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Malfunction defended.

Ema Sullivan-Bissett1

  • 1Department of Philosophy, College of Arts and Law, University of Birmingham, ERI Building, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT UK.

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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Biological function accounts must be revised to include malfunction, as argued by Davies. This paper proposes a new historical account with two conditions for functional kinds, allowing for malfunction and addressing Davies's objection.

Keywords:
Generic trait typeSelected functional typeSelected functionsSelected malfunctionWeak etiological malfunction

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Area of Science:

  • Philosophy of Biology
  • Philosophy of Science

Background:

  • Historical accounts of biological function traditionally accommodate malfunction.
  • Paul Sheldon Davies has recently challenged the possibility of malfunction within selected effects and weak etiological accounts.
  • This raises questions about the adequacy of current historical accounts of biological function.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To propose an adjusted historical account of biological function that can accommodate malfunction.
  • To address Paul Sheldon Davies's objection regarding the impossibility of malfunction in certain accounts.
  • To offer a revised framework applicable to existing theories of biological function.

Main Methods:

  • A novel historical account of biological function is proposed.
  • This account introduces two specific conditions for a trait to be considered a member of a functional kind.
  • The conditions are designed to allow for the possibility of malfunction.

Main Results:

  • The proposed account establishes that traits meeting the two conditions belong to a functional kind and can therefore malfunction.
  • This framework provides a basis for understanding and accommodating malfunction within biological functions.
  • The proposed conditions offer a way to resolve Davies's objection.

Conclusions:

  • The proposed historical account successfully accommodates malfunction, thereby addressing Davies's objection.
  • A version of this proposal can be adopted by both selected effects and weak etiological theorists.
  • This suggests a viable path for revising historical accounts of biological function to include malfunction.