galaxies formed from the break up of great pancakes

Categories: Comparisons

An example of a metaphor used to explain a scientific idea:

"As the HDM [hot dark matter] particles cooled and [sic] slowed down, baryonic matter would be left spread in great pancakes across the Universe, and these would break up as a result of gravitational instability, forming galaxies from the fragments in a 'top-down' process."

John Gribbin (1996) Companion to the Cosmos. (Ed., Mary Gribbin) Weidenfeld & Nicolson.

Read about metaphor in science

Read about examples of science metaphors

Many examples of science metaphors are listed in 'Creative comparisons: Making science familiar through language. An illustrative catalogue of figurative comparisons and analogies for science concepts'. Free Download.

Author: Keith

Former school and college science teacher, teacher educator, research supervisor, and research methods lecturer. Emeritus Professor of Science Education at the University of Cambridge.