The Truth is Out There (or is it?)

A bit of a 'hypothetical' that a few friends and I were discussing
recently...

You go for a walk in the woods with your digital camera in your backpack.
Suddenly a flying saucer appears overhead - you immediately grab your camera
and fire off a dozen shots before the UFO disappears. When you get home you
connect the card to your computer and find all the shots are perfect! At
last - evidence that aliens are real.

Now you are Agent Mulder. Your job is to prove beyond doubt that the
pictures are genuine. In the days of film that would be relatively easy, but
with digital, assuming the images are still on the card, is it possible to
say definitely that what is there is what was captured by the lens, with no
possibility that the image has been edited? For the sake of the exercise,
let's overlook the possibility of the UFO itself being faked, as happened
regularly with film.

What do you think?

Paul

Paul Bartram wrote:
A bit of a 'hypothetical' that a few friends and I were discussing
recently...

You go for a walk in the woods with your digital camera in your backpack.
Suddenly a flying saucer appears overhead - you immediately grab your
camera
and fire off a dozen shots before the UFO disappears. When you get home
you
connect the card to your computer and find all the shots are perfect! At
last - evidence that aliens are real.

Now you are Agent Mulder. Your job is to prove beyond doubt that the
pictures are genuine. In the days of film that would be relatively easy,
but
with digital, assuming the images are still on the card, is it possible to
say definitely that what is there is what was captured by the lens, with
no
possibility that the image has been edited? For the sake of the exercise,
let's overlook the possibility of the UFO itself being faked, as happened
regularly with film.

What do you think?

Paul

BTW there is a system out there that provides verification for legal use
of digital images.

--
Joseph E. Meehan

26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math

Paul Bartram wrote:
A bit of a 'hypothetical' that a few friends and I were discussing
recently...

You go for a walk in the woods with your digital camera in your backpack.
Suddenly a flying saucer appears overhead - you immediately grab your
camera
and fire off a dozen shots before the UFO disappears. When you get home
you
connect the card to your computer and find all the shots are perfect! At
last - evidence that aliens are real.

Now you are Agent Mulder. Your job is to prove beyond doubt that the
pictures are genuine. In the days of film that would be relatively easy,
but
with digital, assuming the images are still on the card, is it possible to
say definitely that what is there is what was captured by the lens, with
no
possibility that the image has been edited? For the sake of the exercise,
let's overlook the possibility of the UFO itself being faked, as happened
regularly with film.

What do you think?

Paul

BTW there is a system out there that provides verification for legal use
of digital images.

--
Joseph E. Meehan

26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math