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Early in the movie The Fifth Element, an alien being states, "Time not important. Only life important." This little mantra (disregarding its "alien" syntax) ran through my head when initially considering usage of the single-word switch indicator. This being braille transcription, however, "time" is cell count occupation and "life" is the "type" of category in which the word in consideration belongs. In short, the number of cells a word occupies plays no role in determining whether or not to use the Nemeth Code single-word switch indicator. The only criteria that should be applied is whether or not the word forms part of a technical expression.

After attending the various braille conferences over these past few months (virtually, of course), I noticed a pattern of queries regarding using the single-word switch indicator that revolved around the basic premise of, "Can I just spell it out uncontracted, as that takes the same [or fewer] number of cells?" From this, it appears some confusion still lingers as to the solitary purpose and necessity of the single-word switch indicator.

The single-word switch indicator exists solely to inform the braille reader that the following word is not technical material. Full stop. Unlike many elements of Nemeth Code, there are (thankfully) no exceptions, exclusions, or extenuating circumstances in which it might be used differently or legally evaded. Likewise, as its name implies, it cannot be used for more than one word, nor can it be used for two consecutive words in a row. Its short lifespan occupies one word, and it bears no proceeding progeny.

We can take the following example to demonstrate the first principle of the single-word switch indicator, that cell count plays no role in its use:

Using the distributive property, 4(x-3) = 20 produces 4(x)-4(3) = 20.

In this example, while "produces" uses no contractions and actually will stretch two braille cells longer with the single-word switch indicator attached, the switch indicator must be used to announce to the student that the following word is separate from any technical material or its coding and should be interpreted as literary braille. (Also note that the opening Nemeth Code Switch Indicator has been moved to a new line on braille line two, as it must remain on the same line with the beginning of the equation.)

,us+ ! 4tributive prop]ty1 _% #4(x-3) .k #20 ,'produces #4(x)-4(3) .k #20 _:4

Adding to the print example, we can further delineate the usage of the single-word switch indicator as it pertains to multiple words, additional sentences beginning with technical material, and punctuation placement and usage.

Using the distributive property, 4(x-3) = 20 produces 4(x)-4(3) = 20. 4(x-3) and 4(x)-4(3) both form 4x-12 = 20, which can be simplified to 4x = 32.

Unlike the first example, technical material continues into the second sentence. As such, we do not have to terminate Nemeth Code at the end of the first sentence. Following Nemeth Code rules, the period at the end of the first sentence will need the punctuation indicator (dots 456) prefixed to it:

,us+ ! 4tributive prop]ty1 _% #4(x-3) .k #20 ,'produces #4(x)-4(3) .k #20_4

The second sentence's technical material can then continue in Nemeth Code:

,us+ ! 4tributive prop]ty1 _% #4(x-3) .k #20 ,'produces #4(x)-4(3) .k #20_4 #4(x-3) ,'& #4(x)-4(3) _: bo? =m _% #4x-12 .k #20 _:1 : c 2 simplifi$ to _% #4x .k #32 _:4

As shown above, although the word "and" contains an equal amount of cells whether uncontracted or contracted with the single-word switch indicator, the "and" of the second sentence at the end of braille line three must have the single-word switch indicator attached to it. Similarly, although "both form" in braille line four would contain fewer cells by keeping the Nemeth bubble open and prefixing them both with the single-word switch indicator (thus eliminating the Nemeth Code terminator in line four and the opening Nemeth Code indicator that begins line 5), this is disallowed, as consecutive single-word switch indicators are not permitted per the code.

As regards punctuation in this example, in contrast to the period placed between technical materials in the first example, which remained inside the Nemeth bubble, the comma in braille line five and the period in braille line six are not followed by technical material. As such, they must be positioned outside the Nemeth Code terminator. Punctuation not within or between technical expressions always directly appends the Nemeth Code terminator rather than preceding it.

So, one may ask, when does a word get left inside the Nemeth bubble? It is true, there are occurrences in which what is traditionally considered a literary word becomes an integral part of a technical expression. Two examples are measurements forming part of the equation/expression and the words "AND," "NOT," and "OR" in probabilities and logic.

Typically, measurement units relating to solitary Nemeth-required numbers are only included in the Nemeth bubble when abbreviated, as with 14.2 yd vs. 14.2 yards:

14.2 yd and 15.4 yd:

_% #14.2 yd ,'& #15.4 yd _:

14.2 yards and 15.4 yards

_% #14.2 _: Y>DS & _% #15.4 _: Y>DS

However, when measurements—whether abbreviated or not—fall within an expression/equation, they form a part of the technical material and must be included within the Nemeth bubble. For example, in the proceeding equation, the measurement words cannot be excluded from the entirety of the actual equation:

7 yards+14 yards = 21 yards.

Thus, in this example, the braille would be transcribed as:

_% #7 yards+14 yards .k #21 yards _:4

Similarly, the words "and," "not," and "or" almost never find themselves considered as technical material. The (essentially) only exception would be materials referencing probability or logic, as these words often form an essential part of the technical notation in these fields. Let's dive in (ever so briefly):

The probability of rolling a 6 and a 4 is shown as P(6 AND 4).

,! probabil;y ( roll+ a #f .1& a #d is %[n z _% ,P(6 ,,AND #4) _:4

In the preceding example, "AND" denotes the probability of these two numbers appearing on a pair of rolled dice. Consequently, "AND" forms an essential part of the notation that cannot be excluded and nor should it be prefixed with the single-word switch indicator. (You might also note that this grouped expression is not considered an enclosed list because it contains no commas and likewise contains the word "AND." Thus, the "4" requires a numeric indicator.)

These two examples cover the vast majority of typically encountered situations in which words will need to be included inside a Nemeth bubble. Outside of these occurrences, if a word proves troubling to decode, always remember: Cells are not important. Only type is important.