Carbon-14 Dating and Half-life

Carbon-14 dating is a method of obtaining age estimates on organice materials. It does not work on inorgainc materials because in organic means non carbon containing. This was developed by Willard F. Libby. The half-life of a carbon 14 atom is 5,730 years. By looking at the ratio of carbon 12 to carbon 14 in the sample and comparing it to the ratio in a living organism, it is possible to determine the age of a formely living thing.