The Riddle of Existence Leibnizs formulation: Why is there something rather than nothing, is perhaps one of the most

important questions ever posed in Philosophy. It had taken philosophy into a level wherein everything is included in its realm; not only abstracta but also concreta. However, the question is more focused on the origins and explanations of the existence of concrete objects. Aside from explaining why concrete objects exist and where they come from, and who/what made them; the other side of the query is why not nothing? Why did those something prevailed and continues to exist instead of simply nothing? Further, equally important is to answer why concrete objects are the way they are, why they look and function the way they are? Though, we can also ask if the riddle of existence is even possible to answer or not; does this question even matter? Because of the complexity of answering such a very simply question, one is tempted to ignore it or easily discard it as unanswerable. It is even easier to say that there is something, rather than nothing because we exist; or Wittgensteins later response to it it is nonsense 1, we cannot imagine non-existence or absolute nothingness. Some solve it by an end-all-be-all answer God 2. Some rejects the question as it is, apparently, illegitimate and illogical; it is simply impossible to answer the question because its structure prevents us to do so 3. However, we see that these propositions did not actually dismiss it. Thus, the question may still be answerable.

Rescher, Nicholas. On Explaining Existence (Real Possibility as the Key to Actuality) in Metaphysics: Contemporary Readings, ed. Steven Hales. California: Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1999. 8-9. 2 Ibid., 13. 3 Ibid., 14.

The Hume-Edwards approach is somehow satisfying in that it says that matter is eternal it can neither be created nor destroyed; mass-energy has existed at least at one time because matter is conserved. This did not, however, answer the follow up question why not nothing? Lets add some idealism to the approach consciousness. We recognize the existence of concrete things because we are conscious about them. An example of this approach I am forwarding about is a man walking down the street who suddenly tripped over a rock with the size of a shoe. The rock has always been there, has always existed; but it only really existed when the man had a contact with it and realized that it was there. This consciousness and sensing is not something we control or we plan. So, our consciousness is not predominantly selective, it is actually more accidental. Like for instance, when chatting with friends sometimes things come into our minds that are off the topic; or when watching a drama movie suddenly you think about popcorn. This then somehow avoids solipsism and subjective idealism. Going further, the interaction of mass-energy and consciousness makes something concrete, and our tools for this interaction are our senses. So, a flower in a pot may exist physically for all time; but unless a consciousness will recognize it, it will seem that it may not even have existed at all. At the same time, we may continue to imagine a unicorn; but unless we saw one, it will remain to be just an imagination, at least to most people. Thus, when we apply this to another philosophical riddle, which is forwarded by George Berkeley If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?"; we accept that the tree exists but since no one hear it fall, then it is like it has never existed at all. Another application of this approach is the fact that some ancient civilizations have already thought way before the existence and

possibility of outer space and some other astronomical details; but until they were discovered validated recently and are now acknowledged by the people. Something exists purely accidental; and absolute nothingness did not come into being because accident happened i.e. accident prevented absolute nothingness to prevail, and it created concrete things. For instance, while scientists say that evolution follows stages and that it is the law of survival of the fittest which paved way for beings to ascend to the next stage; this process actually takes thousands and even millions of years to happen. Thus, evolution is not just something that is willed but there is a certain amount of accident that needs to happen thats why most of the scientific developments were out of discovery and not from trying to create something. Further, the laws of physics, most especially Newtons laws; seem very precise, but their precision were actually stemmed out of temporary consistency of things. A ball thrown upward here on earth, will usually come down not because it is impossible for it to remain suspended in the air; but because, applying the approach I have been trying to build, an accident has not yet occurred which will change this behavior. Thus, absolute nothingness may have existed before but because an accident happened, something existed. This approach then somehow fuses both materialism and idealism. It takes into account that mass-energy and consciousness are dependent with each other in affirming concrete things. However, this kind of thinking presupposes that physical existence is not enough; and at the same time, something cannot be just a product of the mind. Moreover, when you put the whole universe as purely accidental, it then implied that nothing can in fact be certain and that laws are impossible. Further, it

seems like it just added something to the Hume-Edwards approach; but like the latter, it did not really answer the question why not nothing? The answer that everything is purely accidental still needs further discussions and refining. Therefore, this is just another approach to the riddle of existence, and it remains as such i.e. it still does not solve the problem/question. APPLICATION TO THE UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES BAGUIO HUMAN ETHICS COMMITTEE FOR ETHICAL APPROVAL OF A RESEARCH OR TEACHING PROPOSAL INVOLVING HUMAN PARTICIPANTS

