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Statistical Problems in Calibrating Radiocarbon Dates

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 July 2016

Herold Dehling  and
Johannes van der Plicht
Herold Dehling
Affiliation:
Mathematics Department, University of Groningen, Blauwborgje 3, 9747 AG, The Netherlands
Johannes van der Plicht
Affiliation:
Centre for Isotope Research, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747 AG, The Netherlands
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The transformation of radiocarbon years to calendar years (cal AD/BC) is not straightforward because of past variations in atmospheric 14C content (de Vries 1958; Suess 1970). A calibration curve, y = f(x), transforms each dendrochronologically dated calendar age (x) to a 14C date (y). By inverting this relationship, one can determine the calibrated calendar age of a given sample. In some time intervals, the calibration curve is problematic in that f(x) is not uniquely invertible (Fig. 1); even an exact measurement of y cannot be converted to a single calendar age (see examples in van der Plicht & Mook (1987)).

Type
Articles
Information
Radiocarbon , Volume 35 , Issue 1 , 1993 , pp. 239 - 244
Copyright
Copyright © The American Journal of Science 

References

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