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QuizMultiple Choice

Half-Life

Question 1 • Foothill-B Period-Chemistry-26/27B

Which statement is true about radiocarbon dating?

Answer
A
After it dies, an organism’s body continues to intake C-14.
B
Radiocarbon dating is useful for dating objects up to 100,000 years old.
C
Radiocarbon dating assumes that half-life for radioisotopes change over time.
D
The half-life of C-14 is 5,730 years.

Explanation

Carbon-14 has a half-life of about 5,730 years, meaning that amount of C-14 in a sample decreases by half over that time. Living organisms take in carbon while alive, but stop exchanging carbon after death, so A is false. Radiocarbon dating is generally useful for samples up to about 50,000 years old, not 100,000, and it assumes radioactive half-lives remain constant.

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