Carol:
>(2) Don't the various things grouped under the common term "nuts"
>    actually come from different botanical groups?  Almonds, peanuts,
>    and cashews, for example, grow in such different ways.

Tom:
Peanuts are in the Leguminosae (legumes); almonds and cashews are not.
The cashew has an unusual growth habit for a nut - the seed is external to
a juicy persimmon-like fruit (the cashew "apple") that is delicious (when
fully ripe) by itself. The cashew itself is encased in a seed coat
that contains caustic and toxic chemicals; for details see the
article in the PS below.

Carol:
>(3) Could it be, since they are so different, that some nuts have
>    enzyme inhibitors as well, while some don't?

Tom:
In general, soaking/sprouting and/or cooking reduce levels of enzyme
inhibitors. However, the reduction varies with inhibitor and nut,
and if you want a "precise" answer you have to specify the nuts
and inhibitors of interest, and dig into the scientific journals.

P.S. If you are interested in nuts and have not yet read it, I wrote
a paper titled "What A Raw-Fooder Should Know About Nuts". It doesn't
go into the details of enzyme inhibitors, but you might find it of
interest anyway. You can find it in the articles section of

http://www.living-foods.com

and it was posted here a number of times and you can also find it in the
archives of this list:

http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/raw-food.html

Tom Billings
http://www.beyondveg.com