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Think about it for a minute. Carbon is part of ORGANIC molecules, from living things like plants and animals. When an organism dies the different isotopes of carbon gradually deteriorate; the difference in rates is what enables C-14 dating to give an approximate date range for when the organism was last alive.

So the bottom line, naive answer to your question is another question - how many coins were once alive?

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Q: Why is carbon 14 dating useless for dating old coins?
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Why is carbon 14 dating useless for dating old coins but not old pieces of cloth?

No carbon in coins. Plenty of carbon in old cloth.


Why is carbon -14 dating useless for dating old coins but not old pieces of cloth?

No carbon in coins. Plenty of carbon in old cloth.


How do scientists determine how old objects are by?

Archeologists determine how old an object is, by using Carbon Dating.


How do scientists use Carbon-14 to date fossils?

Carbon-14 is in all living things and decays after it dies. It has a long half life (the time it takes for half a sample to decay into another element) and gives a good estimate as to how old something is. Carbon dating is only effective up to an approximate age of 70,000 years, and is only useful in dating organic matter. Since the vast majority of fossils are much older than this, carbon dating is not particularly useful in dating fossils, but is of great use in archaeology.


Which naturally occurring radioisotopes would be most useful in dating objects is thought to be millions of years old?

It depends on what material you are trying to date. For example, carbon 14 is absorbed by living things and so is good for dating organic matter but is useless for dating inorganic matter.


What can carbon dating be used to date?

Carbon dating can be used to date organic materials, such as wood, bones, shells, and charcoal. It is particularly useful for determining the age of archaeological artifacts and fossils that are up to about 50,000 years old.


Can carbon dating measure old iron?

It is not possible.


What are some benefits of carbon dating to humans?

Carbon dating is very important. Carbon dating is the radio-activity of Carbon 14 which is unstable so it emits protons once in a while in order to become a more stable isotope. Using Carbon dating, we can determine with accuracy how old something is.


Can you give a sentence with carbon dating?

Carbon dating is a method of telling approximately how old an ancient object is. Here are some sentences.The scientists used carbon dating and decided that the mummy was 10,000 years old.Carbon dating is not perfect, but it can give you a rough idea.We studied carbon dating in class today.


Carbon-14 is useful for dating fossils that are what?

Old


What are two ways to date fossils?

Radio-carbon dating is one, carbon 14 changes to carbon 13 over time, scientists measure how much carbon 14 is left in a fossil to determine how old it is.


How could a person approximately tell how old the moon is?

Carbon Dating