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Photos of everyday objects like an iron, a gas can and a laptop along with high-tech items like an atomic clock and a mass balance. Label reads: 10 Ways NIST Impacts Your Daily Life.

From Safer Skies to Fewer Fires: 10 Ways NIST Impacts Your Daily Life

December 10, 2024

If you’ve ever had a medical test, flown on an airplane, or needed to check the time, NIST’s work affects your life every day.

Historical photo shows three men standing next to a refrigerator-sized piece of machinery with an analog clock attached to the top.

How Atomic Clocks Have Changed Our World

October 15, 2024

Gabriel Popkin

We spend our days immersed in time. But where does time come from? How do we track it? This has evolved along with technology in recent years.

NIST Chief Metrologist Jim Olthoff stands in front of equipment in a lab.

Keepers of the Right Answer: Why Measurements at NIST Are Important for the Nation and the World

September 5, 2024

James K. Olthoff

Practically everything you use in your everyday life works because of measurement science.

A researcher wearing a lab coat uses tongs to place a silvery sphere into a large scientific device as another researcher looks on.

One of the World’s Roundest Objects Is Helping to Build a Better Mass Measurement

July 3, 2024

Megan King

Different countries' approaches can lead to different definitions of the kilogram. But NIST is working with our international partners to see how we can close those tiny gaps.

Photos of Marc Levitan and Long Phan are part of a collage of tornado images labeled: Tornado Resiliency Building Code Research

NIST Research Is Setting the Standard to Help Buildings Withstand Tornadoes

May 6, 2024

Brian Gutierrez

Two NIST researchers have been recognized for their work to create new standards for buildings that can better withstand tornadoes.

A spiral-bound calendar page is blurred at the edges.

Leap Day Is Here: It Doesn’t Have to Be Your Standard Weekday

February 16, 2024

Andrew Novick

We get an extra day this year, but why do we need a leap day every four years on Feb. 29? It all comes down to standards.

Fisheye view of grocery store shelves packed with coffee products.

Weighing Your Purchases: How New Laws May Help You Become a Savvier Online Shopper

February 6, 2024

John McGuire

When you buy something by weight or volume, you want to get what you pay for. And we’re helping to make sure that happens — whether you shop online or in a store.

A man faces away from the camera, gesturing as he speaks to three actors seated behind desks on a film set.

Standing Up for Scientific Integrity: A Q&A With Writer-Director José Ricardo García on the New Film ‘The AD-X2 Controversy’

December 7, 2023

In the 1950s, scientific integrity was put into question by a packet of salt. That controversy is the center of a new NIST film.

A Scientific Christmas Tale

December 5, 2023

Robin Materese

’Twas the night before Christmas; NIST staff had gone home. Our director was left to reflect all alone. She thought about NIST and the breadth of its work, from AI to fire to even the quark.

An antique clock showing a few minutes before 12 is topped with a party hat, and colorful streamers hang in the background.

Auld Lang ‘Time’: One of the Country’s Timekeepers Makes Sure We Ring in The New Year at Just the Right Second

November 27, 2023

Andrew Novick

As you prepare to watch the ball drop or pop champagne on New Year’s Eve, we’ll be keeping an eye on the clock — just as we always do.

In front of a laptop computer, a hand holds a cell phone that has a conversation with generative AI on the phone screen.

Minimizing Harms and Maximizing the Potential of Generative AI

November 8, 2023

Elham Tabassi

As generative AI tools like ChatGPT become more commonly used, we must think carefully about the impact on people and society.

A researcher wearing safety glasses reaches into a box of circuitry and other equipment, which emits a green glow.

Think You Know What a Second Is? It Will Likely Change in the Next Decade.

October 16, 2023

Tara Fortier

As the world has modernized and our pace of life has increased, our relationship to time has changed.

Several metallic envelopes with NIST labels are displayed with Halloween decorations like cobwebs, skeletons and pumpkins.

There Will Be (Precisely Measured) Blood: A Haunted House Tour Through NIST’s Spookiest Reference Materials

September 28, 2023

Megan King

This spooky season, join us for a haunted house tour of the scariest standard reference materials in our labs.

Alshae' Logan-Jackson wears a purple coverall and safety glasses in the lab as she uses tweezers to hold a small white disk.

Protecting People From Plumbing Pathogens Is Personal to Me

July 20, 2023

Alshae’ Logan-Jackson

Pathogens can get into our water through plumbing and are especially dangerous for people with compromised immune systems.

Peter Trask sits at a lab table working on wiring for a scientific device.

My Lab Helps People Breathe Easier All Over the World

June 12, 2023

Peter Trask

My lab here in Gaithersburg, Maryland, helps agencies all over the world track their pollution levels by measuring them accurately.

NIST researchers Yoshi Ohno and Jane Li demonstrate different types of lighting in their lab on NIST’s campus in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

The Eye of the Beholder: How Lighting Affects Our Color Perception

June 6, 2023

Megan King

Remember the social media controversy over the color of a dress? That’s a lighthearted example of how illumination can affect the things we see, but this is serious science.

Justin Zook in a lab surrounded by genetic sequencing machines

Our Human Genes Are Diverse. Our Team Is Helping Create a DNA Reference Library to Reflect That.

May 11, 2023

Justin Zook

To unlock the full potential of genetic testing and related medical research, we need a diverse, global human genome, known as the pangenome.

