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What are two ways that a fossil's age can be determined?

One is radioactive dating? I don't know of any others besides looking at layers and which is on top

10 Answers

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  • The two ways that a fossil's age can be determined are radiometric and stratigraphic.

    The stratigraphic method determines the RELATIVE ages of fossils in the different strata. That is, the fossils in lower strata will be older than the fossils in upper strata.

    The radiometric method determines the ACTUAL age of the material in the strata in which the fossils are found.

    The two methods working together provide the information about the changes in the types of fossils over real time.

    Added

    @Kathy's and #Zardoz's answers, in combination with the above, exposes @CRR's answer as the creationist BS misrepresentation that it is.

  • Zardoz
    Lv 7
    6 years ago

    One method is not radioisotopic dating. A fossil's age isn't susceptible to radioisotopic dating because it is composed of replacement minerals not the minerals original to the creature. One isotopically dates igneous layers above and below the fossil and uses those dates to set high and low limits on the age of the fossil.

    Another method uses index fossils. The researcher uses common fossils, often of microscopic organisms, of which the age range is know. To be a good index fossil, the species must be easily identifiable, ubiquitous and short lived.

    Source(s): [n] = 10ⁿ
  • Kathy
    Lv 7
    6 years ago

    Around 1800, William Smith in England, who was a canal surveyor, noticed that he could map out great tracts of rocks on the basis of their contained fossils. The sequences he saw in one part of the country could be matched precisely with the sequences in another. These were the first principles of stratigraphy that older rocks lie below younger rocks and that fossils occur in a particular, predictable order.geologists began to build up the stratigraphic column, the familiar listing of divisions of geological time — Jurassic, Cretaceous, Tertiary, and so on. Each time unit was characterized by particular fossils. The scheme worked all round the world, without fail.

  • Ryan
    Lv 4
    4 years ago

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    She’s been on plenty of dinner-and-a-movie dates. Do a little research and find interesting places and things to do around town that’s out of the ordinary. There are hidden gems in every city. Also, get to know the owners of small restaurants and business. When your date is known by the people in the establishment, it feels more like you’re being invited into his inner circle. Just be aware that there’s a fine line between being impressive and showing off. Make sure that you make your date feel like you’re inviting her in and sharing instead of being a douche. It all goes back to intentions.

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  • ?
    Lv 7
    6 years ago

    Stratification. Signature fossils.

  • John
    Lv 6
    6 years ago

    Carbonate-14

    thermal radio signals

    X-ray

    Gamma-ray

  • ?
    Lv 5
    6 years ago

    1. Count it's rings. 2. Check dental records.

  • CRR
    Lv 7
    6 years ago

    You can tell the age of a fossil by the age of the layer it is in. You can tell the age of the layer by the types of fossils that are in it.

  • 6 years ago

    carbon-12 metod

  • 6 years ago

    potassium-argon method

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