Radiocarbon Dating
Radiocarbon dating is a scientific analytical technique used for determining the age of samples which were once alive (eg. bone, charcoal, leather). All organisms contain carbon, some of which is radioactive 14C, an isotope that is continuously being formed in the upper atmosphere. As living organisms take up radiocarbon along with other carbon atoms, the ratio between the two forms remains constant. However when they die the radiocarbon decays and is not replaced. Since it decays at a known constant rate, the decreasing concentration of 14C can be measured and the date when the material died estimated. Radiocarbon dating is one of the principal tools that archaeologists use to determine the age of the sites they investigate.
As a research tool, Lifeways regularly carries out radiocarbon dating. For this purpose we use only creditable laboratories offering competitive rates.
Did you know that...
The so-called Ice-Free Corridor, once viewed as an important migration route allowing humans to pass south of the glaciers near the end of the Ice Ages, passes along the Foothills of Alberta and through Calgary?