Sophie Marcus Wade
Redefining the Kilogram
What would the world be without measurements? Would things be measured in handfuls? Would seconds be measured based on the time it takes for someone to blink? Would distance be measured in steps? How could we discuss distance if I say something is 3 steps away and you say it is 5? This problem was a reality throughout the world until the French Revolution. Before the revolution, the people of Paris were struggling with the lack of fixed units. Due to a lack of grain, they were being sold smaller loaves of bread for the same cost as larger loaves and lacked the units to measure how much bread they were really receiving. After the beheading of the French monarchy, the concept of independence was flooding the masses, and the post-Revolution administration sought to solve the problems created by a lack of units by using unchanging facts of nature to make units of measure that people around the world could recognize, use, and share. The people of France believed that units should not be based around a single person or item, but around natural phenomena that cannot be changed. Ever since the birth of the metric system, scientists have been working toward making that dream a reality.
This past November, in Versailles, many experts in measurement voted to revise the original list of “SI Base Units” (a list containing the definitions of units such as seconds and meters). The majority of units are based on a universal “constant” fact of nature but, for example, the kilogram is defined, not by a property of nature, but on an item. The scientists voted to change the definition of the kilogram (among other SI Base units) because the object that all kilograms around the world are based on, Le Grand K, is changing over time. Scientists are not positive as to why. The kilogram requires redefinition for this reason, but also because its redefinition means that yet another of the SI Base units will be grounded in laws of nature not a man made item. They plan to use the Planck constant (a value recently and accurately measured by scientists) and the definitions for the meter and the second to redefine the kilogram. Scientists now believe that using newly calculated constant values like Planck’s constant can help them redefine all of the SI base units, marking a turning point in this science because of the use of new methods to redefine the units.
The impact of the changed definition of the kilogram will not be in your local grocery store when purchasing a kilogram of food. Many scientific measurement tools will need alterations to suit the changes made to the SI Base units. In occupations that require very small, very precise measurements, the redefinition of the kilogram will be very helpful. The new, more precise measuring ability might foster scientific and technological advancements in the future.
To think, only this last November, scientists from the world over voted to begin completing the work that began after the French Revolution. 1875 saw 17 dignitaries signing the Treaty of the Meter, to create universal units to be used by anyone from any country and 2018 saw 60 countries vote to continue the work begun long before. The dream was to have units that anyone could use, units that are reliant on facts that can never change.
Redefining the Kilogram
What would the world be without measurements? Would things be measured in handfuls? Would seconds be measured based on the time it takes for someone to blink? Would distance be measured in steps? How could we discuss distance if I say something is 3 steps away and you say it is 5? This problem was a reality throughout the world until the French Revolution. Before the revolution, the people of Paris were struggling with the lack of fixed units. Due to a lack of grain, they were being sold smaller loaves of bread for the same cost as larger loaves and lacked the units to measure how much bread they were really receiving. After the beheading of the French monarchy, the concept of independence was flooding the masses, and the post-Revolution administration sought to solve the problems created by a lack of units by using unchanging facts of nature to make units of measure that people around the world could recognize, use, and share. The people of France believed that units should not be based around a single person or item, but around natural phenomena that cannot be changed. Ever since the birth of the metric system, scientists have been working toward making that dream a reality.
This past November, in Versailles, many experts in measurement voted to revise the original list of “SI Base Units” (a list containing the definitions of units such as seconds and meters). The majority of units are based on a universal “constant” fact of nature but, for example, the kilogram is defined, not by a property of nature, but on an item. The scientists voted to change the definition of the kilogram (among other SI Base units) because the object that all kilograms around the world are based on, Le Grand K, is changing over time. Scientists are not positive as to why. The kilogram requires redefinition for this reason, but also because its redefinition means that yet another of the SI Base units will be grounded in laws of nature not a man made item. They plan to use the Planck constant (a value recently and accurately measured by scientists) and the definitions for the meter and the second to redefine the kilogram. Scientists now believe that using newly calculated constant values like Planck’s constant can help them redefine all of the SI base units, marking a turning point in this science because of the use of new methods to redefine the units.
The impact of the changed definition of the kilogram will not be in your local grocery store when purchasing a kilogram of food. Many scientific measurement tools will need alterations to suit the changes made to the SI Base units. In occupations that require very small, very precise measurements, the redefinition of the kilogram will be very helpful. The new, more precise measuring ability might foster scientific and technological advancements in the future.
To think, only this last November, scientists from the world over voted to begin completing the work that began after the French Revolution. 1875 saw 17 dignitaries signing the Treaty of the Meter, to create universal units to be used by anyone from any country and 2018 saw 60 countries vote to continue the work begun long before. The dream was to have units that anyone could use, units that are reliant on facts that can never change.
