CSE Seminar Notebook - Free Bible Resources

Living penguins have beencarbon dated as being 8000years old! (See frequentlyasked questions for more wilddates obtained by carbondating.)At least six different radiometricdating methods areavailable. The assumed age ofthe sample will dictate whichdating method is used becauseeach will give adifferentresult.For example: when dinosaurbones containing carbon arefound, they are not carbondated because the resultwould be only afew thousandyears. Because this would notmatch the assumed age basedon the geologic column,scientists use another methodof dating to give an age closerto the desired result. All radiometricresults that do notmatch the preassigned ages ofthe geologic column arediscarded.Wrong Assumptions in C14Dating Methods1. Atmospheric C14is in equilibrium. This assumption iswrong.IthasbeenestimatedthattheC14intheearth’satmospherewouldreachequilibrium(theformationratewouldbeequaltothedecay rate) in about 30,000 years. The amount of C14in the atmosphereis still increasing. This research indicates ayoung earth(probablylessthan10,000years).“Radiocarbonisforming28-37%fasterthanitisdecaying”—R.E. Taylor et al., American Antiquity, Vol. 50, No. 11985pp.136-140ThesameresearchalsomodifiesalldatesobtainedbyC14decay.As the earth’s magnetic field decays, more cosmic radiation penetratesour atmosphere. On aGeiger counter, 16 clicks per minutepergram(16DPM/Gc)istypicalinlivingobjectstoday.PlantsandanimalsthatlivedontheearthfourthousandyearsagowouldhavehadmuchlessC14intheirbodytostartwith.ThelowamountofC14wouldmakethemappeartobethousands ofyearsolderthan theyreallyare.2. Decay rate remains constant. Many times this assumptionhasbeenshowntobeuncertain.Becausetherateofdecaymaynotbeconstant,datesobtainedbyC aresuspect.3. Initial amounts of C14can be known. Many times thisassumptionhasbeendemonstratedtobewrong.Differentpartsofthesamesampleoftenyielddifferentratios.Variouslivingsamplesgiveverydifferentratios.Someitemswillnotbetestedwithcarbondating even though they contain carbon (see number 5below).WouldamolluskhavethesameamountofC14pergramofcarbonasatree? Probably not. Living penguins have been carbon dated at8000 years old! The oldest sample of independently known age isHemaka, the Egyptian mummy from 2700–3100 B.C. (Secularwritersofantiquitytendtoexaggerateages,soeventhesedatesaresuspect.)4.Thesamplebeingtestedhasnotbeencontaminatedforthousands of years. This assumption is very difficult (if notimpossible)toprove.Parentordaughterproductsmayhaveleachedinoroutofthesample.Manylabtestshaveconfirmedthatthiscanhappen.5. The geologic column can be used as abase to calibratetheC14dates Thisassumptionisnotwise.Theagesappliedtothegeologiccolumn(inventedinthe1800stodiscredittheBible)donotexistanywhereintheworldexceptintextbooks.Poly-stratafossils,missing layers, layers out of order, misplaced fossils, and layers inreverse order all invalidate the geologic column (the CreationSeminarTapes 4–6havemoreinformationonthissubject).14Dr. Kent Hovind • office (850) 479-DINO (3466) •Fax 479-8562 46