Need Help From Grammar Nazis and English Nerds

[Barnes]

I've been searching various style guides for help on using spaced dashes, en dashes, or em dashes on how to represent some range data properly. I know that a spaced dash is preferred to denote a range but how do you do it with negative values?

Say I have some data I want to present in sort of a tabular format that is negative values. Say temperatures:

January (-5° - -29°), February (-10° - -14°), March (-3° - 8°)

Is this correct?

Is there a better way?

Is there a style guide out there that defines this?

[blankall]

This isn't a grammar question. Your looking for the best way to present infomation without it being confusing. This is more of a visual problem. I'd separate the temperatures somehow. Maybe:

(-x) - (-y)

or replace the dash with a different symbol or word that doesn't so closely resemble the - sign.

-x to -y
-x - -y

Or a visibly longer dash? If you don't create separation somehow, you will end up with a problem, especially if you get into positive numbers for the second digit.

[troutman]

I need help

[AMG_G]

Use an em dash instead of a minus sign?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Em_dash#Em_dash

Alt + 0151 to use em dash —
Alt + 0150 to use en dash –

[octothorp]

Also, don't capitalize prepositions like 'from' in a title.

[Barnes]

Originally Posted by blankall

This isn't a grammar question. Your looking for the best way to present infomation without it being confusing. This is more of a visual problem. I'd separate the temperatures somehow. Maybe:

(-x) - (-y)

or replace the dash with a different symbol or word that doesn't so closely resemble the - sign.

-x to -y
-x - -y

Or a visibly longer dash? If you don't create separation somehow, you will end up with a problem, especially if you get into positive numbers for the second digit.

The middle dash will be a dash not a minus sign. This font doesn't make a distinction (that I know of) nor can I use HTML.

Colour is out because it means something in what I am working on. To is an option.

Grammar Nazi was just to catch attention to those who are familiar with various style guides.

[ken0042]

What about:

January (-5° to -29°)

[Daradon]

Originally Posted by octothorp

Also, don't capitalize prepositions like 'from' in a title.

ESPECIALLY when you didn't capitalize 'and' as well.

[Smartcar]

Well you don't want to use
(-x) - (-y)
since () is often used to denote negative, so it could be interpreted to be
x - y
I would go with
-x to -y
but it depends on the situation.

[Nage Waza]

I don't know the best way to express those values, but you should at least explain what units you are using.

[Top Shelf]

[nfotiu]

Easy, use kelvin. Makes you sound more sciencey too.

[Flash Walken]

Originally Posted by nfotiu

Easy, use kelvin. Makes you sound more sciencey too.

Boom.

Problem solved.

Extra points for 'y'

[Sr. Mints]

I'm fluent in over six million forms of styles guide, and can readily....

You say tabular format, so I don't know how much space you have, or what kind of layout you're going for, but what about throwing some words in there for the sake of clarity?

January, between -5° and -29°

or

Temperature ranges
Month
-5° and -29°

The em dash would be my first guess, but it honestly looks clumsy.

[Wormius]

I agree. It is more readable when you include the units of measure.

If you can't find the degree symbol, I like to use "degC".

-5degC to -29degC.

HIGH: -5degC
LOW: -29degC

You could also write it in C. I like to write all of my documents in a popular programming language.

printf("hello world, here's the temperatures!");
for (bTemp = -5; bTemp >= -29; bTemp--)
{

printf(" %d degC\r\n", bTemp);

}

[Flash Walken]

I like to write it in Klingon so Wormius can understand it clearly.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by Top Shelf

Here Here!

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

I like to write it in Klingon so Wormius can understand it clearly.

Don't make me pull out my Klingon dictionary and conversation tape (narrated by Michael Dorn himself).. because I wouldn't know what to do with the tape actually..