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"My father was a master mechanic; I grew up with a screwdriver in one hand and a pair of pliers in the other."
- Frank Herbert
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| Identification Ring | ||
| An apparently ordinary ring, which minutely describes and identifies its wearer. |
| “You will accept the commission?”
pressed Colonel Leamington.
“Yes, yes, of course!” answyed Graham. He studied the letter with a thrill of pride that was not lessened by Wohl’s open envy. To be one of the United States government’s most tried and trusted band! To be one of Uncle Sam’s most privileged operators. He took his ring from Leamington, put it on the third finger of his left hand. It fitted perfectly, and he knew that it must have been prepared in anticipation of his acceptance. He also knew that upon its super-hard iridium inner surface were inscriptions too small to be seen with the naked eye; microscopic data giving his name, height, weight, Bertillon measurements, and fingerprint formulas, as well as his Service number, and a faithful though infinitely small copy of his own signature. This modest ornament was his only badge, his only evidence of authority, its meaning concealed from all but those equipped to read. It was the open sesame to officialdom everywhere. |
| Technovelgy from Sinister Barrier,
by Eric Frank Russell. Published by Unknown in 1939 Additional resources -
|
Compare to the trip-type record from The Houses of Iszm (1954) by Jack Vance and the personal metallic record disk from The Ancient Brain (1929) by A.G. Stangland.
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'You are who we say you are, Dr. Dakin,' Turner said.'
'It's area, and its consequent light-gathering capacity, was many times greater than any rigid mirror...'
'Tell me your torments,' the Padre said, in an elderly voice marked with compassion.
'...a slender-legged tripod surmounted by a spherical body no larger than a football.'
'... making the point that their likenesses, every move they made, were being transmitted.'
'But the stars are only atoms in larger space, and in that larger space the star-atoms could combine to form living matter, thinking matter, couldn't they?'
'...to build up a video picture would require, say, ten million decisions every second. Mike, you're so fast I can't even think about it. But you aren't that fast.'
'The area affected was five hundred kilometres across, and perfectly circular.'
