Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 12

Philosophy - Essay Example Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz’s concept of substance, like many other philosophers, was influenced by the Aristotelian concept of substance, conceived as that which bears properties but is not itself a property. However, it is interesting that while Leibniz more or less subscribed to this view, he rejected Spinoza’s monistic understanding of substance as a singular reality. He differed radically from both Descartes and Spinoza as regards the relation of mind and matter, and as regards the number of substances. It can be recalled that Descartes allowed for three substances, namely, God, mind, and matter, and that the essence of matter was extension. For Spinoza, he admitted God alone as the singular substance, while holding that both extension and thought are attributes of God. For Leibniz, he held that extension cannot be an attribute of a substance because there is a plurality of individual substances, and this he termed as â€Å"monads†. He stated that â€Å"T he monad, which we shall discuss here, is nothing but a simple substance that enters into composites—simple, that is, without parts† (Leibniz, 285). Each of these monads would have some properties of a physical point, but only when understood abstractly. The manner in which Leibniz describes a monad is essentially similar to the atoms of Democritus. However, there is also some similarity to the geometrical points of Pythagoras. Like Democritus’ atoms, monads are conceived of as the ultimate indivisible elements of reality which constitutes all material things. He stated: And there must be simple substances, since there are composites; for the composite is nothing more than a collection, or aggregate of simples. But where there are no parts, neither extension, nor shape, nor divisibility is possible. These monads are the true atoms of nature and, in brief, the elements of things

Private Schools Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Private Schools - Research Paper Example   The private schools are usually controlled by the private corporation. That is, nonaffiliated or religious. Besides, they are supported by the private funds. One characteristic of private school is that of double selection. The private schools select their students and teachers and then the parents or guardians select the schools to take the students. It is, therefore, clear that the private education is due to parental choice. The private schools can be operated by the entrepreneurs whose aim is to make the profit, charities, or the religious groups. Although the public education is free, many people prefer to take their children to private schools. There are many benefits that can be enjoyed in private schools as discussed below.The first benefit of private schooling is academic opportunities provided. In private schools, there are challenging and exceptional educational experiences due to the advanced placement courses and the extracurricular activities among other programs. I n the United States, students from the private schools score better marks than those from public schools on standardized tests (Hahn, Kim & Seo, 2014).). In some private schools, there is a one hundred percent rate of students who are admitted to the universities after passing their exams.The second advantage is that of smaller classes. In private schools, the ratio of teachers to students is lower compared to that in public schools. Students perform better when taught in small class size.