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A weighty question: When is a kilogram not a kilogram?
Nov 16, 2018

A weighty question: When is a kilogram not a kilogram?

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(Markets edition) It's that time of year again — no, not the holidays. Soon, lawmakers will once more contemplate the country's debt ceiling and decide whether or not we have an ever-impending government shutdown. Hemp farmers hope the new farm bill will decriminalize the crop, which is now lumped in with marijuana under federal law. And Japan Airlines will start giving its pilots breathalyzer tests at international airports after one of their own was found to be nine times over the legal limit at Heathrow. Plus, scientists have found a more precise measurement for the kilogram that's not based on a hunk of metal under glass in France, but what does the change mean for everyone else?

Today's show is sponsored by the Alliance for Lifetime Income, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Paypal and American Express.

Segments From this episode

The kilogram you know is so over

Nov 16, 2018
It's the final unit of measurement to stop being based on a physical standard.
NIST's platinum-iridium kilogram K92 (front) with stainless-steel kilogram masses in the background.
J.L. Lee/NIST

(Markets edition) It’s that time of year again — no, not the holidays. Soon, lawmakers will once more contemplate the country’s debt ceiling and decide whether or not we have an ever-impending government shutdown. Hemp farmers hope the new farm bill will decriminalize the crop, which is now lumped in with marijuana under federal law. And Japan Airlines will start giving its pilots breathalyzer tests at international airports after one of their own was found to be nine times over the legal limit at Heathrow. Plus, scientists have found a more precise measurement for the kilogram that’s not based on a hunk of metal under glass in France, but what does the change mean for everyone else?

Today’s show is sponsored by the Alliance for Lifetime Income, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Paypal and American Express.