I am by no means a physicist and would appreciate comments from more educated people. I was just reading an article in Discover Magazine about the kilogram standard. If you have not heard of the kilogram standard, it’s a little piece of metal sitting in a vault, which everyone uses as the standard weight for a kilogram. Specifically, it is a cylinder that is 90% platinum and 10% iridium.

“Many units in the SI system are defined relative to the kilogram so its stability is important. After the International Prototype Kilogram had been found to vary in mass over time, the International Committee for Weights and Measures (known also by its French-language initials CIPM) recommended in 2005 that the kilogram be redefined in terms of a fundamental constant of nature.”

I’ve been thinking of what fundamental constants of nature could be used for weight/mass (yes I know weight has a very specific scientific meaning relating to gravity, relax). Then it occurred to me that perhaps using Einstein’s famous formula E=MC2 that energy could be used as a means for standardization.

I began researching and came across a very interesting “movement” called the Joule Standard: http://www.kajul.org/EnergyBlogEN.php?Art=5

The idea is to convert all energy measurements into the base Joule. For example, instead of measuring and buying oil based on barrels, why not measure it based on Joules? It seems extremely logical to me, but we’ll see if it takes hold. Anyway, does anyone have suggestions for a different way of determining the standard measurement of a kilogram that is more reliable than a manufactured product sitting in a vault?