I remain unconvinced that language is an artifact, which would have to be invented anew ontogenetically. Physiological substrates are necessary for its acquisition and production, even if no specific LAD (language acquisition device) or universal grammar can be effectively enlisted.
About the only treatise I haven't read is Everett's "Language : The Cultural Tool"; once I do, I might have a better idea how he construes the notion of artifact.
His seminal paper on 'Cultural Constraints on Grammar and Cognition in Pirahã' (2005) is almost totally observational; the underpinnings with respect to language and its evolution had yet to be worked out.
Being retired (but not yet retarded) perhaps it's time to return to my intellectual roots and get to scribin' ... after all, Noam's a mere 87 and still kicking.
