An example of analogy used in popular science writing:
"So the binding of one oxygen molecule to one subunit of an empty haemoglobin complex greatly encourages the binding of oxygen to the other three available sites. This makes the multi-subunit haemoglobin complex a bit like a four-seater car in which the first person into the car unlocks the door for another three passengers….An opposite effect occurs when loaded haemoglobin reaches a tissue in need of oxygen: the loss of one oxygen molecule from one subunit causes a conformational change in the complex which allows the other three oxygen molecules to be off-loaded much more readily. A suitable analogy to this would be an unstable four-man boat, since, if one man jumps overboard, he may rock the boat sufficiently to make the other three fall out!"
Andrew Scott
Scott, A. (1988). Vital Principles. The molecular mechanisms of life. Basil Blackwell. (Read about this book: Making molecular mechanisms familiar –
A reflection on the pedagogy in Andrew Scott's 'Vital Principles').
Read examples of scientific analogies
