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Taking Measure

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Brad Sutliff wears safety glasses as he stands in the lab in front of a computer monitor.

From Trash to Cash: How AI and Machine Learning Can Help Make Recycling Less Expensive for Local Governments

May 3, 2024
Bradley Sutliff
… NIST has been focused on using near-visible infrared light (NIR), a technology that can look at plastics and rapidly tell us what they are. … we show that you can use reflected light to find out almost the same information — much more quickly. And on the recycling line, time is of … too. It’s cool because it demonstrates that we can pull a lot more information out of these light-based measurements if we set things up …
Joannie Chin stands with arms crossed, wearing safety goggles, in front of scientific equipment.

Building in a Changing Climate: A Q&A With NIST’s Joannie Chin

July 26, 2022
… design for future climate events, but because of climate change, that information may not always be relevant. What are some specific research … and what the demographics of that population are. We're capturing information about social vulnerability related to race, ethnicity, … there are a lot of lingering issues. There’s a lot of interesting information to find out about populations that are underserved compared …
John Cahn standing by blackboard smiling

My Memories of John Cahn

April 28, 2016
Dan Shechtman
… the National Medal of Science in 1998 and the Kyoto Prize in Advanced Technology in 2011 . I first met John Cahn in the late 1960s when he … our department of metallurgy at the Technion — Israel Institute of Technology. Already a famous thermodynamics-of-materials scholar, John …
a bullet inside a small glass vial

How the JFK Assassination Bullets Were Digitally Preserved at NIST

April 13, 2020
Robert M. Thompson
… of the bullets have been made available to researchers. However, the technology was now available for an improved means of dissemination and … surface area we had estimated. As with many plans using cutting-edge technology, the first timeline had to be tossed, and the “few days” … several months. Compounding the challenge, advances in 3D topography technology were made during this time, allowing for an even more …
an opalescent close up of Roman glass. There is a clear semi-circular fracture in the center of the piece.

Ancient Roman Glass, Perceiving Color in LED, 3D Mapping for Public Safety, SRMs in Space: A Sample of Stories From the Social Sphere

May 21, 2020
Riley Wilson
… the social media presence for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) means that I get to share enthusiasm . That’s exactly … lives. Here at NIST, researchers are investigating whether 3D mapping technology could provide that critical situational awareness. Light … a building, or maps for indoor tracking systems. That’s cutting-edge technology to plan for critical circumstances. This SRM Can Take the …
aerial view of the oil tanker Byron D. Benson ablaze after a U-boat attack

The Big Inch: Fueling America’s WWII War Effort

March 23, 2018
Keith Martin
… of Standards (NBS, now called the National Institute of Standards and Technology, or NIST). William Gillum Heltzel (1895-1959) graduated from the Carnegie Institute of Technology in 1918 and landed his first post-college job that same year …
A man in safety gear crouches to examine a damaged wall inside a building after an earthquake.

The Highs and Lows of Studying the Aftermath of One of Turkey’s Deadliest Earthquakes

October 16, 2023
Matthew Speicher
… But it was an opportunity to learn something new and see how the information gathered may help better prepare for future earthquakes.  … take a photo and walk around and inspect damage yourself to glean the information needed. It takes time and money to visit a site multiple … over and over again for a period of years, they could learn valuable information we couldn’t get in one visit. This information could help do …
Researcher Erica Stein pipetting under chemical hood

Down for the Count: How NIST is Helping Defeat Cancer

September 20, 2017
Erica Stein
… areas of cancer diagnostics. For example, the latest cancer diagnosis technology looks for free-floating cancer DNA in the blood. At NIST, we … welcomed into a wonderful team that uses the newest and most advanced technology to quantify cancer biomarkers and develops resources that …
A couch is in flames in a mocked-up room inside a large fire testing facility.

Saving Lives by Making Upholstered Furniture More Resistant to Fire

February 7, 2022
Mauro Zammarano
… of Trieste in Italy visiting the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for the first time. What was supposed to be a few … furniture fires, I have been investigating a different kind of technology, known as fire-barrier fabrics. They aren’t based on … industry has not yet adopted fire barriers in its products. For a new technology such as this one, reasonable concerns could include cost and …
cartoon of a young woman at her desk speaking by webcam with another person.

The NIST Summer Undergraduate Fellowship Program Goes Virtual

January 27, 2021
Brandi Toliver
… The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) designed the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship … to inspire undergraduate students to pursue careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) through a unique research … Information technology …
worker repairing an electrical line

Learning from the Best of the Best

November 22, 2017
Walter Copan
… the recently-appointed Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology, it was a pleasure to add my own congratulations in each of … NIST for a wide-ranging portfolio including oversight of the nation’s technology transfer program, as well as the Baldrige Program. The … Technology transfer …
Woman and man talking beside wall with several square illustrations of science art

Finding Art in Science

October 24, 2016
Kelly Irvine
… the language of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management , a "Visual Information Specialist." For the past 18 years I’ve been working at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), a federal laboratory where some of the best and …
group of five men holding champagne flutes

The 'Gang of Five' and the SI Revolution

May 16, 2019
Peter Mohr
… that influenced me to come to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) was the important work it was doing on providing … but we can hope that it is a step forward for the SI and science and technology. I’m proud to have been a member of the Gang and to have … Quantum information science …
A woman sits in the passenger side of a parked car, looking at a large monitor attached to the dashboard.

A Summer of Science: How Our Interns Spent Their Summers in the Lab

July 25, 2025
Megan King
… graduate school. Her dad’s interest in science and automated vehicle technology encouraged Roberts to consider this emerging field. “I’ve … student who might want to join us next summer? Visit our SURF information page and sign up for the SURF program’s email list for more information.   … Information technology …
female face against a black background littered with bits of computer code. The woman is wearing a hat and sunglasses. There is a string of code coming from her mouth that looks like a cigarette.

Cybercrime: It’s Worse Than We Thought

June 24, 2020
Douglas S. Thomas
… activity, making cybercrime more prevalent. For example, my personal information (e.g., Social Security number) has been stolen countless times and my credit card information has been stolen and used on numerous occasions, but my house … hire fewer IT security experts, take unnecessary risks with data/information, or disregard a recommended security measure. The result is …
an apple tree standing in a courtyard with the sun streaming through its leaves

The Tangled Tale of NIST’s Newton Apple Tree

June 20, 2018
Mark Esser
… tree, is among those to whom the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has bestowed a scion of a different sort: a clone of … Commerce Ed Vetter, who donated his to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; former NIST Director Pat Gallagher, who donated his to the … internet (and former chair of the NIST Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology) Vinton Cerf, who donated his to Stanford University. As the …
Micrograph shows fractures appearing at junction of enamel and dentin.

Teeth: From Materials Science to Dentistry and Evolutionary Biology

January 31, 2022
Brian Lawn
As a happily retired materials scientist from NIST, I have continued a long-standing interest in how materials deform and fracture under high stress. My research began in the 1960s with fundamental investigations into the way intrinsically brittle solids can sustain highly concentrated stresses
Tom Bruno with an instrument inside a small suitcase. He holds a tube coming from the suitcase inside a paint can.

Judging the Quality of Forensic Evidence

January 23, 2018
Tom Bruno
… called PLOT-cryoadsorption, a NIST-developed vapor characterization technology that can be used in many different areas of interest to the … are nonetheless responsible for regulating the flow of scientific information at trial. Under the Daubert standard (one of the more common guidelines for the control of scientific information in court), the judge is indeed the gatekeeper. They must …
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