Last week, we learned about Darwin’s voyage and how he collected data to formulate his theory of evolution. We went on to study biological classification, using the system devised by Linneaus way back in 1735. Previously, we learned that scientists collecting were able to date common ancestors of humans to over 3 million years ago. Our work over the next few days will be to learn how scientists use radiometric dating to estimate the age of really old samples. We will begin an introduction to chemistry, focusing our efforts on understanding the difference between carbon-12 and carbon-14 atoms. Class notes are pictured below:
Next, we will watch a video introducing radiocarbon dating:
After the video, we will begin the Radioisotopes Activity. We will read through the first few pages, and then tomorrow students will work with a partner to complete the activity which is anticipated to wrap up by Wednesday.
The Art of Science 