In statistics, the t-distribution is important. It is an approximation to the normal distribution. Of course we don't say "normal-distribution" (with the dash).
Well then, what exactly is the grammatical justification for calling it
t-distribution
as opposed to just
t distribution
?
Or to put it another way, is there a good name for the practice of using a dash in this kind of context?
Answer
A hyphen — not a dash — commonly joins an initial single letter/digit to form a compound word. Left to its own devices, general usage will capitalize:
A-side, B-side, T-shirt, A-shirt, O-level, X-ray
Otherwise, various commercial or scientific fields set their own conventions. There is no particular reason why, for instance, it's t-distribution but T-cell beyond the tendency in mathematics not to capitalize letters except in special circumstances. In other words, it’s E = mc2 by community agreement and convention.
Many e-words such as e-commerce, e-learning, and especially e-mail are dropping their hyphens. I've also seen B movie both ways.
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