The World's Oldest Recorded Living Tree Is a 9,550-Year-Old Spruce

The world's oldest recorded living tree is a 9,550-year-old spruce in the Dalarna province of Sweden.Scientists have also found cones from the same site that date back over 9,000 years and have the same genetic identity as the tree.These ages were determined using carbon-14 dating at a laboratory in Miami, Florida.If the ratio of ¹⁴C to ¹²C in the tree and the cone samples were compared, the ratio would be

A) higher in the cones because the ¹²C is not replenished after death.
B) lower in the cones because the ¹⁴C is not replenished after death.
C) lower in the tree because the ¹²C is differentially replenished in living material.
D) higher in the cones because they are younger.
E) None of the above; the ratio would be equal.