"An international research group has created the most perfect spheres ever made (http://technology.newscientist.com/article/dn14229-roundest-objects-in-the-world-created.html), in a bid to pin down a definition of the kilogram. It should be possible to count exactly the number of atoms in one of the roughly 9cm silicon spheres to define the unit. Currently the kilogram is defined only by a 120-year-old lump of platinum in Paris, but its mass is changing relative to copies held elsewhere. Other SI units have more systematic definitions."
http://technology.newscientist.com/article/dn14229-roundest-objects-in-the-world-created.html