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Which would be the proper style for a scientific publication:
It is required that a, b, and, depending on a and b, c is given.
It is required that a, b, and - depending on a and b - c is given.
It is required that a, b, and (depending on a and b) c is given.
Thank you!
Personally, I would prefer choice 2. But almost all scientific publications specify a specific style guide or have their own house style guide. What style guide is this publication using? That may directly answer the question. If it doesn't, it may still give some guidance on the matter. An effort should be made to follow the announced style guide. Failing any guidance there one should look to recent issues to see how such constructions are typically handled, and how to be consistent with them.
I prefer the parenthetical one. All are acceptable, except: Do not use a HYPHEN (-) as a DASH. An abrupt break in a sentence requires an "em" dash, a specific typographical character that is about as long as two hyphens. In the old typewriter days, two hyphens were used, in fact. Today, insert the em-dash as a special character or symbol. In Windows, hold down ALT and type 0151 on the numeric keypad to insert an em-dash in most programs.
