Abstract
It has often been said that the characteristic which distinguishes humans from all other animals is the capacity for language (Pinker in The Language Instinct, HarperCollins Publishers, New York, 1994). It is essential to our species and contributes to its survival in various ways. An understanding of spoken and written rules, for example, represents an efficient means of learning, whereby certain undesirable consequences can be avoided altogether (e.g., one does not need to be hit by a car when crossing the street to know to first look before crossing). It is also the medium by which our culture is propagated. Folklore, traditions, values, societal norms, and laws are all passed down from one generation to the next through language. Thus, it is an imperative of our species not only to understand others, but also to develop an effective means of communication by which one can be understood.