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kilogram

From: The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | Date: 2008

kilogram abbr. kg, fundamental unit of mass in the metric system , defined as the mass of the International Prototype Kilogram, a platinum-iridium cylinder kept at Sèvres, France, near Paris. Copies of this standard are deposited at bureaus of standards throughout the world, and other units of mass are defined in terms of it. When the metric system was originally devised, the kilogram was defined so that 1,000 cubic centimeters (1 cubic decimeter) of pure water has a mass of exactly 1 kilogram.

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The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright 2008 Columbia University Press

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	Interview: Dr. Richard Davis discusses the shrinkage of the kilogram All Things Considered (NPR); 5/28/2003; MICHELE NORRIS; 574 words; ... Richard Davis discusses the shrinkage of the kilogram Host: MICHELE NORRIS Time: 9:00-10:00 PM ... about diet and exercise; rather physics. The kilogram is shrinking. Now when we say the kilogram we mean the kilogram. It' s a platinum iridium ...
	Proto-kilogram loses some weight Oakland Tribune; 9/13/2007; Jamey Keaten, Associated Press; 486 words; PARIS -- A kilogram just isn't what it used to be. The 118-year ... have a good hypothesis for it." The kilogram's uncertainty could affect even countries ... for them to have a definition of the kilogram which is based on some artifact," said ...
	Official prototype of kilogram is mysteriously losing weight Capital (Annapolis); 9/16/2007; 487 words; PARIS (AP) - A kilogram just isn't what it used to be. The 118-year ... have a good hypothesis for it." The kilogram's uncertainty could affect even countries ... for them to have a definition of the kilogram which is based on some artifact," said ...
	Original kilogram losing mass, status, scientists say.(The Dallas Morning News) Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service; 11/22/2002; Witze, Alexandra; 1515 words; ... group of scientists, that means defining the kilogram as a certain number of atoms of a particular ... scientists work backward, starting with a 1-kilogram mass and determining how many atoms are packed ... the scientists know how many atoms are in 1 kilogram, that number could redefine the kilogram ...
	Kilogram standard slowly losing mass: Scientists trying to devise new way to calculate measurement Sunday Gazette-Mail; 11/24/2002; Alexandra Witze; 1278 words; ... The squat metal cylinder weighs exactly 1 kilogram, as it should. It is the world's definition of mass, the standard kilogram against which all others are judged. But now "le grand K," as the kilogram is known, is putting itself out of date ...
	For Scientists, Kilogram Loses Mass Appeal. Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News; 11/18/2002; 1621 words; By Alexandra Witze, The Dallas Morning News Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News Nov ... The squat metal cylinder weighs exactly 1 kilogram, as it should. It is the world's definition of mass, the standard kilogram against which all others are judged. But now le grand K, as the kilogram is known, ...
	Liberating the kilogram. (seeking a natural standard for the kilogram) Discover; 2/1/1995; 511 words; ... bar has defined the international standard for the kilogram. The kilogram is the last unit of scientific measurement defined ... also like to find a precise natural basis for the kilogram, one more practical than a platinum bar kept in France ...
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	A step closer to an atomic-based kilogram?(new standard for weight measure under development)(Brief Article) Science News; 9/26/1998; Weiss, Peter; 447 words; ... other fundamental quantities, only the kilogram remains a physical object--a carefully ... Gaithersburg, Md., report that by weighing the kilogram against an electromagnetic force, they ... of the accuracy needed to redefine the kilogram, it takes an important step in that direction ...
	Build a better kilogram ... and the world will beat a path to your door.(Science and Technology) The Economist (US); 8/16/1997; 1194 words; ... it weighs, by definition, exactly one kilogram. Since 1889, the mass of everything else ... pounds with the international prototype kilogram . Thank goodness a band of the world ... Metrologists regard today's definition of a kilogram as little better, in principle, than ...
	Your kilogram or mine?(Research EDGE) ECN-Electronic Component News; 4/1/2008; 205 words; The standard kilogram continues to lose weight and many international ... time to redefine it. The International Prototype Kilogram (IPK) or Le Grand K, made in the 1880s, is a bar ... Paris. The idea is to replace the single master kilogram with something based on physical constants, rather ... damaged ...
	Tidying up the kilogram. (defining the kilogram in terms of a fundamental physical constant) (Brief Article) Science News; 4/24/1993; Peterson, Ivars; 439 words; ... iridium, the international standard for the kilogram rests in pristine splendor under glass ... routinely for calibrating the standard kilograms at national measurement laboratories ... Metrologists have long dreamed of defining the kilogram in terms of the universally agreed upon ...
	Redefining the kilogram.(measuring standards)(Brief Article) Machine Design; 12/8/2005; 304 words; The kilogram is the last of the seven basic units ... to making a similar definition for the kilogram based on the watt balance. The device ... through several equations to define the kilogram in terms of basic natural properties ...
	Kilogram has a weight problem The Scotsman; 5/28/2003; PAUL GALLAGHER; 248 words; ... weight itself has a weight problem. The kilogram is getting lighter, scientists say, and ... a range of scientific endeavours. The kilogram is defined by a platinum-iridium cylinder ... an alternative global standard for the kilogram is now reaching its decisive stages ...
	New Kilogram Standard Morning Edition (NPR); 7/22/1998; Dan Charles, Bob Edwards; 977 words; ... United States to an absolute measure of the kilogram. JERRY KELLER, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS ... Not luckily yet. CHARLES: The thing is, the kilogram at the International Bureau of Weights and ... Physics Laboratory in London, the mother of all kilograms and its copies now vary by up to 50/billionths ...