There are plenty of words that describe personality. *The problem is finding the right words. *After answering questions on a personality test, people have the expectation of more than a report on their scores for the various traits. *People want a description of their personality and generally prefer a long and complimentary report. *You may have noticed the similarity between horoscopes and personality type descriptions. *You might just as well call these reports “persona-scopesâ€. *If this were just a pastime or party game there would be no damage. *The problem is that these instruments are used in selecting personnel to hire and promote.
The purpose of this blog is to present a limited typology based on just a few words. *The words used to describe the purpose and activity of each system ought to be based on the function the system performs for the organism. *The objective is to choose a few simple words that come as close as possible to expressing the various functions and at the same time carry very little residue suggesting some other function. *This is not easy. Words have a life (etymology) of their own and they have associated meanings to each individual person. So this is an ongoing project. *To achieve improved clarity there may be changes in the words that are used. Let’s now examine these words to see if the choices are adequate. *First we will go through this process for each of the four essential organismic systems. *Next, we will try to build a robust system for describing the interaction of these systems depending on their rank order.
VISCERAL SYSTEM
The visceral system is a set of organs that contact the environment and absorb chemicals that can be incorporated into the organism. *It is something like a marine sponge. *A sponge is an example of an animal that is primarily a gut undulating with the motion of the water.
Although compact, a sponge has an enormous surface capable of absorbing nutrients from its environment. *Compare this to the intestines. *If you were to completely flatten the villi and folds of the intestines you would have an absorbing surface slightly larger than a tennis court. *How’s that for an absorbing surface! *Aren’t you glad it’s folded up discretely in your abdominal area? *Assimilation means to make something part of a whole, that is, to form a UNITY. *This is mostly a passive process that should not be confused with the aggressive or muscular activity of biting and chewing that gets the food into the digestive tract. *Once the food is masticated and passed into the gullet the process becomes a slow squeezing of the slurry through the digestive tube. *Time takes over the process. *You can’t force digestion. *You have to wait. *In fact, too much activity interferes with digestion. *
We should now have a pretty good idea of the main activity or function of the visceral system. *The gut imposes a patient waiting period on the organism as a whole while absorption takes place. *There are several words that could be used to describe the process that results in UNITY. The most obvious is UNITING. *Unity is achieved by UNITING. *Other possible descriptors could be; passive, slow, calm, bonding, receptive, tolerance, affection, relaxation, harmony, stability, surrender, dependence, order, desire, craving, yearning, gradual, hands-off, indifferent, long-suffering, resigned, submissive and yielding. *The list could be much longer. *All of these words suggest a somewhat passive type of activity. We might picture an activity level *that is only slightly more active than “standing still†which obviously does little to alter or intrude on the environment.
MUSCULAR SYSTEM
Now let’s consider the function of our muscular system. *Muscles move by contracting and relaxing. *Their purpose is to move things. *Muscles can shove, grasp, hold and position things whether it’s the animal itself or something that an animal grasps in its environment. Muscles like all engines convert energy into motion. *Moving an object is the basic definition of work. *In physics the definition of work is moving a mass, a certain distance. *If you could have a conversation with muscles and ask them what they are doing they would most likely say WORKING. *Words associated with the activity of the muscular system; dominance, active, action, fast, aggression, success, results, practical, power, and work. *
NERVOUS SYSTEM
One celled animals have a membrane that serves as a boundary between what is inside and what is outside. *It’s a fence separating the organism from its environment. *And like a fence it is built by the party that wants to defend its territory. *The boundary is not part of the world outside but is an essential function of the organism. *The membrane that surrounds the cytoplasm is formed by the cytoplasm. *The membrane defines the organism/self. *It protects the cell by keeping noxious chemicals outside and allowing essential chemicals entry into the cytoplasmic soup. Boundaries that are sensitive to harmful objects and chemicals bestow the best chance of survival. *Since the nervous system grows out of the ectoderm or outermost layer of the developing organism, it isn’t a stretch to compare the function of the nervous system to the function of a cell membrane. *The nervous system’s purpose is to maintain the IDENTITY of the whole organism. *By storing previously successful reactions it can decide quickly which actions are safest. *The brain and nervous system can chain these reactions into the future by the activity we call PLANNING. Here are some words that describe the activity of the nervous system: thinking, conceptualizing, defensive, selective, flight, status, competitive, pride, rank, directional, precision, cautious, critical, and fearful.
