DRAC: Dose Rate and Age Calculator for trapped charge dating

Accurate calculation of the environmental radiation dose rate ((D) over dot) is an essential part of trapped charge dating methods, such as luminescence and electron spin resonance dating. Although the calculation of ((D) over dot) is not mathematically complex, the incorporation of multiple variables and the propagation of uncertainties can be challenging. The Dose Rate and Age Calculator (DRAC) is an open access, web-based program which enables rapid ((D) over dot) calculation for trapped charge dating applications. Users can select from recently published attenuation and conversion factors to make mathematically robust, reproducible ((D) over dot) calculations. comparison of DRAC calculated ((D) over dot) values against the published ((D) over dot) determinations of 422 samples from 32 studies results in a reproducibility ratio of 1.01 +/- 0.05. It is anticipated that DRAC will facilitate easier inter-laboratory comparisons and will provide greater transparency for ((D) over dot) calculations. DRAC will be updated to reflect the latest advances in ((D) over dot) calculation and is freely accessible at www.aber. ac.uk/alrl/drac. The code for DRAC is available from github at https://github.com/DRAC-calculator/DRAC-calculator. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.