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Among the general population, there are many misconceptions and assumptions made about radiometric dating methods used to arrive at the age of fossils and the supporting environmental materials in which they were buried. The most widely known method for dating organic material is, of course, or carbon-14, an unstable radioactive isotope of carbon. As we know, life on earth is carbon-based. When lifeforms die, the concentration of the stable isotopes of carbon (12C and 13C) remain constant while   begins to decay (becoming  14N/nitrogen-14) at a predictable rate until there is none left. The dating process makes assumptions amount of 14C  present when the animal or plant died and compares it to the amount of existing 14C  in the sample at the time of measurement. The rate of radioactive decay is measured in half-lives (1 half-life = 5730 years) and the concentrations of 14C, 13C and 12C are usually measured today using an Accelerator Mass Spectrometer (AMS). After 10 to 12 half-lives, for most samples, 14C levels will have fallen below the limit of detection of the AMS.  This is why specimens, believed to be more than 70,000 years old, are not normally subjected to 14C dating. That brings us to an area needing further exploration, analysis and review which is the anomaly that dinosaur soft tissue from deep time, that has undergone radiometric testing, repeatedly returns positive results for the presence of 14C when the overwhelming expectation is for a negative result. What is/are the likely reason/s for this? There are now more than 120 papers in peer-reviewed journal articles reporting soft tissues in dinosaur and other deep-time organic remains. These scientific papers describe biological material, including tissue and DNA, remaining inside fossils. A full list, which is being continually updated, is provided here: *List of Biomaterial Fossil Papers Example papers for this topic: (67) Type 1 Collagen in Cretaceous mosasaur humerus 2011 *This list of biomaterial papers can provide useful information for research and posting on topics within the Dinosaur Project Community. Thanks to researchgate.net for making this list freely available.

Osteocytes are a type of specialized bone cell that play a crucial role in maintaining bone health and function. They are the most abundant cells found in mature bone tissue. Osteocytes are derived from osteoblasts, which are responsible for the formation of new bone but, instead of depositing new bone matrix, osteocytes become embedded within the bone matrix that has already been laid down. Osteocytes are located within small spaces called lacunae, surrounded by bone matrix known as the osteoid.   Nanotyranus osteocyte cells - (Images provided by Mark Armitage) Dinosaur osteocyte (bone) cell The lifetime of osteocytes post mortem can vary depending on environmental conditions and preservation methods. After an organism dies, cells start to degrade and undergo various changes. However, osteocytes, being encased within the mineralized bone matrix, can persist for some time after death. The mineralized bone matrix provides protection to the osteocytes, slowing down their degradation and decomposition In some cases, osteocytes remain preserved in bone tissue for several years or even decades.   Under normal conditions however these cells decay and there is no known mechanism to account for their persistence as recognisable bone cells into ‘deep time’ (millions of years). The observation of osteocytes in dinosaur bone samples therefore raises a number of questions, the main one being ‘how is this possible …?’ There are now more than 120 papers in peer-reviewed journal articles reporting soft tissues in dinosaur and other deep-time organic remains. These scientific papers describe biological material, including tissue and DNA, remaining inside fossils. A full list, which is being continually updated, is provided here: *List of Biomaterial Fossil Papers Example papers for this topic: (47) Triceratops blood vessels, osteocytes 2007 (69) Jurassic turtle osteocytes 2012 (73) Dino DNA & proteins actin, tubulin, PHEX, histone 2013 (77) Triceratops osteocytes; soft sheets of fibrillar bone 2013 (114) Hadrosaur eumelanin, blood vessel, osteocytes 2019 (122) Turtle blood vessels and osteocytes 2022 An additional paper not currently in the Biomaterial Fossil List: https://doi.org/10.1101/400176 Life Inside a Dinosaur Bone: a Thriving Microbiome 2018 *This list of biomaterial papers can provide useful information for research and posting on topics within the Dinosaur Project Community. Thanks to researchgate.net for making this list freely available.

The geological column, also known as the geologic column, is a fundamental concept in geology that represents the organization and relative timing of Earth's rock layers, strata, and the history of Earth's geological events. It is a visual representation of the Earth's history, displaying the sequence of rock formations, fossils, and events that have shaped the planet. The geological column is divided into different units called "geological periods" or "geological epochs," each representing a distinct interval of time in Earth's history. These periods are defined based on the types of fossils found in the rocks and the overall characteristics of the sedimentary layers. The geological periods are arranged in chronological order, from the oldest at the bottom to the youngest at the top. The idea of the geological column was developed in the 19th century by geologists and palaeontologists who studied rocks and fossils from various locations around the world. They noticed consistent patterns of sedimentary layering and fossil succession that allowed them to propose a coherent timeline of Earth's history. The standard geological column is typically divided into four main eras: 1. Precambrian: This is the oldest and longest era in Earth's history, covering about 88% of geological time. It is further divided into several eons, such as the Hadean, Archean, and Proterozoic, which include the earliest known rocks and evidence of life on Earth. 2. Paleozoic: Following the Precambrian, this era covers a significant span of time and is marked by the rise of complex life forms, including fish, amphibians, and early reptiles. It includes periods like the Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, and Permian. 3. Mesozoic: This era is often referred to as the "Age of Dinosaurs" and includes the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods. 4. Cenozoic: This is the most recent era, spanning from the end of the Mesozoic to the present day. It includes the Paleogene and Neogene periods, as well as the current ongoing period called the Quaternary. It's important to note that the geological column is a general representation of Earth's history, and local geological variations and unconformities can complicate the complete picture. Nonetheless, it serves as a valuable tool for understanding the relative ages of rocks, their approximate deposition sequence and the timing of events that have shaped the Earth over time. Although it is usually considered to have been laid down over hundreds of millions of years (geological or ‘deep time’) there are a number of observations that call that timescale into question. For example, it is well known and agreed that catastrophic processes of deposition can accelerate the usual ‘slow and gradual’ processes by orders of magnitude [https://creation.com/secular-neocatastrophism ]. Another evidence of rapid formation of the geological column is that soft tissue is found in pre-Cambrian layers [https://doi.org/10.1038/srep03497] as well as Quaternary layers https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03224-9 ]. In many case the soft tissues have the same form and features irrespective of the age estimates made according to the geological time [Schweitzer et al, Proc. Roy.Soc, B, 2007 (fig 3) doi: 10.1098/rspb.2006.3705). How could soft tissue have remained looking the same over millions of years…? There are now more than 120 papers in peer-reviewed journal articles reporting soft tissues in dinosaur and other deep-time organic remains. These scientific papers describe biological material, including tissue and DNA, remaining inside fossils. A full list, which is being continually updated, is provided here: *List of Biomaterial Fossil Papers Example papers for this topic: (47) Soft tissue and cellular preservation in vertebrate skeletal elements from the Cretaceous 2007 *This list of biomaterial papers can provide useful information for research and posting on topics within the Dinosaur Project Community. Thanks to researchgate.net for making this list freely available.