ORIENTATIONAL SYSTEM
Sensory receptors respond to physical and chemical CHANGE in the organism and the environment. *Change introduces something new that the organism has to evaluate. *The organism is continuously searching for something that is different and that may have an impact on its plans. Change, information, novelty, alternatives, opportunity, hope, possibilities, options, exploration, and orientation are all related to sensory activities.
The purpose of this blog is to present a limited typology based on just a few words. *The words used to describe the purpose and activity of each system ought to be based on the function the system performs for the organism. *The objective is to choose a few simple words that come as close as possible to expressing the various functions and at the same time carry very little residue suggesting some other function. *This is not easy. Words have a life (etymology) of their own and they have associated meanings to each individual person. So this is an ongoing project. *To achieve improved clarity there may be changes in the words that are used. Let’s now examine these words to see if the choices are adequate. *First we will go through this process for each of the four essential organismic systems. *Next, we will try to build a robust system for describing the interaction of these systems depending on their rank order.
VISCERAL SYSTEM
The visceral system is a set of organs that contact the environment and absorb chemicals that can be incorporated into the organism. *It is something like a marine sponge. *A sponge is an example of an animal that is primarily a gut undulating with the motion of the water.
Although compact, a sponge has an enormous surface capable of absorbing nutrients from its environment. *Compare this to the intestines. *If you were to completely flatten the villi and folds of the intestines you would have an absorbing surface slightly larger than a tennis court. *How’s that for an absorbing surface! *Aren’t you glad it’s folded up discretely in your abdominal area? *Assimilation means to make something part of a whole, that is, to form a UNITY. *This is mostly a passive process that should not be confused with the aggressive or muscular activity of biting and chewing that gets the food into the digestive tract. *Once the food is masticated and passed into the gullet the process becomes a slow squeezing of the slurry through the digestive tube. *Time takes over the process. *You can’t force digestion. *You have to wait. *In fact, too much activity interferes with digestion. *
We should now have a pretty good idea of the main activity or function of the visceral system. *The gut imposes a patient waiting period on the organism as a whole while absorption takes place. *There are several words that could be used to describe the process that results in UNITY. The most obvious is UNITING. *Unity is achieved by UNITING. *Other possible descriptors could be; passive, slow, calm, bonding, receptive, tolerance, affection, relaxation, harmony, stability, surrender, dependence, order, desire, craving, yearning, gradual, hands-off, indifferent, long-suffering, resigned, submissive and yielding. *The list could be much longer. *All of these words suggest a somewhat passive type of activity. We might picture an activity level *that is only slightly more active than “standing still†which obviously does little to alter or intrude on the environment.
MUSCULAR SYSTEM
Now let’s consider the function of our muscular system. *Muscles move by contracting and relaxing. *Their purpose is to move things. *Muscles can shove, grasp, hold and position things whether it’s the animal itself or something that an animal grasps in its environment. Muscles like all engines convert energy into motion. *Moving an object is the basic definition of work. *In physics the definition of work is moving a mass, a certain distance. *If you could have a conversation with muscles and ask them what they are doing they would most likely say WORKING. *Words associated with the activity of the muscular system; dominance, active, action, fast, aggression, success, results, practical, power, and work. *
NERVOUS SYSTEM
One celled animals have a membrane that serves as a boundary between what is inside and what is outside. *It’s a fence separating the organism from its environment. *And like a fence it is built by the party that wants to defend its territory. *The boundary is not part of the world outside but is an essential function of the organism. *The membrane that surrounds the cytoplasm is formed by the cytoplasm. *The membrane defines the organism/self. *It protects the cell by keeping noxious chemicals outside and allowing essential chemicals entry into the cytoplasmic soup. Boundaries that are sensitive to harmful objects and chemicals bestow the best chance of survival. *Since the nervous system grows out of the ectoderm or outermost layer of the developing organism, it isn’t a stretch to compare the function of the nervous system to the function of a cell membrane. *The nervous system’s purpose is to maintain the IDENTITY of the whole organism. *By storing previously successful reactions it can decide quickly which actions are safest. *The brain and nervous system can chain these reactions into the future by the activity we call PLANNING. Here are some words that describe the activity of the nervous system: thinking, conceptualizing, defensive, selective, flight, status, competitive, pride, rank, directional, precision, cautious, critical, and fearful.
ORIENTATIONAL SYSTEM
Sensory receptors respond to physical and chemical CHANGE in the organism and the environment. *Change introduces something new that the organism has to evaluate. *The organism is continuously searching for something that is different and that may have an impact on its plans. Change, information, novelty, alternatives, opportunity, hope, possibilities, options, exploration, and orientation are all related to sensory activities.
