Speech allows human beings to accomplish various tasks they feel are necessary to their survival, happiness and self-actualization. Verbal speech acts are usually conducted for communicative purposes, and into this category of speech acts falls the construct of verbal conversation. Ideal sustained communicative events, in this case verbal conversations, require two or more participants to repeatedly alternate their roles between speaker and listener. The failure of communication is most fundamentally caused by a failure of one of the parties to accept the alternate listening role on cue. The timing of the alternation (or "turn") must be accurate, in order that appropriate communication may take place. A system of taking turns to make utterances also allows room for the expressing and receiving of feedback, which provides an ongoing measure of the level of successful communication being achieved. A person who is a successful conversationalist or a "good listener", usually values the role of listener more highly than the role of speaker. The claim for the position of speaker cannot last indefinitely in a two-way conversation - otherwise it becomes a monologue. Turn taking is complicated by the addition of various strategies used by both parties for achieving the role of speaker. One strategy used to switch turns in a conversation is the lowering of the intonation of the voice (on the part of the speaker) to signal that a response would be appropriate. The reverse is true of the raising of the pitch, which signifies that the speaker is getting to an important point, but is not yet satisfied that they have completely expressed it. Seizing on breath or thought pauses in conversation is a common strategy among people who over-talk, and who prefer to maintain the role of speaker. To counter this, a clever conversationalist may pause for an intake of air whilst mid-sentence, in order to avoid leaving a "turn" opportunity at the co...