Question

Choose the FALSE statement.

A. All living things contain stable C-12.
B. All living things contain unstable C-14.
C. The half-life of C-14 is about 40,000 years.
D. The lower the C-14 to C-12 ratio is in a remnant of a living thing, the older it is.

Answer 1

C. The half-life of C-14 is about 40,000 years.

Step-by-step explanation:

The only false statement from the options is that the half-life of C-14 is 40,000yrs.

The half-life of an isotope is the time it takes for half of a radioactive material to decay to half of its original amount. C-14 has an half-life of 5730yrs. This implies that during every 5730yrs, C-14 will reduce to half of its initial amount.

• All living organisms contain both stable C-12 and the unstable isotope of C-14
• The lower the C-14 compared to the C-12 ratio in an organism, the older it is.