analytical chemistry April 1976, Vol. 48, NO. 4
Editor: Herbert A. L a i t i n e n EDITORIAL HEADQUARTERS 1155 Sixteenth St., N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036 Phone: 202-872-4570 Teletype: 710-8220151 Managing Editor: Josephine M. Petruzzi Associate Editor: Andrew A. Husovsky Associate Editor, Easton: Elizabeth R. Rufe Assistant Editor: Nancy J. Oddenino Editorial Assistants: Barbara Cassatt, Deborah M. Cox Production Manager: Leroy L. Corcoran Associate Manager: Charlotte C. Sayre Artist: Diane Reich Advisory Board: Donald H . Anderson, Edward G. Brame, Jr., Richard P. Buck, Warren B. Crummett, Merle A. Evenson, Velmer Fassel, A. F. Findeis, Robert A. Hofstader, Marjorie G. Horning. Richard S. Juvet, Jr., Lynn L. Lewis, Harry B. Mark, Jr., Walter C. McCrone, Eugene A. Sawicki, W. D. Shults Instrumentation Advisory Panel: Stanley R. Crouch, Nathan Gochman. Robert W. Hannah, Gary Horlick, James N. Little, Harold M. McNair, David Seligson, R. K. Skogerboe, Donald E. Smith Contributing Editor: Claude A. Lucchesi Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, Evanston. 111. 60201 Published by the AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY 1155 16th Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036
Books and Journals Division Director: D. H. Michael Bowen Editorial: Charles R. Bertsch Graphics and Production: Bacil Guiley Research and Development: Seidon W. Terrant Circulation Development: Marion Gurfein
Moving towards SI Units At a recent conference of ACS editors, it was agreed that, as a general policy, all ACS publications will move towards the usage of SI, the International System of Units as outlined in the National Bureau of Standards “Guidelines for Use of the Metric System”. SI includes just seven base units, the meter, kilogram, second, ampere, kelvin, mole, and candela, plus two supplementary units for plane angle and solid angle. From these nine units, a group of derived units is generated for all other quantities. A set of prefixes is used to form multiples and submultiples of these units. As a matter of principle, there is much to be said for a uniform adoption of the most logical set of units across all branches of science. Many scientific organizations and research journals have announced an official policy of adopting SI units either at once or in a gradual transition. So far, so good. A practical problem arises in that most fields, and even subfields, of science have usages of long standing that do not fit neatly into the overall system. Consequently, several units which are not part of the SI are commonly permitted, whenever it is impractical to abandon their use. Each ACS journal will work out a compromise most acceptable to its clientele. In the field of analytical chemistry, the SI unit of concentration. m0l/m3, is inconvenient. Therefore, in ANALYTICALCHEMISTRY, the liter (defined as a cubic decimeter or m3) will be retained, to permit the use of molar concentration. Certain other concentration units, such as normal and formal concentration, do not appear essential. Molality, however, will be retained because of its practical importance. Usages such as milliliter and microliter are of such practical utility that they will no doubt be with us at least for the next gigasecond. Readers are encouraged to communicate with the Editors of ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRYto express their thoughts about other units that should be permitted as alternatives to SI units, a t least during an interim transition period. The Advisory Board, a t its annual meeting in May, will consider the problem, and the editorial staff will prepare an appropriate revision of the Manuscript Requirements for the December 1976 issue. We hope, thereby, to begin an orderly transition towards SI usage without imposing unduly cumbersome changes upon either authors or readers.
Manuscript requirements are published in the December 1975 issue, Page 2525. Manuscripts for publication (4 copies) should be submitted to ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY at the ACS Washington address -
The American Chemical Society and its editors assume no responsibility for the statements and opinions advanced by contributors. Views expressed in the editorials are those of the editors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the American Chemical Society. Advertising Management: Centcom, Ltd. (for Branch Offices, see page 386 A)
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