You find the frozen remains of a woolly mammoth in an Alaskan glacier.You analyze a bit of the tusk and find that its 14C:12C ratio is about one- fourth (25%)of the baseline level typically found in living organisms.Given that the half- life of 14C is 5,730 years,when did the mammoth die?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The 14C:12C ratio being one-fourth indicates that two half-lives have passed (since (1/2)^2 = 1/4). Therefore, the mammoth died approximately 2 x 5,730 = 11,460 years ago, which is almost 12,000 years ago.

You Find the Frozen Remains of a Woolly Mammoth in an Alaskan