The Problem Discussed in The Ship of Theseus and Possible Solutions

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Mereology: The Ship of Theseus
Part 1
The Ship of Theseus is a thought experiment that questions the identity of an object as it goes through changes such as replacement over time to keep it in a stable condition. The thought experiment is centered on the story of the ship of Theseus. Theseus' ship was preserved in ancient Greece to honor him, and as time went by, parts of the ship were replaced with new ones to preserve the ship. The problem raised and discussed in the Ship of Theseus is whether this ship that has been preserved through gradual replacement of broken or worn out parts with new parts is the original ship of Theseus (Lombrozo et al. 160). Also, if the original parts of the ship are assembled to create the same ship as the original ship, is this ship the original ship?
The problem discussed in the Ship of Theseus is the problem of identity. This thought experiment provokes the reader and makes them question when and whether an object that has gone through changes over time becomes a new object or remains the same object. Both the ship that has been renovated with new parts and the ship made afresh using the original parts appear to be original and not original. In reality, both ships cannot be the original ship, which begs the question of which of the two ships is the original ship (Lombrozo et al. 160). Is the renovated ship the original ship, and if not, when did it become new? Was it after the first part was replaced, or was it after all the parts were replaced? Identity persists through change as long as the change does not involve using completely different materials. In the Ship of Theseus, if the old planks are replaced with new planks made of the same material, then the renovated ship maintains its identity over time.
Part 2
The problem in the Ship of Theseus is considered a puzzle by many scholars and philosophers, and consequently, they have provided solutions to the problem. For instance, in his paper titled "Identity of Artifacts," E.J. Lowe proposes a solution using spatiotemporal continuity to defend his position. Lowe suggests that the renovated ship is the original ship because it has spatiotemporal continuity (Keki 32), meaning that the renovated ship existed at one time (as the original ship) and at a later ti...