"Wonder Shows: Performing Science, Magic and Religion in America"

Before the relatively humane science trials of today, quacks of yore were forced to make a case for their latest developments with public spectacle—demonstrating the virtues of hypnosis or the power of electricity on poor pooches or even humans. Professor Fred Nadis (Wonder Shows: Performing Science, Magic, and Religion in America) will present his research on such displays and draw a line to their historical roots in the Renaissance.