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This exercise uses the radioactive decay model.


A wooden artifact from an ancient tomb contains 80% of the carbon-14 that is present in living trees. How long ago was the artifact made? (The half-life of carbon-14 is 5730 years. Round your answer to the nearest whole number.)


I need the answer in yrs. ...?

Verified Answer :

scme1702

For radioactive decay, we can relate current amount, initial amount, decay constant and time using:
N = No x exp(-λt)

Half-life = ln(2)/λ
λ = ln(2) / 5730
N/No = 80% = 0.8
0.8 = exp( -ln(2)/5730 x t)
t = 1844 years