ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that metaphors that build upon temporal discrepancies between the past and the present are not rare, and that such metaphors may actually function as important carriers of cultural memory and meaning across generations. It describes what a metaphor is, or held to be, by most contemporary scholars. This chapter examines into a selected set of public documents on the Human Genome Project (HGP), cloning and stem cell research, it means by 'temporal discrepancies' in popular metaphors of the biosciences. The chapter aims is to provide concluding remarks on the role and dynamics of temporal metaphors and open up questions for further research. Metaphors as time capsules provide a rich source of data for researchers interested in dynamics of discourses over time, or what Foucault called the archaeology of knowledge. There is need for further research into temporal distances in metaphors, and the ethical and sociological implications of such temporal discrepancies.
