Ever wondered what happens when you insert a bill into a vending machine? [Janne] is back with his latest project: reverse engineering a banknote validator. Curious about how these common devices work, he searched for information but found few resources explaining their operation. To learn more, [Janne] explored the security features that protect banknotes from […]
A British journalistic trope involves the phrase “The pound in your pocket”, a derisory reference to the 1960s Prime Minister Harold Wilson’s use of it to try to persuade the public that a proposed currency devaluation wouldn’t affect them. Nearly six decades later not so many Brits carry physical pounds in their pockets as electronic […]
The Bank of England has announced that the new face of the £50 note is to be Alan Turing. This news follows a round of public nominations for a scientist to fill the space, and Turing was in the running with some stiff competition from the likes of Stephen Hawking and Ada, Countess Lovelace. The […]