What are the Fundamental Constants and Who Takes Care of Them

1 What are the Fundamental Constants and Who Takes Care of Them  

The fundamental constants are constant parameters in the laws of nature. They determine the size and strength of the phenomena in the natural and technological worlds. We conclude from observation that the numerical values of the fundamental constants are independent of space and time at least, we can say that if there is any dependence of the fundamental constants on space and time, then this dependence must be an extremely weak one. Also, we observe that the numerical values are independent of the scale of the phenomena observed for example, they seem to be the same in astrophysics and in atomic physics. In addition, the numerical values are quite independent of the environmental conditions. So we have confidence in the idea that the numerical values of the fundamental constants form a set of numbers which are the same everywhere in the world, and which have been the same in the past and will be the same in the future. Whereas the properties of all material objects in nature are more or less subject to continuous change, the fundamental constants seem to represent a constituent of the world which is absolutely permanent. 

On the basis of this expected invariance of the fundamental constants in space and time, it appears reasonable to relate the units of measurement for physical quanti- 

The fundamental constants play an important role in basic physics as well as in applied physics and technology in fact, they have a key function in the development of a system of reproducible and unchanging units for physical quantities. Nevertheless, there is, at present, no theory which would allow us to calculate the numerical values of the fundamental constants. Therefore, national institutes for metrology (NIMs), together with research institutes and university laboratories, are making efforts worldwide to determine the fundamental constants experimentally with the greatest possible accuracy and reliability. This, of course, is a continuous process, with hundreds of new publications every year. 

What is the meaning of recommended values of the fundamental constants  

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