Melissa Phillips, wearing safety glasses, poses leaning over an open chest freezer, holding a plastic bag of spinach.

Organic, Vegetarian or Carnivore: Whatever You Eat, My Lab Is Working to Keep It Safe

April 24, 2023

Melissa Phillips

The levels of contaminants in our food supply are, generally, decreasing, but we still need to make sure our food is safe. And measuring tiny things (and big things) is what we do best here at NIST.

Graphic with text that reads "Weights and Measures" and shows fish at a seafood counter, a bag of mulch, a grocery checkout, and a gas pump. Color scheme is orange and purple.

4 Places Weights and Measures Help You Get What You Pay For

February 23, 2023

Katrice Lippa

Here at NIST, we are committed to making sure you get what you pay for when buying something based on weight or measure, such as food or fuel.

Jazalyn Dukes poses in front of a display that reads "Engineering a Safer World."

How My Childhood Fascination With Bridges Helped Me Build a Career Protecting People and Buildings From Natural Disasters

January 31, 2023

Jazalyn Dukes

NIST research engineer Jazalyn Dukes talks about what inspired her career and gives some advice to girls considering a career in structural and civil engineering.

Six men stand in front of an airplane in a hangar, with equipment displayed on carts in front of them.

From Waxlight to Moonlight: 21st Century Standard Candles at NIST

July 1, 2022

Steven Brown

Before I tell you about the high-altitude NASA aircraft we use and the lunar observatory we are building, let’s talk about the earliest standard for measuring light output: the humble candle.

Yellowish blades of kelp are growing under the surface of the water.

Improving Recycling, Tracking Mercury and Analyzing Kelp: A Sample of Eco-Friendly Research Featured on NIST Social Media

June 8, 2022

Riley Wilson

Preserving our planet's health is no small feat, and NIST researchers are tackling the challenge from multiple angles.

A woman stands smiling in front of a large device with many metal parts and wires.

My First Semiconductor Standards Were a Bust … or Were They?

December 22, 2021

Kris Bertness

Silicon is the most important semiconductor in the world. It forms the chips that are used for memory and processors in high-end computers, everyday consumer electronics and now in tiny little gadgets that do amazing things. But there is one thing that silicon cannot do well: produce light. For

masked man in a white lab coat holding up a frozen container in a laboratory

Creating a PFAS-Contaminated Meat SRM: A Q&A With NIST Chemists Melissa Phillips and Ben Place

June 21, 2021

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) research chemists Melissa Phillips and Ben Place are working to create a Standard Reference Material (SRM) to help industry and regulators detect the hazardous industrial chemical PFAS in meat. SRMs are meticulously measured materials that

three figures survey reference data on their computer screen while looking on at a turbine

50 Years of the ‘Journal of Physical and Chemical Reference Data’: A Q&A With Editors Allan Harvey and Don Burgess

June 9, 2021

Reference data’s connection to the public is indirect yet often very important. For example, a town’s electricity could come from a steam power plant in which reference data for the properties of steam was used to design the turbines. In this way, reference data provides important foundations to

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From Safer Skies to Fewer Fires: 10 Ways NIST Impacts Your Daily Life

How Atomic Clocks Have Changed Our World

Keepers of the Right Answer: Why Measurements at NIST Are Important for the Nation and the World

One of the World’s Roundest Objects Is Helping to Build a Better Mass Measurement

NIST Research Is Setting the Standard to Help Buildings Withstand Tornadoes

Leap Day Is Here: It Doesn’t Have to Be Your Standard Weekday

Weighing Your Purchases: How New Laws May Help You Become a Savvier Online Shopper

Standing Up for Scientific Integrity: A Q&A With Writer-Director José Ricardo García on the New Film ‘The AD-X2 Controversy’

A Scientific Christmas Tale

Auld Lang ‘Time’: One of the Country’s Timekeepers Makes Sure We Ring in The New Year at Just the Right Second

Minimizing Harms and Maximizing the Potential of Generative AI

Think You Know What a Second Is? It Will Likely Change in the Next Decade.

There Will Be (Precisely Measured) Blood: A Haunted House Tour Through NIST’s Spookiest Reference Materials

Protecting People From Plumbing Pathogens Is Personal to Me

My Lab Helps People Breathe Easier All Over the World

The Eye of the Beholder: How Lighting Affects Our Color Perception

Our Human Genes Are Diverse. Our Team Is Helping Create a DNA Reference Library to Reflect That.

Organic, Vegetarian or Carnivore: Whatever You Eat, My Lab Is Working to Keep It Safe

4 Places Weights and Measures Help You Get What You Pay For

How My Childhood Fascination With Bridges Helped Me Build a Career Protecting People and Buildings From Natural Disasters

From Waxlight to Moonlight: 21st Century Standard Candles at NIST

Improving Recycling, Tracking Mercury and Analyzing Kelp: A Sample of Eco-Friendly Research Featured on NIST Social Media

My First Semiconductor Standards Were a Bust … or Were They?

Creating a PFAS-Contaminated Meat SRM: A Q&A With NIST Chemists Melissa Phillips and Ben Place

50 Years of the ‘Journal of Physical and Chemical Reference Data’: A Q&A With Editors Allan Harvey and Don Burgess