The hobby of collecting autographs (亲笔签名) is called philography, from a Greek word meaning love of writing. People
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many kinds of autographs. Some collect signatures or other handwritten materials of authors, composers, movie stars, or sports heroes. Others focus on certain
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such as the signing of the Declaration of Independence, a presidential election, or the space program.
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collectors try to acquire a complete set of autographs of Novel Prize winners or Academy Award winners.
Collectors may request autographs
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celebrities either in person or by letter. Most beginning autograph collectors do not have the knowledge to determine
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an autograph is genuine (真实的). They may mistake other kinds of signatures for
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handwritten signatures. For example, some people have secretaries who sigh their mail. Some individuals send out mass-produced letters or signed photographs to collectors who
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their autographs. Many famous people use a mechanical device called an Autopen to sign autographs. The
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can sign 3,000 signatures in eight hours. The only way to recognize an Autopen autograph is to compare two of them. All Autopen autographs are
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, but no two handwritten autographs are
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alike.