Comments on “Using the Right Terms” [Letter to the Editor]

The column on IEEE Standards, entitled "Using the Right Terms," which appeared in the October 2010 issue of the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine (pp. 192-193), reminds us of our responsibility to use, and insist on, the correct terminology when we write, review, edit, or instruct but how about when we read columns in Magazines. The column informs us that according to the latest IEEE standards being promulgated, the term "dielectric constant" is no longer acceptable, and tells us that the acceptable equivalent term is "permittivity," "electric permittivity," or "dielectric permittivity." Like the government, standard-making bodies can make rules, issue orders, and enforce their decisions, but must be very careful about the correctness, consistency, and appropriateness of their edicts, lest they loose their legitimacy and power by being ignored.