WHAT BIOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS ARE AND WHY THEY MATTER Thebiologicalfunctionsdebateisaperennialtopicinthephilosophy of science. In the first full-length account of the nature and import- anceofbiologicalfunctionsformanyyears,JustinGarsonpresentsan innovative new theory, the “generalized selected effects theory of function,”whichseamlesslyintegratesevolutionaryanddevelopmen- talperspectivesonbiologicalfunctions.Hedevelopstheimplications of the theory for contemporary debates in the philosophy of mind, the philosophy of medicine and psychiatry, the philosophy of biol- ogy, and biology itself, addressing issues ranging from the nature of mental representation to our understanding of the function of the human genome. Clear, jargon-free, and engagingly written, with accessibleexamplesandexplanatorydiagramstoillustratethediscus- sion,hisbookwillbehighlyvaluableforreadersacrossphilosophical and scientificdisciplines.   is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Hunter College of the City University of New York. He is the author of The Biological Mind: A Philosophical Introduction () and ACritical Overview ofBiologicalFunctions (). WHAT BIOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS ARE AND WHY THEY MATTER JUSTIN GARSON HunterCollege,CityUniversityofNewYork UniversityPrintingHouse,Cambridge,UnitedKingdom OneLibertyPlaza,thFloor,NewYork,,USA WilliamstownRoad,PortMelbourne,,Australia –,rdFloor,Plot,SplendorForum,JasolaDistrictCentre,NewDelhi–,India AnsonRoad,#–/,Singapore CambridgeUniversityPressispartoftheUniversityofCambridge. ItfurtherstheUniversity’smissionbydisseminatingknowledgeinthepursuitof education,learning,andresearchatthehighestinternationallevelsofexcellence. www.cambridge.org Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/ :./ ©JustinGarson Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements, noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithoutthewritten permissionofCambridgeUniversityPress. Firstpublished: PrintedandboundinGreatBritainbyClaysLtd,ElcografS.p.A. AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary. LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData :Garson,Justin,author. :Whatbiologicalfunctionsareandwhytheymatter/JustinGarson, HunterCollege,CityUniversityofNewYork. :Cambridge,UnitedKingdom;NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress,.| Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex. :|(hardback:alk.paper)| (paperback:alk.paper) ::Biology–Philosophy.|Phenomenologicalbiology. :.|.– LCrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/ ----Hardback CambridgeUniversityPresshasnoresponsibilityforthepersistenceoraccuracy ofURLsforexternalorthird-partyinternetwebsitesreferredtointhispublication anddoesnotguaranteethatanycontentonsuchwebsitesis,orwillremain, accurateorappropriate. For Elias: Creative, inquisitive, and funny. I love you. Contents List of Figures page x Acknowledgments xii Introduction       The Strangeness of Functions  . FunctionsandExplanations  . BackwardsCausation  . TheismandFictionalism  . BeingThere  . RulesoftheGame   Function and Selection  . TheTraditionalSelectedEffectsTheory  . Mutation,Drift,Design  . CriticismsoftheTraditionalSelectedEffectsTheory   Feedback and Functions  . Forward-LookingFunctions  . InvokingtheWrongHistory  . OrganizationalFunctions  . WeakEtiologicalFunctions       An Explosion of Selection Processes  . TheBreadthofSelection  . FunctionsandAntibodySelection  . IsLearningaSelectionProcess?  vii viii Contents  Selection and Construction  . HowtoBuildaBrain  . SelectionandConstruction  . WaroftheSynapses  . TheFunctionofSelection  . HowtheBrainMakesFunctions   A Generalized Selected Effects Theory of Function  . TheTheory  . SixProblemsforGSE  . FunctionsandPopulations  . AHarderLiberalityProblem   Proper Functions Are Proximal Functions  . WhatFunctionIndeterminacyIsandWhyItMatters  . DistalandProximalFunctions  . AnObjectiontoProximalFunctions  . FunctionsandFunctionalAnalysis  . FunctionsandMechanisticExplanation   When Functions Go Wrong  . ConstitutionandCircumstance  . NormalEnvironmentandSelectiveEnvironment  . CantheBiostatisticalTheoryExplainDysfunction?       Function Pluralism  . SelectedEffectsandCausalRoles  . SE-DisciplinesandCR-Disciplines?   What Are Mechanisms?  . TheFunctionalSenseofMechanism  . TwoSensesof“Mechanism”  . ConvergenceandDivergence  . HowMechanismsBreak  . HowtoExplainDisease  . IsNaturalSelectionaMechanism?   What Are Mental Disorders?  . MentalDisordersandBiologicalDysfunctions  . MismatchorDysfunction?  . DevelopmentalMismatches  . GeneralizedSelectionProcessesandMentalDisorders  . ObjectionsandReplies 