This article addresses the question of how standards were determined and disseminated in an era before the formation of agreed upon standards or the existence of governing bodies, by examining the case of nineteenth-century Brazil. It argues that the experience in Brazil was similar to that of other nations: individuals engaged in mathematical, scientific, engineering, and statistical organizations created networks of professional societies, intertwined with international diplomacy and domestic legislators, to promote the adoption of the metric system. It analyzes the process from idea to advocacy culminating in national implementation on the eve of the 1875 International Convention of the Meter, to which Brazil was signatory.

本文通过考察 19 世纪巴西的案例，探讨了在达成一致的标准或存在管理机构之前的时代，标准是如何确定和传播的。它认为巴西的经历与其他国家相似：从事数学、科学、工程和统计组织的个人创建了专业协会网络，与国际外交和国内立法者交织在一起，以促进公制系统的采用。它分析了从想法到倡导最终在巴西签署的 1875 年国际仪表公约前夕在国家实施的过程。