An example of metphor used in discussing science:
"Leibniz himself often betrayed an agnosticism about imaginary numbers that was generally alien to him and contrary to the spirit of his philosophy; for he once designated them as an extraordinary hybrid, 'an amphibian between being and nonbeing'."
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz quoted by Ernst Cassirer
Cassirer, E. (1950/1978). The Problem of Knowledge. Philosophy, Science, and History since Hegel (W. H. Woglom & C. W. Hendel, Trans.). Yale University Press.
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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.