Meaning of Capacity
From the Latin capacitas, the capacity is the ability of something to house certain things within a limited framework of some way. For example: “The capacity of the stadium was full in just over an hour”, “We still have two bags to carry, but the trunk no longer has more capacity”, “This jug has a capacity of two liters”, “I think we are about to exhaust the capacity of the deposit ”.
In the field of science, we talk about different types of abilities. The electric capacity is defined as the property of the capacitor (or capacitors) that establishes the link between the voltage difference (potential difference) of the capacitor plates and the electric charge stored therein.
The heat capacity, moreover, is the split between the amount of energy transferred to a system or body in a process and the temperature change recording.
According to DigoPaul, capacity, on the other hand, is the dexterity, ability and suitability that allows a person to successfully complete a task: “He is a man of great ability who deserves an opportunity to run the company”, “The man does not have the sufficient capacity to solve a similar problem “, ” No one questioned your ability, but the truth is that you do not have the experience to solve this. “
Although this term is often confused with ” talent “, it is necessary to clarify the differences between the two, as well as the peculiarities of the latter, which is also often misunderstood. The capacity is understood as the conditions that a person meets to learn and cultivate different fields of knowledge, understood as a series of natural tools, whether they have been used by him or not. As well as in its meaning referring to a container or a pool, it speaks of the space available to accumulate and develop concepts and skills.
It is very common to speak of ability in a general sense, even when the topic of conversation is a particular discipline. And it is that in reality, although it is not incorrect to say that “someone has a great capacity to play the piano”, this concept is broader, and should be used to describe the mental flexibility of a person, how easy it is to cope to a new intellectual challenge, whatever it may be. This is where talent gets confused.
Talent is associated with a particular activity or area of knowledge, although there are different ways of understanding it. The most common is to use it as a synonym for aptitude, referring to that portion of a person’s capacity that specifically serves to internalize a concept or discipline (for example: playing the piano). On the other hand, there are those who consider that talent is the set formed by natural abilities, dedication to learn and improve, and the result obtained after a time of intense work.
Certainly, human beings waste most of our mental capacity, settling for a small percentage, enough to emulate the lives of our elders, while making ourselves believe that we are building our own path. Outside of scientific studies that strive to translate these questions into numbers, it often happens that we discover skills in ourselves that we have never explored before, and as we embark on the adventure of learning and specializing, we get to know each other more, understanding that our limits They are much further away than we thought.
For the law, legal capacity is the ability of a subject to exercise the ownership of obligations and rights in a personal way. The capacity to act, on the other hand, is the legal power that establishes the effectiveness of the actions carried out according to the civil status of the individual.