When we talk about whether something is real or a forgery, I don't think we really care what it is composed of, we care about its provenance. The composition is really just a shortcut often used to help us identify obviously fake provenance; if something is not composed of the same stuff as the real thing, well then we can disqualify it from being real. I don't think anyone should suppose that identical composition is sufficient to guarantee real provenance though.For perfect forgery detection, I think you need a complete and unimpeachable record of where each bill has been at each moment of its existence. The current physical properties of the item are just not enough. Obviously that is infeasible, though I guess crypto-currencies basically do that.
No comments yet.