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Taking Measure

Just a Standard Blog

Information Technology

Need Some Good News? NIST’s 2020 Highlights

December 22, 2020

2020 has been a challenging year, but we at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have worked as hard as we can to fulfill our mission for

The New NIST Fire Calorimetry Database Is Available to Answer Your Burning Questions

December 16, 2020

Several centuries ago, scientists discovered oxygen while experimenting with combustion and flames. One scientist called it “fire air.” Today, at the National

Lightweight Crypto, Heavyweight Protection

January 13, 2021

Logic puzzles, brain teasers and mathematical riddles fascinated me throughout my childhood, so I feel lucky that I ended up with a career that never lacks for

The Future Is Now: Spreading the Word About Post-Quantum Cryptography

December 2, 2020

I consider myself a quiet guy — on a Friday night you can usually find me at home doing crossword puzzles. Public speaking doesn’t come naturally to me, and I

Developing an Exposure Notification System to Blunt the Spread of COVID-19 and Future Pandemics

November 10, 2020

I am part of a grassroots effort at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) that is developing an exposure notification system for pandemics

End Your FOMO: Ten Ways to Celebrate National Cybersecurity Career Awareness Week With NICE

November 4, 2020

National Cybersecurity Career Awareness Week is Nov. 9-14, 2020 — a weeklong campaign to call attention to the innovative contributions cybersecurity

Zero Trust Cybersecurity: ‘Never Trust, Always Verify’

October 28, 2020

Huh? What? At least that was my response the first time I heard the words “zero trust” when I started working at the National Institute of Standards and

Sustainable Manufacturing Is Smart Manufacturing

October 2, 2020

The COVID pandemic has highlighted the role that manufacturing plays in our society. Manufacturing is important not only for improving our quality of life but

A.I. for Smarter Factories: The World of Industrial Artificial Intelligence

September 2, 2020

As the digital age moves forward, it’s becoming impossible to avoid interacting with artificial intelligence (AI) systems. Computer assistants and AIs perform

patient in a comfy chair having his blood pressure taken. The blood pressure cuff is attached to a tablet.

Making Sure Virtual Doctor Visits Are Private and Secure

October 21, 2020

“Telehealth” refers to a wide range of technologies to connect patients to health care services through videoconferencing, remote monitoring, electronic

Seek and You Will (Probably) Find: Helping Mine COVID-19 Research Data

July 22, 2020

Think back to the last time you did an information search. Did you find what you were looking for? How easy was it to find? Search is now pervasive, and we

Industrial XR: Fulfilling Human Potential in Smart Factories

July 14, 2020

Step into the factory of the future. Alicia, an operations manager, sits at her workstation viewing a digitally enhanced video feed of the facility using

Cybercrime: It’s Worse Than We Thought

June 30, 2020

The cyber world is relatively new, and unlike other types of assets, cyber assets are potentially accessible to criminals in far-off locations. This distance

How Can NIST Help: Collaborating at a Distance to Defeat COVID-19

June 16, 2020

I’ve been working from home since March 13. But even though I’ve been remote, I am still really connected to my colleagues — and have even created some new

Shaping the Future of the NIST Mass Spectral Library

July 7, 2020

When one thinks of mass spectral libraries — well, let’s be honest here, the very idea of mass spectral libraries will never cross most people’s minds, even

Ebb and Flow: Creating Quantum Dots Automatically With AI

June 2, 2020

Even though research on artificial intelligence (AI) goes back to the 1960s , it wasn't until the past decade that AI really became an integral part of our

A Life in Public Service: A Q&A With NIST's Donna Dodson

May 12, 2020

After 33 years in public service, NIST Fellow Donna Dodson retired from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) on May 8, 2020. Over her

How Robots Could Teach Us to Trust AI

April 28, 2020

The influence of artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere in our lives. It helps us pick movies to stream, recommends old friends to reconnect with, and

How Extreme Ultraviolet Light Helps Give Us Smarter Smartphones and Stronger Satellites

April 21, 2020

In 2019, after decades of effort, manufacturers used a new technology to create smartphones with individual circuit features as small as 7 nanometers (nm), or

Women in STEM: Igniting Young Minds, Illuminating the Future

March 19, 2020

I am a research chemist and lab officer at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). From November 2019 to February 2020, I worked as an

Seeking the Power of Quantum Computing in Silicon

February 25, 2020

Despite the vast computing speed and power available to us in our palms, our desktops and massive server farms, classical computing is reaching its limits

Information Retrieval: How NIST Helps You Find That Video Online

February 11, 2020

The need for tools to help everyday users access the information they are looking for on the internet is getting more and more urgent due to the massive amount

Welcome to the World, NIST Privacy Framework 1.0!

January 28, 2020

As we celebrate Data Privacy Day 2020, let’s take a moment to reflect on the changes to privacy as a discipline — not just here at NIST, but as a community. A

Trustworthy AI: A Q&A With NIST's Chuck Romine

January 21, 2020

Artificial Intelligence (AI) promises to grow the economy and improve our lives, but with these benefits, it also brings new risks that society is grappling

Getting Food on Our Tables From the U.S. and Around the World, Safely and Less Wastefully

November 13, 2019

I’m still amazed to see strawberries, avocados and watermelons in my grocery store out of their “normal” season. As amazing as this is, I know it means that my

Growing the Internet of Things Into a Safe and Responsible Member of Your Household

October 17, 2019

Technology is supposed to help us, but sometimes it feels like for every step forward we take two steps back. Like many people (and despite my resistance), my

a stylized rendering of the periodic table

The Periodic Table: It's More than Just Chemistry and Physics

May 28, 2019

This is the International Year of the Periodic Table, and while I’ve been (accurately) accused of being a physics fanboy, I’m here to tell you that this famous

The Cybernetic Revolution: The Influence of Metrology on the User Experience in Human-Robot Interaction

May 1, 2019

I was told there would be robots. We are living in a world in which we are surrounded by technology tailored to our needs. Our clothes are treated with

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