Hi,
Tuesday, March 5, 2002, 4:09:19 PM, Tim Wallace-Murphy wrote:
> 3) However, while the carbon dating of the mortar of the Newport Tower does
> place it after Henry, in fact in post-colonial times, that carbon dating
> exercise was crude, inexact and highly flawed.
> Firstly mortar, being pourous, allows an on-going interchange of atmospheric
> carbon which completely invalidates the carbon dating. Secondly, the
> sampling techniqes used leave a great deal to be desired as they did not
> diferentiate efficiently bewteen older and newer mortar. Lastly, and perhaps
> far mnore importantly, the whole test was condemned as invalid and
> inaccurate by Professor Andre Bethune ( who worked on the Manhatten project
> with the inventor of Carbon Dating) and the highly professional company of
> Watchman-Data Inc.
First let me point out that working on a project with the inventor of
radiocarbon dating doesn't make one an infallible expert on
radiocarbon dating. Professor De Bethune is (or was recently a
Professor Emeritus at Boston College. His research interests are
described as laying in the areas of porous media, theoretical and
experimental electochemistry, and bioethics.
I've read Bethune's article. I've also read Jan Heinemeier and Hogne
Jungner's response to it in the Journal of the Newport Historical
Society, Vol., 70, Part 2, 2000, which I think adequately deals with
his criticisms. They also have expertise and experience which
Professor De Bethune does not have so far as I know.
I haven't heard of Watchman-Data Inc and can find nothing about them
on the web.
>To rely on either the Carbon dating tests on the Newport Tower or on
>Godfrey's highly biased and flawed archaeological excavation as a guide to
>the true age of the tower would date this fascinating structure many yeasr
>AFTER its first mention in the Colonial archives in Benedict Arnold's
>will.
I'd be interested in knowing about the flaws. And how either the C14
dating or Godfrey's work would date the tower so much later than
Arnold.
Doug
--
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