United States Government: Democracy in Action

Chapter 10: The Federal Bureaucracy

Student Web Activity

Introduction
Nearly 3 million civilians work for the federal government. Federal agencies are located in more than 440,000 buildings scattered across the nation and around the world. In this activity, you will learn about the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), one of the many agencies that affect your life daily.

Destination Title: National Institute of Standards and Technology

Note: Clicking on the link above will launch a new browser window.
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Directions
• From the home page, click on "General Information" at the left side of the screen under the head "About NIST." Read the information.
• Scroll down to "What We Do" and click on "NIST: Did You Know…" Read the information.
• Use the back arrow until you return to the home page, and click on "A–Z Subject Index" under the head "About NIST."
• Read through the entries and click on one that interests you.

Use the information you found to answer the following questions.

1
Within which department is NIST?
2
What is NIST's mission?
3
How many people does NIST employ?
4
How is NIST connected to automated teller machines (ATMs), bullet-proof vests, and TV programming?
5
What topic did you read about from the "A–Z Subject Index"? Summarize the topic in a paragraph.
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