PLEASE read carefully the important notes on the last page of this form. Provide a response to each question: failure to do so may delay the consideration of your application. 1. University of the Philippines faculty responsible for the project: Prof. Leticia Tolentino 2. Department: History and Philosophy 3. Contact details of the faculty responsible: +639165579360 4. Title of the project: Mystifying Tapey and Gin: Ethnohistory and Philosophy of the Drinking Culture of Southern Kankanaeys 5. Brief description in lay terms of the purpose of the project: Please give a brief summary (approx. 200 words)of the nature of the proposal: The purpose of this project is to determine the changes and continuities in the drinking culture of Southern Kankanaeys in a bipartite time series before the introduction of gin, and after the introduction of gin to the said ethnic group. Both written and oral documents shall be used. The latter shall be done through key informant interviews using semi-structured questioning, and survey. The following shall be identified: a) what, where, when, how, and how much do the respondent drink; b) the drinking situation solitary or communal (with whom); c) aim of the drinking session inebriation or not; d) topics or issues discussed during the drinking event; and e) women participation and acceptance in the drinking act. From these data that will be gathered, it shall be analyzed to reveal the philosophy that is embedded in the culture. Thus, not only will the historical facts be disclosed but the researcher shall also makes sense and sense why they make sense to the subject the Southern Kankanaeys.

6. Indicate type of the project and names of other investigators and students: The research is explanatory in essence and shall use both qualitative and quantitative methods to gather data. The sole researcher is Sharine Joy A. Langato. 7. Is this a repeated class teaching activity? No 8. Intended start date of the project: March 17, 2012 Projected end date of project: April 9, 2012 9. Funding of project. Internal by the researcher herself. 10. Aim and description of the project: The study is an explanatory research which aims to a) identify the transitions and continuities of Southern Kankanaey traditions in their drinking culture by mapping out how they drink before and after the commercial gin was introduced to them; b) disclose the philosophy of their drinking culture which shall appear naturally when gathering data for the historical comparison; and c) mystify or encourage interest on the drinking culture of Igorots as a subject of study especially for those who are into social history. 11. Researcher or instructor experience and qualifications in this research area: The researcher is currently finishing her BA Social Science major in History, minor in Philosophy degree at the University of the Philippines-Baguio, and is a Southern Kankanaey herself. 12. Participants 12(a) Population from which participants are drawn: Southern Kankanaeys in Benguet and Baguio area only. 12(b) Specify inclusion and exclusion criteria: The participants for this study will only be those who are from the said ethno-linguistic group in terms selfdetermination, blood relations, and exposure to the community, 12(c) Number of participants: ( where a sample size calculation is appropriate i.e. for quantitative research, it should be provided) There shall be 5 key informants for the interview, while there will be 100 survey participants. 12(d) Age rank of participants:

For the interview, the participants shall be elders who are highly respected in the community whose age shall be above 60 years old. On the other hand, those who shall participate in the survey will be of different ages ranging from 18 years old and above. 12(e) Method of recruitment: Participants shall be recruited through recommendations relatives and peers of the researcher. 12(f) Please specify any payment or reward to be offered: None. 13. Methods and Procedures: The written sources shall be gathered from academic journals, books, and other educational materials from the University of the Philippines-Baguio Main Library and the Provincial Library of Benguet. The key-informant interviews shall be conducted in a semi-structured questioning technique with the use of note-taking, audio recording, and video recording; while the survey shall be given directly to participants and will be retrieved by the researcher herself. 14. Compliance with the Code of Ethics for Filipino Social Scientists imposes strict requirements concerning the collection, use and disclosure of personal information. These questions allow the Committee to assess compliance. 14(a) Are you collecting personal information directly from the individual concerned? Yes. 14(b) If you are collecting personal information directly from the individual concerned, specify the steps taken to make participants aware of the following points: (you should make participants aware of these points in an Information Sheet for Participants; a suggested template is attached): the fact that you are collecting the information the purpose for which you are collecting the information and the uses you propose to make it who will receive the information the consequences, if any, of not supplying the information the individuals rights of access to and correction of personal information: These points will be covered in an information sheet and reinforced orally by the researcher during the research process.

14 (c) Does the research or teaching project involve any form of deception? No. 14(d) Please outline your storage and security procedures to guard against unauthorized access, use or disclosure and how long you propose to keep personal information: Notes, audio recording, and video recording shall be kept by the researcher in a safe storage facility wherein only she can access it. After the thesis is completed, these files shall be deleted immediately.

14 (e) Please explain how you will ensure that the personal information you collect is accurate, up to date, complete, relevant and not misleading: Personal information that will be collected will be validated and compared with other notes that will be gathered during the course of the study. Proper labeling and organizing shall also be done so as not to misplace or make the data in any way susceptible for discredit.

14 (f) Who will have access to personal information and in what form do you intend to do this? Only the researcher shall have access to personal information that will be gathered as no data shall be shared until the project is finished, except for her adviser. 14 (g) Do you intent to publish any personal information and in what form do you intend to do this? Yes, the researcher admits her intention of publishing these personal information in the form of essays and/or as references for future studies. 14 (h) Do you propose to collect information on ethnicity? Yes. 15. Potential problems: Please give details of any ethical issues which were identified during the consideration of the personal and the way in which these issues were dealt with or resolved: Anonymity is a potential problem that may arise in this project mentioning explicitly the name of the key informants and participants for the survey. To resolve this, the informed consent shall mention that they can opt to be unnamed in the writing of the study. 16. Informed consent (provide a description on how you are going to get the participants informed consent): 17. Fast-Track procedure (In exceptional and unexpected circumstances, and where the research needs to commence before the next monthly meeting of the University of the Philippines Baguio Human Ethics Committee, a researcher may request that the application be considered under the fast-track provisions).

