Welcome ​Back To Reality

Mankind has learned so much about the history of the Earth and human evolution from the study of fossils.  It is important for us to know how old something is and where it fits into the overall history of our planet.  Radiometric Dating, also known as Radioactive Dating is a method that uses radioactive isotopes to date rocks and carbon.  It is useful for the dating of igneous and metamorphic rocks.  The method compares the abundance of a naturally occurring radioactive isotope within the material to the abundance of its decay products, which form at a known constant rate of decay.  So many things about the Earth's history would be unknown if we didn't have this modern dating technique available to today's scientists.  Scientists can also date fossils by dating the age of the soil around the fossil.  With this dating technique, scientists can place fossils in an evolutionary or geological context and reconstruct the distant past.  Also refer to the page entitled  "Geological Timeline" on this website.

Watch the videos below to learn more about radiometric dating!