The accepted state-of-the-art 14C dating method relies on calibration curves to determine initial 14C levels in a sample. The paper reconsiders the basis of 14C dating and offers a possible alternative that eliminates the need to employ calibration curves. The idea is to measure the level of radiogenic nitrogen atoms retained in the sample molecules after 14C beta-decay. The practicality of this alternative method still has to be proven.
[Radiocarbon Volume 40, Numbers 1-2, 1998]