It seems that extinction is not limited to living things-languages can cease to exist.  It is forecast that approximately half of the estimated 7000 languages spoken around the world today may possibly die out.  Languages become endangered when the only people using them are older adults.  Their children tend to adopt more common languages used around the world.  Linguists have worked hard to record and study the rules of those dying languages.

A report by NPR discussed a language software program that studies the nuances of languages.  What they discovered when using the program may actually help save dying languages.  To listen (or read the transcript) to this short program please click here.  For more detail on endangered languages please click here.