Carbon-14 Dating (May 12)
Carbon -14 (14C) dating can only be done on the tissue of something that used to be alive. All plants and animals contain carbon, including some 14C. As they continue to live, carbon is added to their tissues. After they die, no more carbon is added; the unstable 14C begins to decay to nitrogen-14. To determine the age of a sample, scientists measure the amount of carbon-14 left. Scientists have found that 14C has a half-life of about 6,000 years (5,720). So after 6,000 years only ½ of the original carbon-14 would be left. After another 6,000 years ¼ would be left and so on.
Since the 14C keeps decaying, after about 18 divisions (representing a supposed 100,000 years), there is not enough left for a mass spectrometer machine to measure. After about 40 divisions (representing about 220,000 years), there should not be a single atom of 14C left. For years, Bible-believing scientists have been radiocarbon dating (14C) materials found at various levels in the geological rock layers. Evolution-believing scientists never bother to radiocarbon date artifacts found in rock layers because they have been conditioned to believe in evolution, and evolution requires these rocks to be millions of years old. Therefore, in their minds, it is impossible to find any 14C within any creature found in these “millions-of-year-old” rock layers.
Yet, fossils found within the rock layers still have LOTS of 14C. And the amount of 14C left in the samples always seems to fall within the same range – 5% to 12% of modern levels. This same 5-12% level is found regardless of where the sample came from in the rock layers. Thus the very earliest forms of life in the rock layers (assumed to be 500 million years old) have essentially the same amount of radiocarbon as fossils found in upper rock layers (assumed to be 5 million years old). This means ALL the rock layers were laid down during one event because all the life found in these rock layers is essentially the same age!
So what do evolutionists do with such evidence? Basically, they assume the 14C is just “background contamination.” What the evidence of measurable levels of 14C in fossils actually reveals is that these layers were laid down a short time ago and all at once. When we put on our Biblical glasses, these fossils were laid down about 4400 years ago in the Flood of Noah’s time. The C14 level is so low because before the flood less C14 was produced and spread through more biomatter.
Plants absorb this carbon-14 during photosynthesis. When animals eat the plants, the carbon-14 enters their bodies.
When an animal dies the carbon-14 continues to break down to nitrogen-14 and escapes, while no new carbon-14 is added. By comparing the surviving amount of carbon-14 to the original amount, scientists can calculate how long ago the animal died.
Hebrews 1:10-11
Reference
DeYoung, Dr. Don. 2005. Thousands… not Billions: Challenging an Icon of Evolution-Questioning the
Age of the Earth. New Leaf Publishing Group.