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Problems in the Measurement, Calibration, Analysis, and Communication of Radiocarbon Dates (With Special Reference to the Prehistory of the Aegean World)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 July 2016

Malcolm H Wiener
Malcolm H Wiener*
Affiliation:
Institute for Aegean Prehistory, 66 Vista Drive, Greenwich, Connecticut 06830–7128, USA. Email: mhwiener@villacandia.com
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Abstract

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Radiocarbon dating encounters (1) problems of reservoir effects and regional/seasonal variation affecting the chronological reliability of measurements, (2) problems of calibration of measurements via comparison with tree segments of known dendrochronological dates, (3) problems of statistical inference with respect to the data pre- and post-calibration, and (4) problems of the analysis and communication of information to archaeologists, historians, and other interested parties. This paper considers the special characteristics of each of the problem areas indicated in order to improve communication between 14C scientists and the disciplines of archaeology, anthropology, and ancient history.

Type
Articles
Information
Radiocarbon , Volume 54 , Issue 3-4 , 2012 , pp. 423 - 434
Copyright
Copyright © 2012 by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona 

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