1. A parenthesis is separated from the rest of the sentence by commas, dashes or brackets (all called parentheses). When a parenthesis is completely removed, the sentence is still grammatically correct. (Try reading each sentence below with its parenthesis removed.)
Examples (parenthesis in bold):
 Jamie Buxton, who fainted in church during his wedding,
apologised to
his wife by booking two tickets to New York. 
(The parentheses chosen by the writer were commas. However, brackets or
dashes could equally have been used.)
At Midnight last night, Skip
(a guard dog for Bonds Ltd in Bury) hospitalised two burglars before returning to eat the steaks they had thrown him.
(The writer has chosen brackets, because there is already a comma in
the sentence.)
Dave Jenkins' best
friend, Adam Wright-Smith, stabbed him through the
heart whilst testing a knife-proof jacket; Dave is expected to make a full
recovery.
(The writer has chosen commas, possibly because there are already two
hyphens in the sentence, and dashes look similar to hyphens.)
dashes used for parenthesis
(newspaper article)
2. Additional comments such as "however", "therefore", "as a result", "as far as I am concerned", "for all intents and purposes", "subsequently", "so to speak", etc. fall into the category of parenthesis too. (As a rule, brackets are not used with these.)
Examples:
The slow cooker I purchased at your store is, for all intents and purposes,
utterly useless.
Darius, on the other hand, writes his own songs.
It rained all day and, as a result, the hut collapsed.
On a happier note, her latest song - Wind Me Up Baby - is, according to
those in the know, expected to enter the charts in the top 5.
("Wind Me Up Baby" is parenthesis, and so is "according to those in the
know". Try reading the sentence with them removed. It still makes sense.)
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PARENTHESIS?
A parenthesis adds more information to a sentence. For example:
 Kent Oliver won his first race on Tuesday.
(no parenthesis in this example)
Kent Oliver - the only professional jockey from Jersey - won
his first race on Tuesday.
(The words "the only professional jockey from Jersey" add more information. In this example, the parenthesis is
between two dashes.)
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HELP - WHICH ONE?
It is your choice whether to use commas, brackets or dashes for parentheses. Below are some guidelines:
Dashes - parenthesis easily seen, but dashes look a little stark
Commas - normal looking sentence, but commas are often confused with other commas in the sentence
Brackets - parenthesis easily seen, but brackets make official
letters look a little unorganised
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END THE PARENTHESIS
Always remember to end a parenthesis. When using commas or dashes, writers often forget to end the parenthesis. This is as wrong as not closing a pair of brackets.
 Danny, however had sharp features and greasy hair.
(another comma required after "however")
The zander - one of the fastest fish in British waters often school together around the edges of lakes.
(another dash required after 'waters')
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PARENTHESIS IN APPOSITION
The term "in apposition" just means "the same". When a parenthesis is the same thing as whatever it follows, it is called "parenthesis in apposition".
Kent Oliver - the only professional jockey from Jersey - won his first race on Tuesday.
(Kent Oliver is the professional jockey. This is parenthesis in apposition.)
At midnight last night, Skip (a guard dog for Bonds Ltd in
Bury) hospitalised two intruders who broke in the company yard.
(Skip is the guard dog. This is parenthesis in apposition.)
Jamie Buxton, who fainted in church during his wedding, apologised to his wife...
(This is not parenthesis in apposition.)
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