The Slippery (and Colorful) Business of Standards
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The recent announcement of a new standard for "slipperiness" reminded me not only of the seemingly infinite, and at times surprising, types of standards we find we cannot live without, but also of the linkage between language and standards.
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The standard in question is called "Measuring and Specifying the Slipperiness of Floors Used in Live Performance Venues." If one were so inclined, one might wonder whether it is more surprising that the world has existed so long without a way to measure the slipperiness of the floors of live performance venues, or that someone has now taken the time and effort to plug that remarkably small gap (odds are that your wonder may incline towards the latter). Still, as noted in the announcement, "It is axiomatic that you can't manage what you can't measure," and if you're in the Business of Building Show Business, I guess it's quite plausible that you might find yourself in need of managing the slipperiness of live performance venues as well.
All snarkiness aside (or mostly aside, anyway), the announcement highlights the fact that standards provide a way to quantify individual perceptions, the better to intelligibly communicate and share those perceptions to achieve mutually desirable results.
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