Discovering the sounds languages share A phonologist sheds light on languages by studying the patterns of sounds. Padgett is considered one of the country's leading young phonologists because he has pinned down and verified a number of these patterns.
Humans have an extraordinary ability for self-expression.
So extraordinary, in fact, that we speak between five and six thousand distinct languages. Below the surface of this diversity of tongues lies a kind of subatomic commonality, linking our languages. Just as we all look different but share identical elements of DNA, languages that sound quite different often share many of the same rules. Like a microbiologist who gains insight into organisms by examining their cells, a phonologist sheds light on languages by studying the patterns of sounds. Padgett is considered one of the country's leading young phonologists because he has pinned down and verified a number of these patterns.