Another basic contribution of contemporary research to the problem of linguistic change is the establishment of a relation between the frequency of a linguistic unit and its form, so that a change in frequency may involve a change in its phonic aspect. This, a consequence of the theory of selective information, applies to units of both articulations, to phonems as well as to monemes. It leads to the conclusion that since the rise in the fequency of a unit is nothing but a rise in the number of times that unit is used, any use of a linguistic unit contributes, even if only in an infinitasimal way, to an increase in its frequency.
- Martinet (1962), Pag. 135

Even if we grant that the incentives to linguistic changes are to be found among human communicative needs, still changes will not take place irrespective of the existing vocal forms, and the distinctive units of the language will prove an effective bulwark against random distortion.
- Martinet (1962), Pag. 72