This is a "teaser" to raise awareness and introduce students to the problem of credibility in the media.

The context is the Renaissance--the Age of Wonder--shortly after the invention of the printing press and the proliferation of encyclopedic volumes of exotic animals and "monstrous" humans, often with little concern about the credibility of the reports. Here, we view images of various "fantastic beasts" -- some real, some not. Can you identify the difference? Either you already know the answer or (without knowing the source of the information) you are likely clueless, . That's the problem! We need to think about mediated knowledge and the challenge of reliability of communication.

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Instructor's Narrative

Allchin, D. 2020. The credibility game. American Biology Teacher.

Background reading:

Allchin, D. 2007.Monsters and marvels. American Biology Teacher, 69(Nov.-Dec.): 565-568.