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"It's hard to tell stories about critters that are not human. John W. Campbell tried it, in "Twilight," and everybody says it's a wonderful story, and nobody ever reads it twice."
- Jerry Pournelle
 |
| Bugged Money | ||
| American cash with embedded listening devices. |
It's fun to turn around the prevailing standards; imagine American money unusable outside the U.S. However, I note with some dismay that the familiar "greenback" is apparently going to change whether we like it or not.
| They always played poker with European cash. There was American cash around, flimsy plastic stuff, but most people wouldn't take American cash anymore. It was hard to take American cash seriously when it was no longer convertible outside U.S. borders. Besides, all the bigger bills were bugged. |
| From Distraction,
by Bruce Sterling. Published by Bantam Spectra in 1998 Additional resources -
|
Sure, money talks - to Uncle Sam. We'll sneak right up on all those bad guys who use large bills! They won't suspect a thing! This is exactly the sort of "behind the curve" thinking that we would expect from the big bureaucracies of our national government.
American currency is not yet bugged, but it does have a special plastic security thread implanted in the bill. Hold a $20 bill up to the light and look for the plastic strip embedded in the paper; it runs vertically up one side of the note. The words "USA TWENTY" and a small flag are visible along the thread from both sides of the note; the security thread glows green under ultraviolet light.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority prints bills with a metallic thread; it might be easier to detect a large quantity of these threads at a security station.
Take a look at a kind of money that cannot be counterfeited - truffle skins - genetically unique money from The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldrytch by Philip K. Dick.
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Additional
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and Technology from Distraction
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and Technology by Bruce Sterling
Tech news articles related to Distraction
Tech news articles related to works by Bruce Sterling
Bugged Money-related
news articles:
- Shuffle Master Bets On RFID Poker Chips
- Canadian Coins Are Bugged Money
- RFID 'Powder' - World's Smallest RFID Tag
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'The wings were at full spread-rest, their delicate metal interleavings extended.'
'A record that wouldn't get lost and couldn't be destroyed.'
'LET ME TELL YOU HOW MUCH I'VE COME TO HATE YOU SINCE I BEGAN TO LIVE.'
'What he got was indeed a kiss. It was disconcerting. No kissing lips were visible.'
'I shall introduce myself. I am R. Daneel Olivaw... I am a robot. Were you not told?'
