June 2023    
         
         
 
     
  This month, µChicago brings you another topic from…  
     
  The Day Tomorrow Began  
     
  In this series, learn about monumental breakthroughs at the University of Chicago and the people behind them. Through videos, podcasts, and written content, discover how these groundbreaking ideas have shaped and defined fields—and how UChicago scholars continue to change our world.  
     
  Learn more about The Day Tomorrow Began and explore the long half-life of work begun at UChicago, including carbon dating.  
     
  Carbon-14 dating, explained  
     
 
 
 
     
  Image: Willard F. Libby, professor in the Department of Chemistry and Institute for Nuclear Studies (Enrico Fermi Institute), developed the technique of carbon dating. (Photography by Town & Country Photographers, UChicago Photographic Archive, apf1-03871, Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library)  
     
 
     
  Radiocarbon dating, or carbon-14 dating, is a scientific method that can accurately determine the age of organic materials as old as approximately 60,000 years. The technique, based on the decay of the carbon-14 isotope, was first developed in the late 1940s at UChicago by Willard Libby and his team of researchers. Libby went on to receive the 1960 Nobel Prize in chemistry for the work.  
     
  Radiocarbon dating has been used for historical studies and atmospheric science and triggered archaeology’s “radiocarbon revolution.” Learn all about carbon dating from UChicago’s Explainer Series.  
     
 
 
  More from The Day Tomorrow Began  
     
 
     
  1  
     
 
Cancer research
 
     
     
     
 
     
  2  
     
 
Sleep research
 
     
     
     
 
     
  3  
     
 
First nuclear reaction
 
     
     
 
         
         
    Spotlight    
         
         
 
     
  Making history  
     
 
 
 
     
  Image: Among the artifacts from the University of Chicago’s Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures, West Asia & North Africa, that Libby tested during the radiocarbon dating development process was this painted wood in the shape of a face from an Egyptian coffin. (Photography by Jean Lachat)  
     
 
     
  In 2016, on the 70th anniversary of Libby’s first publication on radiocarbon dating, the American Chemical Society designated the discovery as a National Historic Chemical Landmark. A commemorative plaque is on display in the foyer of the Kent Chemical Laboratory building at 1020 E. 58th Street.  
     
  Explore other National Historic Chemical Landmarks as well as American Physical Society historic sites, including one honoring the work of Robert Millikan, who received the 1923 Nobel Prize in physics for experiments conducted at Ryerson Physical Laboratory. A plaque hangs in the lobby of the Kersten Physics Teaching Center, 5720 S. Ellis Avenue.  
     
 
 
  In case you missed it  
     
 
 
 
Visionaries: UChicago’s Science as Art contest winners.
 
 
Food allergies: Peanuts are one of the most common food allergens.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
     
  Support UChicago physical sciences.  
     
 
     
 
  Visit the Alumni & Friends website for stories, podcasts, and other features, curated for you on UChicago Review. Create an account for a more personalized experience.  
 
       
 
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