Two products

from Chaney Instrument Company incorporate this technology in devices

that make life simpler. The company's line of Atomix clocks makes having

the right time in your kitchen or bedroom easier and more reliable than

ever before. While some Atomix clocks have sleek, modern designs, including

digital alarms with metallic cases, the brand also offers a complete line

of traditional dial wall clocks that conceal their technologically advanced

capabilities. Ranging from $25 to $50, these clocks do the work for you

at an affordable price.

To make your

life even more predictable during the spring and summer months, try an

at-home weather station. The Acu-Rite Weather and Atomic Time Station

combines radio-controlled atomic time with an in-home temperature monitoring

system. This savvy little device gives you the day, date and precise time

in hours, minutes and seconds as well as the temperature for up to three

remote locations. So, in addition to knowing the outdoor temperature,

you also can monitor temperatures in the attic and basement. The monitor

also displays the temperature of the area around the sensor itself and

includes a temperature trend indicator. The basic set includes a desktop

monitor and one remote sensor that can be placed up to 100 feet away from

the monitor for about $24. Additional sensors are sold separately.

Atomix products

are available at Wal-Mart, ShopKo and Restoration Hardware. Acu-Rite weather

stations are available at mass merchants and at a variety of hardware

stores. The model with atomic time will be available in time for Father's

Day. For more information on Atomix and Acu-Rite products go to www.chaneyinstrument.com .

The National

Institute of Standards and Technology is an official agency of the U.S.

Department of Commerce, whose earliest work in the area of time and frequency

took place in the early 1900s with a very stable pendulum clock. The first

atomic clock was developed in 1949. The agency began broadcasting the

time and frequency standard via radio in 1923 to meet the growing need

for standards in the broadcast industry. Precise time synchronization

has many uses that affect our everyday life. Absolute synchronization

is necessary for high speed communication systems, synchronizing television

feeds, calculating bank transfers, and transmitting everything from e-mail

to sonar signals in a submarine. Power companies use precise time to regulate

power system grids and reduce power losses.

Scientific

organizations such as NASA depend on reliable and consistent time measurement

for projects such as interplanetary space travel. Fractional disparities

in times between a space probe and tracking stations on Earth can dramatically

affect the position of spacecraft. Precise time measurements are also

essential to radio navigation systems like the U.S. Government's Global

Positioning System (GPS). By synchronizing the satellite clocks within

nanoseconds of each other, it is possible for a receiver on Earth to identify

its position within a few meters.

For more information

on the NIST Time and Frequency Division, go to www.boulder.nist.gov/timefreq/.

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