nightsurge said:
Look, we are all entitled to our own opinions and beliefs, but you do realize that Science doesn't PROVE anything, right? It is one of the foremost truths in Science that it does not provide proof or final/permanent truth. Also, although the theory of radiocarbon dating is interesting, there are several inherent problems with the process. The first of these problems is the fact that the original ratio of carbon and radioactive carbon is unknown. The second problem is that the possibility of contamination of the sample over time is quite high. The older the sample the higher the probability of contamination, in fact! What this means is that using carbon dating to date very old samples is really quite impractical given our current level of knowledge and technological capabilities. |
just want to clear up a few things here.
For radiocarbon dating the sample can't really be contaminated once the sample dies, as you're measuring the amount of Carbon-14 in the sample, which can't be added to a dead sample as it is taken in as part of the respiratory process.
It can be contaminated when the sample is alive though and these are the main concerns. Contamination with plants that have been alive since 1945 is one concern, as the are contaminated by nuclear weapons that have lead to the added production of carbon-14. But it shouldn't effect samples that died before that period as they weren't alive to breathe in the added Carbon-14 in the atmosphere.
The other main concern is with the carbon exchange reservoir, which, long story short, is that marine samples can be contaminated with old Carbon-14 samples from a sort of wash down effect, and this can lead carbon dating giving an older date.
But these contaminations are well understood, and scientists who are Carbon dating a sample will factor for these potential errors. Dating a sea snail born in 1950 is a real no no, dating a tree that died in 1900 should give reasonable accuracy.
And we know that the production of Carbon-14 is a pretty constant thing. It may vary slightly when affected by things such as increased solar activity, but scientists can tell within reasonable accuracy the suspected ratio of Carbon-14 to be found in a carbon sample. And furthermore, scientists can calibrate the dates with known samples of trees, which can provide accurate dates from the tree rings and dates from Carbon samples, which are compared for accuracy. We find that the dates match to within a reasonable amount.
Long story short. Yes, Carbon sample can be contaminated; and yes, carbon-14 production can vary with things like phases of solar activity. But those who do the dating are well aware of these problems and are able to produce a date within reasonable accuracy by accounting for these errors when they are dating. A scientist wouldn't date a sample they know could be contaminated.
Hope that cleared a few things up.