<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><xml><records><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">De Winter, Jan</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">A Pragmatic Account of Functions</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Ghent University, Ghent</style></secondary-title></titles><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2010</style></year></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">http://logica.ugent.be/centrum/preprints/De_Winter_-_Functional_Explanation__DRAFT_24_.pdf</style></url></web-urls></urls><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;In this article, a pluralism of function concepts is defended on the basis of pragmatic considerations. It is shown that we use functional statements for a variety of explanatory purposes, and that each explanatory purpose asks for a specific notion of function. More specifically, I argue that the meaning of the statement the function of x is to  depends on the explanation-seeking question that this statement is supposed to answer, and that we cannot construct one ultimate notion of function that is appropriate in every explanatory context. Several explanation-seeking questions are explicated, as well as the function concepts that can be used to answer them, resulting in a pragmatic framework for function concepts. This framework is applied to both the technical and the biological domain.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract></record></records></xml>