naa a22 4500 510724035 CHVBK 20180411082928.0 cr unu---uuuuu 180411e20130601xx s 000 0 eng 10.1007/s13347-012-0096-1 doi (NATIONALLICENCE)springer-10.1007/s13347-012-0096-1 The Conceptual Elusiveness of Engineering Functions [Elektronische Daten] A Philosophical Analysis [Pieter Vermaas, Dingmar van Eck, Peter Kroes] In this paper, we describe the conceptual elusiveness of the notion of function as used in engineering practice. We argue that it should be accepted as an ambiguous notion, and then review philosophical argumentations in which engineering functions occur in order to identify the consequences of this ambiguity. Function is a key notion in engineering, yet is used by engineers systematically in a variety of meanings. First, we demonstrate that this ambiguous use is rational for engineers by considering the role of functions in design methods and by analysing the ambiguity in terms of Kuhn's notion of methodological incommensurability. Second, we discuss ontological and mereological analyses of engineering functions and describe a proof that subfunctions cannot formally be taken as parts of the functions they decompose. Engineering functions figure sometimes in philosophical work and are then typically taken as having an unambiguous, well-defined meaning. Finally, we therefore revisit work in philosophy of technology on the dual nature of technical artefacts, in philosophy of science on functional and mechanistic explanations, and in philosophy of biology on biological functions, and explore the consequences of the fact that engineering function is an ambiguous notion. It is argued that one of these consequences may be that also the notion of biological function has an ambiguous meaning. Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht, 2012 Engineering functions nationallicence Functional decomposition nationallicence Functional part-whole relations nationallicence Dual nature of technical artefacts nationallicence Mechanistic explanations nationallicence Biological functions nationallicence Vermaas Pieter Department of Philosophy, Delft University of Technology, Delft, Netherlands aut van Eck Dingmar Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands aut Kroes Peter Department of Philosophy, Delft University of Technology, Delft, Netherlands aut Philosophy & Technology Springer Netherlands 26/2(2013-06-01), 159-185 2210-5433 26:2<159 2013 26 13347 https://doi.org/10.1007/s13347-012-0096-1 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI 1 research-article jats NATIONALLICENCE 856 40 https://doi.org/10.1007/s13347-012-0096-1 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Vermaas Pieter Department of Philosophy, Delft University of Technology, Delft, Netherlands aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- van Eck Dingmar Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Kroes Peter Department of Philosophy, Delft University of Technology, Delft, Netherlands aut NATIONALLICENCE 773 0- Philosophy & Technology Springer Netherlands 26/2(2013-06-01), 159-185 2210-5433 26:2<159 2013 26 13347 Metadata rights reserved Springer special CC-BY-NC licence nationallicence BK010053 XK010053 XK010000 NATIONALLICENCE NATIONALLICENCE NL-springer