The effects of technology on language and the effects of language on culture as a whole are profound and complex. The telegraph, the telephone, and the television have all changed the way people speak to one another. The best current example of such a change is the advent of electronic mail, which has effected a widespread loosening of language usage rules. This loosening has, in turn, made relationships between people more casual than ever before. Which one of the following propositions is best illustrated by the statements above? ['A widespread loosening of overly rigid language-usage rules can improve communication.', 'Changes in communication media can cause interpersonal relationships to change.', 'Changes in interpersonal relationships can cause changes in the way people speak to one another.', 'A decrease in linguistic sophistication can lead to an increase in technological sophistication.']