endorphins are designed to relieve pain

An example of teleological language, suggesting naturally occurring entities have been designed,

"Our neural pathways are built from past experiences with these 'happy' chemicals that determines what turns them on and our brains are designed to recognise opportunity and anticipate reward. …

Endorphin is a natural opioid in the body and is mostly designed to relieve pain but can also be triggered when you laugh."

Zahra Khan (2024) The chemistry of love, Chemistry World, February 2024.

Presumably, 'designed' is intended metaphorically.

Read about teleology in science

Read examples of teleological (pseudo)explanations for scientific phenomena

Read about types of pseudo-explanations

Examples of teleological statements are included in a document listing a wide range of examples of science analogies, similes, metaphors and the like, drawn from diverse sources, which can be downloaded using this link: 'Creative Comparisons: Making Science Familiar through Language. An illustrative catalogue of figurative comparisons and analogies for science concepts.'

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.