Name:
"a word or phrase that constitutes the distinctive designation of a
person or thing"

My
Dad taught my 7th grade math class. For some odd reason, I remember an exercise
outlined in his instructor’s book to teach about symbolic representation: A
student was to come forward and write his name on the chalkboard. What is the
name on the chalkboard? Is it the same as the student? No, the name is just
a symbol that represents the student. If the name is written twice, do we get
two students? No. When the name is erased, does the student cease to exist?
We hope not!

So, what kind of names are given to individuals?

Each time one of our children was born, we filled out a form specifying the
child’s name, including:

• Given Name(s)
• Surname

This act of assigning the name for a child’s birth certificate establishes
the official "distinctive designation" for the child. To change this
official name requires a legal process.

"Unofficial names" come naturally, or may be assigned or assumed
during the course of one’s life:

• Relationship terms (e.g. Dad, Mom, Grampa)
• Terms of endearment (e.g. Honey, Deary)
• Nicknames
• Aliases
• Pseudonymns
• Stage names
• Screen names

Titles are modifiers to names:

• President
• Mr./Ms./Mrs.
• Bishop
• Doctor
• The Honorable

Honorary names

• Your honor
• Your excellency

Other names include special codes, numbers or names assigned for convenience
in interacting with a person:

• Social security number
• Student ID
• Employee ID
• Prison ID
• Customer ID
• Drivers license number
• Subscriber ID
• User ID
• Password
• iName

So, what is a name? A symbol? Yes. But it often represents much more. Every
name has a story. My surname represents a legacy of courageous pioneers who
braved unbelievable odds to migrate across the great plains to establish an
honorable existence in the hostile mountains of the West. My first name is the
same as my great grandfather, whose dad wasn’t quite a pioneer because he came
west by rail. My middle initial is a compromise between a mother who wished
to give me a middle name and a father who didn’t like middle names! My initials,
MGD, were
mine before Miller Brewing misappropriated them!

[Back to the Identity Map]

Tags: Identity
Digital Identity
Identity Management
Identity Map

Today we gathered at the airport to bid farewell to our son Eric, who is embarking
on a two year mission
for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
in Mongolia.
After two months of intensive study in the Mongolian
language, he will arrive in Mongolia in late January, 2006.

Ulaanbaatar,
Mongolia’s capital city, is said to be the coldest national capital in the world.
We are looking forward to seeing pictures of Eric, who grew up in the Arizona
desert, bundled up against the sub-zero temperatures he’ll experience in the
Mongolian winter!

In contrast to the harsh climate, we understand that the Mongolian people are
warm and friendly. Eric is looking forward to living and working among these
good people during his mission.

Eric has worked hard to earn the funds to support his voluntary missionary
work and to prepare himself for this service. We are thrilled at the prospects
this new chapter in his life will bring, and are humbled that he would choose
to dedicate two years of his young life to serve as an ambassador of the Lord
Jesus Christ.

Godspeed, my son!

Tags: Mission
Church
Jesus Christ
Mongolia
Ulaanbaatar

Characteristic:
"a distinguishing trait, quality, or property"

When a new baby is born, what are the characteristics everyone wants to know?
Gender, length, weight and hair color. At least these stats are what my wife
always asks, even if I didn’t bother to ask.

It is apparent that each person is born with or develops a wide range of characteristics.
It is interesting to note that:

• Some characteristics never change (e.g. DNA, Fingerprints)
• Some charateristics change naturally (e.g. Height, Weight)
• Some characteristics may be modified often (e.g. hair color)
• Some charateristics are voluntarily added (e.g. tattoos)
• Some charateristics are easily measured (e.g. weight) while others are difficult
  to measure (e.g spiritual health)

I’m sure that many methods to categorize human characteristics have been developed
over the years. Here is my somewhat uneducated set of categories with examples
of attributes in each category:

Inherent characteristics (we’re born this way)

• Gender
• DNA
• Fingerprint
• Footprint
• Age

Body features (my kids really kid me about my big nose)

• Height
• Weight
• Hand geometry
• Eye color
• Hair pattern
• Shape

Identifiable characteristics

• Birthmarks
• Scars
• Wrinkles
• Hair patterns

Transitory modifications (changes tend to return to a natural
state)

• Hair color
• Hair length
• Fingernail/toe nail length

Persistent modifications (changes tend to remain in place)

• Tattoos
• Surgical changes
• Piercings

Psychological characteristics

• Personality
• Temperment
• Intelligence

Sensory characteristics

• Sight
• Smell
• Touch
• Taste
• Hearing
• Faith

Health characteristics

• Physical
• Mental
• Emotional
• Social
• Spiritual

Auditory characteristics

• Pitch
• Power
• Clarity

I’ve probably missed some important characteristics. A person is a complex
being. And I’m just an Identity guy.

[Back to the Identity Map]

Tags: Identity
Digital Identity
Identity Management
Identity Map

Core:
"The basic or most important part; the essence"

One of the biggest surprises to me in raising our six children is that each
child is unique. Kids just come that way. Each Dixon child entered this world
possessing a unique Core Identity – the essence of who he or she is.
Then, as each child grew, other differentiating attributes became apparent.

We have one daughter who plans meals for her family a month in advance, while
her brother is so disorganized that I’m sure he’d lose his head if it wasn’t
attached. We have social butterflies and mathematical wizards, athletes and
couch potatoes, all growing up under the same roof. (And they’re all great!)

