A social media post pointing out an erroneous image of a "two-headed shrimp" in a popular science book series on South China Sea marine life has drawn public attention. Screenshots of the book

A social media post pointing out an erroneous image of a "two-headed shrimp" in a popular science book series on South China Sea marine life has drawn public attention. A staff member at the China Agricultural Publishing House was quoted as saying in media reports on Tuesday that the publisher was aware of the issue and was notifying sellers across online platforms to remove the books from sale and recall copies already distributed.

Some readers on China's social media platform Sina Weibo pointed out that the books they purchased contain a preface explicitly stating that the vast majority of the illustrations were generated using AI tools.

A reader noticed an erroneous image of a "two-headed shrimp" in the series, appearing both on the cover and an inside page, titled Penaeus monodon or Giant tiger prawn.

Some readers questioned the illustrations, saying that "it's not that AI can't be utilized, but surely some basic rules should be followed, right?"

On October 27, a staff member at China Agricultural Publishing House was quoted as saying in the media reports that the publisher was aware of the situation.

A representative from the publisher's reader service hotline said the publisher was notifying online retail platforms to remove the books in question from sale and arrange for their recall. 


Global Times