Existence

The word existence (Latin existentia - existence, existence ) called in philosophy the existence of a thing without specifying whether it is a material or non-material object. In existential philosophy and existentialism, the term is often used for " human existence " used interchangeably.

Colloquially referred existence, the economic livelihood of people, for example in the form of economic operation ( trading business, law firm or similar).

In QL, the precondition for a predicate assignment is marked with existence.

Conceptual history

The Latin existo ( " I exist " ) is in turn back to the Greek existemi ( ek - histemi ) back and is often confused with the similar-sounding exeinai, which means "to be" actually. existemi means, however, " interpret, set up, stand out ," meaning " to be physically present ." In a philosophical context, the term first appeared in Marius Victorinus Existentia ( 360 ) as a translation of the Greek Hyparxis, and is opposed with the substantia (Greek ousia ). While Existentia referred to the mere presence of something, in contrast, the essence of a thing is named with essence ( essentia ).

In the philosophy of the Middle Ages, the existence of which was not considered in more detail as fact. The focus of the investigation was the essence of things, their essence, as the possibility of existing things, while the real existence of a fact with subsistence was reproduced in the sense of ontological realism. It was a similar view in the philosophy of rationalism ( Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz ), where the reason for the existence of a thing was adopted in its essence. Thinking or the definition of things leads to their existence.

A change in significance given the existence of an object in empiricism as well as in the doctrine of the two tribes of knowledge in Kant, by the experience of the things ( in Kant as a phenomenon ) own existence was attached (see thing in itself ). In contrast, Hegel saw the unity of essence and appearance, of essence and existence, than to what constitutes reality.

Above all, Kierkegaard argued against Hegel, that the individual, irreducible life of the individual is limited to its existence. The self is a relation which relates only to itself and not, for example, the absolute absorbed by another. With this view, Kierkegaard considered the founder of existentialism. Heidegger took in Being and Time, this provision of the existence of that Being itself, to the existence itself one way or another can behave and always kind of behavior, we call existence. ( Being and Time, 12)

Was further exacerbated this view in the existentialism of Jean-Paul Sartre, for whom the existence of the essence, the essence precedes, man is alone referred to themselves, so only has the perspective of subjectivity.

The term "existence" is to be distinguished from the Heideggerian term " existentials ".

Mathematics / Logic

In classical mathematics one has to prove the existence of a mathematical object ( an existence proof ) in several ways:

• The explicit specification of this object,
• Guidance on the design of already existing objects,
• The evidence that the adoption of the non-existence of this object leads to a contradiction ( indirect proof of existence ).

In other conceptions of mathematics ( intuitionism, constructive mathematics) the indirect proof of existence is rejected by causing the inconsistency of the assumption of non-existence, if an infinite number of objects to examine (see tertium non datur ). After an object exists only when it is explicitly specified, or if an algorithm can be specified, with which it can be constructed ( at intuitionism in finitely many steps ).

In the modern discussion of the foundations of mathematics, the question of universals was resumed in principle. The adoption of the independent existence of numbers and geometric figures in classical mathematics is called Platonism and corresponds to the position of realism in the universals. Constructivism has its counterpart in the idea of conceptualism. The axiomatic mathematics Hilbert hand, views mathematics as a purely formal creation of man ( formalism ) and thus corresponds to the nominalism.

Evolutionary Biology

As Existence ( Existence of Evolution ) is designated in evolutionary biology a basic theorem, according to which there is the key to evolution. The term is due to its trivial statement today no longer in use, but it was in Darwin's time very important.

The existence ( evolution ) was adopted even before Darwin, including Jean -Baptiste Lamarck. But Darwin was able to prove through his observations for the first time and thus develop an extended and consistent theory. But Darwin died of cancer before he could finish his research.

Philosophy

In philosophy, there are basically three kinds of existences:

• Necessary existence: Is the existence of which is the cause of everything else and everything is based. It is in some philosophies also called God.
• Not necessary existence: all the existences are not dependent on the other existences.
• Impossible existence: existence, which are contrary to the necessities existence. Example, in a philosophy that an omnipotent God sees as necessary existence would be a stone that is heavier than God could raise him. (This can not exist and even the Almighty can not create him, though he can do anything, because the existence of this stone is impossible -. Speak contrary to the omnipotence of God)

Philosophically considered questioned the existence of the question: Is there something just because we perceive it?

There is not a clear answer to this question. If one sees an object, one can imagine it to be. This possible imagination can be refuted seemingly by using all the senses. A seemingly safe way to avoid a non-existence, is the questioning of another person. However, there is the possibility that in every human being to play the same biological processes that everyone can perceive an object, even though he does not exist.

Another phenomenon in this respect are mental illnesses. If a schizophrenic man asks his opponent if an object exists in order to verify its perception as in the first case, he probably speaks with a man whom he has imagined. It can not therefore be assumed that the object is not conceited.

In continuation of this idea, it is only possible to be aware of its own existence consciously. Here it is undetectable whether a universe or a world outside of his own consciousness is real or exists. Only one's own existence is then sure, but not the existence of people, the environment and the universe itself, since only his own existence in form of consciousness ( intuitive ) can be sure. Even one's own existence as a human being is thus not detectable because it only involves one's own consciousness than can perceive existent with certainty.