Okay, there have been science fiction flights of fancy about implanting humans with integrated circuits and various microchips since the early days of Ian Fleming novels and Star Trek episodes. Most stories involve the moral ethics of such a practice, citing privacy and human rights as being threatened. Well, flights of fancy aside, chips have been implanted in humans and animals for some time now for a variety of reasons.
In Buenos Aires, Club Atletico Tigre, a soccer club, or football club if you must call it so, is considering experimenting in the aforementioned manner with its fans. Under the guise of faster seating, the club is considering using an implantable microchip. How considerate!
According to one test case whereby the chip was implanted under team director Ezequiel Rosino’s tattoo, no health risks were reported. Also, the advocates of this project claim the chip will not be able to track those lucky quick-seated devils that get the chip. The devices will just store basic information about the carrier for “security purposes”.
As we all know, microchips offer functionality ranging from simple bean counting to observing and recording complex data. Seating is the first step, next what you are eating at the game, what you are saying to your neighbor, then it will help you find your car in the lot after the game, record where you went and how much you drank afterward, and so on, and so forth, etc.
I see at least two better alternatives: watch the game on TV or take guitar lessons. Of course, you could always opt for the sharp stick in the eye. ~MD