Shrinking Kilogram Bewilders Physicists

[Bernie]

Physicist Richard Davis of the International Bureau of Weights and Measures, sits next to a copy of a 118-year-old cylinder that has been the international prototype for the metric mass, in his office in Sevres, southwest of Paris, Wednesday, Sept. 12,007. Davis said the reference kilo appears to have lost 50 micrograms compared to the average of dozens of copies. The kilogram's inconstancy illustrates how technological progress is leaving science's most basic measurements in its dust. (AP Photo/Jacques Brinon)

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Heheh!, I knew there was an easier way to loose weight .

 

[Ivan...]

Heheh!, I knew there was an easier way to loose weight .

...yes, just wait

 

[Moederloos]

OK, so did it lose mass or have the measurements simply improved?

 

[The_Unbeliever]

Blame it on TIAL for [-]stealing[/-] ninja'ing off a few atoms at a time...

 

[oober]

They don't know if it was the reference cylinder that lost mass or the other copies that gained. Thats the problem with the current system.

But it just shows you, more accurate the measurements can cause some interesting problems.

 

[Moederloos]

Reminds me of one of my favourite sayings:
"A man with a watch knows what the time is, a man with two watches is not so sure"

 

[Tux]

It's the copies that gained weight
Well known phenomenon that you gain weight when visiting foreign parts
Must be the food...

 

[Telkomisaloser]

Blame it on TIAL for [-]stealing[/-] ninja'ing off a few atoms at a time...