Essence

In philosophy, essence is the attribute or set of attributes that make an entity or substance what it fundamentally is, and which it has by necessity, and without which it loses its identity. Essence is contrasted with accident: a property that the entity or substance has contingency, without which the substance can still retain its identity. The concept originates with Aristotle, who used the Greek expression to ti ên einai (τὸ τί ἦν εἶναι, literally meaning "the what it was to be" and corresponding to the scholastic term quiddity) or sometimes the shorter phrase to ti esti (τὸ τί ἐστι, literally meaning "the what it is" and corresponding to the scholastic term haecceity) for the same idea. This phrase presented such difficulties for its Latin translators that they coined the word essentia (English "essence") to represent the whole expression. For Aristotle and his scholastic followers, the notion of essence is closely linked to that of definition (ὁρισμός horismos).

In the history of western thought, essence has often served as a vehicle for doctrines that tend to individuate different forms of existence as well as different identity conditions for objects and properties; in this eminently logical meaning, the concept has given a strong theoretical and common-sense basis to the whole family of logical theories based on the "possible worlds" analogy set up by Leibniz and developed in the intensional logic from Carnap to Kripke, which was later challenged by "extensionalist" philosophers such as Quine.

Essence (Lucinda Williams album)

Essence is Lucinda Williams' sixth album. It was released in 2001. The album debuted on the Billboard 200 at number 28, selling about 44,500 copies in its first week. According to Billboard as of February 2008, the album had sold 336,000 copies in the U.S.

Reception

Essence was highly anticipated coming after a three-year gap from her lauded Car Wheels on a Gravel Road and the critical reviews reflect that. Although positive, none rate the album as highly as her breakthrough. Robert Christgau, who raved about Car Wheels, called the album "imperfect" but still praised her artistry saying "[she] is too damn good to deny." Reviewers noted the difference in tone between the two albums with Rolling Stone citing the "willful intimacy" of the music while Spin contrasted its "halting, spare" presentation with Car Wheels "giddy, verbose" one. In a review posted by Salon the album was called "an emotional mess of a masterpiece".

Q listed Essence as one of the best 50 albums of 2001.

Essence (disambiguation)

Essence is the attribute (or set of attributes) that make an object or substance what it fundamentally is.

Essence may also refer to:

Polestar

Polestar is the official Volvo Cars performance division, based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Until 2015, Polestar Performance was a division of Polestar along with the Polestar racing team. and prototypes. Volvo announced in July 2015 that it had purchased Polestar Performance. The racing team will remain under the direction of Christian Dahl, changing name from Polestar Racing to Cyan Racing. A close cooperation with Polestar is maintained with Cyan Racing becoming official motorsport partner to Polestar, the Volvo Cars performance brand.

Production Cars

Polestar Performance produces limited edition Volvo performance models, such as the Volvo S60 and V60 Polestar, and engine optimisations for turbocharged Volvo road cars as the official performance partner of Volvo with retained warranty and unchanged fuel consumption and emissions. The engine optimisation increases the power and torque output, varying depending on engine model.

Concept Cars

Polestar Performance produces prototype cars as well, with the first and most famous being the C30 Polestar Performance Concept Prototype (2010) with over 450 bhp and 510 Nm.

Polestar (comics)

Polestar is the name used by a pair of mercenaries and antagonists of Spider-Man, closely associated with the Great Game. The first is currently deceased.

Fictional character biography

Polestar I

Polestar's costume and gauntlets gave him significant control over various magnetic properties. Personality wise, he seemed obsessed with corporate business stratagems and lingo, seeming for all intents and purposes to be a glorified corporate yuppie answering to his financial backers in the Great Game.

Thomas Duffy, the original Polestar, battled Kaine in his first appearance. Polestar is notable for having aided fellow Spider-Man enemy and Great Game player El Toro Negro in killing the Marvel Comics hero Nightwatch. During an attempt to kidnap the son of Nightwatch's ex-girlfriend (the boy having been declared a prize in the Great Game), Duffy used his suit's powers to peel back Nightwatch's costume (composed of nanites) long enough for El Toro Negro to shoot the hero directly in his exposed chest.

Polestar (disambiguation)

A pole star is a visible star that is approximately aligned with the Earth's axis of rotation.

Pole star, polestar or polar star may also refer to: