LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Weights and Measures: National Bureau
built 271 days ago
Crude systems of weights and measures probably date from prehistoric times. Early units were commonly based on body measurements and on plant seeds or other objects from agriculture. As civilization progressed, technological and commercial requirements led to increased standardization. For example, because the length of the human foot or the width of the palm varies from individual to individual, it probably became necessary first to specify a particular individual (e.g., the king) and later to reproduce standards based on this commonly accepted unit of length. Units were usually fixed by edict of local or national rulers and were subdivided and multiplied or otherwise arranged into systems of measurement.
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The Bureau of Weights and Measures operates a Metrology Laboratory which certifies the accuracy of weights and measures standards of mass/weight, volume, length and time. These calibration services are accredited to ISO 17025 standards. The laboratory ... conducts evaluations on new commercial weighing and measuring devices as part of a national certification program. These services are available on a fee basis for both the public and private sector.
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Before 1960 the meter was defined as the distance between two scratches on a prototype bar kept at the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (est. 1875) at Sèvres, France, near Paris. In 1960 it was redefined in terms of an atomic standard. This new standard is more stable than the old meter bar, is indestructible, and is easily reproduced, eliminating the need for periodic comparison with a single standard. The kilogram is defined in terms of a prototype cylinder kept at the bureau.
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Governor George W. P. Hunt, first governor of Arizona, appointed O. N. Creswell to the post of State Inspector of Weights and Measures, on August 16, 1912. The act creating the office was subject to referendum and for this reason the Board of Control did not order the necessary equipment to perform measurement inspection until ninety days after adjournment of the Legislature. On December 21, 1912, the standard weights and measures arrived in Phoenix after being certified by the National Bureau of Standards. The standards consisted of:
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An agreement to set up a national system of weights and measures was first contained in the Magna Carta (1215). Almost 800 years later, during which time the units changed considerably, Britain's entry into the European economic community was accompanied by an adoption of the metric gram and kilogram alongside the imperial pound and ounce.
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