Is carbon dating valid or a lie?

Answer 1

Carbon dating is valid for:

1. objects that were once living (had been in equilibrium with atmospheric carbon-14 levels)
2. objects no older than about 40,000 years (still has detectable level of carbon-14)
3. objects that are not fossilized (carbon has not been replaced)

Carbon dating often has errors (due to variations in atmospheric carbon-14 levels over time), but these can be corrected by cross-referencing with tree ring dating.

Some people want carbon dating to be wrong as it may contradict their strongly held beliefs, so in their mind it must be a lie. But beliefs can be wrong (even delusional), no matter how strongly held or the source they are based on.

Answer 2

Carbon dating is a validated scientific method used to determine the age of biological artifacts based on the decay rate of carbon-14 isotopes. It provides accurate estimates for items up to around 50,000 years old. Validity is dependent on proper sample handling and calibration to account for potential sources of error, but when done correctly, carbon dating is a reliable tool for estimating the age of organic materials.