GENERAL KNOWLEDGE

Detailed explanation-1: -Radiocarbon dating involves determining the age of an ancient fossil or specimen by measuring its carbon-14 content. Carbon-14, or radiocarbon, is a naturally occurring radioactive isotope that forms when cosmic rays in the upper atmosphere strike nitrogen molecules, which then oxidize to become carbon dioxide.

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: -Once the organism dies, it stops replenishing its carbon supply, and the total carbon-14 content in the organism slowly disappears. Scientists can determine how long ago an organism died by measuring how much carbon-14 is left relative to the carbon-12.

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.