASHTO-Hosted Website............................................38 
                   PART 3:  STYLE RULES FOR AASHTO PUBLICATIONS..............................................................................39 
                   3.1      Use of “May,” “Will,” “Shall,” and “Should” in Standards.....................................................................39 
                   3.2      Use of “And/Or”...........................................................................................................................................39 
                   3.3      Spelling..........................................................................................................................................................39 
                      3.3.1    Plural Forms.............................................................................................................................................39 
                      3.3.2    Possessive Forms......................................................................................................................................40 
                      3.3.3    Indefinite Articles.....................................................................................................................................41 
                      3.3.4    Preferred Spellings for AASHTO Publications.....................................................................................42 
                   3.4      Compound Words (8, 9, 10).........................................................................................................................45 
                      3.4.1    Types of Compounds................................................................................................................................45 
                      3.4.2    General Rules for Using Compound Words..........................................................................................45 
                   3.5      Prefixes and Suffixes (8, 9, 10).....................................................................................................................47 
                      3.5.1    Prefixes......................................................................................................................................................47 
                      3.5.2    Suffixes......................................................................................................................................................48 
                   3.6      Capitalization................................................................................................................................................48 
                   3.7      Abbreviations and Acronyms......................................................................................................................49 
                      3.7.1    General......................................................................................................................................................49 
                   3.8      Punctuation...................................................................................................................................................49 
                      3.8.1    Placement of Punctuation Marks............................................................................................................53 
                   3.9      Lists................................................................................................................................................................56 
                      3.9.1    Lists as Running Text..............................................................................................................................56 
                      3.9.2    Vertical Lists.............................................................................................................................................56 
                   3.10     Italic and Boldface Type..............................................................................................................................57 
                   3.11     Numerals in Text..........................................................................................................................................58 
                   3.12     Signs and Symbols in Text...........................................................................................................................59 
                   3.13     Mathematical Expressions...........................................................................................................................59 
                      3.13.1  Numerals in Mathematical Expressions.................................................................................................59 
                      3.13.2  Signs and Symbols....................................................................................................................................59 
                      3.13.3  Decimals and Fractions............................................................................................................................60 
                      3.13.4  Equations..................................................................................................................................................60 
                      3.13.5  Units of Measure......................................................................................................................................62 
                      3.13.6  SI and U.S. Units......................................................................................................................................62 
                   3.14     References.....................................................................................................................................................65 
                      3.14.1  General......................................................................................................................................................65 
                      3.14.2  Elements to Be Included..........................................................................................................................65 
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                     3.14.3  Books.........................................................................................................................................................66 
                     3.14.4  FHWA Publications.................................................................................................................................67 
                     3.14.5  TRB Publications.....................................................................................................................................67 
                     3.14.6  Periodicals.................................................................................................................................................68 
                     3.14.7  Technical Reports.....................................................................................................................................68 
                     3.14.8  Government Documents..........................................................................................................................68 
                     3.14.9  Court Cases...............................................................................................................................................69 
                     3.14.10 Theses and Dissertations..........................................................................................................................69 
                     3.14.11 Others........................................................................................................................................................69 
                     3.14.12 Nonprint Materials...................................................................................................................................70 
                  3.15    Request to Cite from Other Sources...........................................................................................................70 
                     3.15.1  Trade Names.............................................................................................................................................74 
                  3.16    Endnotes and Footnotes...............................................................................................................................74 
                     3.16.1  Text Citations...........................................................................................................................................74 
                  3.17    Appendixes and Other Attachments...........................................................................................................74 
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