Do you request fast-track consideration? No. 18. Other committees 19. Applicants ______________________________________________ Date: ____________________________________________ 20. Departmental approval: I have read this application and believe it to be scientifically and ethically sound. I approve the research design. The Research proposed in this application is compatible with the University of the Philippines Baguio policies and I give my consent for the application to be forwarded to the University of the Philippines Baguio Human Ethics Committee with my recommendation that it be approved. Signature of Supervisor:_________________________________________ Date: _____________________________________________ Signature of Department _________________________________________ Date: _____________________________________________ Head: Faculty signature:

March 15, 2012 Mystifying Tapey and Gin: The Ethnohistory and Philosophy of the Drinking Culture of the Southern Kankanaeys

INFORMATION SHEET FOR [PARTICIPANTS or PARENTS/GUARDIANS, ETC.] Thank you for showing an interest in this project. Please read this information sheet carefully before deciding whether or not to participate. If you decide to participate, we thank you. If you decide not to take part there will be no disadvantage to you of any kind and we thank you for considering our request. What is the aim of the project: This study aims to a) identify the changes and continuities in the drinking culture of Southern Kankanaeys through two time series before and after the introduction of gin in the community; b) reveal the philosophy behind the drinking culture, which is

hypothesized to be realized naturally after the historical data are gathered; and c) mystify or encourage more interest on the drinking culture of other Igorots. What type of participants are being sought? For the key-informant interviews, elders who are well respected and have relative high status in the community shall be asked to take part in the project. While on the survey, participants will be from 18 years old and above, and shall be those who recognize that they are part of the said ethno-linguistic group, and has been part or in contact with the community. What will participants be asked to do? Should you agree to take part on this project, whether as a key informant or in answering the survey questionnaire, you will be asked to divulge personal information and opinions on the subject matter as it is the essence of the project. Since the questioning technique is semi-structured, there are some unexpected questions that may come out depending on the progress of the interview. These may cause some discomfort for you and you may not answer the question and/or you may even withdraw your participation. Please be aware that you may decide not to take part in the project without any disadvantage to yourself of any kind. Can participants change their mind and withdraw from the project? You may withdraw from participation in the project at any time and without any disadvantage to yourself of any kind. What data or information will be collected and what use will be made of it? This project involves an open questioning where the precise nature of the questions which will be asked have not been determined in advance, but will depend on the way in which the interview develops. Consequently, although the University of the Philippines Baguio Ethics Committee is aware of the general areas to be explored in the interview, the Committee has not been able to review the precise questions to be used. In the event that the line of questioning does develop in such a way that you feel hesitant or uncomfortable you are reminded of your right to decline to answer any particular question(s) and also you may withdraw from the project at any stage without any disadvantage to yourself of any kind.

What if participants have any questions?

If you have any questions about our project, either now or in the future, please feel free to contact either: Sharine Joy A. Langato Student Researcher or Prof. Leticia Tolentino Adviser/Teacher

Department of History and Philosophy College of Social Sciences University Telephone Number:

Department of History and Philosophy College of Social Sciences

This study has been approved by the University of the Philippines Baguio Human Ethics Committee. If you have any concerns about ethical conduct of the research you may contact the Committee through the Human Ethics Committee Administrator (ph +63 74 4422427). Any issues you raise will be treated in confidence and investigated and you will be informed of the outcome.

MYSTIFYING TAPEY AND GIN: THE ETHNOHISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY OF THE DRINKING CULTURE OF SOUTHERN KANKANAEYS CONSENT FORM FOR [PARTICIPANTS or PARENTS/GUARDIANS, ETC] I have read the Information Sheet concerning this project and understand what it is about. All my questions have been answered to my satisfaction. I understand that I am free to request further information at any stage. I know that: -

1. my participation in the project is entirely voluntary; 2. I am free to withdraw from the project at any time without any disadvantage; 3. the data [video-tapes/audio-tapes] will be destroyed at the conclusion of the project but any raw data on which the results of the project depend will be retained in a secure storage for five years, after which it will be destroyed; 4. I am aware that there is an open-questioning in the course of this research wherein some of the questions which may be asked are not predetermined in advance and that it will only be defined as the interview progresses; 5. I am aware that some of the questions are very personal and may cause discomfort on my part; 6. the results of the project may be published and available in the library but every attempt will be made to preserve my anonymity. I agree to take part of this project: ________________________________________ __________________ Signature of Participant Date

This project has been reviewed and approved by University of the PhilippinesBaguio Human Ethics Committee. It also involves an open-questioning technique wherein there is a possibility that some of the questions are not predetermined and will depend on the development of the interview process. In any case that the interview questions makes me feel hesitant to answer or uncomfortable about it, I can refuse to answer any particular question(s) or withdraw from the project without incurring any disadvantage of any kind.