Trace the Information: Did this Russian chess robot break its opponent’s finger?
SKILL: Trace the Information
DIFFICULTY: Simple
SUBJECT(S): General
Posted: October 25, 2022
In this example students will use the click through skill to get closer to the original source of this information, find the claim is true, and learn additional context
About the Example
Chess is a complex game. It requires players to strategize, think ahead, and anticipate their opponent’s moves while at the same time planning their own. What chess is not, is a contact sport (well, not always, at least). This article, however, claims that a chess robot in Russia acted in a way that clearly violated the rules, and broke the finger of its 7 year-old opponent.
The article describes an incident at the Moscow Chess Open, and claims that a chess robot became “flustered” after its opponent, 7 year-old Christoper, made a quick move. The website hosting the article is “allthatsinteresting.com”, which is not a recognizably reliable source, and does not have a Wikipedia page.
The article does, however, reference a news article from CNN. By clicking through the link we are taken to the CNN article, which confirms the story. It also confirms that the incident was an accident, caused by the young chess player failing to wait his turn. A lesson for us all.
Activities
- Show students the allthatsinteresting article and review the claim being made. Do they think it sounds like a plausible story?
- Have students find the CNN article by clicking through the link.
- Are there any significant differences between the way that the websites report the story? Ask students to take note of differences they found, and why they could affect how they interpret the story.
Related Resources
- LESSON: Verification Skills Lesson 4: Trace the Information
- VIDEO: Trace the Information (1:54 minutes)
- VIDEO: Skill: Click Through and Find (6:05 minutes)