I am mainly interested in the relationships between language and genes, both at the individual and population levels. These concern the Language and Genetics project, of which I am currently the coordinator.

At the individual level, I am working on a set of measures concerning variation in speech and language, designed for future genetic association studies. These measures aim at covering various aspects related to speech and language, showing inter-individual variation and having a putative genetic component. It is hoped that this will help shed light on the genetic bases of language and speech, with myriad potential practical applications, as well as on the evolution of language and human culture.

At the population level, I am interested in genetically biased language transmission and, to this end, I am studying the correlations between typological linguistic features and inter-population genetic variation as well as computer models of language change and evolution.

One potential example of such genetic biasing of language at a macro-scale is represented by the proposal, together with Prof. D. Robert Ladd, that the occurrence of tone languages is influenced by the population frequency of the "derived" haplogroups of two brain growth and development-related genes, ASPM and Microcephalin.

To better understand this type of genetically biased cultural transmission, I have built and tested a number of computer models, including a Bayesian Iterated Learning Model approach to language change and evolution. So far - but much more work is required - it seems that a "rate of learning" type of bias fits better the intuitive understanding of language transmission.

I am also part of a project working on a typology and database of ideophonic phenomena across languages.