But similarity is a symmetric thing, like the relation "close to". So X is similar to Y implies Y is similar to X. And if the biological knowledge is a more recent discovery that the engineering knowledge...
Yes, I agree with the idea, but the sense of "use ... similar to ..." implies intent and temporal order in many contexts. If I use language similar to Ernest Hemingway, am I justified in expressing it in the reverse order?
More realistically, in copyright and patent disputes, saying a person has "used ... (a method) similar to" that of a presumed originator matters a great deal, and a defendant in such an action may well reverse the order of the words in his own defense -- "I didn't use a method similar to Mr. Smith's, he used a method similar to mine." Clearly there's a temporal order implied in this particular context.
> And if the biological knowledge is a more recent discovery that the engineering knowledge...
Good point. One might assume biology is farther along in its grasp of the intellectual terrain than engineering, but that's not necessarily true.
It's only within a cultural context that it seems odd to liken a less famous writer to a more famous one. For an outsider it would be unremarkable and possibly helpful.
I think the feeling about comparing yourself with Hemingway, or Hemingway with yourself (note: comparison does have an asymmetric feeling for me) may arise from the fact that you don't really believe your (hypothetical, putative) writing is similar to Hemingway's on the crucial dimension of quality. So it naturally jars to think of Hemingway's writing defined as similar to it.
The words of the defendant in your example actually read to me more like a Groucho Marx gag than a credible defense, but I'm in Ireland where usage may differ.
Yes, I agree with the idea, but the sense of "use ... similar to ..." implies intent and temporal order in many contexts. If I use language similar to Ernest Hemingway, am I justified in expressing it in the reverse order?
More realistically, in copyright and patent disputes, saying a person has "used ... (a method) similar to" that of a presumed originator matters a great deal, and a defendant in such an action may well reverse the order of the words in his own defense -- "I didn't use a method similar to Mr. Smith's, he used a method similar to mine." Clearly there's a temporal order implied in this particular context.
> And if the biological knowledge is a more recent discovery that the engineering knowledge...
Good point. One might assume biology is farther along in its grasp of the intellectual terrain than engineering, but that's not necessarily true.