Categories: Alternative conceptions, Comparisons
A simile (to a historical scientific notion) used in a scientist's writing:
"…we must recognise that there are times when, on the heels of a chance discovery or the development of an important new technique, magnificent scientific discoveries occur one after another as if by spontaneous generation."
Santiago Ramón y Cajal (1999). Advice for a Young Investigator. The MIT Press. (Translation of 4th Spanish Edition, 1916)
Read about examples of science similes
Spontaneous generation was long a respectable explanation for the original of 'lower' organisms like flies and worms which were not thought to need parents.
