NIST News

NIST technician Dana Strawbridge bolts the top frame of the map encasement to its base during a test sealing of the encasement prior to shipping to the Library of Congress. Credit: … more

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), in cooperation with the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), has established a new accreditation program for laboratories that test … more

A team of computer scientists and mathematicians from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Texas, Arlington is developing an open-source tool that catches … more

Millions of satellite television and radio users in North Africa and the Middle East can now see and hear the precise time of day, thanks to technical assistance and a custom-built time signal … more

Scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have made the first direct measurements of the infinitesimal expansion and collapse of thin polymer films used in the … more

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed an imaging system that quickly maps the mechanical properties of materials—how stiff or stretchy they are, for … more

This map shows the outline of North and South America, as well as the Isthmus of Panama, and was the first to depict clearly a separate Western Hemisphere, with the Pacific as a separate … more

Thirteen local employees of the Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) were honored with the Departmental Bronze Medal and other NIST awards in … more

Fifty local employees of the Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) were honored with the Departmental Bronze Medal in ceremonies held Dec. 5, 2007. … more

Forty-five local employees of the Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) were honored with awards in ceremonies held Dec. 5, 2007. NIST Acting … more

Using laser light to stir an ultracold gas of atoms, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Joint Quantum Institute (NIST/University of Maryland) have … more

On November 20, President George W. Bush and Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez named five organizations as the recipients of the 2007 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the … more

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have demonstrated a mechanical fatigue process that eventually leads to cracks and breakdown in bulk silicon … more

Engineers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed and tested a laser-based ranging system to assess the performance of automobile collision warning systems. … more

Nanowires grown at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have a mechanical “quality factor” at least 10 times higher than reported values for other nanoscale … more

Two Nonprofits Recognized in First Year of Category WASHINGTON, D.C.—President George W. Bush and Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez today announced that five organizations are the … more

The U.S. Department of Commerce has presented 33 local employees of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) with Gold and Silver Medal Awards—the two highest honors from … more

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) researchers Kathryn L. Beers and Joshua C. Bienfang have been awarded the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers … more

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has opened a competition to develop a new cryptographic "hash" algorithm, a tool that converts a file, message or block of data … more

In NIST’s new mini-magnetometer, light from a laser (small gray cylinder at left) passes through a small container (green cube) containing atoms in a gas. The cell and any sample … more

As this year’s holiday season approaches, your credit card transactions may be a little more secure thanks to standards adopted by the payment card industry. The latest incarnation of … more

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and George Mason University have demonstrated what is probably the world’s smallest microwave oven, a tiny … more

How are physicists helping an effort to eradicate malaria, the mosquito-borne disease that kills more than one million people every year? Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and … more

In response to numerous inquiries from academia, industry, and other government labs, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) recently published a new database on the properties … more

Each year the Baldrige National Quality Program recruits experts from businesses, education organizations, health care providers, nonprofits and other groups to serve as members of the Board of … more

Boulder, Colo. – A tiny sensor that can detect magnetic field changes as small as 70 femtoteslas—equivalent to the brain waves of a person daydreaming—has been … more

©Shutterstock Daylight Saving Time (DST) will end on Sunday, November 4, 2007, as determined by new rules implemented this year. On November 4 at 2 AM local time, clocks should be … more

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has named NIST physicist Paul D. Lett as one of its new fellows. AAAS cites Lett for his work in developing a technique that can be … more

Researchers John Roberts (right) and Oliver Slattery (left) using the tactile graphic display device to depict the NIST logo. Credit: NIST View hi-resolution image A recently … more

Four members of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) staff have been honored in the 2007 Presidential Rank Awards. The awards recognize exceptional long-term accomplishments in … more

Widely recognized as the engine that drives the U.S. economy, information technology enables the vast majority of organizations to carry out their missions and business operations more efficiently … more

Thanks to the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), a method for making multiple copies of DNA fragments, even tiny bits of biological evidence (in the form of hair, tissue, bones, teeth, blood or other … more

“In case of fire use the stairs, not the elevator”—appears on signs posted in elevator lobbies throughout the United States. In the aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001, … more

In the growing catalog of nanoscale technologies, nanowires—tiny rows of conductor or semiconductor atoms—have attracted a great deal of interest for their potential to build … more

A TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AND FEDERAL MARKETPLACE EVENT NIST Presents Its Microfluidics Technologies For Commercial Adoption On Tuesday, October 9, 2007, NIST presented some of its novel technologies … more

This week scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have joined colleagues around the world in congratulating Albert Fert of France and Peter Grünberg of Germany … more

On Oct. 2, 2007, S. Shyam Sunder, director of the Building and Fire Research Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), testified before the Subcommitte on Technology … more

Improvements to the technology infrastructure for researching and developing new biopharmaceuticals would be expected to save the industry hundreds of millions of dollars annually, according to a … more

Sometimes life-saving technologies seem beyond the reach of the average person. If you put residential fire sprinklers in that category, think again. National Institute of Standards and Technology … more

Using a device that can turn a tiny piece of laboratory space into an ion cloud as hot as those found in a nuclear fusion reactor, physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology … more

A transistor containing quantum dots that can count individual photons (the smallest particles of light) has been designed and demonstrated at the National Institute of Standards and Technology … more

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released a new publication that provides detailed tips on how to make web servers more resistant to potential attacks. Called … more