PREFACE
This book concerns the age and history of planet earth.
Just how old are its continents, mountains, seas, rocks, and fossils?
Some may reply that this question has already been answered by geologists.
The earth is said to be ancient, with a current age estimate of
about 4.56 billion years, or 4,560,000,000 years when written out.
The universe beyond the earth is assumed to be much older, going back
about 14 billion years. Just where do these incomprehensible numbers
come from? The earth's age is based on the radioisotope dating
of rocks and meteorites, a technique developed during the last century.
Age estimates for the rest of the universe follow largely from the
big-bang theory. These multi-billion year time spans are sometimes
called deep time, corresponding to deep space. Deep time refers to time
scales which are much larger than those by which we define our
lives. It should be remembered, however, that the existence of billions
of years of history is not a certainty. Deep time is a major icon or
symbol of evolution, a presumption which is challenged in the
subtitle of this book.
Evolutionary models for life, earth, and space are questioned today by a significant group of scientists worldwide. They are convinced that the earth and the entire universe are the result of a supernatural creation event which occurred just thousands of years ago, not billions of years. This book explains some of the fascinating scientific data which supports this recent-creation conclusion.
In addition to professional scientists, there are many others who have a special interest in earth history. This refers to all of us who hold a biblical world view. That is, we accept the Bible as the uniquely inspired book given to humanity by the Creator. The Bible tells us how to live and it also reveals many details of earth history including its approximate age. The straightforward reading of Scripture describes the earth and space as just thousands of years old, not millions or billions of years. Some have attempted to resolve this time difference by inserting vast ages into the biblical creation week. However, the results are neither satisfactory nor convincing. For some readers, the initial thought may be that the time of creation is not an important issue: "I believe God created everything and it simply does not matter when it all began, whether thousands, millions, or billions of years in the past." It may be true that the age of the earth is not obviously connected to the gospel message. However, many practical and profound implications follow from one's viewof the earth's age. These implications are fully explained in creationist literature (Morris, 2002).
The goal of this book is to "open the window" on the serious possibility that an ancient earth is a false and misleading assumption. In sharp contrast, the following pages present the scientific case for a recently created world. If this is true, then the conventional view of ancient earth history is grossly in error. It is readily acknowledged that belief in a young earth is a radical change from the standard teaching and writing in earth science. To grasp these contrasting views of age, consider one human generation as a basic unit of time, about 25 years. A world 6,000 years old then spans just 240 generations. However, 4.6 billion years of time would encompass 184 million generations. The young and old views of earth history indeed stand in stark contrast. The young-earth view is confidently promoted in this book because the Bible clearly points in this direction. All scientific data, as well, can be interpreted to support a recent creation. Not every reader will agree with this conclusion, but the following chapters offer challenging evidence for serious consideration.
CONTENTS
List of Figures ... 10
List of Tables ... 11
Preface ... 13
Introduction to RATE ... 17
1. A Brief History of Radiation Studies ... 21
2. Overview of Radioisotope Dating ... 33
3. Carbon-14 Dating ... 45
4. Helium Retention in Zircon Crystals ... 65
5. Radiohalos in Granite ... 81
6. Fission Tracks in Zircons ... 99
7. Discordant Radioisotope Dates ... 109
8. Radioisotope Dating Case Studies ... 123
9. Theories of Accelerated Nuclear Decay ... 141
10. A Proper Reading of Genesis 1:1—2:3 ... 157
11. RATE Conclusions ... 173
References ... 185
Name Index ... 187
Subject Index ... 189