An evolutionary approach to Function.
BACKGROUND
Understanding the distinction between function and role is vexing and difficult. While it appears to be useful, in practice this distinction is hard to apply, particularly within biology.


RESULTS
I take an evolutionary approach, considering a series of examples, to develop and generate definitions for these concepts. I test them in practice against the Ontology for Biomedical Investigations (OBI). Finally, I give an axiomatisation and discuss methods for applying these definitions in practice.


CONCLUSIONS
The definitions in this paper are applicable, formalizing current practice. As such, they make a significant contribution to the use of these concepts within biomedical ontologies.
Lord
Phillip
P
School of Computing Science, Newcastle University, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK. phillip.lord@newcastle.ac.uk.