Has carbon 14 been found in fossils?

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Has carbon 14 been found in fossils?

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Answer 1 · 2016-01-19T01:08:28

Carbon 14 ( $^{14} C$ $""^14C$ ) has been found in fossils, but only fairly recent ones.

Explanation:

Carbon 14 has a half life of 5,730 years, and is only useful in dating organic matter that is less than about 50,000 years old. Beyond that time there is too little $^{14} C$ $""^14C$ left to measure reliably.

But there are plenty of human, plant and animal fossils younger than that - not all fossils have to be millions of years old!

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Has carbon 14 been found in fossils?

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