Austral ia ) ▁Category : V ict or ian ▁places ▁listed ▁on ▁the ▁def unct ▁Register ▁of ▁the ▁National ▁Est ate <0x0A> </s> ▁Sydney ▁Mac Donald ▁Lamb ▁( born ▁May ▁ 4 , ▁ 1 9 2 9 ▁in ▁Den ver , ▁Colorado ) ▁is ▁an ▁American ▁lingu ist ▁ ▁and ▁professor ▁at ▁R ice ▁University , ▁ ▁whose ▁strat ific ational ▁grammar ▁is ▁a ▁significant ▁alternative ▁theory ▁to ▁Ch om sky ' s ▁transform ational ▁grammar . ▁ ▁He ▁has ▁special ized ▁in ▁Ne uro c ogn itive ▁L ingu istics ▁and ▁a ▁strat ific ational ▁approach ▁to ▁language ▁understanding . ▁ ▁Lamb ▁earned ▁his ▁Ph . D . ▁from ▁the ▁University ▁of ▁California , ▁Ber keley ▁in ▁ 1 9 5 8 ▁and ▁taught ▁there ▁from ▁ 1 9 5 6 ▁to ▁ 1 9 6 4 . ▁His ▁dis sert ation ▁was ▁a ▁grammar ▁of ▁the ▁U to - A zte can ▁language ▁Mon o , ▁under ▁the ▁direction ▁of ▁ ▁Mary ▁Ha as ▁and ▁Murray ▁B . ▁E men eau . ▁In ▁ 1 9 6 4 , ▁he ▁began ▁teaching ▁at ▁Y ale ▁University ▁before ▁joining ▁the ▁Sem ion ics ▁Associ ates ▁in ▁Ber keley , ▁California ▁in ▁ 1 9 7 7 . ▁Lamb ▁did ▁research ▁in ▁North ▁American ▁Indian ▁languages ▁specifically ▁in ▁those ▁ge ograph ically ▁centered ▁on ▁California . ▁His ▁contributions ▁have ▁been ▁wide - r anging , ▁including ▁those ▁to ▁historical ▁lingu istics , ▁computational ▁lingu istics , ▁and ▁the ▁theory ▁of ▁lingu istic