words and rules

I'm reading an interesting new book, Words and Rules, by Steven Pinker.
The basic premise is that language is generated by a combination of
rule-based and table-lookup processes, and that the behavior of
regular and irregular verbs tells us lots about how the brain
functions.

Along the way, he cites many features of English and other languages
that might be useful to a conlanger seeking to make a naturalistic
language.

The book is also just plain fun.  It even has jokes!  My favorite:

A woman entered a cab at Boston's Logan airport.  "Could you please
take me someplace where I might get scrod?" she asked the cabbie.

"Wow!" replied the cabbie, "I've never heard that verb in the
pluperfect subjunctive before!"

-- Terry

http://www.geocities.com/teresh_2000
http://www.geocities.com/weseb_2000