editorial-review-guidelines

name	editorial-review-guidelines
description	Use this skill when performing editorial review of ENSDF comment lines. Checks grammatical precision, subject-verb agreement, hyphenation, technical terminology, and ENSDF text-notation correctness. Suitable for editorial checks, grammar reviews, manuscript audits, or ENSDF comment validation in Nuclear Data Sheets manuscripts.

ENSDF Editorial Review Skill

Column/field rules: .github/agents/ENSDF-Agent.agent.md. Spot-check policy: .github/copilot-instructions.md.

Scope: c, cL, cG, cB, cE, cN, cP, cQ comment records and continuation lines. Skip data-record fields (L, G, E, B, DP). Action Policy: Check-Only. Report findings table. Do not edit unless user requests.

Error Classes

1. ENSDF Notation

• Superscript/subscript: Symbol outside braces. Wrong: {+13C} → Correct: {+13}C. Detection regex (correct form): {+[0-9]+}[A-Z][a-z]?
• Plain isotope tokens: Wrong: 3He, 36S(d,3He) → Correct: {+3}He, {+36}S(d,{+3}He). Scan: (?<!\{\+)\b\d{1,3}[A-Z][a-z]?\b; keep valid element symbols; exclude tokens followed by | (e.g., 2I|g). Mandatory: after the regex scan, manually review every remaining candidate — regex misses tokens in dense prose.
• Missing {I} on uncertainty: Comment uncertainties require {In} or {I+n-m}. Three patterns:
  • Parentheses: 124(5) ps → 124 ps {I5}.
  • Bare I prefix: |d=+0.05 I5 → |d=+0.05 {I5}.
  • Bare number (no I): A{-2}=+0.05 5 → A{-2}=+0.05 {I5}. Scan for bare I: \bI\d{1,3}\b near values. Scan for bare numbers: lone 1-3 digit integers after = or after a value with space, where context suggests uncertainty.
• Unicode leakage: No raw Unicode glyphs. Wrong: μ, ×, β, γ, θ, ≈, ≤, ≥ → Correct: |m, |*, |b, |g, |q, |?, |<, |>. Example: 1500-μm-thick → 1500-|mm-thick.
• Non-ENSDF unit spellings: ug → |mg (microgram); cm2, mg/cm2 → cm{+2}, mg/cm{+2} (superscript exponent).
• Mixed symbol-text: Wrong: γ-ray, μm, β-delayed, ug/cm2 → Correct: |g-ray, |mm, |b-delayed, |mg/cm{+2}.
• Proper-noun exceptions: Skip well-known instrument names (e.g., Gamma Array as part of INGA) — not every Gamma match is a symbol-text error.
• Leaked record tags: Scan cols 10-80 for spurious cL, cG, L, G (copy-paste artifact).
• Unintended symbol prefixes: |resonance renders as rho+esonance; verify intent.
• Inconsistent subscripts: A{-2}=0.5 A6=-0.1 → A{-2}=0.5 A{-6}=-0.1.
• Mid-token line breaks: E{-p}(lab) must not split across continuation lines.

2. Grammar and Style

• Capitalization:
  • Top-block comments (before first data record, any type) → uppercase.
  • Record-specific comments with field identifier (cL E$, cL J$, cL T$, cG E$, cG RI$, cG M$, etc.) → lowercase, unless first token is numeral, symbol, isotope token, or acronym.
  • Record-specific comments without field identifier (cL $, cG $) → uppercase (standalone statements).
  • Exception: cP and cN comments always uppercase.
  • Examples (top-block, before first L/G/E/B/DP record): cL E$From a least-squares fit ✓; cG E,RI$From 2017Li03 ✓; cB IB,LOGFT$From I(|g+ce) ✓ — all uppercase.
  • Examples (record-specific, after first data record): cL T$from lifetime measurement ✓ (lowercase continuation); cL J$from the Adopted Levels ✓; cL J$1+ from shell model ✓ (numeral exception).
• NUCID case on comment lines: Cols 1–5 must be uppercase. Wrong: 34Si cL J$ → Correct: 34SI cL J$.
• Extra space after $: cL J$ from ... → cL J$from .... Scan: \$\s.
• Dittography: \b(\w+)\s+\1\b -- flag the the, were were, etc.
• Subject-verb agreement: NSR keys are singular. Wrong: 1972Hu10 report → Correct: 1972Hu10 reports.
• Missing auxiliary verbs: spectra recorded → spectra were recorded.
• Adjective/noun errors: others levels → other levels.

