CONTENTS FEATURE: Who said so? Attribution enhances credibility GRAMMAR COACH: Fielding your questions NET NOTES: Captivating web sites FINDER'S FEE: Recommend a friend—and earn up to $500 FEATURE: Who said so? Proper attribution enhances credibility      See if you can determine the common characteristic of these three seemingly unrelated statements: More than 4 million Americans are believed to have Alzheimer's disease, and the number of people afflicted could increase to 14 million by 2050. Approximately 20 percent of companies doing business today are considered high credit risks. Mount Everest has been determined to be seven feet higher than previously believed.      What is their mutual trait? Attribution is missing in each of them.      Attribution is the act of identifying and acknowledging the originator or source of information, a theory or a statement. Who believes that 4 million Americans have Alzheimer's disease, and from what data was that statistic derived? Who considers companies high credit risks? Who recalculated the height of Mount Everest?      Additionally, attribution should explain the qualifications of persons to make such assessments. Attribution, which is a fundamental component of academic and journalistic writing, should be used prominently in business writing as well.      Lack of substantiation compromises credibility of claims. Consider, for example, this assertion: "Corporations spend several billion dollars annually to improve the writing skills of employees."      The statement gives no indication of who developed that claim, and how the estimate was determined. Without that information, the assertion is dubious.      It is improved somewhat in an amended version: "Corporations spend several billion dollars annually to improve the writing skills of employees, according to a business survey conducted by a blue-ribbon group evaluating the quality of writing instruction in the nation's schools and colleges."      However, that still does not identify the organization that performed the evaluation.      Proper attribution finally emerges in a more explicit version: "A group of education and business leaders has determined that corporations spend several billion dollars annually to improve the writing skills of employees. That's among the findings of a business survey conducted by the National Commission on Writing for America's Families, Schools and Colleges, which was established by the College Entrance Examination Board of New York City."      That version not only gives due credit, but also lends veracity to the claim. Attribution is appropriate for opinions and analysis of data that may be subject to dispute, but is not required to substantiate widely recognized facts. Thus, attribution is unnecessary for a statement such as "the meeting room is decorated in purple and orange," but is needed for an assertion that "the decor of the meeting room is hideous."      Use attribution for statements that are accusatory, opinionated or unsubstantiated. Clearly identify originators of statements or concepts by their full name, job title or profession, company or organization and city. When citing published works, include the name of the author, publisher, sponsoring organization, city and other relevant information.      Bear in mind, however, that attribution does not insulate a writer from responsibility for honesty and accuracy. Inclusion of a quotation to support a writer's contention is not justifiable if the quote is potentially libelous, fraudulent, illogical or otherwise flawed. Never alter or falsify direct quotes.      Attribution is most commonly indicated by the verbs "said" and "wrote," which are straightforward and impartial. Unintended connotations can be conveyed by other verbs and expressions, including: according to (means "as stated or indicated by"; preferred in reference to written materials, but in some contexts can imply doubt about the integrity of the source) acknowledged (disclosed, perhaps under pressure or with reluctance) added (can create the impression that a prior statement was so weak that it required reinforcement) admitted (implies reluctance to disclose information) affirmed (validated or confirmed) agreed (suggests the quoted person developed an opinion by concurring with a previous statement, which may not necessarily be true) alleged (charged or claimed without proof) announced (proclaimed or declared formally) asserted (boldly declared) averred (asserted, affirmed or declared positively) avowed (stated with a strong sense of moral commitment) charged (made an assertion of guilt or blame) claimed (asserted, often with an accusatory connotation or suggestive of skepticism) commented (annotated; more appropriate for a reaction than for an original statement) conceded (means accepted as true or valid, but also can mean acknowledged grudgingly or hesitantly) concluded (should be avoided if the source has more to say) confessed (pertains to admission of guilt, weakness, failure or deliberate deception) contended (asserted argumentatively) continued (can suggest that the speaker is verbose) countered (depending upon context, can create the impression that the writer is contriving a conflict) declared (suggests an assertion delivered with formality) denied (associated with refutation of a charge) determined (ascertained definitively through investigation) disclosed (revealed a secret) exclaimed (uttered sharply, loudly, passionately or vehemently) explained (clarified information that was not immediately obvious) noted (mentioned) observed (remarked casually) pointed out (suggests that the person quoted is citing a universally accepted fact) related (told or narrated) revealed (divulged information that had been or was intended to be concealed) stated (declared; sounds stilted) suggested (intimated; conveyed an idea indirectly) told (informed; implies lecturing or scolding)      Use discretion when applying those terms to statements. Reserve direct quotation for powerful, striking statements. You may find paraphrasing preferable for more mundane statements that you can express more concisely than the speaker did.      You can quote us on that. Yes! EditPros can help you determine appropriate use of attribution in your documents. GRAMMAR COACH: Fielding your questions Christine Camirand submitted this month's question:      "What is the punctuation of the singular possessive 'business' [in reference to one business] as in 'this is the best thing for your business's bottom line?'" The grammar coach replies:      The answer to your question is dependent on the word that follows the possessive of "business."      Of course, the possessive case of most common singular nouns that do not end in the letter "s" is formed by adding an apostrophe and an "s" (as in the store's entrance).      That rule also holds true for common singular nouns that do end in "s"—except if they are followed by a word beginning with "s." In such cases, you should simply add an apostrophe. Examples: the business's bottom line, but the business' sales office.      For common plural nouns that do not end in "s," add an apostrophe and an "s"—but if they do end in "s," add only an apostrophe. Example: the children's party, but the boys' bicycles.      Here's additional information about formation of possessives.      Thanks for submitting your question, Christine!      Are you perplexed by some aspect of grammar or word usage? Don't be shy! Ask the "grammar coach" at EditPros and we'll try to help—at no charge, just for the sport of it. NET NOTES: Captivating Internet resources AirNav.com airport resource      Billed as "the pilot's window into a world of aviation information," the site presents aerial views of airports as well as official airport diagrams from the Federal Aviation Administration. The site also incorporates a function that calculates air distances between airports that you designate. Look Up Campaign Contributors      Enter a ZIP code, and this site lists donors within that area along with the amounts they have contributed to candidates for federal office, political action committees and other political organizations engaged in federal elections. Visitors are permitted a limited amount of free use each day. Ethics Indicator      Are you having trouble determining the most ethical solution to a particular problem? If no one's available to act as your "sounding board" or you're uncomfortable discussing the dilemma with someone else, this interactive Web questionnaire may give you some guidance. The EthicsChat.com Web site, offering what it calls "everyday ethics for everybody," is a question-and-answer forum in which ethicists respond to questions that visitors to the site submit. FINDER'S FEE: Recommend a friend—and earn a finder's fee of up to $500      Do you know of a friend or colleague whose office can benefit from EditPros services? If you do, EditPros may reward you with a "finder's fee" of up to $500.      EditPros performs writing, editing and publication management services for newsletters, sales literature, brochures, Web sites and other informational and marketing materials.      If you recommend our services to a friend or business colleague, and that introduction leads to an assignment for EditPros, we will award you a "finder's fee" equaling 10 percent of the amount we earn on the first assignment for the new client, up to a maximum finder's fee of $500. Naturally, the finder's fee is applicable only to clients for which we have not worked previously.      This offer will remain in effect until further notice. YOUR TURN: Ask the "grammar coach" or subscribe      We invite you to submit your questions to the "grammar coach," and we welcome you to subscribe to this monthly newsletter—which we'll send to your e-mail address at no charge. 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