Connectivity in Markovian dependencies

This paper explores the properties (and limits) of Merge, arguing, with Uriagereka (2005, forthcoming), that it is a natural reflection of the so-called 'Chomsky Hierarchy'. Under that scenario, I focus on what the mechanisms current syntactic theory provides to study adjuncts are, the conclusion being that these dependents manifest two basic structural realizations: bona fide adjunction (however this must ultimately be captured –plausibly, through Chomsky's 2004 pair-Merge) and modification from a specifier position in a cascade structure. As will be shown, the properties of both structural possibilities cannot be reduced nor unified, so different empirical predictions are made in each case.