The new school year is upon us converting the latency of summer for millions of children back into the yearly grind of homework, essays, and book reports.  From year to year the material children cover can vary quite significantly: especially in Social Studies and Math.  While a child needs to use “mental floss” to get back in learning mode for reading, writing and mathematics after summer vacation, his intelligence quotient remains relatively constant throughout his life.

What is your child's IQ?

An excellent way to measure intelligence is to have your child take a certified intelligence test such as our ISIQ, Children's Version.  The ISIQ is a detailed intelligence exam that accurately calculates your child's intelligence taking into account age and numerous other factors.

The ISIQ is the new standard in measuring intelligence for children and it gives you accurate intelligence quotient results at a price hundreds of dollars less than psychologist administered intelligence tests.

Take the ISIQ - Children's Version Now >

 

We are pleased to announce the launch of our Ultimate Sales Challenge.  This free 59-question quiz tests your knowledge in the field of sales and cold calling.  How well do you think you would do against "The Perfect Salesperson"?

Why should you take the Challenge?

• Establish a baseline of your knowledge of selling
• Identify areas of weakness and strengths
• Receive suggestions to improve your performance in your weakest area
• Evaluate the progress of your sales training
• See how you compare to the perfect salesperson in over ten key areas

There are many different views on the meaning of life. Hundreds, if not thousands, of credible schools of thought exist, and every individual has an entirely unique opinion about their ultimate purpose. 

However, are these "meanings" really the meaning of life, or are they simply methods through which to live?  Something may give life meaning, but does that make it the meaning of life?

Through the entire history of philosophy, no philosophy has truly been centered around the question, "What is the meaning of life?" Each has an answer, or at least a general idea, but none are entirely focused with absolute precision on this matter. It is only recently that the question of the meaning of life has evolved into its own field of philosophy, rather than being associated with other life matters. This new field approaches the question of the meaning of life from a purely analytical standpoint.

Why has it taken so long to come to this point? First of all, it was important to fundamentally ensure one’s survival before searching for meaning. During many, if not all, of the past centuries, the survival of one's self – if not the survival of the entire human species – has been called into question. In that situation, meaning is apparent: survive long enough to get the next generation started.

Once basic survival is assured, the next pressing question is how to best live life. This question has fueled philosophy and religion since their inception. Indeed, many supposed answers to "the meaning of life" have instead given guidance on the best ways to live life and provide individual meaning. It seems that this answer was required in order for humanity to move forward to the next part of the question. We have figured out how to survive.  We have figured out how to live.  Now, why do we live?

Even though it is likely that the next stage will not come about for centuries or even millennia, what question will we ponder next?

Just because we have become conscious at some point in the past, does it mean that there must be a meaning of life?  Perhaps the nihilists have it right - there is no meaning, only life. This may seem pessimistic, but it is a valid consideration. Maybe it is selfish to think that we have meaning.

We have come into being through a multitude of accidents, coincidences and mutations. You can decide that this is as a result of some grand plan or not, but it is a key point in any search for meaning. Consider the nihilists and the postmodernists who have deconstructed many of the key principles of traditional philosophy in their search for a modern worldview.

Nihilism has been associated with and refuted by some of the most famous philosophers, including Immanuel Kant and Friedrich Nietzsche. In particular, Nietzsche has been coupled with the philosophy due to his writings on the "death of God."  In fact, he was openly critical of nihilism, believing that it deprived the world of meaning. However, nihilism has enjoyed resurgence in the postmodern culture.

Postmodernism is inherently critical of philosophy and its tenets. It eschews many of the principles of most philosophies, specifically that humans have any essence that differs from that of other creatures, and many times dissembles inquiries into the meaning of life.

With these philosophies in mind, consider whether in fact there is any meaning. The human race has, through some permutation of the universe, arrived to this state. The grand plan is that there is no grand plan. The universe exists, somehow. It has evolved according to a set of physical and chemical rules that are still largely unknown. We exist, the world exists, and we go along living through no fault of our own.

So, we return to the question. Just because we become conscious does that mean that there must be a meaning to our consciousness?

In the beginning, there were people, and they were confused. They existed, they thought, they hunted, they gathered, they made more of themselves. However, why were they there? How were they there? How did the world around them exist?

It is commonly stated that religion and faith came from an attempt by our ancestors to explain the world around them. However, it was also an attempt to explain themselves. The who, why, how, what and when of conscious life could not be known in their life experiences. Therefore, they created their own answers according to their worldviews. Religion and the associated stories answered all their questions. Where did you come from? Well, in the beginning there was a cosmic egg, or Chaos, or God, or the Word, or clay or darkness. From there, the stories spiraled to answer all your questions, from the meaning of life to how you should ensure your group's continued existence.

The basic tenet of most Western theologies answers the question of the meaning of life: we exist to serve the higher power, i.e. God. The codicil to this meaning is that you serve God in order to make it to the next life, or more specifically, the better version of the next life. Few people serve a higher power in order to make it to Hell unless, of course, they are serving Satan, but that is another subject entirely.

Of course, there is a question with this meaning of life. Is the meaning of life to serve God or to get to Heaven? While many may claim that this is the same thing, the intention behind the two is vastly different. It is like telling your children that if they volunteer at the local soup kitchen, they will not have to do chores for two weeks.  Volunteering, like serving God, is a selfless and giving act.  Doing it for the reward, be it two weeks of no weeding or an eternity in Heaven, is entirely selfish.

Many religions will offer an answer to the meaning of life. However, it is useful to consider whether they are offering a selfless or selfish answer.