The Anti-Life Equation

The Anti-Life Equation

Philosophy 11001-Introdution to Philosophy

Dr. John Hammond

	January 24, 2010

 

1. The term “Anti Life Equation” originates in Jack Kirby’s Fourth World comics published by DC Comics. It is only the name that is used here and no other references in this paper to the DC Comics version exist therein.

My purpose here is to relate the philosophical components of life and death. Like many great philosophers I will use the principals of logical mathematics. The value in this equation is in the relation between its elements. No actual assignable values are capable, as each piece is highly subjective.

                We shall start with a simple relationship between death, which I shall denote as D, and life, which I will denote as L.

Death varies directly to life. If life goes up, then there is more death, i.e. more things to die. In keeping with established mathematical concepts, a direct variation calls for a constant. The question is: What remains constant no matter the amount of life or death? The answer is time, which we will symbolize with t.

Here, time may not be considered a true constant in that it is represented by a variable. However, time is unaffected by life or death. Theoretically, we could denote a moment in time and although incomprehensible to calculate, could possibly put in the amount of life or death at the moment. As more time passes, life or death changes. However, no amount of life or death can change time.

                If death varies directly to life, is there anything that varies inversely? What I ask is, “What makes death decrease as life increases?” There is something, which I will call truth (T).

For simplicity’s sake, truth means a truly believed form of understanding. For example, the advance of medical knowledge can increase overall understanding or truth. With increased truth, there would be less death, and life would increase and extend. A deeper explanation of truth is discussed later.

                Let’s change this formula from variation notation to equation notation.

Now that this is an equation, we must define its domain and range. What are the limits of the variables presented? The whole formula cannot exist outside the bounds of subjective human understanding. No function is possible here beyond what humans are capable of perceiving. What is more is that each factor is subjective to each individual. What I define as truth and life are very different from what another does. Even time is subjective, but this applies to the human race as a whole. Our whole concept of the passage of time is only perceived by changes received by our sense data.

                Having declared our bounds, let’s work within our means. Death itself cannot be broken into any further factors. Based on a lack of conclusive evidence on either side of the argument for an afterlife, we must “suspend belief” until further evidence presents itself. Our current subjective human understanding will not allow it.

                Time can only be broken into endless other segments of time. This would complicate the formula needlessly and result in an endless loop. Truth can be broken up, but we must first define some factors of life. Could anyone define any aspect of their truth without their life? If that person did not exist on our plane of perception, they would have no way to define their truth to us. The whole function fails beyond our perceptions.

                So, our next logical step is to ask, “What makes up life?” For the values of life, we shall focus on an individual, which is 1L. That being said, L can be represented as…

That looks rather complicated, but why shouldn’t it? Most would agree that life is a rather complicated thing. I will explain what each variable stands for. However, at the end of this discussion, it is up to the reader to decide what they mean to them.

                We see the concepts of causality in the variables E (environment), C (circumstance), k (knowledge), and e (experience). Circumstance and environment can be thought of as causes. An example of circumstance can be genetic characteristics with which a person is born. The environment can be the place into which the person was born. These are not the sole aspects of circumstance and environment. Circumstances could place someone in the path of a bullet. Environment may degrade or improve a person’s life likewise. Both can be said to spawn a variety of events in a life. Often, these two factors are beyond one’s control.

                Experience and knowledge are the effects of all circumstances and environments. The result of these causes is that something happens with the possibility that something is learned. Experience always happens, but knowledge does not necessarily do so. I could have a variety of experiences, but it may take repeated attempts before I gain any knowledge. It is due to this fact that knowledge is the slowest factor to grow.  Environment and circumstance will always be greater than knowledge and experience. The world will always be greater than I. The billions of processes surrounding me will always be greater than my experiences with them.

                Put differently, environment is the “where” in life, circumstance the “how”, experience is what is happening. The “who” is the 1L in question. Knowledge is the “why.” Why are we thrust in circumstances in some environment to experience things? To gain in knowledge. What is the value of this knowledge? The absolute value of experience multiplied by knowledge is wisdom.

