Posted: Dec 25, 2012 6:40 pm
Atheistoclast wrote:Weaver wrote:I've noticed. So instead of nickel and dimeing us to death, how about you present a clear, concise, complete exposition of your claims, with appropriate references?
I prefer to tickle my opponents to death rather than just behead them with one fell swoop. In the meantime, you can read this Government report that discloses the uncertainty about Potassium-Argon dating methods:
Empirically Determined Uncertainty in Potassium-Argon Ages For Pilo-Pleistocene Basalts From Crater Flat, Nye County, Nevada
http://pbadupws.nrc.gov/docs/ML0319/ML031950526.pdf. Differential preservation of either potassium or argon in the crystallized rock as well as the evolution and character of the initial rockforming magma can contribute to real differences among K-Ar ratios from even a single lava flow. This, in turn, can lead to variations in age determinations of a crystallizing event. Another source of variation in radiometric age determinations is the difference in analytical methods and instruments used by various geochronology laboratories. Kuntz et al (1980) discuss these sources of age discrepancies for young basalts in detail. Variance among and within the subsamples and the overall laboratory-to-laboratory differences observed in this study supports previous conclusions that laboratory techniques contribute significantly to limits on the reproducibility for measurements of potassium and especially argon contents of young basalts. A small source of variation may be attributed to 'the use of different numerical values for electron and beta potassium decay constants. One laboratory in this study used 4.72 x 10-' per year for AO and 0.585 x 101- per year for e, whereas the other two laboratories used 4.96 x 10-10 per year and 0.681 x 10-'° per year for gfi and Xe, respectively. However, these differences caused negiligible variation among the reported ages. Isochron plots (Hayatsu and Carmichael, 1970; Shafiqullah and Damon, 1974) provide a method for estimating corrections for extraneous argon. This method must still rely on measured values for potassium and argon and does not explain the variance in these values.
lol, a report from 1983, completely unrelated to the subject of decay-rate constancy, speaking only about methodological issues in determining initial isotope contents in specific basalts from a specific area.
I see what you mean with tickling to death, I'm laughing alright.
