Girl Talk

While young women may get flak for peppering their conversations with "like" and for turning perfectly good words into shortened slang—à la "ridic" (ridiculous), "totes" (totally), and "ser" (seriously)—these linguistic modifications have actually influenced modern vocal patterns, according to The New York Times.

In fact, linguists believe that "girls and women in their teens and 20s deserve credit for pioneering vocal trends and popular slang. … Young women use these embellishments in much more sophisticated ways than people tend to realize," says Carmen Fought, professor of linguistics at Pitzer College in Claremont, Calif. She adds that young women actually use their wordplay as "power tools for building relationships," and that their various verbal idiosyncrasies can indicate a range of emotional cues.

Researchers aren't entirely clear on why women are leading the vocal charge, but one theory suggests that women are "more sensitive to social interaction." In any case, it's good to know that the gift of gab has higher purpose.