[CrackMonkey] Metric system considered harmful

[mike dillon]

begin  rillian quotation:
> Nope, the  kilogram is the last vestige of non-quantized standard.
> It's a hunk of Pt-Ir under three concentric bell jars in France.
> Apparently it's drifting badly, too, since the retirement of the
> fellow who knew just how much oxide to wipe off before the weighings.

nope. i know about the official kilogram mass. this is how the mass
standard is calibrated between international agencies (in elaborate
procedures carried out every few years) and maintained at the
originating standards agency (or its historical successor).
nevertheless, the standard was originally _defined_ in terms of the mass
of a liter of pure liquid water at 0 degrees C (beats me how they kept
it from freezing if it was pure water).

there's also an official platinum-iridium calibration meter, if i
recall.

-md