                Due to this, wisdom, represented by W, must always be positive. If some “wisdom” caused negative effects, let’s say rampant disease, it would cease to be wisdom. Even if knowledge or experience is negative, but lead to a positive outcome, they may be thought of as wisdom. The effect of wisdom causes life to grow at an exponential rate. It puts the greatest value on all of our knowledge or experiences and allows us to affect the greatest changes to our circumstances and environment.

                Now, we can return to truth. Truth is a more universal concept. Truth is a lasting knowledge multiplied by our experience compounded by our wisdom.

As stated previously, truth is highly subjective. This being said, some widely accepted truths may exist, such as “proven” scientific knowledge. The difference between truth and wisdom is that truth may not always be positive. Negative experience or knowledge compounded by odd wisdom may in fact increase this negative truth. However, negative knowledge and experience, compounded by even wisdom may result in a positive truth. By even I mean a balancing wisdom, a wisdom that “evens” things out.  Odd wisdom, therefore would further imbalance this truth.

                At last, we have established the Anti-Life Equation.

Let’s discuss the motive behind creating this formula, the relationship between the factors. In mathematical laws, a zero cannot exist in a denominator. It causes an “undefined” number. Suppose our truth (T) was zero; that is, we had no truth. For that I mean our knowledge, experience, and wisdom amounted to nothing. Our life would be undefined. Death would not have any definition because our life would not. We must have some understanding, some truth; if only, I am here. How preposterous the philosopher whose truth claims he doesn’t exist at all. However, if one accepts this formula, the understanding of his nonexistence would be a truth. It would, therefore, prove the existence of his life.

                The same could be said of the denominator factors of knowledge and experience. Without these, life would also be undefined. A person would not exist. A birth must be experienced to exist. Knowledge must also be present, even as simple as the rudimentary knowledge to breathe or beat the heart. Following deductive reasoning, if knowledge or experience cannot be zero, then neither can environment or circumstance. If the latter are the effect of the causes, environment and circumstance, then it stands to reason that a zero cause cannot exist. There can be no effects if there were no causes.

                Finishing our examination on zeroes is time. Time has a special domain in that it cannot be equal to or less than zero. If no time passes, there is no life or death; nothing happens. Time cannot be negative. Time passes, ever increasing, but to date I’ve yet to have it go backwards.

                We move on to investigating negatives. Based on the inverse relationship of truth and death, a lower truth factor would increase death. If we understand that something negative is harmful to us, it is logical to infer we would die more frequently or sooner.

                Let’s presume that we had a negative environment or circumstance. These could lead to a negative experience or knowledge. Together, this may lead to a negative or bad, harmful life. Unless there was a higher positive number in one of these factors the whole of life could be negative. That is, of course, unless there was some balancing or “even” wisdom to put it all into perspective.

                Here, we run into a mathematical paradox. What if all 4 factors (environment, circumstance, knowledge, and experience) are negative? Or What if one in the numerator and one in the denominator is excessively negative? Mathematically these would calculate to a positive. Unless we had some “even-ing” wisdom that would solve this conundrum, common sense tells us that so many negative aspects in a life cannot possibly be a positive.

                To solve this issue, let’s look at this more closely with humanity as a whole. A person is born into poor circumstances and environment. Throughout their life they continue to have a disproportionate number of more harmful experiences and knowledge. This person is likely to die sooner. They die sooner by having a negative life in a rather short period of time. Based on our original statement of variation, as life goes up, so does death. In this instance our formula still holds. The negative experiences still calculated to a positive life, if only because they died sooner. Their death removed a large concentration of negative influences in a shortened period of time. This was a positive benefit for the species as a whole.

The actual calculation of any term for any of these variables is impossible. The value in this formula is the same as the value of philosophy as a whole; critical thought. Reading the Anti-Life Equation as a whole, one could say that life as a function of environment and circumstances divided by knowledge and experience compounded exponentially by one’s wisdom multiplied by the passage of time, all divided by a person’s great truths directly relates to their death. The final question to ask the reader is, “Will it be positive or negative?”