Age: Radiocarbon Dating, Tree rings and the Universe

The universe is approximately 13 billion years old. I know this because there's a barely visible galaxy around 13 billion light years away. That means that it took the light about 13 billion years to reach me and the rest of my fellow denizens here on earth. Since I hate people making statements without citing their sources I'll give you a nice little link.

The reasonable question is, "How do you know how far away it is?". Geometry is the answer. Advanced geometry in fact. For more on the math behind determining distances in space refer to THIS little link.

A good follow-up question, in my opinion, is "Why should we trust this?". The same reason you trust your car, the sturdiness of your home. Math is one of the hardest things to screw with. There are plenty of smart people out there and they like to check up on their peers work. The math speaks for itself unlike more subjective fields such as climatology (which deals with such mind-numbingly gigantic numbers that it makes you realize why the 7 day forecast is wrong so often).

The Earth falls somewhere around 4 and a half billion years in age (not too shabby) and houses millions of species, many of which are closesly related and share similar traits. Here is a nice chart explaining the taxonomic ranking of biological classification. You're welcome.

There is evidence that the genus "homo" has been around for at least 2 and a half million years. Modern man is estimated to have been around for somewhere between 250,000 and 400,000 years. The use of radiocarbon dating is extremely helpful in determining the age of things around us, as long as it is used properly.

It is criticized by some and those criticisms are parroted by many who simply do not understand and do no possess the will to understand the science behind it. They point out how it has been used to date recently deceased animals as old as millions of years. That's funny when you realize that scientists only use the dating method to date up to 50,000 years and that due to excess 14C from nuclear testing in the 50s they won't use the method to date anything younger than a 150 years old. Not to mention they calibrate their equipment against tree rings. You know, the living record that tells us the stories of the past?

THIS THING!

When used correctly in the natural parameters radiocarbon dating is extremely informative. It gives us clues as to what the world was like 5,000 years ago and beyond. It even gives us simple answers like, "How old is that tree over there?"

Answer: Something like 9,550 years old is all. Welcome to Sweden.





http://www.talkorigins.org/indexcc/