An Analysis Of Three Theories Of Personal Identity Philosophy Essay

An Analysis Of Three Theories Of Personal Identity Philosophy Essay Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth Alan Watts. Personal Identity play its role as to define human with quality of its own which makes him or her a unique one. The identity of a person that is in question must be able to realize them, and he must be identified by other people. In short, what makes John unique from Felicia? Both internal (mind) and external (body) views are the two essential aspects that have to be differentiated by one. There are several general philosophical theories of this identity problem. Body theory, Soul theory and Conscious Theory will come to fit into the missing piece of the puzzle of personal identity. The body theory is one of the theories that define personal identity. It can be defined as when Person A has a personal identity if and only if they have the same body X. However, two problems can be found in this definition. Qualitatively, it is right to own the same body, but if changes happened to the body, can we still define that person as the same one? Everyones body is definitely different if we were to compare at the age of 60 and 4. Another problem popped out on the matter of body alteration. If Felicia becomes injured by a mine at war, and then her legs have to be amputated, is she not the same person, Felicia? Therefore, the definition of the theory is insufficient as the same body alteration is not accounted for. On the other hand, numerically, if a person lost his finger due to an accident, does that finger is counted as a different body? What if a scientist decided to use another persons DNA to clone another person with the exact same DNA? Two people with identical body surely cannot be the same person because they are still two different people with identical body. Both of them would be living totally different lives. Hence, in defining personal identity, the body theory by itself had failed to make it valid. The Soul theory will be the next common theory in defining personal identity. Similarly to the body theory: Person A has a personal identity if and only if they have the same soul. The idea became a lot more complicated when we are trying to define a rather controversial term soul. In the religion aspect, it is thought to be spirit of a person that passes through ones body into another realm (eg. Heaven or hell). However, it is still a mysterious phenomenon since there is no proof that can prove its existence. For instance, when a cloud changes to grayish puffy substance, we will still say, the cloud had turned gray. In short, we still recognized it as a cloud. It is just many souls in one body. Therefore, the soul theory is also not valid as it fails in that the definiens is insufficient to define personal identity.   The truest and most recognized philosophy theories about personal identity are the consciousness theory. However, this theory is interpreted differently in three ways: the experiential content, conscious self, and connected stream of consciousness theories. First on the list, the conscious self-theory: he or she is said to have personal identity if they have the same self-conscious. In another words, if there is a different conscious in two people, then both of them has personal identity. At first sight, it seems like a good theory to prove personal identity. It is analogous to Descartes cogito, I think therefore I am. Secondly, the consciousness of experiences theory is the common derivatives to the theory of consciousness. It is more easily known as the experiential content. This theory comes from the Lockes theory of having the mind blank, and accumulation from experiences. One is to have personal identity because only one person can experience at one finite space. We take twins f or instance. Although they have identical bodies, the moment they were born, they are already experiencing different moments. Therefore, both of them have personal identity because they experience different surroundings and see things in a different manner. The major problem is that we do not have the ability to remember every single experience in our life consciously. For instance, one can still tell another person what they have eaten three days ago but it is impossible for a person to tell another what they ate today after 10 years. In another example, one cannot be define as having different personal identity because they were drunk and acted like another person. In other words, because the human mind has failed to consciously remember every single moment of their lives, this theory eventually is invalid. The connected stream of consciousness will be the last theory about personal identity. With its definition of a persons identity is made out of a stream of connected conscious experiences, this theory eventually had solved the problem of human being unable to remember about their experience consciously. With this theory, we will still be the same person although we are unable to remember what we have done at the age of 4 when we are 60 years old. Generally with a finite mind, conscious is affiliated in a chronological pattern. In short, we will take the river as a metaphor. If you see a river flowing every day, you will not be looking at the same part of the river (representing body or experiences), however you will not be able to dispute that is not a river. Hence, let say the river is personal identity. This theory almost had it all right then. Thomas Reid which is also my preferred option to the idea of personal identity disagreed with Lockes memory theory by reducing it to absurdity. Lockes theory was criticized for a few irrelevancies. First of all, I strongly agree with what Reid hold on to. He thinks that personal identity should be determined with something that cannot be divided into parts indivisible but not by determining by operations. He, too, stated the main problem of Lockes is his ideas are of confusing proves of another thing with itself. Officer paradox was introduced by Reid at his attempt to Lockes theory to absurdity. A U.S. author, James Baldwin once quoted, An identity seemed like it has arrived by the way when a person faces and uses his experience. Assuming that we will not be able to put everything into a complete puzzle, we are left with one choice. Pluck a rose, separate the petals one by one which each petals represents one idea. Whatever came out at the end, it is you call by your very own intuition. Rà Ã‚ µfà Ã‚ µrà Ã‚ µnÑ Ãƒ Ã‚ µÃƒâ€˜Ã¢â‚¬ ¢

