The object of this book is to explain how to create a synthesis of
complex biostratigraphic data, and how to extract from such a synthesis
a relative time scale based exclusively on the fossil content of
sedimentary rocks. Such a time scale can be used to attribute relative
ages to isolated fossil-bearing samples. The book is composed of 10
chapters together with several appendices. It is a totally revised
version of "Biochronological Correlations" published in 1991 and
includes various new chapters. The book offers a solution for the
theoretical problem of how fossils can be used to make reliable
quantitative stratigraphic correlations in sedimentary geology. It also
describes the use of highly efficient software along with several
examples. The authors compare their theoretical model with 2 other
relevant studies: probabilistic stratigraphy and constrained
optimization (CONOP).