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Comment by perihelions | Hacker News Reader

I found technical details about the device:

https://www.isenet.it/product/pharmaseq-products/

It's tiny (500 microns), passive, photocell-powered (you point a laser at it), and encapsulated in an inert SiO2 coating.

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That confirms something I suspected: blockchain adds nothing to this solution, and is present only because of the fad.

I still don't get what it adds over a unique QR code.

A QR code is easy to copy? Im guessing this isn't.

Lol why would it be more difficult with blockchain?

If it is a chip, then maybe. Even more if the chip was like a yubikey with challenge-response (but it isn't).

You can copy it, but there ought to be some record of where the cheese is supposed to be. If it was sold to California but found in New York, something fishy going on. But ya, I guess just making it uncopyable would be simpler I suppose.

Where does it say anything about blockchains in the article and how often do you think about how much you hate them?

From TFA:

"The innovation combines food-safe Casein labels with the p-Chip micro transponder — a blockchain crypto-anchor that creates a digital 'twin' for physical items. This scannable new food tag is smaller than a grain of salt and highly durable, delivering next-generation visibility and traceability."

I, for one, had never heard the term "blockchain crypto-anchor" before.

Wow, they also make sure to throw in “digital twin” even if that makes no sense in this context.

That depends... what if you accept the most basic digital twin being a database entry with the unique id? :P

Fascinating -- https://p-chip.com/solutions/

And the patent -- https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/bf/71/15/70b4303...

Looks like it's the same company (if anyone else was confused like me):

- "...p-Chip acquired PharmaSeq in the fall of 2021"

https://p-chip.com/meet-massimo-baio-long-time-team-member-a...

It looks like the patent covers an integrated on-chip solar cell. I wonder if the output is by on-chip LED or radio, and if they keep that a trade secret or if it is covered by patent also.

Yeah I had the same question. I didn’t see any mentions of radio in the patent, but the product description document [0] does say:

——

Is the radio frequency signal from the p-Chip harmful?

A. No. The radio signal transmitted by p-Chips is so faint that approval from the US Federal Communications Commission or similar agencies is not required. Emissions fall well below FCC radiated emission limits defined in CFR 47, 15.209.

——

The illuminating laser wand does have a radio receiver. More info in this related patent [1], especially at page 21.

[0] https://www.isenet.it/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/PharmaSeq_W...

[1] https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/43/da/03/c648387...

So, what percentage of these crack open during processing, and how poisonous are they without the sio2 casing? What about when they hit the sewer processing plant, and are eventually dumped.

Also, what sort of environmental impact does producing them have?

Hopefully they'll be forced to label products that have these things in them. Otherwise, I'll be switching to fake Parmesan.

If you’re eating the rind you probably already have some more basic health issues — those of a mechanical rather than chemical nature.

I've seen a few recipes where you steep the rinds in a liquid or a sauce to get more flavor.

Parmesan cheese rinds are tossed in soups or broths or used to infuse oils (e.g. olive oil).

Rind on some cheeses is the best bit: Gruyere e.g. In fact I'd buy it by the packet as a snack - like pork scratchings. If I knew anything about cheesemaking I'd make this my side gig.

What makes you think any chip would be harmful to ingest? You could happily eat most chips, if they were small enough, without any negative effects.

There's some hideously toxic metals in certain semiconductors, e.g.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallium_arsenide

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadmium_telluride

I'd expect the mass of these metals that can be used in a 0.5mm chip to be negligible. Still, I don't like the idea of a future where these chips are used in many food items.

I don't suppose anyone has one of these chips? I'd be interested in taking die photos.

I know the company - it's a family business, focused on making great tools for scientists

Interesting that it is injected (how deep) yet can still be powered by a laser.

SiO2 is glass. So it's a micron-sized silicon chip inside a glass capsule.

...under x mm of cheese.

So if I'm the sort of person who eats my cheese rinds, I don't really have anything to worry about here.

Is it digestible, or rather passable in stools with no harm entailed?

My favorite part of Parmesan is the rind

You, sir, are a monster. Best Regards, Italy

Your standards for food should probably be higher than “passable in stools”. Not judging but that seems like a low bar no?

Doesn’t look edible to me.

It is not but it's half a millimeter and inert. I guess that all of us had sand in our mouths and occasionally ingested part of it. Furthermore we shouldn't have that part of the cheese.

The rind is very good for cooking sauces. You pull it out afterwards, but the chip could, of course, fall out into the sauce during cooking.

So if they put electronic sh*t into my food, I do not want to buy that anymore.

Probably it does not need to be declared, so I don't even know I am eating electronics.

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