Performing dilutions

Sometimes it is necessary to prepare solutions with very small concentrations of solute. For example, you might be asked to prepare a 1.000 X 10^-5 M solution of sodium hydroxide. By definition of molarity, this solution would contain 1.00 X 10^-5 moles of NaOH or 0.0004 g of NaOH per each 1-L of solution. Under these conditions, it is very difficult (and very poor technique) to attempt to weigh such a small amount of sample. The possibility of introducing error is great. What if you needed to make a 10^-6 M solution of NaOH? This would require 0.00004 g of NaOH for each 1-L of solution. Such a small amount cannot even be detected on a standard analytical balance.