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bar-coded fish
From: David Farber <dave () farber net>
Date: Thu, 19 Aug 2004 05:02:32 -0400
Begin forwarded message: From: Rod Van Meter <rdv () tera ics keio ac jp> Date: August 18, 2004 8:54:29 PM EDT To: dave () farber net Subject: bar-coded fish Reply-To: rdv () tera ics keio ac jp Hi Dave, For IP, if you wish... In Japan, it is now common to go to the grocery store, such as a chain attempting to give customers a "small-town grocer" feel, and see small signs above the cucumbers with a photo and short bio of the grower, especially if the produce is nominally organic. We all know it's possible to track your UPS and FedEx packages on the web. Now, those technologies are coming together with cell phones with built-in cameras to allow customers to get more detailed information about the provenance of their fish. A subsidiary of NTT DoCoMo is piloting a web-based system (really, i-mode-based) to show you who caught the fish, and where and when; the data could theoretically extend to the entire shipping chain. A two-dimensional bar code will be printed and affixed to the styrofoam container when the ship reaches port. Customers with the right kind of cell phone (most newer DoCoMo i-mode phones have the capability) can snap a picture of the bar code and will automatically be taken to a web site containing all of the info. All well and good, though there are almost limitless opportunities for forging data or substituting fish, and of course, this will be turned into another advertising medium (the current primary use of these bar codes is in e.g. newspaper ads, though DoCoMo touts them appearing on bus stop time schedules to get you up-to-date info). For the moment, the article (minus the spiffy graphic from the print edition) is online, though the Daily Yomiuri's web site seems not to archive articles indefinitely: http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/newse/20040816wo11.htm (Personally, I would be happier to see a link to a test of mercury levels in a fish from the same batch, though such negative info is unlikely to become available; I worry, but not enough to stop my girls from eating fish, which would be impractical in this country anyway.) --Rod ------------------------------------- You are subscribed as interesting-people () lists elistx com To manage your subscription, go to http://v2.listbox.com/member/?listname=ip Archives at: http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/
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- bar-coded fish David Farber (Aug 19)