# Acuracy of carbon dating

If greater likelihood is sought, we could look at the interval 30 \pm 80$years, encompassing two standard deviations, and the likelihood that the half-life of a given sample of Carbon$ will fall in this range is a little over \$ percent.This task addresses a very important issue about precision in reporting and understanding statements in a realistic scientific context.

By taking a carboniferous specimen of known age (that is, a specimen which we are able to date with reasonable certainty through some archaeological means), scientists are able to determine what the ratio was during a specimen's lifetime.Unfortunately, we aren't able to reliably date artifacts beyond several thousand years.Scientists have tried to extend confidence in the carbon dating method further back in time by calibrating the method using tree ring dating.They are then able to calibrate the carbon dating method to produce fairly accurate results.Carbon dating is thus accurate within the timeframe set by other archaeological dating techniques.