Communicating discrete information with a continuous channel

1 Communicating discrete information with a continuous channel 

Recall that natural language is a discrete symbolic semiotic system. In this system we combine words in different ways to produce a near limitless number of sentences, each with a separate 

Hence the language system makes use of a set of contrasting sounds as its basic units, but within each unit a considerable degree of variability is allowed. These properties are entirely to be expected from the semiotic principles of contrast and sequencing, and the communicative principles of ease of production and ease of perception. 

Even given a set of sounds obeying these criteria, it is not the case that each phoneme has a unique articulatory position or acoustic pattern. To take an example, when speaking the word shoe, most speakers utter the first sound (represented by the symbol [J]) with a mouth position in which the lips are pursed or rounded. Compare this with the lip position in shine and we see that the lips are in another position, which is more spread and in a position somewhat similar to a smile. However, despite the fact that the acoustic 

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