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Weight, Force, and Their Measurement

Home > Equipment and Instrumentation > Weight, Force, and Their Measurement
Boy in a doctor's office, standing on a scale as the doctor moves the sliders to determine the boy's weight.

A well-known application
of a balance beam

Weight is a way of expressing the force of gravity on an object, assuming certain standard conditions, such as being at sea level. It is a convenient reference standard for firearm examiners and other forensic scientists.

The beam balance is one of the earliest devices used to obtain weight measurements. This instrument was used in a very simple way: by establishing a “balance” between a questioned weight and known or standard weights. Precision laboratory beam-style balances are sensitive and expensive. They are rapidly disappearing from most forensic laboratories and are being replaced by digital and electronic scales.

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