The bedrock premise upon which the Identity Map rests is that each person in
this world is absolutely unique. Unique fingerprints and DNA signatures are
evidence of this fact. At birth, each child enters this world as a unique person,
having inherited a unique physical body with genetic characteristics inherited
from his or her parents. Even identical twins are unique. Their DNA is the same,
but each has different fingerprints.

Some unique characteristics (e.g. DNA signature, footprint) are immediately
measureable at birth. Other observable characteristics, including size and weight,
will quickly change. Names will be given. Locations will vary. Certain relationships
(e.g. mother-daughter) are in place at birth; others will develop as the child
grows. Attributes such as knowledge, experience, roles and reputation, emerge
and expand over time. Each attribute further clarifies the uniqueness of each
individual.

Attempts to mask uniqueness fail to undermine the fact that each person is
unique. George Foreman can name each of his five sons "George," but
each son is different from his siblings. Private schools can a mandate uniform
dress standard, but each student is still inherently unique. Even when one person
tries to assume another’s identity, the thief only steals attributes representing
the core identity, not the identity itself.

Physical Identities or Digital Identities are mere symbolic representations
of Core Identities. The challenge is to make sure a Physical Identity or Digital
Identity is linked to or represents the the correct Core Identity.

[Back to the Identity Map]

Tags: Identity
Digital Identity
Identity Management
Identity Map

Over the past few months, I have been pondering about how to describe Identity
in a way that encompasses how we think about ourselves in the "natural
world" as well as how we represent ourselves in the "digital world."
I asked myself, "How would I describe my own Identity? How would I categorize
the many attributes that uniquely describe my own existence? Out of those ponderings
have emerged the "Identity Map." I offer an introduction today and
will describe the various elements of the Identity Map more completely in days
to come.

I welcome any and all comments.

Core Identity. A fundamental premise undergirding
the Identity Map is that each person is unique. This unique "Core Identity"
can be identified or described by attributes categorized into Names, Characteristics,
Relationships, Roles, Location, Experience, Knowledge and Reputation. Each attribute
adds to the fundamental uniqueness of each individual. Brief descriptions and
examples of each include:

1. 
   Names. I am known by many names. My given name is Mark.
   My surname is Dixon. My i-name is MarkDixon.My social security number is [wouldn’t
   you like to know?]. My kids call me Dad.
2. 
   Characteristics. I have some measureable characteristics
   that don’t change – my DNA signature, my fingerprints. Others change over
   time – height, weight, hair color. Does IQ change? I don’t know.
3. 
   
   Relationships. I have relationships with people, institutions
   and things. I am father to my children, brother to my siblings, husband to
   my wife. I am an employee of Sun Microsystems and an alumnus of Brigham Young
   University. I own a Nikon camera. I love Chinese food. I can’t stand professional
   wrestling.
4. 
   
   Roles. The functions I perform in life are roles: Father,
   husband, Sun Identity Practice Lead, Identity blogger, Church volunteer, registered
   voter.
5. 
   
   Location. When I used to travel every week, I’d tell people
   I claimed home addresses in Mesa, Arizona and United seat 2B. These are descriptors
   of physical locations, relative to different known reference points. However,
   my current location (latitude, longitude, elevation) will vary, depending
   on where I am physically located at any moment in time.
6. Experience. I have experienced many things in the 52+ years
   of my earthly existence. I have been stabbed by a pitchfork, run for a touchdown,
   flown around the world and milked a cow (many times). Each experience adds
   uniqueness to my core identity.
7. Knowledge. During my existence, I have amassed much knowledge,
   some of it shared by many, some of it unique. Both you and I probably know
   the Pythagorean Theorem. You probably don’t know the names of my kids. I hope
   you don’t know my blog password.
8. 
   Reputation. Other people and institutions say things about
   me, some of it good, some of it bad. The credit bureaus say I have a good
   credit rating. The DMV say I’m a so-so insurance risk because I’ve had a couple
   of tickets in the past three years – but they also say I hold a valid drivers
   license. BYU says I hold a BSEE degree. My wife likes me (and that is what
   really counts).

Physical Identity refers to tangible items that represent
identity attributes. Common physical identity items include birth certificates,
drivers licenses, graduations certificates, etc. Each of these symbolically
represents one or more attributes from the categories listed above. Creation
or destruction of a Physical Identity doesn’t alter the core identity attributes
it represents. If my drivers license gets trashed, I still exist. For 4 bucks,
I can get a new one.

Digital Identity refers to symbolic digital representation
of identity attributes. These are normally very small subsets of the entire
Identity. Common digitally-represented items include user ID, password, name,
address, telephone number. Digital identities can be stored, transferred, used
for access system, or stolen (ouch!).

Blended Identity refers to physical items that contain
identity attributes. Smart cards or credit cards with magnetic stripes are examples
of physical identities that contain digital identities.

So, there it is – the Identity Map. I hope this framework proves to be valuable
for discussing the various facets of Identity. Stay tuned for more.

Tags: Identity
Digital Identity
Identity Management
Identity Map

Congratulations,
Sara Gates, on your
entry into the blogosphere! We look forward to your wit, wisdom and valuable
insight into the world of Identity Management.

Tags: Identity
Digital Identity
Identity Management
Sara Gates