A moniker is so important for a scientist to communicate with the general audience. He could use either “metaphorical tools” or “rhetorical tools.” But, many audiences convert the figurative speech into a literal sense.
Scientists have been using different types of figures (God, Cosmic religion, Cosmic mystery, Old One, God’s Particle ) to explain the mystery they have encountered. But, it seems that they use the God metaphor frequently.
This article shares my viewpoint.
“…physicists groan when they hear it referred to as the “God particle” in newspapers and elsewhere (and the temptation to repeat it, given science reporters’ desperate need for colorful phrases in an abstract and daunting field, is irresistible). Even when these physicists approve of what you have written about their craft, they grumble that the media are engaging in sensationalism, or worse.”
My guide in all of this, of course, the biggest name-dropper in science, is Albert Einstein, who mentioned God often enough that one could imagine he and the “Old One” had a standing date for coffee or tennis. To wit: “The Lord is subtle, but malicious he is not.”
