Lecture 3 Flashcards
What is absolute dating also called?
Chronometric dating.
What are absolute chronologies stated in?
In terms of calendar years.
What is radiometric decay?
A measure of the rate at which certain radioactive isotopes disintegrate.
What is a half-life?
The time period in which one half the amount of a radioactive isotope is converted chemically.
What is potassium-Argon and Argon-Argon dating?
Chronometric dating methods based on radiometric decay. Measures amount of argon 40 buildup in volcanic rock. Radioactive potassium, has a half-life of 1.25 billion years.
What is potassium-argon, argon-argon dating useful for?
Dating early hominid sites.
What is radiocarbon dating?
Method for dating organic materials up to 50, 000 years old. Measures the decay of a radioactive isotope of carbon, carbon 14.
What is the half life of carbon 14?
5, 730.
What is AMS dating?
Accelerator mass spectrometry - a type of radiocarbon dating. Requires only a very small sample for dating.
What is the benefit of using AMS dating?
Because you need such a small amount for analysis, you don’t need to destroy a huge amount of the artifact.
What is a con to dating?
It’s really expensive to send things to a lab.
What is dendrochronology?
Tree ring dating is used to determine the age of wood samples by examining annual growth rings. Has been used to assess the accuracy of radiocarbon dating.
