NIST

An agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce

Founded in 1901, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is a nonregulatory federal agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce. With headquarters in Gaithersburg, Maryland, NIST’s mission is to promote U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology in ways that enhance economic security and improve our quality of life.

Wed, 10/29/2025 - 12:03
End of an Era: NIST to Cease Calibrating Mercury Thermometers Part of a larger effort to phase out the use of mercury thermometers altogether
Tue, 02/08/2011 - 05:00
(NIST: Gaithersburg, MD) -- Beginning March 1, 2011, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will no longer provide calibration services for mercury thermometers. The cessation of the mercury thermometer calibration program marks…
Corkscrewing Electrons: Like Rotini, But Smaller Coiled electron beams poised to improve microscopes
Tue, 01/25/2011 - 05:00
Electron microscopes are among the most widely used scientific and medical tools for studying and understanding a wide range of materials, from biological tissue to miniature magnetic devices, at tiny levels of detail. Now, researchers at the…
Event: Quest for Excellence Conference Baldrige recipients showcased April 4–6 in Washington, D.C.
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 14:09
(NIST: Gaithersburg, MD) -- Cherry blossoms won’t be the only things flowering in Washington, D.C., during the first week in April. Quality, innovation, and performance excellence will be in full bloom at the 22nd annual Quest for Excellence…
NIST Puts Our Tax Dollars to Work Reauthorization of COMPETES Act Keeps NIST’s door open
Wed, 01/12/2011 - 11:13
(NIST: Gaithersburg, MD) -- On Jan. 4, President Obama signed the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010, which provides several important updates to the funding, programs, and leadership of the National Institute of Standards and Technology…
This Page is Really on Time New widget puts accurate clocks on web pages
Wed, 01/12/2011 - 06:46
For website owners and bloggers, there is a new widget from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) that will keep web pages right on time. Web “widgets” are small application programs designed to be run inside web pages. The…
Fine-Tuning a Gigapixel Camera to Track Supernovae Telescope calibration may help explain universe’s expansion
Tue, 01/11/2011 - 05:00
Is the expansion of the universe accelerating for some unknown reason? This is one of the mysteries plaguing astrophysics, and somewhere in distant galaxies are yet-unseen supernovae that may hold the key. Now, thanks to a telescope calibrated by…
Vice President Biden Hands Baldrige Award to Five Organizations U.S. Commerce Department Secretary Gary Locke also presented the award
Mon, 12/20/2010 - 08:33
(NIST: Gaithersburg, MD) -- Vice President Joe Biden and U.S. Commerce Department Secretary Gary Locke presented five U.S. organizations with the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation’s highest honor for organizational innovation and…
NIST’s New Scanning Probe Microscope is Supercool The most advanced ultra-low temperature scanning probe microscope in the world
Thu, 12/09/2010 - 05:00
The discoveries of superconductivity, the quantum Hall effect, and the fractional quantum Hall effect were all the result of measurements made at increasingly lower temperatures. Now, pushing the regime of the very cold into the very small, a team…
First Set of 2011– 2012 Baldrige Criteria Now Online Revisions include an “intelligent risk-taking” section and use of social media
Tue, 12/07/2010 - 05:00
(NIST: Gaithersburg, MD) -- The Baldrige Performance Excellence Program has announced that the 2011–2012 Criteria for Performance Excellence for businesses and nonprofit organizations are now available to download. The criteria serve as the…
Baldrige Needs the Best of the Best as Examiners Examiners act as “ambassadors” for the Baldrige program and performance excellence
Wed, 12/01/2010 - 14:44
(NIST: Gaithersburg, MD) -- Provide a valuable service to your country. If you’re an expert from a business, education, health care, or nonprofit organization, and possess knowledge and experience in leadership, strategic planning, customer service…