Popular Science 2018 sep

10 POPULAR SCIENCE

TO LOVE PRECISION IS TO LOVE DECIMAL POINTS. MINUSCULE

measurements can make all the difference with pernickety

processes like hanging a perfectly level picture, baking a Pinterest-

worthy batch of cupcakes, or even crafting a masterful cuppa. These

digital tools can precisely perceive the tiny increments that can turn

a merely good result into a truly great one.

State

of the

Art by JESSE WILL

Measured

Success

Weight

A sprinkle of excess

baking powder can ruin

your confections, but

theAmerican Weigh

AMW-SC-2KGdigital

scale uses strain gauges

to meter ingredients—or

anything else you can

it on its 100-mm steel

tray—down to 0.2 grams.

1

Colour

Film, photos, and video

games deserve accurate

color. TheDatacolor

Spyder5PROemploys

a light sensor called a

colorimeter with seven

built-in ilters to detect

changes in hue and

brightness scarcely

perceptible to your eye.

2

Temperature

Poke its 114 mm

stainless-steel probe into

a vat of homebrew for

two seconds, and the

Javelin PRO Duowill

indicate temperature to a

tenth of a degree, with a

margin of error just under

0.5 degree Celsius (pic

shows Fahrenheit mode).

3

Size

Turn the thumbwheels

on theStarrett EC799A-

12/300electronic caliper

to get a read, down to

0.03 mm, of anything

between its jaws. Minute

changes in electrical

charge between two

sliding plates map to

lengths up to 300 mm.

4

Distance

TheExtech DT40M

laser distance meter

replaces your loppy

tape measure with a

concentrated beam

of light. Analysing the

laser’s relection allows

it to quantify distances

between 50 mm and 40

metres, within 2 mm.

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PHOTOGRAPH BY RALPH SMITH