What is ESSENCE? What is APPEARANCE?

To deepen our study of living systems, we need a little more depth in the concept of system itself.

Every system, regardless of their classification on the number of components, has an essence that defines and forms itself. The essence of a system is composed of a minimum set of characteristics that remain stable (they are fixed) and defines it in any situation absolutely. The minimum set is called canonical, as the elements that are part of this set are unique (can not repeat) and are independent of each other. There is no system without the essence that defines it. The essence of a system has a type (which defines a set of values), which is fixed, and a value, which is also fixed.

1-Example of essence; considering an electron, its essence is made by the amount of mass and volume and signal (negative) of their electric charge. Regardless of their position and their speed, an electron will be recognized by these characteristics. Its essence or set of canonical features is formed by its mass and its cargo and its load signal.
2-Example of essence, a bicycle is made up of several parts, which can vary in size and color. However, if a vehicle is characterized by being moved by traction in the human form of foot, and has two wheels, can be defined as a bicycle. Once the simplified essence for the system bike, or its canonical ensemble, is formed by using the pedals, and two wheels.

Appearance is the combination of characteristics of the system that are intrinsic to it, and differs from other systems that have the same essence. They may or may not vary in several ways without changing the essence of it, only the identifying. The appearance is what establish a relationship between systems. For example, when two electrons collide, they change their speeds and positions, changing their appearance to each other. The state of a system is related to their appearance. The appearance of a system has a type (which defines a set of values), which is fixed, and a value, which may or may not be fixed.

Example-1, an electron may have several positions and speeds, while being an electron (while maintaining its essence, its mass, charge and sign of charge.). Their positions and speeds will depend on the positions and velocities of the observer.
Example-2, a bicycle can have various colors, sizes and models, but will always be a bike to keep its essence (traction for pedal and two wheels). The color, size and model does not define the bicycle system, only help to identify a bike in the middle of others.

Sometimes it can be extremely difficult to define whether certain characteristic of a given system is part of its essence, or its appearance.

Any system to be defined, must have an essence, but not necessarily an appearance. A system that has no appearance, only its essence, can be an absolute or Platonic system, ideal system, or idealized. Such a system may exists only theoretically.
Generally, any system has an essence and an appearance (minimum set of properties that are part of the system, identify, but not defined and can vary, as its essence does not change). Example, the bicycle system, has essentially [(pull a foot, two wheels)] defined, and look [(color, thickness of the tire, type of material, spatial position)], which may take different values. The color property of all appearance, for example, can take several values, blue, black, white, pink, red, etc.. However, the system will be the bicycle bike system, no matter the color.

Essence	Appearance
Characteristics that define the system.	Characteristics that are part of the system, but not defines it, only identifies it.
Immutable. If the essence of the system 1 switch, it becomes the system 2.	Can be fixed or vary in a certain range, limited or not, values can be continuous or not. Can be added or lost, without affecting the essence.
There may be a system with just essence and without appearance.	There can be no system that looks (appeanrance) only, without substance, essence.
Defines what is the boundary of the system.	Defines which forms the border may have, without changing its substance.

The whole appearance of a system may include features changing. However, some features are more easily changeable, and unstable or volatile, than others, which are more stable.

Example, a car has a joint appearance [(color, model, manufacturer, speed)]. The feature more volatile or easily changeable, is the speed of the car. The second most volatile is the color that can be changed but demand effort and money. The other features, although features essentially fixed, are part of the joint appearance, they did not define the system car, are not part of its essence [(traction motor, four wheels)].

As to the essence and appearance, the systems can be classified as similar, identical and different.

Similar systems are systems that have the same essence (canonical set of properties that define), but different appearances (additional features that do not define, identify only). Example, two bicycles, one black, the moutain bike, and one red, common. They are similar, therefore belong to the same general class of systems, called bike (has the same essence). Similar systems are also known as systems of same type, as they have the same essence.

Identical systems are systems that have the same essence and the same appearance. Example, two bikes of the same color, black, the same type, etc.. It should be emphasized here is the difference between identical systems and systems absolutely identical. For example, I can have two equal bicycles, yet they have a characteristic that makes them absolutely not the same: they do not occupy the same position in space simultaneously, or do not occupy the same point in space-time! Once we have that absolutely identical systems are systems that have the same essence, the same appearance and occupy the same point in space-time! An example of a system like that is a group of bosons, as two or more photons, for example, occupying the same space simultaneously. They do not lose their individuality because each remains in its package of energy, despite being in the same position. That makes the energy density in this point of space be greater, because we have more then a photon. Maybe at the beginning of the universe, in the Big-Bang, all systems were of the type absolutely identical, and occupying the same single point of space-time, and then began to differentiate.

Different systems are systems that have different essences, although they may look the same (equal appearence). Example, a bicycle and a motorcycle (do not have human traction).

Therefore, the appearance serves to identify a particular similar system from the others.

Classification of a System as the essence and appearance
Similar	(same essence, look different)
Identical	(same essence and appearance)
Different	(essentially different, although it can match the appearance)

What is energy? A Divine Element?

There is an element that is one of the most mysterious of the universe. It is indestructible. Moreover, it can not be created. Can only be processed in different ways. Is there ever. Everything that exists is made by it. Until the time and space. Even you and me. Qualities are divine, because God can not be created nor can be destroyed, and from God all things are formed. But that element of what I'm talking about is not God, but has some similarities. I'm talking about energy.

Energy is defined as the ability to perform work, which it is a somewhat unsatisfactory definition, I would say. Indeed we must admit we still do not understand deeply what energy really is, but we can already list some of their characteristics. This is a basic summary of what is known about energy.

Energy is an entity that we know only some of its properties. From what we know so far, its total is constant, can not be created nor destroyed, only transformed from one type into another. Maybe the universe has already born with a constant amount of energy. From what we know so far, this quantity does not increase or diminish with time. The initial amount of energy was suffering successive divisions, forming all the elements known, and even the unknown by humanity. Thus, each atom, each particle represents a fraction of the initial fixed amount of energy of the universe.

I re-address this issue in detail later, but I can say is that time and space are intimately related to the concept of energy. The space is created for the distribution of energy, and time, the variation on this distribution. As I said, this desearves be studied further in future posts. One question that remains open is: where did the energy comes from? What or who created it? I am inclined to say that the energy comes from God, and therefore shares some of its characteristics.

Among the forms of energy, we have the heat, the gravitational, the electromagnetic, etc.. The mass of a body can be considered as a kind of concentrated energy, because of relativity of Einstein we know that mass is equivalent to energy, by the formula below;



Once the energy has a variety of types, as many as are the types of force. The concept of force is closely linked to energy. Force can be defined as of energy transfer rate between bodies.

I must stress that as far I know, from all theories about the origin of the universe, absolutely NO ONE explains the origin of the energy! Please correct me if I'm wrong! The Big Bang explains how the space and time and everything else was created from a highly concentrated energy, but does not explain the source of energy in itself!

A crucial point that stands out is that energy seems to be the link between the kinds of systems, and could not fail to be, it is also essential for life.