Kevin Plank Essay

In 1996, Kevin Plank, a former football player for the University of Maryland, began a small-time operation called Under Armour whose only objective was to create superior shirts for athletes. He envisioned a shirt that would be cool during hot seasons, and provide warmth on cold seasons. These apparels came to be called: HeatGear, ColdGear, and AllSeasonGear. The technology involved in creating the shirts includes using a Lycra blend to provide heat and warmth depending on the season. By regulating heat, athletes no longer find themselves soaked in sweat during days of hard training. What started as a basement operation in Baltimore turned into a multi-billion business, and gave birth to the performance apparel sector. The company currently holds at least seventy-five percent of the industry. It has about fourteen thousand stores globally, with offices in Canada, Hong Kong, Amsterdam, among others. Aside from shirts, Under Armour now sells cleats, boxer shorts, battling gloves, and sports bras. Almost a decade after its conception, Under Armour sold shares to the public in an initial public offering where stock prices rose to over $26 a piece. Marketing, Production & Growth The company’s growth is partly attributed to its modest marketing campaigns, which rely on cost-effectiveness and innovation rather than celebrity endorsements. Almost all of Under Armour’s products are manufactured overseas in countries where labor costs are lower, such as Mexico and China. These strategies enables Under Armour to save millions of dollars. To sustain its growth, Under Armour looks into new markets to penetrate. The company’s focus is currently on men’s apparel, which gives it the opportunity to explore women’s sports apparel. The company also believes in expanding into other markets in other countries to protect it from the effects of an unstable U. S. economy. Industry experts suggested that Under Armour, having no patent on its moisture-wicking technology, should innovate and launch more retail stores to provide their products with more exposure. Going Forward Studies made for the clothing industry revealed that the performance apparel industry accounts for about a quarter of retail clothing sales in the United States last year. The biggest markets with the biggest potentials are those in the outdoor sports wear, as well as the Chinese consumers, according to experts. The trend is geared toward creating performance wear that has moisture wicking, bacteria-resistant, UV protection, and is eco-friendly. It was also found out that sales for athletic footwear rose three percent. Responding to this growth, Under Armour disclosed that in May 2008, it will launch a full-ad campaign for its cross-trainer shoes. The ad will use up to thirteen percent of its 2007 revenue. Under Armour has also aired a sixty-minute ad during the Super Bowl in February. Its shares dipped on investors concern of overspending on the marketing during the Super Bowl and the new shoes campaign. It remains to be seen whether Under Armour’s latest foray will become another success.

