Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Mathematics/2021 May 27

= May 27 =

Axes notation
Is there any reason to write "x-axis" instead of "x axis"? — Mikhail Ryazanov (talk) 19:31, 27 May 2021 (UTC)


 * This is really a language question. If you mean, is there a reason for Wikipedia editors to use a hyphen, the answer is that most dictionaries hyphenate the term:, , . This is, I think, a matter of convention; compare the usual orthographies for such terms as A-bomb, B-flat, C-clef, ..., z-buffer. --Lambiam 21:11, 27 May 2021 (UTC)
 * This is, I think, a matter of convention Right: the reason everyone does it this way is that this is the way everyone does it. This is not a good reason a priori, but since it is the way everyone does it, so that's how we do it in Wikipedia articles.  (For anyone who cares about the context, this is related to an editing dispute at 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + ⋯, discussed here but for inexplicable reasons not at the correct venue.) --JBL (talk) 12:24, 28 May 2021 (UTC)
 * English dictionaries are descriptive (explain the meaning of what other people write) rather than prescriptive; they also have "axis" and (to some extent) "x" as separate words, so this does not mean that "x axis" should be hyphenated. If fact, in natural sciences, it tends to be not hyphenated (for example: APS; AGU, p. 4), which makes sense, since this term is not atomic, as can be seen from the usage like "axes x, y, and z" and even "along x". This latter argument, of course, doen't work with your examples – bomb A, flat B, clef C, ..., buffer z would have different meanings, if any, so hyphenating them is perfectly justified. But is there any reason to hyphenate "x axis" except that some people do so? Does it equally apply to "x coordinate", "x component", "−x direction" and so on? — Mikhail Ryazanov (talk) 16:47, 28 May 2021 (UTC)
 * Almost all of those are typically hyphenated in standard mathematical English. Our articles show standard practice: at Cartesian coordinates we have "X-axis" and "XY-plane" and "z-coordinate"; at Coordinate system we have "x-coordinate" in the lead; and if you keep clicking links at random you will find that this usage is universal.  If you do not know this (or are unwilling to accept guidance when you make plain errors like this), you should certainly not be copy-editing articles with mathematical content. --JBL (talk) 17:50, 28 May 2021 (UTC)