Proliferative etiological functions in biological systems

This work will examine functional conceptions in biology, and argue that problems arise when etiological accounts of function are applied to traits contained within a biological system. In the first chapter, prominent analyses of functional language will be examined, with a special interest paid to etiological analyses of biological functions. The second chapter will pose a problem for these etiological analyses that arises out of an aspect of functional traits in biological contexts: functional traits are often nested within containing systems, and etiological analyses of function seem to ascribe the functions of the parts of systems to those systems themselves. There is thus a proliferation of functions at a systemic level as the functions of the components contained within a system are ascribed to the systems that contain them. Furthermore, this proliferation seems to ascribe contradictory functions to systems, and makes more confusing the distinction between the “functions in” a system and the “functions of” a system. The final chapter will examine three possible solutions to this problem: one solution will attempt to prevent the ascription of functions to systems by carefully interpreting what it means to “cause” a system, one will attempt to ground functions in actual influences entities have on their own replication and proliferation, and the final one will reframe the etiological analyses of functions as a specific sort of explanatory project in line with dispositional analyses.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Level thesis:degree_level

Masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Philosophy

Grantor dc:publisher

Colorado State University. Libraries

Year dc:date.issued

2015

Authors dc:creator

• Davis, John, author
• Kasser, Jeff, advisor
• McShane, Katie, committee member
• Callahan, Gerald, committee member

• etiological functions
• biological systems
• function

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.

Language dc:language.iso

eng, English

Identifier URI

https://doi.org/10.25675/3.018987

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:mountainscholar.org:10217/167137