Half-Life
We explain half-life qualitatively, mathematically, and graphically. We also look at how we use this principle to find the age of objects.
We explain half-life qualitatively, mathematically, and graphically. We also look at how we use this principle to find the age of objects.
Learning Objectives
-Explore the nature of radioactive substances by understanding their half-life qualitatively and what that tells us about their stability.
-Understand how to graph the decay rate of a radioactive substance and relate this to the half-life of the substance.
-Calculate how much of a substance will remain after a certain number of half-lives have occurred.
-Investigate how half-life is used to find the age of objects.
-Explore the nature of radioactive substances by understanding their half-life qualitatively and what that tells us about their stability.
-Understand how to graph the decay rate of a radioactive substance and relate this to the half-life of the substance.
-Calculate how much of a substance will remain after a certain number of half-lives have occurred.
-Investigate how half-life is used to find the age of objects.
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Vocabulary
carbon dating - a method of determining the age of substances that contain organic material by looking that the ratio of carbon-12 to carbon-14 they contain. half-life - the time it takes for half of a radioactive substance to decay. radioactive decay - the spontaneous emission of charged particles and/or energy from an atom. |