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Subject:Singular of data? From:Geoff Hart <geoff-h -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA> Date:Tue, 21 Mar 1995 11:35:36 LCL
Renee Cornelison asked <<Is there a consensus regarding using a
singular verb with the word Data?>>
If you want to be grammatically pure about it, "datum" is always
singular and "data" is (are? <grin>) always plural. However, being an
impure editor, I don't always follow this rule. When "data" is treated
as a collective noun (i.e., when you mean the dataset as a whole, not
individual data points), the singular form is commonly used, even
though it could be better to reword. Thus: "The data [The dataset]
reveals that..." instead of "The data reveal that..."
This comes down to a choice between usage and formal grammar. My rule
of thumb is that you should try to follow the formal grammar, because
grammar is intended to make sure that everyone (including non-natives
who are less familiar with the foibles of the language) understands
the thought in the same way. However, if a formality of grammar makes
the thought harder to understand, and offers no improvement over the
colloquial usage, don't worry about being formal.
--Geoff Hart #8^{)} <---seeing plurally with these specs
