NIST (Noun)

Rick Howard: The word is: NIST

Rick Howard: Spelled: N for national, I for institute, S for standards and T for technology. 

Rick Howard: Definition: A branch of the U.S. Department of Commerce whose stated mission is to "Promote U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology in ways that enhance economic security and improve our quality of life."

Rick Howard: Example sentence: NIST collaborates with the private sector to develop new technologies. 

Rick Howard: Origin and context: Article One, Section eight of the United States Constitution grants Congress the power "To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology."

Rick Howard: President William McKinley, in 1901 signed into law the National Bureau of Standards Act that founded the National Bureau of Standards or NBS within the Department of the Interior. In 1988, Congress changed the name to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, NIST, in the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act, and placed it in the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Rick Howard: NIST has worked on a wide range of projects that have had significant impact on various fields. For example, NIST's cesium Atomic clock developed in the 1950s, is considered one of the most important inventions in the field of timekeeping. NIST also worked to advance the science of quantum cryptography in quantum computing. And of course, NIST is at the center of some of the most widely used cybersecurity standards worldwide. The NIST Cybersecurity Framework, CSF, and the NIST Special publication 800-53. 

Rick Howard: Nerd reference: At the 2022 11th Annual Meridian Global Leadership Summit at the U.S. Institute of Peace, NIST director Laurie Locacio, talked about the technology challenges in the near future. 

Laurie Locacio: I love our mission at NIST, it's to promote U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness and it's really all about ensuring our collective economic and national security in the context of today's, uh, complex and really shifting global economy. Our reputation for technical excellence, integrity, perseverance, and really uncompromising rigor is essential to our success. And so we find ourselves right now in the midst of rapidly accelerating technological change that's reshaping our lives in so many ways. For example, biotechnology, we've heard about that today, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and privacy, energy technologies, advanced communications and quantum information science. These technologies are not being developed in isolation. They are cross-cutting and they directly impact the digitalization of our society. And with this, it presents many complex problems to solve, but solving the hardest problems is something that, that we get really excited about at NIST and have been doing since our creation in 1901. 

Rick Howard: Word Notes is written by Tim Nodar, executive produced by Peter Kilpe and edited by John Petrik and me, Rick Howard. The mix, sound design, and original music have all been crafted by the ridiculously talented Elliott Peltzman. Thanks for listening.