Pen pal

The pen is even mightier now. Netherlands' LCI Computer Group and Inter-University Micro Electronics Center of Belgium have developed the SMARTpen. Every forgerer's nightmare, it looks very much an ordinary pen, but inside, a processor can authenticate signatures. The pen measures the angle and acceleration as it crosses paper and then transmits the data to a computer. The signature is compared with the original, making forgeries impossible (Business Week , December 22, 1997).