3. Punctuation and Lists

• Comma splice between independent clauses → semicolon.
• Oxford comma required in lists of 3 or more items; only one and (at final item).
• Wrong: 14.9 {I6} (R1), and 8.3 {I4} (R2), and 10.5 {I60} (R3) → Correct: 14.9 {I6} (R1), 8.3 {I4} (R2), and 10.5 {I60} (R3).

4. Hyphenation

• Compound modifier before noun: 4-mm-long target, gamma-ray spectrum, R-matrix analysis, 2-g/cm{+2} Pb target.
• Predicative: no hyphen (the target was 4 mm long).
• Always: half-life, L-transfer, L-transfers. Noun: gamma rays; adjective: gamma-ray energy.

5. Terminology and Spelling

Facility and instrument names:

Wrong	Correct
Van der Graaff, Van de Graaf, Van der Graaf, Van de Craaff	Van de Graaff
Cockroft-Walton	Cockcroft-Walton

Nuclear-physics terms and spelling:

Wrong	Correct
deexiting	deexciting
multiporities	multipolarities
grand-daughter	granddaughter
novelly designed	newly designed
ohter, usign, stoped, striped, coeffcients	other, using, stopped, stripped, coefficients

• GXPF1A — exact capitalization required (shell-model interaction name).
• Chemical formulas: CD{-2} (deuterated polyethylene) ≠ Cd{-2} (cadmium); verify against publication.

6. Text and Number Integrity

• Extra space after =: |w|g= 0.45 → |w|g=0.45. Scan: =\s[0-9].
• Space within number: E{-p}(lab)=54 6 → E{-p}(lab)=546. Note: space between value and uncertainty is correct.
• Field cross-contamination: Energy in RI$ or intensity in E$ is an error. Wrong: cG RI$ weighted average of 1224.6 {I154} ... (contains energy, not intensity).

7. Logical Clarity

• Flag contradictory claims (confirmed and tentative in same sentence).
• Flag conclusions without citation or method reference.

Exclusions

Missing terminal periods, XREF notation, alignment. Valid ENSDF symbols: |?, {+n}, {-n}, |a, |b, |g, |d, |w, |*, |+, |-.

Procedure

1. Isolate all comment records (c, cL, cG, cB, cE, cN, cP, cQ) and their continuation lines.
2. Apply error classes: notation → grammar → punctuation → hyphenation → terminology → integrity → clarity.
3. Regex sweeps: dittography \b(\w+)\s+\1\b; leaked tags \s(cL|cG|\bL\b|\bG\b)\s; isotope tokens (?<!\{\+)\b\d{1,3}[A-Z][a-z]?\b; extra = space =\s[0-9]; extra $ space \$\s; non-ASCII [^\x00-\x7F].
4. Final symbol sweep on all flagged lines: verify no raw Unicode glyphs, plain isotope tokens, or mixed symbol-text compounds were missed.
5. Before reporting: confirm no valid ENSDF notation misclassified; each fix preserves scientific meaning. Do not edit unless user explicitly requests.

Output Format

| File | Line(s) | Category | Current Text | Recommended | Rationale |
|------|---------|----------|--------------|-------------|-----------|
| f.ens | 47 | Subject-Verb | `predict` | `predicts` | NSR key is singular |