U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Taking Measure

Just a Standard Blog

Richard Gates

Richard S. Gates is a chemical engineer and leader of the NIST Nanomechanical Properties Group. During his 37+ years at NIST, he has enjoyed working on a variety of interesting and challenging projects from recycled oil, boundary lubrication, tribochemistry, hard disk lubrication, and microfabrication, to atomic force microscopy measurements and standards. He grew up in the Bahamas and traded in coconut oil and conch fritters for lubricating oil and Maryland crab cakes to pursue his passion for science at NIST.

Pennies, quarters, dimes, and nickles

Make a Mint Using Measurement Science

Put your hands together. Now move them back and forth to rub them against each other. Feel that heat? That’s from friction. No matter if it’s between siblings