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That is similar to have e.g. gold coins as currency. That is inefficient because it is hard to create enough of the currency for the economy to function optimal

That is similar to have e.g. gold coins as currency. That is inefficient because it is hard to create enough of the currency for the economy to function optimally. It is also quite expensive.

r00fus 9y ago
Not only that, it's relatively easy to counterfeit - a modern currency note is probably harder to counterfeit (easier to validate) than a gold coin.
- petters 9y ago
  Yes, tungsten has a density surprisingly similar to gold. The original example in the grandparent comment would be expensive to counterfeit, though.
- logfromblammo 9y ago
  I wouldn't say that it's easy. You at least need some tungsten, uranium-238, rhenium, platinum, iridium, osmium, or chengdeite (Ir3Fe) most of which are nearly as expensive to obtain as actual gold. Any other material that is denser is probably also radioactive, and only available from nuclear fission reactors. Os 22.59 kg/L $13k/kg $294k/L Ir 22.56 kg/L $22k/kg $496k/L Pt 21.45 kg/L $29k/kg $622k/L Re 21.02 kg/L $69k/kg $1450k/L Au 19.30 kg/L $40k/kg $772k/L W 19.25 kg/L $50/kg $960/L U 19.1 kg/L $150/kg $2900/L The obvious choice for counterfeiters would be tungsten. A gold bar that has been hollowed out and filled it with tungsten is detectable with ultrasound. Counterfeit tungsten coins with known dimensions can be detected by measuring electrical resistance, or by doing a "ring" test, which is striking the coin with a hard object and listening to the sound it makes. The difference between the sound of a gold coin and a tungsten fake is clearer than the difference between a genuine B20 bell-bronze crash cymbal and a cymbal made from cheap brass. The gold coin will ring, while the tungsten coin will barely sustain a dull thunk. The other noble metals are available in extremely limited supply, and usually comparable in value to gold or platinum anyway. Devices that test for the density of gold coins are already cheap and widely available. Using a Fisch device and dropping the coin onto a countertop is just as easy as using the counterfeit detector marker, checking the watermark and color-shift inks, and looking at the security strip under a UV light.

That is similar to have e.g. gold coins as currency. That is inefficient because it is hard to create enough of the currency for the economy to function optimally. It is also quite expensive.

r00fus 9y ago

Not only that, it's relatively easy to counterfeit - a modern currency note is probably harder to counterfeit (easier to validate) than a gold coin.

petters 9y ago
Yes, tungsten has a density surprisingly similar to gold. The original example in the grandparent comment would be expensive to counterfeit, though.
logfromblammo 9y ago
I wouldn't say that it's easy. You at least need some tungsten, uranium-238, rhenium, platinum, iridium, osmium, or chengdeite (Ir3Fe) most of which are nearly as expensive to obtain as actual gold. Any other material that is denser is probably also radioactive, and only available from nuclear fission reactors. Os 22.59 kg/L $13k/kg $294k/L Ir 22.56 kg/L $22k/kg $496k/L Pt 21.45 kg/L $29k/kg $622k/L Re 21.02 kg/L $69k/kg $1450k/L Au 19.30 kg/L $40k/kg $772k/L W 19.25 kg/L $50/kg $960/L U 19.1 kg/L $150/kg $2900/L The obvious choice for counterfeiters would be tungsten. A gold bar that has been hollowed out and filled it with tungsten is detectable with ultrasound. Counterfeit tungsten coins with known dimensions can be detected by measuring electrical resistance, or by doing a "ring" test, which is striking the coin with a hard object and listening to the sound it makes. The difference between the sound of a gold coin and a tungsten fake is clearer than the difference between a genuine B20 bell-bronze crash cymbal and a cymbal made from cheap brass. The gold coin will ring, while the tungsten coin will barely sustain a dull thunk. The other noble metals are available in extremely limited supply, and usually comparable in value to gold or platinum anyway. Devices that test for the density of gold coins are already cheap and widely available. Using a Fisch device and dropping the coin onto a countertop is just as easy as using the counterfeit detector marker, checking the watermark and color-shift inks, and looking at the security strip under a UV light.