ribosome to mRNA is like a bead on a thread 

Categories: Comparisons

An example of metaphor and analogy in popular science writing:

"A ribosome travels down its attached mRNA, a bit like a bead running down a thread (or sometimes like a thread being pulled through a bead)…

the 'ribosomes' – molecular 'work-benches' composed of protein and RNA…"

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 about analogy in science

Read examples of scientific analogies

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.