So every year when New Year's Eve comes round that inevitable question of New Year's Resolutions is raised and what we hope to achieve in the coming year. This year I thought I would do something different, rather than stating what I want to do in the coming year I thought I would state, or rather, request what I would like others to do in the coming year. So in a way this isn't my New Year's Resolutions more my New Year's Suggestions for others, and I will welcome any suggestions others have for me. I can#t promise I will be able to fulfil them as even New Year's Resolutions are rarely upheld, but at least we'll have gained an insight into what others want for us.
My only New Year Suggestion is to help those that want to learn how to do something you already know how to do. We are a species that has advanced because we build upon the foundations laid down by the people who came before us. The idea that knowledge is only valuable or valid if it is achieved through self teaching and discovery is incredibly arrogant. We are all teachers and we all learn from other people. No matter what you set out to learn in life or anything you have learned in the past you will inevitably use resources that were provided by others who sought to share their knowledge and teach others. Every reference manual, every web page, every tutorial etc these were all written by people who sought to document their craft or their skill so that it could be passed on to others. Unless you lived in complete isolation all your life and learned everything through trial and error and never had any influence whatsoever from anyone else then you have been taught by someone in your endeavours. Knowledge is valuable but you will be no better than anyone else for dying without having shared it. All that we learn in life we lose in death. Just because it dies with us does not mean that what we learned cannot be remembered by others, so share your knowledge with others, it's the easiest way to contribute to the human race and it doesn't cost a penny all it takes is a simple conversation, or simply to answer a question when asked that you know the answer to. Even if you don't know the answer just share your ideas, together we can achieve great things.
The Meaning Of Life
I have a question
It is rather complex and your answer will explain your view of a soul.
A man is 35 years old and has his legs amputated. They are replaced with robotic limbs
At 36 he has his arms amputated and they are replaced with robotic limbs.
At 37 his stomach, lungs, heart and other major organs all below his neck are replaced with mechanical ones.
At 38 his entire chest and outer body is replaced so that only his internal organs in the head are still original.
At 39 his eyes are replaced by cameras.
At 40 the rest of the organs in his head except his brain are replaced with mechanical ones
At 41 the left portion of his brain is replaced with a mechanical one and the right is left as its original.
At 42 the right portion of his brain is replaced with a mechanical one.
At 42 his body from head to toe in its entirety is robotic.
The Question: At what point, if ever did he stop being human, and is the robot that survives, really him and sentient, and does it still embody his consciousness?
It is rather complex and your answer will explain your view of a soul.
A man is 35 years old and has his legs amputated. They are replaced with robotic limbs
At 36 he has his arms amputated and they are replaced with robotic limbs.
At 37 his stomach, lungs, heart and other major organs all below his neck are replaced with mechanical ones.
At 38 his entire chest and outer body is replaced so that only his internal organs in the head are still original.
At 39 his eyes are replaced by cameras.
At 40 the rest of the organs in his head except his brain are replaced with mechanical ones
At 41 the left portion of his brain is replaced with a mechanical one and the right is left as its original.
At 42 the right portion of his brain is replaced with a mechanical one.
At 42 his body from head to toe in its entirety is robotic.
The Question: At what point, if ever did he stop being human, and is the robot that survives, really him and sentient, and does it still embody his consciousness?
He's not me
Can you change your personality? This is a question I have thought about and answered before, my answer then was yes, but I am beginning to question that - based on my own experience and based on what I see in others. I have tried to change my personality in the past and changed many things in my life, a few of them quite major but no matter how long I hold on to those changes, I always come back to being "myself".
To date the longest change that I maintained was for 4 years - part of that was at University and the rest was after I graduated, but I eventually found it too much stress to maintain a personality that did not reflect how I really felt on the inside so eventually I went back to being "the real me".
The motivation for this post has come from seeing friends around me trying to change their lives. I don't want to be cynical and "jinx" their efforts or be discouraging but at the same time I can't spur them on with vigour in an endeavour that deep down I believe is pointless or wasted effort. Really what this comes down to is whether or not you should stand back and let others make their own mistakes - then again, this shows I believe they will fail, they might not, there is always the possibility that I am wrong and they will succeed.
I don't believe you can deny who you are forever, but I have always believed that just because someone else has tried and failed that does not mean that you will fail. I have never been one to accept that because someone else, or even everyone else, who tried failed, was a justification for me not trying or that others should try and stop me. For me personally I can't accept that, I have to be allowed to make my own mistakes.
So I am at conflict. On one hand I believe it's not possible to change who you are and feel that I should try and stop them making the same mistakes - on the other hand I know that I would not want to be stopped, I would want to make my own mistakes, it is the only way that I can be satisfied that it is not possible.
Through all this I know one thing that keeps resurfacing as the only truth that I can accept from this scenario with resolution: They are not me.
To date the longest change that I maintained was for 4 years - part of that was at University and the rest was after I graduated, but I eventually found it too much stress to maintain a personality that did not reflect how I really felt on the inside so eventually I went back to being "the real me".
The motivation for this post has come from seeing friends around me trying to change their lives. I don't want to be cynical and "jinx" their efforts or be discouraging but at the same time I can't spur them on with vigour in an endeavour that deep down I believe is pointless or wasted effort. Really what this comes down to is whether or not you should stand back and let others make their own mistakes - then again, this shows I believe they will fail, they might not, there is always the possibility that I am wrong and they will succeed.
I don't believe you can deny who you are forever, but I have always believed that just because someone else has tried and failed that does not mean that you will fail. I have never been one to accept that because someone else, or even everyone else, who tried failed, was a justification for me not trying or that others should try and stop me. For me personally I can't accept that, I have to be allowed to make my own mistakes.
So I am at conflict. On one hand I believe it's not possible to change who you are and feel that I should try and stop them making the same mistakes - on the other hand I know that I would not want to be stopped, I would want to make my own mistakes, it is the only way that I can be satisfied that it is not possible.
Through all this I know one thing that keeps resurfacing as the only truth that I can accept from this scenario with resolution: They are not me.
Merry Christmas!
Whilst getting in the mood for Christmas I stumbled across a video in a playlist I had on Youtube and thought I would share it! This video was made a few years ago by the Belfast Giants hockey team, enjoy!
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