EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -The Carbon-14 Cycle. Radiocarbon dating (usually referred to simply as carbon-14 dating) is a radiometric dating method. It uses the naturally occurring radioisotope carbon-14 (14C) to estimate the age of carbon-bearing materials up to about 58, 000 to 62, 000 years old.

Detailed explanation-2: -The carbon-14 method was developed by the American physicist Willard F. Libby about 1946. It has proved to be a versatile technique of dating fossils and archaeological specimens from 500 to 50, 000 years old.

Detailed explanation-3: -Carbon dating is used by archeologists to date trees, plants, and animal remains; as well as human artifacts made from wood and leather; because these items are generally younger than 50, 000 years.

Detailed explanation-4: -Today, scientists use a variety of techniques to date rocks and fossils precisely. Most often, they measure the amounts of particular radioactive elements-often radiocarbon or potassium-present to determine when a rock was formed, or when an animal or plant died.

Detailed explanation-5: -Radiocarbon dating is a method that provides objective age estimates for carbon-based materials that originated from living organisms. An age could be estimated by measuring the amount of carbon-14 present in the sample and comparing this against an internationally used reference standard.