Essay Burrhus Frederic Skinner - 1132 Words

Burrhus Frederic Skinner People do on a day to day basis, many actions without realizing it, and most of the time, they don’t know why they do them. Certain reinforcements, some positive, and some negative have conditioned their actions and thoughts. All organisms, including humans, are greatly influenced by the consequences produced by their own behavior. The environment holds the key to most of the changes that occur in the way a person behaves and a human’s own behavior brings consequences that change his or her actions (B. F. Skinner). Dr. B.F. Skinner forged the theory of Behaviorism, â€Å"a school of psychology that rejects the unobservable and focuses on patterns of responses to external rewards and stimuli† (Skinner, B. F.).†¦show more content†¦F. Skinner). He got his masters in psychology in 1930 and his doctorate in 1931, and stayed there to do research until 1936. In 1945, Skinner became the chairman of the psychology department at Indiana University, and in 1948 he was invited to come back to Harvard to teach, which is where he spent the rest of his life. B. F. never became the award winning novelist he originally dreamed of, but he does write a large amount of papers and books on behaviorism. He will be most remembered for Walden II, a book about a utopian society that is run on Skinner’s own operant principles. â€Å"He worked in the lab of an experimental biologist, and developed behavioral studies of rats. He loved building Rube Goldberg contraptions as a kid; he put that skill to use by designing boxes to automatically reward behavior, such as depressing a lever, pushing a button, and so on. His devices were such an improvement on the existing equipment, theyve come to be known as Skinner boxes† (A Science Odyssey). B. F. Skinner’s entire system is based on operant conditioning. â€Å"The organism is in the process of ‘operating’ on the environment, which inShow MoreRelatedBiography of Burrhus Frederic Skinner Essays1329 Words   |  6 Pages Burrhus Frederic Skinner Burrhus Frederic Skinner was born in a small town called Susquehanna, Pennsylvania on March 20, 1904. His dad was a lawyer and his mom was a house wife. Skinner was the typical boy, he enjoyed playing outside and to build things. He created many inventions as a kid. He and a friend made a cabin in the woods and Skinner created a cart with backwards steering. When working for a shoe store he thought of and invention that helped the broom pick up dust. Skinner also inventedRead MoreIntroduction (50-100 words) Burrhus Frederic (B.F.) Skinner, an American behavioral psychologist,1000 Words   |  4 Pages Introduction (50-100 words) Burrhus Frederic (B.F.) 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He is also known for his works such as, The Behavior of Organisms (1938), the novel Walden Two (1948), and later Beyond Freedom and Human Dignity (1971) which examines behaviorism in society (Biography.com Editors, n.d.). Burrhus Frederic Skinner was born and raised in Susquehanna, a little town in Pennsylvania on March 20,1904 (B

Analysis Of X Ray Tesco Financial Analysis - 3132 Words

UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER DEPARTMENT OF MATHEMATICS MSc ACTUARIAL SCIENCE FINANCE AND FINANCIAL REPORTING X-Ray Tesco PLC - Financial Analysis Jessica Franco STUDENT NUMBER: 149041918 May 2015 Executive Summary The company Tesco PLC is currently the biggest retailer in the UK and it is one of the top five on the world stage by market share. At the time of writing (April 2015) the business giant faces a costly scandal for inconsistencies in its financial statements. This report aims to analyse the financial performance of Tesco during the last five years 2010-2014, compiling detailed yet concise information on the context of the company, an overview of its financial statements, careful ratio analysis and finally producing an†¦show more content†¦Evaluation 14 Conclusions and recommendation 15 References 16 Appendix 18 Appendix A: Methods and data 18 Appendix B: Ratio Calculations 19 Introduction The retail sector in the United Kingdom is essential for the economy, the company Tesco PLC currently corresponds to the biggest retailer in the UK (1) by revenue and it is one of the top five in the sector at the world level according to market capitalisation (2). Therefore, it would have been justifiable to consider Tesco as a safe investment. However, the company is now facing agency issues (3) which has concerned investors and has caused the company to lose 50% of its market share price. This report will analyse the financial performance of Tesco PLC in order to gain an insight of the company’s financial health. To understand this, the CORE method of approach (Context, Overview, Ratios and Evaluation) will be employed. Firstly, the Context of the company will be examined to see how macroeconomic conditions or external factors could have affected the performance of the company, for example, the financial crisis of 2008 or the current low (0%) inflation in the UK. Additionally, the internal financial perception within the company is studied from the financial annual report. The second part of this work aims to give an Overview by use of a SWOT analysis of the company throughout the last five years 2010 - 2014, for this horizontal and trend analysis techniques are employed referring to key values presented