Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book commemorates the centennial by presenting brief accounts of selected classic publications of National Bureau of Standards (NBS)/National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) which illustrate at the same time the rich history of its scientific and technical accomplishments and the broad scope of its contributions to the Nation. It consists of short accounts describing 102 representative publications that had a significant impact during NBS/NIST's first century. These 102 were chosen, out of tens of thousands that have appeared in print, to illustrate the range of activities covered by the publication program. Many others are equally deserving of mention and, in fact, some of these are listed in the bibliographies accompanying each account. The book presents extensive administrative, financial, and personnel details, as well as summaries of the technical work.