The remarkable metrological history of radiocarbon dating [II]

Currie, L. A.

doi:10.6028/jres.109.013

Title: The remarkable metrological history of radiocarbon dating [II]

Journal Article · Mon Mar 01 00:00:00 EST 2004 · Journal of Research of the National Institute of Standards and Technology

DOI:https://doi.org/10.6028/jres.109.013· OSTI ID:1628754

Currie, L. A. ^[1]

National Inst. of Standards and Technology (NIST), Gaithersburg, MD (United States)

This article traces the metrological history of radiocarbon, from the initial breakthrough devised by Libby, to minor (evolutionary) and major (revolutionary) advances that have brought ¹⁴C measurement from a crude, bulk [8 g carbon] dating tool, to a refined probe for dating tiny amounts of precious artifacts, and for “molecular dating” at the 10 µg to 100 µg level. The metrological advances led to opportunities and surprises, such as the non-monotonic dendrochronological calibration curve and the “bomb effect,” that gave rise to new multidisciplinary areas of application, ranging from archaeology and anthropology to cosmic ray physics to oceanography to apportionment of anthropogenic pollutants to the reconstruction of environmental history. Beyond the specific topic of natural ¹⁴C, it is hoped that this account may serve as a metaphor for young scientists, illustrating that just when a scientific discipline may appear to be approaching maturity, unanticipated metrological advances in their own chosen fields, and unanticipated anthropogenic or natural chemical events in the environment, can spawn new areas of research having exciting theoretical and practical implications.

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Research Organization:: National Inst. of Standards and Technology (NIST), Gaithersburg, MD (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC)

OSTI ID:: 1628754

Journal Information:: Journal of Research of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Vol. 109, Issue 2; ISSN 1044-677X

Publisher:: National Institute of Standards (NIST)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Radiocarbon in ecology: Insights and perspectives from aquatic and terrestrial studies Larsen, Thomas; Yokoyama, Yusuke; Fernandes, Ricardo Methods in Ecology and Evolution, Vol. 9, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1111/2041-210x.12851	journal	August 2017
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Atmospheric radiocarbon measurements to quantify CO2 emissions in the UK from 2014 to 2015 Wenger, Angelina; Pugsley, Katherine; O'Doherty, Simon Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Discussions https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2018-1042	journal	November 2018
Atmospheric radiocarbon measurements to quantify CO₂ emissions in the UK from 2014 to 2015 Wenger, Angelina; Pugsley, Katherine; O'Doherty, Simon Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol. 19, Issue 22 https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-14057-2019	journal	January 2019
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Analysis of ¹⁴ C-bearing compounds released by the corrosion of irradiated steel using accelerator mass spectrometry Cvetković, B. Z.; Salazar, G.; Kunz, D. The Analyst, Vol. 143, Issue 13 https://doi.org/10.1039/c8an00237a	journal	January 2018
Biobased carbon content of resin extracted from polyethylene composite by carbon-14 concentration measurements using accelerator mass spectrometry Taguchi, Kazuhiro; Kunioka, Masao; Funabashi, Masahiro SpringerPlus, Vol. 3, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1186/2193-1801-3-6	journal	January 2014
DNA analysis of Late Glacial mammal remains Prost, Stefan :none https://doi.org/10.25365/thesis.6268	text	January 2009

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Title: The remarkable metrological history of radiocarbon dating [II]

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