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Taking Measure Blog Posts

Metric

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Displaying 1 - 25 of 33
Title card reads "A Scientific Christmas Tale" with the NIST logo in a wreath and flashing holiday lights.

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.
Colorful letters on black background say "12 Days of Metric."

The Twelve Days of Metric

December 19, 2022
Robin Materese
As we approach the end of 2022, we wanted to share with our readers a NISTified version of a classic seasonal song about a topic that is near and dear to our scientists year-round: the wonders of the metric system.
Colorful graphic showing the seven SI units with abbreviations and icons.

Top 10 Tips for Teaching the Metric System

October 7, 2022
Elizabeth Benham
Calling all teachers, parents and students. It’s easy to learn the metric system — or, as it’s more formally called, the International System of Units (SI). Explore these top 10 tips for teaching the SI. Let’s begin the countdown with … 10. Make it fun! Integrating metric measurements into play
A white telescope dish is surrounded by wooded mountains in autumn colors.

In Case You Missed It From NIST: 2021 Edition

December 8, 2021
While the pandemic still grips the world, researchers at NIST continue their work on COVID-19 related research, as well as the wide range of other science and technology topics NIST is known for. We have pulled together a selection of stories, videos and other content from around NIST to let you see
Film crew films a pair NIST researchers operating the NIST Kibble balance

‘The Last Artifact’ Brings Metrology to TV

August 20, 2020
Jason Stoughton
Remember that documentary you saw that finally explained metrology and why measurements are critical to practically every aspect of modern life? Yeah, neither do I. Probably because that documentary doesn’t exist … Or does it? The Last Artifact, a new one-hour film that PBS stations are planning to
black background with many multicolored symbols representing a clipboard, a computer screen, test tubes, gears and a petri dish. On the computer screen it reads "World Metrology Day 2020"

World Metrology Day: Measurements for Medicine

May 19, 2020
Walter Copan
Today is World Metrology Day. Have you put up the decorations and baked a cake yet to celebrate?! You should! Metrology, the science of measurement, makes modern life possible. Measurement science provides the common language that enables manufacturing quality, equitable global trade and the
group of five men holding champagne flutes

The 'Gang of Five' and the SI Revolution

May 16, 2019
Peter Mohr
Although I grew up in Brooklyn, New York, I was never a gang member there. My gang membership came much later and in an entirely unexpected way. No, more accurately, I was a nerd who was interested in taking things apart to figure out how they worked, playing with a crystal radio, making an electric
Chemist Savelas Rabb is bent over slightly, using a tool to check on the settings inside of a large instrument known as a mass spectrometer.

Defining Ourselves Through Science

February 27, 2019
Savelas Rabb
A few months ago, in November 2018, I experienced one of the most significant moments in my scientific career—the international ceremony ratifying the redefinition of the kilogram, mole and two other base units of the Système International d'Unités, or SI, in Versailles, France. My colleague Bob
stainless steel weights

Top NIST Images of 2018

February 6, 2019
Robin Materese
There’s nothing quite like a captivating image to make you want to learn more. And nowhere is that more apparent than when it comes to sometimes hard-to-understand science. Before we all get too settled into 2019, we thought we’d take a look back at some of our best pictures from 2018. If you missed
Five speed skaters making a turn on the track. A clock reading "11:39:50" is visible on the wall in front of them.

The Romance of Precision Measurement

February 5, 2018
Walter Copan
Being from Colorado, I’m a big fan of winter sports: skiing, skating, snowboarding, hockey, bobsledding, and even curling. Like many people, I look forward to the Winter Olympics every four years. The Olympics are a test of the world’s greatest athletes’ skills—skills they have spent their entire
top left: circuit board; top right: materials from HHCIII; bottom left: leaf; bottom right: 3-D atomic clock

Twelve Ways NIST Is Working for You: 2017 Edition

December 29, 2017
Ben P. Stein
As managing editor in the NIST Public Affairs Office, I learn every day how our researchers tackle important societal issues in their work. As 2017 comes to a close, I’d like to share how our news during the last year has connected to many of this year’s current events. Protecting Our First
Pirate flag with grave

Pirates of the Caribbean (Metric Edition)

September 19, 2017
Keith Martin
To save his own life, Joseph Dombey had an idea. As two pirate ships surrounded the ship he was on in the Caribbean Sea in 1794, Dombey scrambled below deck, disrobing as he went. He appropriated the outfit of one of the ship’s many Spanish sailors and prayed that he had picked up enough of their
Image of a napkin that has written on it the names of researchers involved in the project and their guesses for the value of Planck's Constant

A Massive Bet: The Planck Napkin

August 25, 2017
Jason Stoughton
So, a bunch of metrologists walk into a bar. In late December 2013, a group of NIST researchers met at the local watering hole across the street from NIST’s Gaithersburg, Maryland, campus. NIST researchers meeting up after work during the holidays is a common occurrence, but this particular group