Dendrochronological "Wiggle Matching"

[Cholmondely]

Just thought I'd ask... does anybody here know anything much about this?

The Wikipedia page is quite unhelpful.

[Cmdr James]

I cannot say that its my field, but the basics seem simple enough to me. What exactly do you want to know?

[Cholmondely]

I cannot say that its my field, but the basics seem simple enough to me. What exactly do you want to know?

Thank you!


In a nutshell, what is it?

How reliable is it?

And how many other ways are there of crosschecking radiocarbon dating?



The stuff I find is either written for children with virtually no detail, or for academics in the field and takes too much knowledge for granted.

[spud42]

not my field either but being an avid watcher of arcaeological dig,reports etc from what i remember it can be quite accutate.

According to the wiki
"Dendrochronology (or tree-ring dating) is the scientific method of dating tree rings (also called growth rings) to the exact year they were formed. As well as dating them, this can give data for dendroclimatology, the study of climate and atmospheric conditions during different periods in history from wood. Dendrochronology derives from Ancient Greek dendron (δένδρον), meaning "tree", khronos (χρόνος), meaning "time", and -logia (-λογία), "the study of".[1]

Dendrochronology is useful for determining the precise age of samples, especially those that are too recent for radiocarbon dating, which always produces a range rather than an exact date. However, for a precise date of the death of the tree a full sample to the edge is needed, which most trimmed timber will not provide. It also gives data on the timing of events and rates of change in the environment (most prominently climate) and also in wood found in archaeology or works of art and architecture, such as old panel paintings. It is also used as a check in radiocarbon dating to calibrate radiocarbon ages.[2]

New growth in trees occurs in a layer of cells near the bark. A tree's growth rate changes in a predictable pattern throughout the year in response to seasonal climate changes, resulting in visible growth rings. Each ring marks a complete cycle of seasons, or one year, in the tree's life.[2] As of 2020, securely dated tree-ring data for the northern hemisphere are available going back 13,910 years.[3] A new method is based on measuring variations in oxygen isotopes in each ring, and this 'isotope dendrochronology' can yield results on samples which are not suitable for traditional dendrochronology due to too few or too similar rings.[4]"

[Cholmondely]

not my field either but being an avid watcher of archaeological digs, reports etc from what i remember it can be quite accurate.

Thank you... but... it's dendrochronology rather than the wiggle matching aspect of it...

What do wiggle matchers actually do?

And why is it called "wiggle matching"?

[Cody]

Wiggle matching is a dating method - like Bumble!

[Redspear]

I think you're talking about two related but seperate things...

not my field either but being an avid watcher of archaeological digs, reports etc from what i remember it can be quite accurate.

Thank you... but... it's dendrochronology rather than the wiggle matching aspect of it...

What do wiggle matchers actually do?

And why is it called "wiggle matching"?

Dendrochronolgy is typically matching tree rings to known records wheras wiggle matching is an aspect of carbon dating.
What they have in common (again, according to my very limited understanding), is that they can show up quirks in particular years/decades that can be used as identifiers when compared to existing data.

So just as one might recognise a flag of a particular seasonal growth sinature when looking at tree rings, one might also recognise a signature 'wiggle' from carbon dating where the data strays a little from the predicted curve. In both cases you would then be 'matching' to preexisting data records as explained by spud42 in the case of dendrochronology.

[Disembodied]

And how many other ways are there of crosschecking radiocarbon dating?

Carbon-14 dates can be cross-checked with ice-core dating, too;

http://www.antarcticglaciers.org/questi ... res-dated/

There are other forms of radiometric dating as well:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiometric_dating

and techniques like Electron Spin Resonance:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electron_ ... nce_dating

[Cholmondely]

Thanking you, gentlemen.

I knew this was a good place to ask!