ABSTRACT
This chapter explores how 'acts of communication' by scientists and science communicators are linked to 'acts of expectation management' via the use of metaphors. It explores the use of breakthrough metaphors during a time when the positive expectations invested in stem cell research were generating immense pressure for scientists to achieve advances in therapeutic cloning. In the case of Woo-Suk Hwang, this kind of intense pressure came directly from the South Korean government, who wanted Korean stem cell research to win the race for a breakthrough and put South Korea on the scientific map. The chapter explains the use of disaster metaphors to create negative expectations and place pressure on governments. It focuses on Richard James at the University of Nottingham, who used images of the apocalypse to scare UK funding agencies into increasing funding for research into the rise of antibiotic resistance and the spread of superbugs such as MRSA.
