I am an associate professor of English Language and Linguistics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where I teach courses on English syntax and morphology and the theory of grammar.

In my research and teaching I explore the regularity of structure (grammar) and the quirkiness of individual words. The "temper" of English verbs – the relationship between their meaning and their behavior in syntax and morphology – is the focus of my research. Other research areas include the history of scientific writing and genres of internet communication. I just published a book on the English passive (Mouton de Gruyter) and am preparing an edited collection on syntactic variation and genre.